Anglican Communion News Service

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, today welcomed senior church leaders and international development agencies at Lambeth Palace to pledge that the church will play a part in ending sexual violence and to launch a Tearfund report 'Silent No More'.

A memorial service was held in St Margaret's Church, Westminster, London for Shahbaz Batti the murdered Pakistan Minister of Minorities.

The Archbishop of Canterbury has sent a message of condolence to the Anglican Archbishop of Japan, the Most Revd Nathaniel Makoto Uematsu, expressing support and prayers for the Japanese people at this time.

USPG has announced that Janette O’Neill will take over as General Secretary/Chief Executive from 1st May of this year, when the current General Secretary, Bishop Michael Doe retires.

The co-founder of a leading UK Christian advertising group have launched a campaign to remind the British public that Christmas is about Jesus Christ. In a country considered to be increasingly secular, the group ChurchAds.net have spent the past decade designing thought-provoking campaigns to keep Christ at the centre of Christmas.

In a wide-ranging address to the General Synod in London, the Archbishop of Canterbury discusses the nature of human freedom and the value of listening and learning from one another, in both national and international debates, as well as those occurring during Synod this week.

The Archbishops of Canterbury and York have written to Bishops in the Church of England recommending the suspension of the sharing of the chalice at communion. The Archbishops’ letter follows advice from the Department of Health not to share “common vessels” for food or drink. For those who wish still to offer both bread and wine, the Archbishops have recommended use of “personal intinction by the presiding minister”

Clergy from the Church of England are being invited to provide respite for Sri Lankan priests in the war-torn country. CoE clergy will be asked to take over from Sri Lankan clergy in safe regions, so that those clergy can provide respite for their countrymen in conflict zones.

On Friday 6 March over 3 million people worldwide will be praying and worshipping together during an annual day of prayer, using a service prepared by Christian Women in Papua New Guinea. Papua New Guinea is a land of many ethnic groups and over 800 distinct languages of which more than half are unrelated. As a result, there is great cultural diversity, yet the women of Papua New Guinea have emphasised the oneness there is in Christ.

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams and The Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu, have launched a joint appeal to help counter the humanitarian crisis and deteriorating political situation in Zimbabwe. The Archbishops’ appeal for Zimbabwe highlights the support needed by churches, which are struggling to feed the hungry and heal the sick, and are suffering alongside their communities.

The Save Canterbury Cathedral Appeal has now reached the £9 million mark. The Appeal, established to fund an extensive £50 million conservation and development programme, has made good progress during the two years since its launch enabling critical conservation work to be carried out.

Web users looking for support during the current financial situation have boosted traffic to a Church of England website section focusing on debt advice by over 70 per cent, and increased visitor numbers to the Church’s online prayer page by more than a quarter.

The Archbishop of York launched the "Education For All" initiative during a session of the UN's emergency summit on Millennium Development Goals yesterday.

The Bishop of Middleton, the Rt Revd Mark Davies, is launching the first ever poll to find the UK’s ‘most heroic job’ according to the nation’s children. The online survey, at www.HeroVote.org, was launched at a school in Manchester today.

The Archbishop of York has given a cautious welcome to the news of the power sharing deal formally announced today in Zimbabwe between ZANU PF and the Movement for Democratic Change.

The Archbishop of York has called upon the Government to give fuller recognition to the work carried out by faith groups in the delivery of social services in England. Speaking at Westminster Central Hall event organised by Youth for Christ