In 2000, Archbishop George Carey and Cardinal Edward Cassidy, the then President of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, convoked a conference of Anglican and Roman Catholic bishops at Mississauga in Canada to discern the progress made in theological conversations, and whether closer co-operation could be developed between the two traditions. The result was the International Anglican – Roman Catholic Commission for Unity and Mission, which has been meeting since 2001.
IARCCUM works through pairs of bishops in particular countries, one Anglican and one Roman Catholic, meeting together and promoting shared mission. Every few years these pairs of “bishops at large” come together for a plenary meeting. In February 2007, it published the first fruit of its work, the Report Growing Together in Unity and Mission, accompanied by two commentaries.
The last plenary of IARCCUM bishops took place in Rome and Canterbury in 2016, marking the fiftieth anniversary of the signing of a common declaration by Archbishop Michael Ramsey and Pope Paul VI. The next plenary meeting is planned for October 2021.
IARRCUM's work continues under the Co-Chairmanship of Archbishop Don Bolen, the Catholic Archbishop of Regina, Saskatchewan and Bishop David Hamid, Suffragan Bishop of the Diocese in Europe. IARCCUM has an online resource centre for Anglican – Roman Catholic relations which can be found at www.iarrcum.org