After a three days’ retreat, yesterday afternoon the 650 Anglican bishops officially opened the 14th Lambeth Conference 2008 in the Cathedral of Canterbury, first with a celebration of the Eucharist officiated by the archbishop of Canterbury, and right after with the first plenary session. The international diversity of the meeting (which until 4th August will bring together Anglican primates and bishops from all over the world) was powerfully reflected in the liturgy: the New Testament passages as well as the prayers were read in different languages, evidence that the Anglican Communion is spread all over the planet. The sermon was preached by the bishop of Colombo (Sri Lanka), Duleep de Chickera. "We are a wounded community", said the bishop in his sermon, going straight to the point of the main issue that the Anglican bishops will have to address over these days. "Some of us are not here, and this shows everything is not fine. The crisis is certainly a complex one. It’s not a crisis that can be quickly solved. A long, daring journey awaits us, a journey that will require our prayer, faithfulness and mutual confidence, and above all confidence in God who makes reconciliation possible". Then the bishop spoke of the "challenge of unity in diversity" and the call to be "an inclusive community in which there’s space for each and everyone".
