Bishop hosts visitors from World Council of Churches

Tuesday December 1st 2015

WCC members and church representatives before their meeting in St Anne’s Cathedral.

A number of representatives of the World Council of Churches (WCC) were in Belfast this week as guests of the Bishop of Connor, the Rt Rev Alan Abernethy.

Bishop Abernethy, who is a member of the WCC, hosted a lunch and a meeting for the WCC visitors and leaders from other churches in Northern Ireland.

The WCC guests who travelled from Geneva, Berlin and the USA were Dr Clare Amos, Programme Executive for Interreligious Dialogue and Cooperation with the WCC, Ms Marianne Edjersten, WCC Director of Communications and the Rev Garland Pierce, American Methodist and Senior Assistant to the WCC General Secretary.

Dr Amos was the guest preacher in St Anne’s Cathedral on Advent Sunday morning, November 29. In her sermon she reflected on her experiences of living in Beirut where her husband Alan was the chaplain to the Anglican community in both Lebanon and Syria during the Lebanese civil war.

Bishop Alan Abernethy chats to WCC visitors Marianne Edjersten, Dr Clare Amos and the Rev Garland Pierce.

Later on Sunday, Dr Amos took part in a Christian Aid / Trocaire service in St which preceded a rally for climate justice in Writer’s Square.

On Monday morning, Dr Amos, accompanied by Ms Edjersten and the Rev Pierce, was given a tour of St Anne’s before moving to Church of Ireland House for lunch with Bishop Abernethy, the Bishop of Clogher the Rt Rev John McDowell, and representatives of the Irish Council of Churches and other churches. The lunch was hosted by the Bishop of Connor.

After lunch, the group held a meeting in the Library at St Anne’s Cathedral.