Lambeth Diary: Welcome to the Circus.

The Archbishop of Canterbury warned the 650 Lambeth Conference bishops tonight that the problems of the Anglican Communion are not going to be resolved in the next three weeks at Kent. The Lambeth Reader which we write about today, Thurs, gives some idea why in its essay on the role of bishops. Dr Rowan Williams was speaking at the reception for bishops in the big blue tent on campus at the university, on the outskirts of Canterbury, as news emerged from the US of plans to extend the Anglican Use scheme in the to allow ecclesial entities to go over to Rome. Cardinal Walter Kasper of the Vatican's Council for Christian Unity is at the Lambeth Conference, and senior sources at the conference denied the story was accurate. Clearly they had not read Newark Archbishop John J Myers' speech. It was delivered at the US Anglican Use conference last Friday. My earlier story highlighted some of the divisions that exist in the Vatican over how to respond to the Anglican crisis. Cardinal Kasper is speaking here on Saturday. Kasper doesn't want defectors encouraged because he doesn't want to exacerbate Anglican schism. Others in the Vatican believe the Anglican Communion is irrevocably ruptured and want to give the red carpet and even the red hat treatment to Anglican trads. Hence the imminent beatification of Newman that we wrote about this week. Cardinal Ivan Dias, who heads the Congregation for Evangelisaton, is here at Lambeth as an 'observer'. There are some suggesting that it's not the Anglicans he's observing so much as Cardinal Kasper.

Like the animals that some undoubtedly think we are, we are being kept away from the bishops at the Lambeth Conference by ten-foot high metal wire fences with security guards. Inside the fence is this blue circus tent, pictured here, behind Bishop Adam Taaso of Lesotho and his wife Vitalina. It is apparently the Spring Harvest tent, the idea of which makes me giggle for some reason. But Elizabeth Kaeton has it about right, christening it 'Hogwash' in her Potterish blog. (Thank you EK for resisting the temptation to liken me to the awful Rita, as others have done!) It is the thought of all those 650 bishops breaking out as one into Shine, Jesus, Shine. This is where the plenaries are being held. Times photographer Chris Harris, who had a conversation with Rowan Williams through the fence before snapping him, says he's been treated better at Conservative party conferences, although perhaps not at Labour ones. Here are some of his pictures from this afternoon as delegates registered. At the top is Sister Pamela, assistant superior of the Community of All Hallows, Bungay in Suffolk, cycling from the registration desk. I've brought my bike too, it is the only realistic way to get around here. Tim Livesey from the Archbishop of Canterbury's office is also on two wheels, freewheeling between indaba groups.

After the last Lambeth Conference I wrote a piece, My Lambeth Hell, which I won't bore you all by linking to again. Friends who got here earlier sent me warning emails this morning. 'Be prepared for 'My Lambeth Hell II,' they said. Indeed, at first encounter all did not seem well. The press facilities last time were nothing to shout about. This time they appeared unspeakable. We are closeted in a tiny room, up the top of a concrete miserable staircase, about as far as possible from any bishop or archbishop as it is possible to get on Kent University campus. There's no tea, coffee or even water to keep us going. We're in the garden of England but on this miserable patch of insultingly hideous 1960s concrete there are no birds singing, just lots of crows croaking. And to make matters worse, the university uses the same Eduroam wireless system that York University does, meaning once again any connection between it and News International was going to be dodgy.

But within minutes, a local technician, Etienne, had sorted it. Then Chris and I bumped into the Bishop of Gippsland, Victoria, John McIntyre, and his beautifully tattooed wife Janet, pictured above, and I realised that some people at this Lambeth Conference might be a bit more revealing than the last one.

Sure enough, within minutes, a copy of a document called the Lambeth Reader, a document that I had heard existed but the existence of which certain communications people denied three times, had mysteriously appeared in my leather rucksack (nothing to do with Gippsland, I hasten to add.) So it was back to press prison pronto to write that up for tomorrow's paper, and I hope it will be online soon.

First, though, I sat in the sun, reading the Lambeth Reader and being quite impressed by it, and bishop spotting in the queue. Helpers were on hand to take each bishop and his or her spouse as they registered to their halls of residence. Registration for them was a hot and lengthy protest and the queue snaked on for hours. Women with jugs of water were on hand to refresh those close to passing out.

Here the journalists were actually treated better than the bishops, with press registration done in about one minute. Bishops were, individually, extremely friendly. All except one was delighted to chat to 'The London Times', and I spoke to several dozen.

That might all change tomorrow, however. At the evening reception, where the Archbishop spoke as reported above and as was disclosed by a friendly bishop, the bishops were given advice on the press. At the last Lambeth conference, badges were handed out and bishops told: 'Red is safe, blue secure, pink means danger.' The journos had the pink ones. This time, we all still have badges of different colours. Conference communications officials have red ones, all other journalists, from the Church of England Newspaper through to the Guardian, have blue. Bishops tonight were told: 'Red is home, blue is away.' This apparently comes from American football. You can imagine what American football supporters do the away teams. So different language, same message.

