Prayers for the Lambeth Conference and the bishops in attendance
Episcopal News Service. July 11, 2008 [071108-03]
The following prayer cycle for the Lambeth Conference has been written by John Gay and Mary Caulfield of St. James' Episcopal Church in Cambridge, Massachusetts, assisted by the Rev. Ian Douglas of Episcopal Divinity School, member of the Lambeth Conference Design Group, and the Rev. Holly Lyman Antolini, St. James' rector.
St. James' has a long history of involvement with active mission around the world, with missionaries currently serving in Ecuador and Burundi.
Gay taught for 40 years in Liberia and South Africa, among other places, and his wife, Judy, was the first woman ordained a priest in Lesotho. Caulfield volunteers with the Episcopal/Anglican Church of Brazil and during a mission trip this summer she will introduce Brazilian Anglicans to the children's religious formation programs Godly Play and Catechesis of the Good Shepherd.
Prayers for the Lambeth Conference and the bishops in attendance
July 13
Bless the bishops and their spouses as they travel to England to attend the Lambeth conference at Canterbury. Be present with the priests and lay people of the Church of England as they extend their welcome through the Hospitality Initiative, and help us all to entertain the angels in our midst.
July 14
Be present with the bishops and their spouses in their fellowship as they visit with the people of the Scottish Episcopal Church. Guide their shared worship and conversation, and grant that the spirit of welcome will strengthen the bishops for the work of the conference.
July 15
We pray for friendship between bishops and the people of the Church in Wales as they spend time with each other in hospitality and sharing. Bless this encounter between cultures and gather your diverse people to serve together in Christ.
July 16
Guide and protect all who are traveling to the Lambeth Conference in Canterbury, that they may be safe in all things from harm or accident, and give a spirit of wisdom and warmth to those who welcome them.
July 17
Bless and inspire Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams as he leads the opening retreat, that he may illuminate, and the bishops present may more fully understand, the meaning of an episcopal calling in service to God’s mission.
July 18
Watch over all those bishops who for reasons of health, finance, conscience or domestic concerns cannot attend the Lambeth Conference, that they may join their fellow bishops in shared love.
July 19
Give a spirit of forbearance and understanding to the bishops and colleagues assembled at the opening retreat, that they may open their hearts and minds to each other and to God’s mission as they look forward to the deliberations that lie ahead.
July 20
Raise up a joyous Spirit-led fellowship as hosts, bishops and spouses hear the Word of God and share the Body and Blood of Christ in the opening Eucharist of the 2008 Lambeth Conference.
July 21
We give thanks for our common history and your faithfulness to us in our shared history as members of the Anglican Communion. Help the bishops and spouses gathered in Canterbury to acknowledge that which unites us and to discover how they can glorify and serve you as they respond together to God’s call to mission.
July 22
Awaken the hearts and minds of participants in this Lambeth Conference to proclaim the good news of Christ’s resurrection and of eternal life in you, that all people may hear God’s invitation to faith and fellowship.
July 23
Arouse a passion among the assembled bishops for justice, well-being, and healing for all your people. Keep them always mindful that our use of resources can make a difference in the lives of others.
July 24
Be with the bishops and others meeting in London, as they witness to the possibility of reconciliation and human fulfillment in implementing the Millennium Development Goals.
July 25
Help us all, and especially our bishops assembled at Canterbury, to weave our Anglican particularities along with those of all other Christian brothers and sisters ecumenically into the multicolored rainbow tapestry that is the whole Body of Christ.
July 26
Forgive us our abuse of the God-given creation, and help our bishops chart a way forward to heal its wounds, so that we may restore the environment to wholeness, health and a sustainable future.
July 27
Bless and guide our bishops as they seek rest and restoration in Sabbath, so that they may begin again tomorrow with refreshed minds, souls and bodies. Give them new strength and vigor for the final week of the Conference.
July 28
Help the bishops gathered at Canterbury to see the possibilities of dialogue with other religions, and to share the Gospel in loving and generous humility with those who do not yet know Christ.
July 29
Be with the bishops and their spouses, as they engage together the realities of power and authority. Help them find ways to heal the wounds of gender abuse and to restore right relations between men and women.
July 30
Enlighten the bishops to receive the gifts of Holy Scripture with faithful hearts, rational minds and devout spirits, and to discern how these truths can be set forth in their communities.
July 31
Illuminate for us the deep and incomprehensible power of Love manifested in our human sexuality. Help the bishops understand how they may be faithful to that Love in a shared understanding of God’s mission.
August 1
Enable the bishops in Canterbury to approach with humility and mutual respect the complex issues inherent in their diverse visions of the Communion. Direct their work so that all may share in an ongoing development of an Anglican Covenant.
August 2
Guide the bishops of the Anglican Communion as they consider processes arising from the Windsor Report that can lead to the renewal of mutual responsibility and interdependence in the Body of Christ.
August 3
Bless all those who shared in and have been shaped by the meetings at Canterbury. Let their participation in the Body and Blood of Christ at the final Eucharist represent a fulfillment of the many conversations and a tangible sign of our unity in faith.
August 4
Keep safe the bishops, their spouses, their advisors, and all those who have made the 2008 Lambeth Conference a reality, as they return home to strive to be leaders in God’s mission and thus strengthen the Anglican Communion.