Canterbury

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.