wfn.org | ACNS3423 Archbishop of Canterbury launches Trinity Institute

["Anglican Communion News Service" <acnslist@anglicancommunion.org>]

ACNS 3423     |     USA     |	  29 APRIL 2003

Archbishop of Canterbury launches Trinity Institute

by Maria Luisa Torres

[Trinity Institute] The Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Revd Rowan
Williams, returned to "Ground Zero" in lower Manhattan for the first time
since 11 September 2001, to preach a sermon on the spiritual significance of
listening to God and to one another.

He was speaking on 28 April at the opening Eucharist of Trinity Institute's
34th National Conference, at Trinity Church Wall Street. He addressed a
capacity audience, and heard the premiere of a musical setting to one of his
poems. The service - and the full proceedings of the conference - can be
seen and heard on www.trinitywallstreet.org.

On September 11, Archbishop Williams, other guests at a Trinity Television
taping and the parish's staff were forced to flee the area after the
collapse of the south tower of the World Trade Center. He undertook to
return for the Trinity Institute conference while he was still Archbishop of
Wales. The conference theme is "Shaping Holy Lives, Benedictine Spirituality
in the Contemporary World."

"We tend, all of us, to try to solve our problems by more talking, and less
listening," said Archbishop Williams in his sermon.

"As you read the Rule of St Benedict, what you see being defined before you
is a method for creating a listening community. And not simply a community
of people who are all listening to the same thing...but a community of
people who are listening intently to each other.

"It's one of the many ways in which the Rule of St Benedict tells us what
the community of Christ's disciples should be: a community of persons
listening intently to each other, so that they can listen to God; listening
to God intently, so they can listen to each other."

But, he asked, what do we listen for? And what are we listening for in each
other?

"We have a listening God, who, as we pray, listens his way into the very
depths of what we are...and so we too listen like that - or we try to,
because the strange thing about listening is that it is working with all our
energies and powers so that we may do nothing," said Archbishop Williams.
"We need not only the example, but the power and spirit of God, to help us
listen our way into the truth."

We are hungry for truth and wisdom, he added, which can be discovered only
by exposing ourselves to a listening God, and listening to one another in
turn.

"'Listen, child,' says the Rule of St Benedict - so let us do that," he
concluded.

At the offertory, Trinity's organist and choirmaster, Dr Owen Burdick,
premiered his setting of Rowan Williams' poem, Bach for the Cello. Dr
Burdick composed the music in honour of the Archbishop's visit and dedicated
it to the Revd Dr Frederic B Burnham, the retiring director of Trinity
Institute.

Archbishop Williams has written or edited more than 20 books on theology and
spirituality, including "Writing in the Dust," a reflection inspired by his
September 11 experience.

Other Trinity Institute speakers are authors Joan Chittister, Kathleen
Norris and Laurence Freeman.

[Photographs by Leo Sorel for the Parish of Trinity Church in the City of
New York of the Archbishop of Canterbury delivering his sermon on Monday
28th April in Trinity Church are available from
http://www.anglicancommunion.org/acns/]

__________________________________
ACNSlist, published by Anglican Communion News Service, London, is
distributed to more than 6,000 journalists and other readers around the
world.	For subscription information go to: 
www.anglicancommunion.org/acns/acnslist.html