Diocese of Chichester

The Archbishop’s relationship with the Diocese has developed over several decades, beginning when he was a student at the Catholic seminary in Bamberg. He has since participated in the Coburg and Feuerstein conferences, which include delegations from the Diocese of Chichester, the Catholic Archdiocese of Bamberg, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Bavaria and the Evangelical Church Berlin-Brandenberg.

These ecumenical links have their roots in the relationship forged between Bishop George Bell, Bishop of Chichester between 1929 and 1957 and the German churches. Bishop Bell has been described as their ‘unshakeable friend’, and not least to Dietrich Bonhoeffer and many refugees from Hitler’s Germany.

Following an ecumenical Bell Colloquium held in Chichester in 1984, there was a clear desire from participants of different churches not merely to look back and commemorate Bishop Bell’s life, but to forge and develop ecumenical relationships that would focus on major issues he had been passionate about: the relationship between the Church and society, between the Church and peace, and the role and importance of the arts in the Church.

The ecumenical relationships between the Diocese of Chichester, the Catholic Archdiocese of Bamberg and the Evangelical churches in Bavaria and Berlin/Brandenberg have developed organically and creatively over the decades since. The Coburg Conference was designed for church leaders, with papers given on a range of theological topics. The Feuerstein Conference is for students and those in the early years of ordained ministry, focusing on issues of ecclesiology and challenges facing the contemporary Church. The ecumenical links have also extended to parishes around our diocese.

Chichester Cathedral has played a particular role in this ecumenical partnership, drawing especially on Bishop Bell’s emphasis on the role of Christianity and the arts. The Shrine of St. Richard contains the Anglo-German tapestry, with the design, weaving and funding a joint endeavour with friends in Germany in his memory. Music has been another feature of the partnership, with the Cathedral Organist & Master of the Choristers a member of the early Coburg Conferences. The Cathedral choir have undertaken tours in German churches, which have been reciprocated by various German choirs.

At the heart of this lasting friendship with our German brothers and sisters is a shared response and commitment to Jesus Christ’s command to ‘be one’; through building relationships, which have enabled valuable discussion and mutual learning about the challenges and opportunities of Christian life and discipleship today.

Making the Archbishop an ecumenical Canon of Honour celebrates the uniqueness of this relationship which has flourished over the years, giving him a special place in the life of the Cathedral and Diocese alongside the Bishop of Chartres, the Bishop of Arundel & Brighton, and the Coptic Archbishop Angaelos of London.