I invite all Food For Faith readers to join with me in prayer for our friends the bishop and parishioners of the Anglican diocese of Christchurch who gather for Synod this weekend to discuss many matters of mission and maintenance, including the future plans for their Cathedral in the heart of Christchurch city.

As Bishop Victoria Matthews reflected at the opening of the Synod last night, this gathering will write history, especially in regard to the future of the Anglican Cathedral.

There are good friendships between parishioners of our Christchurch Anglican and Catholic dioceses. In a 2012 radio interview (attached below) Bishop Barry Jones acknowledges that Catholic and Anglicans are united in many of the same struggles deciding and discerning the future of their severely damaged Cathedrals.

Most of all, these challenging discernments and decisions need to take place within an environment of prayer. In prayer our own personal agendas move aside and we become aware of God who is revealing a process and a plan that is even more than we could have imagined or implemented on our own. In this way the faith in our midst is nurtured, and future generations will be grateful to us.

In the interview Bishop Barry speaks of Bishop Victoria as a friend and I have no doubt that his prayers are with Bishop Victoria and her parishioners gathered in these days. Let us enthusiastically pray with them.

Bishop Barry Jones interview – 9 March 2012