Episcopal Diocese of Albany

Business Office: 68 South Swan Street - Albany, NY 12210 - (518) 465-4737
Christ the King Spiritual Life Center: 575 Burton Road - Greenwich, NY 12834 - (518) 692-9550

Lambeth Spouse Conference 2008 - A bishop's spouse perspective
August 15, 2008

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I am so thankful to the Diocese of Albany for allowing me to attend the Lambeth Spouse Conference. It was truly an absolutely wonderful opportunity to share a very special ministry with spouses from across the global. I am returning home blessed with friendships I have made and touched by stories of struggles and witnesses from Anglican brothers and sisters all over the world. This e-mail serves to summarizes the conference and share some personal observations.

As approximately 670 bishops gathered for the Lambeth Conference at Kent University, near Canterbury, England, about 500 bishop spouses joined together in prayer, bible study and sessions for the Lambeth Spouse Conference. Led by Jane Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury's wife, our conference focused on what we could accomplish together through fellowship. For many of us, just being able to participate was a humbling and amazing experience. Almost every nation or province of the Anglican Communion gathered and the world became smaller and closer for me.

For most of the days, the spouses' venue had a set routine which included, in the following order, Eucharist, breakfast, plenary sessions, bible study, lunch, self-select activities (optional programs to learn or do more), Evening Prayer, dinner and a joint activity with the Bishops or optional event. In the self-selects, I was able to learn more about the history and the dynamics of the Anglican Communion. A real highlight was meeting Nicky Gumbel. After attending an Alpha Course at St Mary's this past winter, I was simply floored meeting a man who is helping millions learn more about the Christian faith.

There were also a couple of very special days peppered in between the weeks. Some of the highlights included:

Opening Eucharist at the Canterbury Cathedral was awesome with all the Bishops and spouses completely filling the cathedral. The procession alone took over 1/2 hour before the service.
London Day included a march for the Millennium Development Goals, lunch at Lambeth Palace, and tea at Buckingham Palace with the Queen. (No, I was not lucky enough to personally meet her!).
Over 20 of us walked at 13-mile pilgrimage like those written about by Geoffrey Chaucer in The Canterbury Tales, followed by Evensong at the Canterbury Cathedral.
Closing Eucharist again at the Canterbury Cathedral brought me a real sense of hope in the Anglican Communion. Receiving communion from Archbishop Williams was very moving.

The real blessings of the Lambeth Spouse Conference were the bible studies and the relationships established. I made friends with spouses all over the world. In my bible study, I had two ladies from Madagascar, two ladies from England, one from Zimbabwe, one from Zambia, one from Burundi, one from Pakistan, one from Paris (Europe), one from Ireland, one from North Carolina and myself. Not all our members stayed the entire 3 weeks due to work and family needs. But, by praying and studying St John's "I AM" statements, we became closer despite religious, cultural, political or linguistic differences.

I mention linguistics because my group consisted of many languages. English was primarily spoken in my Bible study and at the two conferences, but two ladies in our Bible study spoke the Malagasy language and French. So everything was translated into French and then back again. It was a reflection of the Lambeth Conference. There were so many different languages spoken. Primarily 8 languages were translated into English. Many of the services were conducted in different languages. To hear the Our Father spoken by every tongue at the same time was Pentecostal.

Personally, hearing stories about war, violence, AIDs, hunger, religious persecution, orphans, and more made the challenges I face seem small in comparison. What struck me was the deep faith in Jesus Christ these wives professed despite their trials. I heard stories of people in Pakistan that cannot buy food in the marketplace or hold decent paying jobs if they are Christians. Many of the African spouses talked about living in a country of political unrest, where thousands have been killed and many more become refugees. Hunger and poverty in Africa are not uncommon. It is not uncommon for them to have people knocking on their doors multiple times a day, asking for help or food. One of the wives now runs an orphanage to help children as so many people in her area have been killed by violence and AIDS. These stories don't compute to life in our backyard where perhaps our biggest problem in the USA is spiritual poverty. My bible study friends gave me the witness and prayers I needed to continue to be a disciple of Jesus. They encouraged me to do whatever I can do both in the Diocese of Albany and abroad.

During the Lambeth Spouse Conference, I tried to be positive, prayerful, and engaged with everyone I met. I prayed and shared with many spouses from all over the world. There were also many laughable moments. The University of Kent has no air-conditioning. We were blessed with extremely hot weather for almost 10 days. Put 1000 people under a tent or 500 in an assembly, and you are tempted to loose all positive Christian thought. Housed in college dorms, we were all put in separate rooms. Eight folks on our floor shared a one bathroom, one shower and one tub. After the magpies woke me at 4:30 am each day, I would hop in the shower. Once done, I knocked on the wall to wake Bill up. My favorite part was queuing up for meals. There were two main dining halls to eat in and a very tight schedule to do it in. Once we left Eucharist or Evening Prayer, everyone descended into the dining halls. Our latest wait in line was over 1 1/2 hours long. After awhile, even I became a patient person. Through it all, I tried my best. I was sent to the Lambeth Conference to participate in the spouses' conference, represent the Diocese of Albany and provide love and support to my best friend and love, Bill.

I left the 2008 Lambeth Conference with a sense of HOPE. More than ever, I am praying for the Anglican Communion...more than ever, I know that Jesus Christ is my Savior and Redeemer...more than ever, I know that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and no one comes to the Father without Him. I am a sister in Christ with other Bishops and Spouses that I have prayed, laughed and shared with. I am blessed to be a part of this great communion. I am rededicating myself to be a witness in all I do.

Again, thank you for your support and prayers during the Lambeth Conferences. Bill and I are blessed to be members of the Diocese of Albany. We truly appreciate the continued love and support you provide to Chris, Catie and us. We are so grateful for the opportunity to attend Lambeth 2008 and look forward to sharing the conferences even more in the future.

Yours in Christ,
Karen Love

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