Archbishop Justin Welby and Pope Francis commission and send out 19 pairs of bishops for joint mission. Photo: Anglican Centre in Rome
The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby and Pope Francis have commissioned 19 pairs of Anglican and Roman Catholic bishops from across the world to take part in united mission in their local areas. The bishops, selected by the International Anglican Roman Catholic Commission for Unity and Mission (IARCCUM) were “sent out” for mission together by the Pope and Archbishop from the same church were Pope Gregory sent Saint Augustine to evangelize the English in the sixth Century.
“Fourteen centuries ago Pope Gregory sent the servant of God, Augustine, first Archbishop of Canterbury, and his companions, from this holy place, to preach the joyful message of the Word of God,” Pope Francis told the bishops. “Today we send you, dear brothers, servants of God, with this same joyful message of his everlasting kingdom.”
Archbishop Justin Welby told them: “Our Saviour commissioned his disciples saying, ‘Peace be with you’. We too, send you out with his peace, a peace only he can give.
“May his peace bring freedom to those who are captive and oppressed, and may his peace bind into greater unity the people he has chosen as his own.”
The commissioning and sending out came in the setting of a Vespers service, led jointly by Pope Francis and Archbishop Welby, at the Church of Saint Gregory on the Caelian Hill in Rome.
The service was one of the highlights of an ecumenical summit organized by IARCCUM to mark the 50th anniversary of the meeting between Pope Paul VI and Archbishop Michael Ramsey in 1966 – the first such public meeting between a Pope and an Archbishop of Canterbury since the Reformation. The summit, which began at the weekend in Canterbury and is continuing in the Vatican, will also mark the 50th anniversary of the Anglican Centre in Rome.
The Commissioned pairs of bishops are
Australia
Anglican: Bishop of Wangaratta, John Parkes
Catholic: Archbishop of Canberra-Goulburn, Christopher Prowse
Belgium
Anglican: Bishop in Europe, Robert Innes
Catholic: Bishop of Antwerp, Johan Bonny
Brazil
Anglican: Bishop of São Paulo, Flavio Irala
Catholic: Bishop of Barra do-Pirai-Volta, Francisco Biasin
Canada
Anglican: Bishop of Quebec, Dennis Drainville
Catholic: Bishop of Victoria, Gary Gordon
Central Africa
Anglican: Bishop of Northern Malawi, Fanuel Magangani
Catholic: Bishop of Dedza, Malawi, Emmanuel Kanyama
England
Anglican: Bishop of Truro, Tim Thornton
Catholic: Bishop of Plymouth, Mark O’Toole
France
Anglican: Suffragan Bishop in Europe, David Hamid
Catholic: Bishop of Toulouse, Robert Le Gall
Ghana / West Africa
Anglican: Bishop of Cape Coast, Victor Atta-Baffoe
Catholic: Bishop of Damongo, Peter Paul Angkyier
Hong Kong / China
Anglican: Bishop of Western Kowloon, Andrew Chan
Catholic: Auxiliary Bishop of Hong Kong, Michael Yeung
India
Anglican: Bishop of Malabar, Royce Victor
Catholic: Archbishop of Vasai, Felix Machado
Ireland
Anglican: Bishop of Limerick, Kenneth Kearon
Catholic: Bishop of Limerick, Brendan Leahy
Middle East / Horn of Africa
Anglican: Bishop of the Horn of Africa in the Diocese of Egypt, Grant Le Marquand
Catholic: Archbishop of Beirut, Paul el-Sayah
Melanesia
Anglican: Bishop of Guadalcanal, Nathan Tome
Catholic: Bishop of Port-Vila, Jean Baremes
New Zealand
Anglican: Bishop of Auckland, Ross Bay
Catholic: Archbishop of Wellington, John Dew
Pakistan
Anglican: Bishop of Sialkot, Samuel Alwin
Catholic: Archbishop of Lahore, Sebastian Shaw
Papua New Guinea
Anglican: Bishop of Port Moresby, Denny Guka
Catholic: Bishop of Kimbe, William Fey
South Africa
Anglican: Bishop of Natal, Nkosinathi Ndwandwe
Catholic: Bishop of Dundee, Graham Rose
Sri Lanka
Anglican: Bishop of Colombo, Dhiloraj Canagasabey
Catholic: Auxiliary Bishop of Colombo, Emmanuel Fernando
USA
Anglican: Bishop of Tennessee, John Bauerschmidt
Catholic: Auxiliary Bishop of Baltimore, Dennis Madden