In a bid to continue the dialogue within the Anglican Communion over the divisions within the Episcopal Church, nine Episcopal Church bishops met with the Most Rev. Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury, at Lambeth Palace on May 24.

Meeting with the archbishop and his senior advisors were the Rt. Rev. Gary Lillibridge, Bishop of West Texas; the Rt. Rev. John B. Lipscomb, Bishop of Southwest Florida; the Rt. Rev. Edward Little II, Bishop of Northern Indiana; the Rt. Rev. D. Bruce MacPherson, Bishop of Western Louisiana; the Rt. Rev. Edward L. Salmon, Jr., Bishop of South Carolina; the Rt. Rev. James M. Stanton, Bishop of Dallas; the Rt. Rev. Jeffrey N. Steenson, Bishop of the Rio Grande; the Rt. Rev. Don A. Wimberly, Bishop of Texas and the Rt. Rev. Geralyn Wolf, Bishop of Rhode Island.

Four other bishops and senior church leaders, including the Rt. Rev. Robert O’Neil, Bishop of Colorado, were also invited to attend the gathering, but were unable to attend due to scheduling conflicts.

A spokesman for Lambeth Palace told The Living Church the discussions were of a private nature and no statement on the deliberations would be forthcoming. However, sources familiar with the gathering stated the meeting was primarily pastoral, and in line with the archbishop’s oft-repeated desire to keep the conversation within the Church going forward. One member of the House of Bishops, not present but familiar with the proceedings, said the purpose of the meeting was to discuss the current situation in the Episcopal Church by bishops who support the recommendations of the Windsor Report.

Fears that the meeting was a "strategy session" or a bid to undermine the constitutional authority of the General Convention or the Episcopal Church’s dioceses were unfounded, sources said.

Archbishop Williams has held a series of meetings with leaders across the Anglican Communion in recent months to assess the state of the Communion, as well as to reiterate his belief that the integrity of the Anglican Communion is worth preserving.

Participants at these prior meetings said Archbishop Williams’ private words have not differed from his public statements, citing his commendation to the last gathering of global Anglican leaders at the World Council of Churches in Brazil.

“When we say we need each other I am not talking about money. I am talking about spiritual maturity. The enemy of spiritual maturity is that the spirit says we can do without. And that is not an idea of the Archbishop of Canterbury, it is an idea of St. Paul,” he told delegates on Feb. 17.

“We need each other. It is worth working at,” Archbishop Williams stated.

(The Rev.) George Conger

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