Anglican Communion News Service - Digest News

Prayer for Ireland: One Community into a Peaceful Future

Every St Patrick's Day takes place in the context of a specific year with specific events in our minds. This year, we cannot but think of the recent murder of two soldiers and a member of the PSNI. Those murders are entirely opposed to the message and example of Patrick. Here was a man from Britain who gave his life to bless the people of Ireland, so that they might be freed from destructive ways of living, and brought into the glorious liberty of the Gospel of Christ.

[More]

From the Most Revd Alan Harper, OBE, Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland:

For a second time within a space of 48 hours death has been brought to our streets, grief visited upon families and colleagues, and injury done both to individual persons and to all the people of Ireland, north and south. My thoughts and prayers go out to the family and friends of the police officer who was plucked from our midst as he and his colleagues went about their legitimate duty serving and protecting the people of Craigavon. I ask that throughout the Church of Ireland next Sunday we remember those who have died and pray for the bereaved and injured.

[More]

The Anglican Diocese of Jerusalem operates the Al Ahli Hospital in the heart of Gaza City. It is providing essential frontline medical and emergency humanitarian services to those coming or being brought directly to it. Additionally, it is receiving patients transferred by UNRWA from the Government Hospital Al Shiffa for emergency inpatient and surgical treatment of the wounded and injured. As a non-partisan well established hospital, it is receiving patients from all directions. The number of casualties arriving at the hospital in the present tragic situation is straining its resources and ability to cope almost beyond breaking point.

[More]

The Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland, the Most Revd Alan Harper, OBE, last night (12/11/08) gave a notable talk entitled, 'The Power and Significance of Sacred Space' at the Armagh Club, Upper English Street, Armagh, organised by the Ulster Architectural Heritage Society. In his wide-ranging paper, which discussed sacred buildings, sites and structures in a ritual landscape and the importance of burial grounds, he expressed his belief that sacred spaces offer an opportunity to experience 'otherness' and called for 'a more reverent and less utilitarian approach to our estimation and evaluation' for burials.

[More]

Churches around the world mark the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity traditionally from 18-25 January between the feasts of St. Peter and St. Paul.

Each year, a different country is invited to write the initial worship material, which can be adapted for local use. In 2009, the Churches of Korea have written the material and the CTBI Writers Group has adapted it.

[More]

Preaching in St Nicholas Collegiate Church in Galway at a Eucharist for members of the Church of Ireland General Synod, the Archbishop of Dublin, the Most Revd Dr John Neill said that the crisis in the Anglican Communion “can be viewed positively.” His comments come in the lead up to the 14th Lambeth Conference when he, for the third time and the Archbishop of Armagh and the other Bishops of the Church of Ireland will travel to Canterbury England for a once a decade conference of worldwide Anglican Bishops.

[More]

In his Presidential address at the opening of the three day General Synod of the Church of Ireland, the Archbishop of Armagh, the Most Revd Alan Harper will reflect on the recent visit by the four Irish Church leaders to the Holy Land at the invitation of Trócaire and Christian Aid. Archbishop Harper joined Cardinal Seán Brady, the Revd Roy Cooper, President of the Methodist Church and the Revd John Finlay for a four day visit to Jerusalem and Bethlehem (29 April - 2 May).

[More]

A new database recording stained glass windows in Church of Ireland churches will be launched at the Irish Architectural Archive at 6.00pm on Monday 28th April.

Named Gloine (glass), the new database will allow users to search for windows by church or architect's name, geographical location, names of stained glass artists and studios, dates, religious subject-matter and other categories besides.

[More]

The Most Reverend Alan Harper - The Archbishop of Armagh

Those of us who live in Northern Ireland approach the season of Easter having passed through the tenth anniversary of the Good Friday (Belfast) Agreement of 1998. Although the complete outworking of that agreement is not yet achieved, the progress that we have seen in the establishment of durable community structures and renewed opportunities for community harmony seem little short of miraculous.

[More]

The Most Revd John Neill, Archbishop of Dublin

As the Anglican Communion has developed into a worldwide communion of Churches, it has embraced a rich variety of cultures, languages and local identity. Each Church has usually expressed, as a vital part of that identity, its communion with either the Church of England or the See of Canterbury. This communion has been given visible expression since the nineteenth century by the Lambeth Conference of Bishops, called by the Archbishop of Canterbury.

[More]

Buckingham Palace has announced that the Queen, accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh, is to distribute the Royal Maundy in St Patrick’s Church of Ireland Cathedral, Armagh, on Thursday 20 March. This is the first time the Office for the Royal Maundy is being held outside England and Wales. In fact, only once was it held in Wales, in St David’s Cathedral in 1982.

[More]

To view the response please follow the link below:

http://www.ireland.anglican.org/cmsfiles/pdf/Information/Submissions/ac_resp1107.pdf

Ends

[More]

Cathedrals and parish churches in Ireland will ring their bells at 2 o'clock on Saturday, 8 December, to mark the Global Day of Action on Climate Change.

[More]

Director of the Church of Ireland Theological Institute

The House of Bishops of the Church of Ireland today announced that the Revd Dr Maurice Elliott is to be the new Director of the Church of Ireland Theological Institute.

[More]

Archbishop Alan Harper today said:

"I welcome the announcement by the UDA that the UFF is to stand down and that weaponry will be put beyond use. I believe that this is an important step in the process of the normalisation of society in loyalist areas.

[More]

Preaching on the Church of Ireland’s ‘Hard Gospel Sunday' (9th September) in St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin, the editor of The Church of Ireland Gazette, Canon Ian Ellis, will say that there must be a renewed determination in the international community to protect religious freedom around the world.

[More]

Teenagers from Ballyholme parish in Bangor, Co Down, gave up a week of their holidays to run a programme of activities for children in Ballysillan, north Belfast.

The new Bishop of Connor, the Rt Revd Alan Abernethy, dropped in on July 25 to join the fun and meet a few old friends. The Bishop was rector of Ballyholme parish for 17 years before his consecration in Connor Diocese in June.

[More]

It was announced today that the Church of Ireland Bishops Appeal has approved an emergency grant of 20,000 Euro for relief work in Darfur.

The region of Darfur in Western Sudan has been suffering over four years of conflict leading to the displacement of over two million people. The latest research published in September 2006 in the journal Science puts the numbers of deaths at ‘no fewer than 200,000’.

[More]

House of Bishops meetings are normally held in Dublin, but in response to an invitation from the Bishop of Derry and Raphoe, the Right Revd Ken Good, their three day meeting will take place in Derry on this occasion, where in the course of a busy schedule they will meet the Mayor, Councillor Helen Quigley, senior clergy including Bishop Hegarty and Bishop Boyce, and many of the local MLAs.

[More]

Annually the Church of Ireland and Roman Catholic bishops of Clogher host an open air service which is cross-community. They do so in the conviction that Pentecost marks the birth of the Christian Church as well as heralding the divine gift of the Holy Spirit to the world. This year’s Service is held in Aghalurcher Old Graveyard, near Lisnaskea in County Fermanagh. Worship is led by young people and adults from across the traditions.

[More]