Representatives of various charities and groups promoting Anglican-Orthodox relations within the Church of England came together at Lambeth Palace yesterday to consult and share their work. They were then joined by representatives from nine of the Orthodox Churches based in London to discuss matters of common concern.

The Church of England has a long history of warm relations with the Eastern and Oriental Orthodox Churches.

The Bishop of Southwark, the Rt Revd Christopher Chessun, Chair of the Lambeth Orthodox Roundtable, said: “It was a great pleasure to bring together Anglican and Orthodox representatives to meet in a spirit of fellowship and common purpose. We have looked forward to such a meeting for a long time and now look forward to continuing to find ways in which Anglicans and Orthodox can co-operate in God’s mission in the world.”

Topics covered in discussion included the challenges facing the churches in today’s world; the situation of Christians in the Middle East; and hopes for encouraging greater understanding and knowledge of each other’s churches, particularly among younger people and students. Participants expressed their willingness to convene the roundtable at least annually.

The following Orthodox Churches sent representatives to the meeting:

• The Archdiocese of Thyateira and Great Britain (Greek Orthodox, Ecumenical Patriarchate)
• The Antiochian Orthodox Church
• The Diocese of Sourozh (Russian Orthodox)
• The Serbian Orthodox Church
• The Romanian Orthodox Church
• The Bulgarian Orthodox Church
• The Coptic Orthodox Church
• The Syriac Orthodox Church
• The Armenian Apostolic Church

Bodies and trusts represented at the meeting included:

• The Anglican and Eastern Churches Association
• The Fellowship of St Alban and St Sergius
• The Nikaean Ecumenical Trust
• The Nikaean Club
• The Philip Usher Memorial Fund
• The Archbishop’s Romania Liaison Group

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