If a newcomer to the Episcopal Church were to peruse our national and diocesan publications, it would not take long to discover that there are many issues which divide us. When, in our local congregations, we encounter such issues on the diocesan or national level, we often have the tendency to recoil, away from involvement in the wider circles of the church, back to our parishes, and sometimes further back to our own homes.

However, if we chose, rather than retreating, to reach beyond the level of our frustration, we might find that there is a wider beauty in the Anglican Communion which many Episcopalians have never explored, nor had the opportunity to celebrate.

Just as we trace our Episcopal tradition back through the Revolution, to the Church of England, so Christians the world over refer to themselves as Anglicans, in recognition that the gospel first came to them through the Church of England. Today, that Communion is diverse and independent, joined together not by legislation or authority, but through our common bond in Christ.

There are roughly 2 million Episcopalians in the United States. But there are 70 million Anglicans around the world who will be represented at the Lambeth Conference in Canterbury, England, this summer by more than 800 bishops, among whom will probably be the bishop of your diocese. Because the conference is held only every 10 years, a bishop with an average tenure may have the opportunity to attend only one Lambeth Conference.

Convened by the Archbishop of Canterbury, who is the 103rd Archbishop, the Most Rev. and Rt. Hon. George L. Carey, the 13th Lambeth Conference will be a remarkable contrast to the first Lambeth gathering in 1867. At the first conference, Archbishop Longley gathered the 76 (English speaking) bishops at his London residence, Lambeth Palace, on the Thames River. In 1978, because the number of bishops had exceeded the capacity of Lambeth Palace, the conference was moved to Canterbury, whose cathedral houses the archbishop's official seat.

With 300 more bishops in attendance than the 1988 conference, the archbishop and the staff of the Anglican Communion office will have to perform the miracle of Pentecost in order to set up a communications system which reaches 800 bishops, most of whom do not speak English as their first language.

The archbishop has extended the invitations to the bishops, and has called them to a time of study, sharing and prayer.

In his words, "It is my prayer that the Holy Spirit will lead us in an openly constructive way to look to the future with confidence as we proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ. The story we have to tell is life changing, and we should not falter in the call to make Christ known to all people. I hope that Lambeth 1998 will be supported by all the Communion as the bishops meet in the dying years of the present millennium. Effective leadership depends upon vision, faith and commitment. Lambeth '98 will help to focus the minds and hearts of all bishops as the Anglican Communion prepares for the challenges and opportunities of the new century."

Above all, it is the call to prayer which reaches the heart of our congregations.

The Rev. David Duprey is the rector of St. Peter's Church, Sheridan, Wyo.