The Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, the head of the Church of England as well as that of the Anglican Communion, will visit Bangalore between October 20 and 23.
During his three-day stay, he will interact with heads of Hindu maths, participate in a Eucharist service at the St. Mark's Cathedral, and another at the Vishranthi Nilayam for Sisters, said S. Vasanthakumar, Moderator of Church of South India and Bishop of Karnataka Central Diocese.
Theological scholar
Rev. Vasanthakumar told reporters here on Thursday that Rev. Williams is the 104th Bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury and is acknowledged internationally as an outstanding theological writer, scholar and teacher. By ancient and regular precedent, the Archbishop of Canterbury has the right to preside at the Eucharist, during which he anoints a new British Monarch.
The Anglican Communion is the third largest international denomination, after the Roman Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church, with over 80 million members in 164 countries. There is no single ‘Anglican Church' with universal juridical authority as each national or regional church has full autonomy. The Communion is an association of these churches in full communion with the Church of England and specifically with its principal primate the Archbishop of Canterbury.
Multi-faith interactions
During his visit to Bangalore, the Archbishop will interact with Sri Tridandi Srimannarayana Ramanuja Chinna Jeeyar Swamiji, Sri Sugunendra Theertha Swamiji, Sri Swami Harshanandaji, Sri Shivamurthy Shivacharya Swamiji of Taralabalu and Chakravarthi Ram Prasad at the Ecumenical Christian Centre, Whitefield, on October 20.
Eucharist services
On October 21, the Archbishop will be the Celebrant and Preacher at the Eucharist service at the St. Mark's Cathedral, which is the mother of Church of the Karnataka Central Diocese and the seat of the Bishop of the Diocese. In the evening, he will participate in the public reception organised by the Diocese where Governor H.R. Bhardwaj will be chief guest, Rev. Vasanthakumar said.
The next day, the Archbishop will participate in a Eucharist service at the Vishranthi Nilayam.
This will be followed by a Bible Study led by the Dr. Williams, and his wife, Jane Williams, on the theme, ‘Men and Women as Partners in God's Mission'.
