Hampshire Church Leaders Meeting

I am the convenor of the Hampshire Church Leaders and we had our bi-annual meeting here yesterday: you can see some of us in the picture. The group includes the local Anglican bishops of Winchester, Portsmouth, Basingstoke and Southampton, plus leaders from the United Reformed Church, the Methodist Church, the Baptists and the Salvation Army.  The meetings take place here at Bishop’s House and follow a similar format: mid-morning coffee, then a period of prayer and a discussion based on an agreed topic. There is also time to share developments in our respective communities and the personal challenges and joys of ministry. The meeting ends with lunch together. On this occasion, we took the opportunity to discuss Synodality, and this produced a lively exchange. The Church Leaders Meetings are invaluable as a means of keeping in touch: please pray for a deeper unity among all Christians. Meanwhile, we look forward to the arrival soon of Bishop Jonathan Frost, the new Anglican Bishop of Portsmouth, who is to be installed on 12th March. Bishop Jonathan and I will meet frequently for the Joint Education Meetings relating to our schools in the Isle of Wight, Christ the King, Newport and St. Francis’s, Ventnor.