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The Independent
21-04-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Archbishop of York: Saying Lord's Prayer with Pope Francis changed me
The Church of England's most senior bishop has recalled how meeting the Pope and saying the Lord's Prayer together 'changed me'. Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell said he had been privileged to meet Pope Francis on a few occasions, and remembered one encounter a few years ago when they prayed together. Mr Cottrell said despite having said the Lord's Prayer – also known as the Our Father – countless times before, it was when he said it with Francis that the significance of the word 'our' came through. He told Sky News: 'I've said the Lord's Prayer thousands of times – I say it every day – but sitting there saying the Lord's Prayer with Pope Francis, the opening word of the Lord's Prayer suddenly struck me – our. 'Our Father, our God, and what that means, therefore, is that everybody else who says this prayer is my sister and my brother, whether I like it or not, these are the people that God has made into his church. 'And just saying the Lord's Prayer with Pope Francis changed me – changed and renewed and refreshed my understanding of what it is to be the church, that we belong to each other across these denominational barriers, and then I think, 'what a message for the world'. 'We live in a world that's so divided, you know, where the church itself has made many mistakes and failings. We need to be a humble church. 'We need to be a penitent church but we also need to be a church where we recognise our common humanity and our belonging one to another. That's what Pope Francis reawakened in me, and I believe that will be his great legacy, both to the church but also to the world.' Mr Cottrell has faced his own difficulties in recent times, including calls to resign over alleged safeguarding failures in the Church of England. In February at the church's General Synod – also know as the Church of England's parliament – Mr Cottrell admitted he had 'made mistakes' but vowed he is 'determined' to do what he can to work with others 'to lead the change we all know we need'. Continuing his praise of Pope Francis on Sky News, the archbishop said the pontiff had died while still serving the faithful of the Catholic church. Noting Francis's appearance on Easter Sunday to bless the thousands of people gathered in St Peter's Square in Vatican City, Mr Cottrell said: 'It's amazing, isn't it, that, you know he, as it were, died with his boots on. 'Still serving, still praying, still blessing, still doing the things that Christian ministers do. And again, that characterizes his ministry.'
Belfast Telegraph
21-04-2025
- Politics
- Belfast Telegraph
Archbishop of York: Saying Lord's Prayer with Pope Francis changed me
Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell said he had been privileged to meet Pope Francis on a few occasions, and remembered one encounter a few years ago when they prayed together. Mr Cottrell said despite having said the Lord's Prayer – also known as the Our Father – countless times before, it was when he said it with Francis that the significance of the word 'our' came through. He told Sky News: 'I've said the Lord's Prayer thousands of times – I say it every day – but sitting there saying the Lord's Prayer with Pope Francis, the opening word of the Lord's Prayer suddenly struck me – our. 'Our Father, our God, and what that means, therefore, is that everybody else who says this prayer is my sister and my brother, whether I like it or not, these are the people that God has made into his church. 'And just saying the Lord's Prayer with Pope Francis changed me – changed and renewed and refreshed my understanding of what it is to be the church, that we belong to each other across these denominational barriers, and then I think, 'what a message for the world'. 'We live in a world that's so divided, you know, where the church itself has made many mistakes and failings. We need to be a humble church. 'We need to be a penitent church but we also need to be a church where we recognise our common humanity and our belonging one to another. That's what Pope Francis reawakened in me, and I believe that will be his great legacy, both to the church but also to the world.' We need your consent to load this Social Media content. We use a number of different Social Media outlets to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Mr Cottrell has faced his own difficulties in recent times, including calls to resign over alleged safeguarding failures in the Church of England. In February at the church's General Synod – also know as the Church of England's parliament – Mr Cottrell admitted he had 'made mistakes' but vowed he is 'determined' to do what he can to work with others 'to lead the change we all know we need'. Continuing his praise of Pope Francis on Sky News, the archbishop said the pontiff had died while still serving the faithful of the Catholic church. Noting Francis's appearance on Easter Sunday to bless the thousands of people gathered in St Peter's Square in Vatican City, Mr Cottrell said: 'It's amazing, isn't it, that, you know he, as it were, died with his boots on. 'Still serving, still praying, still blessing, still doing the things that Christian ministers do. And again, that characterizes his ministry.'
