Anglican meeting in Rome for the first time and with a visit to the Pope

For the first time, leading clergy of the Anglican world comm union are holding their central meeting in Rome. A meeting with Pope Francis is also planned at the Primates' Meeting next week (29 April to 3 May), as announced by the Anglican Church in Canterbury. A meeting with the Secretary General of the Catholic World Synod, Cardinal Mario Grech, is also on the programme. The aim is to discuss the importance and possibilities of synodality, i.e. joint co-operation, for the entire Church. The Primates want to discuss the structure and decision-making in the Anglican Communion among themselves.

The Primates' Meeting is designed as a pilgrimage with joint prayer and Bible study, visits to holy sites and discussions on the mission of the Church in the world. The programme of visits includes St. Peter's Basilica, the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls, the Church of Santa Maria in Trastevere and the Catholic lay organisation Sant'Egidio, which is particularly committed to peace and disadvantaged people.

Ecumenical signal

At the end of January, there was an Anglican-Catholic meeting in Rome and Canterbury, at which around 50 bishops from 27 countries held talks and visited holy sites that are important to both traditions.

Pope Francis and the Anglican Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby sent out a strong ecumenical signal: at the tomb of St Paul the Apostle in St Paul Outside the Walls, they commissioned Catholic and Anglican bishops in pairs to be witnesses of unity. The Anglican world communion comprises between 77 and 85 million members. (KNA)