While these women, the wives of the bishops of Eastern Zambia, were waiting in the sun for their bishops to appear. I went and wrote my story, and then checked into the house where The Times team will be based for the next three weeks. The swimming pool looked inviting, but the sky was starting to cloud over. The bishops have disappeared off into retreat, but their wives are still around, so there will be plenty to keep us busy tomorrow. Jane Williams, who stepped out of the registration queue to give me one of her special hugs, is launching her new book, Marriage, Mitres and Being Myself, a collection of stories about what it is like to be a bishop's wife.

George Conger of the Church of England Newspaper is here now, and Riazat Butt of the Guardian, told today she was a 'dangerous journalist'.She was actuall told this by Rowan Williams, who was in jolly mood, as Chris's photo below indicates. Jim Naughton will be here soon. Thanks Jim for the nice write-up in The Lead.

Here are some more of Chris Harris' wonderful pictures from today.

(rg comments: put this photo up at request of photographer Chris Harris, who says it is one of the best he's ever taken. That is something because Chris is one of Britain's best news photographers, if not the best, and has won many awards. Chris's memo to Archbishop Rowan: 'I don't like being kept behind 10-foot wire fences.')

Comments

[Ms. Auburn Traycik]

Ten foot high wire fences? What is this, a concentration camp?

Conference officials wearing red badges may be unhappy to learn that in the U.S., "red states" signify Republican (conservative) ones...

[Stephen Parkinson]

Come over to your real friends at Forward in Faith, Ruth! Food & drink of every variety, to say nothing of bishops willing and happy to talk to the media and a wireless network that welcomes even News International.

You know where we are . . .

[Randy Muller]

Bishops tonight were told: 'Red is home, blue is away.' This apparently comes from American football.

No it doesn't.

In US military war-gaming, Blue is friendly, and Red is hostile.

Seems like someone got it backwards! Or correct!

--
Randy Muller, Diocese of Northern California, USA

[Rick Beekman]

Ruth;
This is off the subject had a couple questions to ask the Anglicans on here;

Here in America we have a group called the "Amish". They live in various communities in Pennsylvania..Ohio..Indiana. I got a chance several years ago to visit The group in Pennsylvania AT A Family reunion in that town. They refer to all non-amish christians as "The English". wanted to ask some of your History majors on here if you could give me more insight on these folks. Are they from Germany? England?

The Pilgrims who came here in 1621 also I believe were Anglicans/former Anglicans. These folks I believe brought the King James Bible to America (Not certain). Anyway I'm very interested in these two groups.

[Ramon Rodriguez]

I just saw the picture of the tattooed lady and her husband, the bishop. The phrase that came to mind was not "beautifully tattoed" but "lack of decorum."

[Cyrus]

Sorry Ruth but the diocese of Gippsland is in eastern Victoria, Australia. Its not in WA

[John Stolzenbach]

The Amish are basically of German extraction, and the first language among them is still German. So, it makes sense that they would refer to all the English speakers around them as "the English." They derive from the Anabaptists of the continent, so the connection to Anglicans is not that strong.

[Panzer]

A Circus? Yes...and the Clowns have arrived. They'll all be in a jolly mood doing their best to be insignificant. As far as doing something to benefit God's Holy Church, I doubt it. What a waste of resources. What a pity.

[Malcolm+]

I understand that Rowan has kept on most of George's staff, with what turnover there has been occuring through attrition.

That might explain why Rowan's approach to media relations is every bit as idiotic as George's was.

Lord protect us from protectors.

[Todd Granger]

Rick Beekman,

The Amish are a group of conservative Mennonites who originated in Europe as followers of Jakob Ammann, a 17th century Mennonite elder whose teachings influenced some Mennonites in south Germany, Alsace, and German-speaking Switzerland in the late 17th century. Amish Mennonite settlements existed in these three German-speaking areas, in the Netherlands and in Russia. Amish emigration to North America (both to the present-day United States and to Canada) began with the removal of a group of Swiss Amish Mennonites to the (English) colony of Pennsylvania in 1720. Presumably because of their emigration into predominately English-speaking and English cultural parts of North America and the preservation of their own German-language culture, the Amish call all non-Amish "English".

And no, the King James Bible (the "Authorized Version" of 1611) was not the Bible brought to America by the Pilgrims who settled Plimoth (or Plymouth) Plantation, or for that matter by the Puritans who settled the Massachusetts Bay Colony and other parts of New England. The version of the Bible preferred by the Puritans and the Pilgrims was the Geneva Bible, a translation published in completed form in 1560, prepared by a group of English churchmen who had emigrated to Geneva during the reign of Queen Mary the First. Put "Geneva Bible" into your favorite internet search engine to learn more (or look it up in Britannica or another good print encyclopaedia).

