Lambeth Conference Daily Account: San Diego Bishop James Mathes and Western Massachusetts Bishop Gordon Scruton
Episcopal News Service, Canterbury. July 20, 2008 [072008-04]
San Diego Bishop James Mathes and Western Massachusetts Bishop Gordon Scruton offer the following Daily Account for July 20.
Today the morning dawned with the welcoming Eucharist, attended by Anglican bishops assembled for the Lambeth Conference, their spouses, Ecumenical participants, and others.
It was an amazing experience to be worshipping as a bishop in Canterbury Cathedral where some of the first seeds of Christianity were planted in England. The worship experience was deeper because we were in a familiar place, as we have prayed there in retreat for two days.
Sharing the Eucharist this morning was what it means to be in communion -- we worshipped, we broke bread and we had communion. We were the Anglican Communion worshipping with Christ with our Ecumenical partners in community.
The Archbishop of Canterbury presided at the Eucharist. The sermon was presented by the Rt. Rev. Duleep de Chickera, the Bishop of Colombo (Sri Lanka).
His imagery of brokenness of the world and brokenness of the church was an apt place for us to begin to think about mission. He harkened back to the retreat and our need for self-examination, to be built upon. He took us into what is means to be a church where everyone is welcomed, but we also need to be a prophetic church, which is often a redundant church.
The two-hour service was multicultural, multilingual in prayer, song and dance. The Melanesian brothers and sister danced the gospel and, seeing the dancers in traditional garb, kneeling around the compass rose where the gospel was proclaimed, was inspiring.
This afternoon was a plenary session in the "big top" (a large blue tent used for plenary sessions). This marked a major shift in the life of the conference, moving from retreat and worship to the consultation for the Lambeth Conference.
In his address, the Archbishop of Canterbury talked about a renewed structure for the Lambeth Conference and the Anglican Communion. He said it was time for revival for the Anglican Communion, and we are handing ourselves over God for this process.
The only way forward is to focus on the mission in Christ, he said, and the only way we can do that is by listening to each other.
When he began his address, he was greeted with a standing ovation that expressed the fact as a result of the meditation and his leadership through the retreat and in the worship this morning, there is a trust and a respect for his spiritual leadership. He has earned the pastoral trust in the community of the bishops.