Ecumenists know a thing or two about having a good conversation, and the Lambeth Conference could learn from this.
So says the Rev. Canon Alyson Barnett-Cowan in a reflection posted on General Synod’s Lambeth website. (The Lambeth Conference will gather all Anglican bishops in Canterbury, Eng., from July 16 to Aug. 3.) The Rev. Barnett-Cowan writes not only as Director of Faith, Worship, and Ministry at General Synod, but also an experienced leader of ecumenical discussions and an ecumenical staff at Lambeth.
“The Archbishop of Canterbury would like the upcoming Lambeth Conference to be a place of meeting and dialogue,” she writes, “and it is precisely the meeting together in a mode of listening and prayer that has propelled ecumenism.”
The Rev. Barnett-Cowan also passes on some principles for dialogue that may be useful at Lambeth, including this challenging thought: “We should presume that those with whom we differ are acting in good faith.”
Read the full reflection here, and visit the Anglican Church of Canada’s Lambeth information hub for more news and commentaries.
Interested in keeping up-to-date on news, opinion, events and resources from the Anglican Church of Canada? Sign up for our email alerts .