Meeting in Accra, Ghana in the midst of the growing Christian movement in
Africa, Pope John Paul II, left, and Archbishop of Canterbury Robert Runcie declared
that time was too short "to waste Christian energy pursuing old rivalries. " Archbishop
Runcie, spiritual leader of the 65-million-member worldwide Anglican Communion, spent
about an hour with the Pope on May 9 in what both described as a "joyful and moving occa-
sion. " The churches the two men head have the largest Christian membership on the
African continent. The Pope and the Archbishop met when their paths crossed on tours
of Roman Catholic and Anglican churches. In a joint statement, the two leaders said, in
part: "Today in Accra the Pope and the Archbishop of Canterbury have established a per-
sonal friendship and trust upon which they intend to build in meetings in the future. They
look forward to working together to achieve the unity for which Christ prayed to his heavenly
Father." (Photo Credit: Wide World Photos).
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