[Anon]

Ruth,

Are you just making these stories up?

"Anglican bishops arriving for the Lambeth Conference yesterday were told to stop their backstabbing and in-fighting if they were not to “weaken the body of Christ”.

vs
http://lambethdiary.blogspot.com/2008/07/beginning.html
"In his brief opening remarks, Archbishop Williams spoke candidly about the tensions and divisions within the Anglican Communion. He spoke of the grief that is ours to share because of the absence of those bishops who have chosen not to attend. “We need their voice,” he said, “and they need ours in learning Christ together.” He went on to invite our prayers, our love, and our respect for those who are not here, observing that while we are indeed a wounded body, “the body of Christ is always a wounded body because we are a body of sinful human beings.”

and
http://www.kendallharmon.net/t19/index.php/t19/article/14326/#250547
"This is a strange article, and conveys a very different tone from that given by Archbishop Rowan in his first address to the bishops yesterday."

Where did you get this from?
"The paper, commissioned by Dr Williams, made clear that bishops who had transgressed diocesan and provincial boundaries in search of “orthodox” primacy were considered guilty of undermining collegiality. An even worse sin, it suggested, was boycotting the conference. "

That paper seems to be the one linked here and it does not say that at all?

http://www.anglicancommunion.org/ministry/theological/iatdc/docs/communion_conflict_&_hope.pdf

(rg writes: I was attempting to put what the paper said into a language that our readers could understand. As we were not allowed to hear Rowan's address in person, the paper was all I had to go on.)

[Recusant]

Ecclestone Square, the headquarters of the Catholic Bishop's Conference, and the Tablet have been spinning busily that the Pope is supporting Rowan Williams and trying to prevent any Anglo-Catholics swimming the Tiber. That spin has been quite successful, according to the front pages of both the Telegraph and Independent yesterday. The opposite, however, is the truth. Cardinal Kasper's days are numbered (he is shortly to reach 75 and he clashed frequently with Benedict before he became Pope). Dias as the head of Propaganda Fidei, and therefore the 'Red Pope' is the man who has the Vatican line and, yes, he will be watching Kasper and Cormac (the ex-Head of ARCIC let us not forget)very closely.

[John]

It looks as though Abp Myers has shot down your story (and that of the Independent) in many flames.

The pope said nothing of the kind: it takes a great deal of spin to turn his charitable comments about the need for church unity into a story that he is seeking to prevent Anglicans from converting.

(rg writes: which story? I wrote exactly what Myers has said just a few days ago, as linked to in this blog! My recent blog highlighted the opponents to the trads going over, and it is idiotic to pretend there aren't such opponents. But my news story was about precisel this. Isn't it the Telegraph news story of yesterday you're referring to here?)

[Ed the Roman]

In British wargaming long ago, red was friendly, although by now between Communism and US leadership in NATO the US usage prevails.

[John]

Apologies - I was indeed confusing it with the Torygraph (although perhaps now it is no longer Tory at all if it can employ George Pitcher to cover religious news!)

John

[Fr. Van Windsor]

Ten foot high wire fences? I would recommend climbing them for exercise. Imagine the bishop's faces as you reach the top about to leap over...(bishopi's? bishopeeses? What does one call a gaggle of bishops)

[Shaun Clarkson]

"What does one call a gaggle of bishops?"

Given the security fence, a gagging of bishops might be more apt...

[grace]

You seem to be very missleading with your blog- 1ofoot wire fence? hardly, more like 7 foot and its not electric. Your making it out to be as though Lambeth hate press- this is not true, it just needs to be a safe environment for the bishops and they are free to talk to press whenever they can.

[Nicky]

In response to Ramon Rodriguez's comment:

I don't see it as "lack of decorum", I see it as refreshing. Good to see that Bishops and their spouses are real people and not all just the stuffy conservatives they can be painted as. This picture, along with those of Rowan Williams with unkempt hair, the colourful African garb and people embracing, showed that this could be an opportunity for clergy from around the world have fun and bond in friendship as real people, which will lead to further understanding between the church in such widely varying countries.

I imagine that people like this "tattooed lady" will be the ones to encourage this bonding through being themselves and not being afraid to have some fun. I can't imagine her ostracising anyone - red ribbon or blue.

[Bill Channon]

I assume that it's ok to feed peanuts to the bishops through the fence.

(Couldn't resist)

[Rick Beekman]

Todd Granger & John Stolzenbach;

Thank you gentlemen for your replies to my post. I know about the Geneva Bible. I just assummed since the King James was first published in 1611 AD That the Pilgrims brought that verson in 1621. Again Thank you both for the information. Lord Bless you both!

[Jessica]

Excuse me Ramon Rodriguez - some Christians actually want people at churches. If they are filled with arrogant, prudish people such as yourself, you're going the right way towards murdering the Anglican church by lack of attendance.

Get A Life.