Yahoo
21-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Archbishop of York: Saying Lord's Prayer with Pope Francis changed me
The Church of England's most senior bishop has recalled how meeting the Pope and saying the Lord's Prayer together 'changed me'. Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell said he had been privileged to meet Pope Francis on a few occasions, and remembered one encounter a few years ago when they prayed together. Mr Cottrell said despite having said the Lord's Prayer – also known as the Our Father – countless times before, it was when he said it with Francis that the significance of the word 'our' came through. He told Sky News: 'I've said the Lord's Prayer thousands of times – I say it every day – but sitting there saying the Lord's Prayer with Pope Francis, the opening word of the Lord's Prayer suddenly struck me – our. 'Our Father, our God, and what that means, therefore, is that everybody else who says this prayer is my sister and my brother, whether I like it or not, these are the people that God has made into his church. 'And just saying the Lord's Prayer with Pope Francis changed me – changed and renewed and refreshed my understanding of what it is to be the church, that we belong to each other across these denominational barriers, and then I think, 'what a message for the world'. 'We live in a world that's so divided, you know, where the church itself has made many mistakes and failings. We need to be a humble church. 'We need to be a penitent church but we also need to be a church where we recognise our common humanity and our belonging one to another. That's what Pope Francis reawakened in me, and I believe that will be his great legacy, both to the church but also to the world.' A statement on the death of His Holiness, Pope Francis.@Pontifex — Archbishop of York (@CottrellStephen) April 21, 2025 Mr Cottrell has faced his own difficulties in recent times, including calls to resign over alleged safeguarding failures in the Church of England. In February at the church's General Synod – also know as the Church of England's parliament – Mr Cottrell admitted he had 'made mistakes' but vowed he is 'determined' to do what he can to work with others 'to lead the change we all know we need'. Continuing his praise of Pope Francis on Sky News, the archbishop said the pontiff had died while still serving the faithful of the Catholic church. Noting Francis's appearance on Easter Sunday to bless the thousands of people gathered in St Peter's Square in Vatican City, Mr Cottrell said: 'It's amazing, isn't it, that, you know he, as it were, died with his boots on. 'Still serving, still praying, still blessing, still doing the things that Christian ministers do. And again, that characterizes his ministry.'
Telegraph
14-04-2025
- General
- Telegraph
The Church of England must face the cold reality of its net zero drive
SIR – Janet Eastham and Natasha Leake once again highlight the damaging effects of the Church of England's net zero policy (report, April 12). Listed churches with shrinking congregations are being pressured into installing unaffordable and often unsuitable heat pumps and under-pew heaters. These may be fine for a small building with reasonable insulation, but a typical Norman or Victorian church with high ceilings and lots of stained glass windows will often require the power of an oil or gas boiler, along with fan radiators, if it is to be heated to a comfortable standard. General Synod passed the net zero rules, leaving parish administrators with little choice but to comply. It would be interesting, however, if the Church dared to commission a survey to see what its general membership thinks of this policy. Ian Graham Carlisle, Cumbria SIR – Thanks to a bequest, our church – which holds 300 people – has been able to scrap its 100-year-old oil boiler and install under-pew electric heating. This cost £20,000 (after VAT recovery). The new devices provide controllable heat directly where it is needed, to the great satisfaction of the congregation. It would really make sense for the central Church to provide grants for this purpose – alongside those already available – to churches less fortunate than mine, while dropping its foolish insistence on trying to make all these ancient buildings green. The £100 million that has been set aside for slavery reparations could certainly help. Donald R Clarke Tunbridge Wells, Kent SIR – I am a churchwarden at a large, Grade I listed church in the Bristol diocese, a mere four miles from the church at Acton Turville mentioned in your article. We spent about £50,000 on an electric chandelier and ancillary heaters last year (under-pew heaters would not have been efficient). Although funding is always a problem for rural parishes, we were fortunate to have received a legacy. We were also able to get a grant from the National Churches Trust. Most importantly, however, we have a very supportive diocese advisory committee, which understood our needs and was keen to help. In my experience this is key when carrying out work on a parish church. Paul White Marshfield, Wiltshire SIR – I was saddened to read of the heating problems at the parish church of Chislet, Kent. The village had a working coal mine until 1969 (part of the now largely forgotten Kent mining area). This was abandoned when steam railways came to an end – with untapped reserves of coal still there. Mark Robbins Bruton, Somerset
