wfn.org | Archbishop of Canterbury George Carey at final press conference

["Lambeth98" <storm@indigo.ie>]

ACNS LC099 - 7 August 1998

Statement by Archbishop of Canterbury George Carey
at final press conference

Ladies and Gentlemen, we are coming towards the end of a very
busy, challenging, but I think extremely rewarding Lambeth
Conference, and I am sure that, like me, you are looking forward
to going home, going on holiday, and generally recovering a bit
of normality.  But I want, straight away, to acknowledge and
thank those who have worked enormously hard to make the
Conference welcoming and smoothly run.  Of course, there have
been occasional hitches - that is inevitable in an enterprise
this big, but, essentially, I sense that in practical terms the
Conference has gone very well indeed.  So, thank you to the
University of Kent, to the Conference management team, to the
technical wizardry provided by Creative Realisation, and the hard
work of many local people from the Diocese and City of
Canterbury. 

Now, I read an article earlier this week, written by one of you
which was critical of the Conference, and suggested that the 750
bishops have been seriously dislocated from reality.  The article
ended with an invitation to us to accept the Conference for what
it is, and I quote, "a theology seminar with a lot of praying, of
little interest to anyone except its participants and a few
devotees back home".  Well, I for one accept with alacrity the
proposal that we have been engaged principally in prayer and
study.  I hope that few people will take any gathering of
Christians to task for that.  Whether anyone takes an interest in
our work as a result is not within my control, or that of any of
the other participants.

What is clear is that some of you, members of the press, have
consistently been with us for the whole three weeks and have
generally decided that there have been things worth reporting. 
So, I want to pay tribute to you all, not only for your stamina,
but also for the quality of your reporting.  None of us expected
you to be uncritical, but in general, you have been constructive,
and have entered into the tasks and subjects which the Conference
has tackled with energy and fairness.  Thank you.  I also want to
pay tribute to the team of bishops who have headed up the
Communications team, and the staff who have supported them.  The
bishops have given up significant time which they might have
preferred to have spent in bible study groups or elsewhere, in
order to help you and inform you.  So thank you all, and Robin
Eames especially.

But what has the Conference achieved?  I know that is a question
which you are all asking.  Well, let me list some of them.

1. First, it has brought together those in key leadership
positions throughout the Anglican Communion and the United
Churches to share stories, to study and to worship together and
to try to come to a common mind on issues which affect their
leadership.  For effective leadership in an international church,
that is absolutely crucial.  I believe that our Communion is
significantly stronger than when we began, because bishops have
met each other face to face, shared their stories of pain, of
joy, of hope.

2. Leading on from that, we have had the opportunity of wrestling
together over the three weeks with issues which are profoundly
important for the life of people and churches around the world. 
The stories we have heard, and the issues with which we struggled
have been real, relevant, and often very moving.  Over and over
again, bishops have demonstrated that they are very far from
being dislocated from reality.  We are all affected by the
problems which come with abject poverty, international debt,
persecution, with secularisation and technological change.  We
have heard marvellous stories of fortitude and heroism in the
face of a multitude of problems, and have tried to offer an
honest message to the Communion, and to the wider world, of where
our common understanding rests at this moment.  We do not pretend
to be authoritative or that we can provide answers to everything
that challenges us, but we are inviting others to hear us, and to
join us in our continued thinking.

3. On the subject of International Debt, it has been acknowledged
on all sides that the voice of the churches has certainly
encouraged the G8 nations to look seriously at the issue; and our
plenary presentation and the meeting at Lambeth Palace proved
this.  The resolution we have passed provides a further, mature
reflection which will be communicated to all those with whom we
are in conversation.  It is a challenge not only to politicians
and economists, but to the churches as well.  I would simply say,
'Watch this space'.

4. We have emphasised, rightly, the importance of our
relationships with other faiths.  The different experiences of
Anglicans, which we have heard graphically described, make the
significance of this subject self-evident.

5. On human sexuality, we have been quite open about
acknowledging our differences.  We have worked hard, and the
result, while restating a traditional position on homosexual
practice, clearly includes homosexual people in the Church.  We
have clearly stated that all baptised people are full members of
the Body of Christ, and we specifically included the commitment
to continue to listen to the experience of gay and lesbian
Christians.  I am sad that our resolution has caused them such
pain.  I can only try to reassure them of my commitment to
continue to listen, and to try to understand more of their
experience of the Church, and I invite them to continue the
journey with us, however painful, and I ask them to listen to the
voice of the Church as much as the rest of us must listen to
them. 

6. There have been many other issues, of equal importance in our
common life. These include the witness of young people, and our
relations with other Christian Churches  (and may I say what a
pleasure it has been to have so many representatives playing a
full and valuable part in the Conference).  The question of
appropriate structures of authority for the Communion to carry us
forward confidently in the next century have been carefully and
imaginatively explored.

7. I want to pay tribute to the Spouses Programme which has made
an enormous contribution to the success of the Conference.  Those
of you who saw "Crowning Glory" last night will know what I mean.

8. So, in conclusion, I am encouraged by the Conference, by the
depth of sharing and the commitment to serve Christ in his needy
world. 

For further information, contact:

   Lambeth Conference Communications
   Canterbury Business School
   University of Kent at Canterbury
   Telephone: 01227 827348/9
   Fax: 01227 828085
   Mobile: 0374 800212

   http://www.lambethconference.org