The Independent
30-03-2025
- The Independent
Justin Welby: I might preach in future but hope to never be on telly again
Justin Welby said he wants 'total obscurity' following his first interview since resigning over the handling of abuse allegations in the Church of England, but added that he might ask permission to preach in future. The former archbishop of Canterbury also indicated he could see the Anglican Communion – a global community of 85 million Anglicans – split but said this would be 'a total tragedy' if it happened. Mr Welby, in his first television interview since standing down, also responded 'why not?' when asked about his successor being a woman and from another country. The former archbishop resigned last year and stepped down officially in early January after the Makin review concluded he had not done enough to deal with allegations of abuse by the now notorious Christian camp leader John Smyth. In the lengthy interview with the Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme, he said he hopes never to appear on television again and wants to focus on 'mediation and reconciliation'. Asked about his future plans, Mr Welby told the BBC programme: 'I suppose in my ideal world, I would like to focus very much on mediation and reconciliation in this country and abroad, which I've done for over 20 years. 'I would love to be more involved in that and never, after today, to be on telly again. In other words, disappear. 'I'm looking for total obscurity.' While he resigned from his role as the most senior bishop in the Church, Mr Welby remains a bishop but does not currently have permission to officiate. Asked if he would want to preach again, he said: 'I have to ask permission and that will be up to the Church.' He said he would 'obey it and not grumble' no matter what decision a request might lead to. Pressed on whether he would like to be back at a pulpit, he said: 'Probably. But if I'm not, I'm perfectly content.' It was revealed in February that Mr Welby was given permission to live at Lambeth Palace with his family until early summer, despite quitting as archbishop of Canterbury. Papers released ahead of the General Synod showed that while his last official day as the most senior bishop in the Church of England was January 6, he was being allowed to stay at the London palace's private quarters for up to six months. Asked about what he would be doing next, he told the BBC he would be moving house 'as soon as we get through the process' and 'downsize as we throw away 45 years of married clutter'. Meanwhile, Mr Welby said he could see the wider Anglican Communion, of which the archbishop of Canterbury is the spiritual leader, split in future over differences in opinion around same-sex relationships and women in the Church. It was put to him that it could become impossible to keep a community of 85 million people with such wide-ranging views together and that some believe the Anglican Communion should split. He replied: 'I can see it happening. I think it would be a total tragedy because when families split, it always leaves huge damage for everyone.' He said the 'richness of the Anglican Communion' is 'its incredible impact in places of conflict and war' and its 'extraordinary diversity'. Asked if the future archbishop of Canterbury should come from somewhere such as Cairo or Kenya, he said: 'Why not? But that's nothing to do with me. I have no involvement at all.' Asked about a future holder of the role being a woman, he replied: 'Why not? That's perfectly proper.' The process to select the 106th appointment to the role is underway, with a public consultation on views on the 'gifts, qualities and skills needed' for the role having closed on Friday. Historically, candidates have been people who already have senior leadership roles in ministry in the Church or elsewhere in the Anglican Communion. The Crown Nominations Commission (CNC) is the body charged with nominating the new archbishop. It is usual that the name of the CNC's recommended candidate is given to the prime minister who passes it to the monarch and it is expected there could be an announcement on Mr Welby's successor by autumn.
