LettER TO BISHOP Rowan Williams

6 September 2023

Right Reverend Bishop, beloved brother in Christ!

It gives me great joy to address this personal greeting to you on the occasion of the conference, Rowan Williams: A Cambridge Celebration, taking place on 11 and 12 September. It is indeed fitting that so many scholars and friends, former students and academic colleagues, are coming together to honour you following your retirement from the Mastership of Magdalene College. This Cambridge celebration is, as I am sure is your wish, a very substantial academic symposium and not simply an occasion for accolades and encomia. Nevertheless, I cannot fail to take this opportunity to offer some words of tribute and appreciation.

As I wrote to you at the time of your retirement from the office of Archbishop of Canterbury in 2012, your leadership of the Church of England, during a period of unprecedented change in society and attitudes to religions was courageous and inspiring. We in this Dicastery, and in many other entities of the Holy See, have very fond memories of your visits to Rome during your service as Archbishop of Canterbury. We also give thanks for the warm hospitality received from you when representatives of the Church of Rome visited the Church of England. The visit of the late Pope Benedict XVI to the United Kingdom in 2010 remains a precious memory for those of us who were privileged to participate in it. On a personal note, I am also especially grateful for the warm welcome you extended to me when I visited Lambeth and Canterbury in 2012.

Though the early years of this century were marked by growing tensions within the Anglican Communion, and by new obstacles to full visible communion between Catholics and Anglicans, I am grateful for your own tireless efforts to “maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Eph 4:3). The Common Declaration issued by Pope Benedict and yourself in November 2006 led directly to the establishment of the third Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC). The declaration noted that “it is a matter of urgency… that in renewing our commitment to pursue the path towards full visible Communion in the truth and love of Christ, we also commit ourselves in our continuing dialogue to address the important issues involved in the emerging ecclesiological and ethical factors making that journey more difficult and arduous”. It is hoped that the second of this commission’s two reports will be published soon.

Dear Bishop Rowan, throughout your life you have combined dedicated pastoral ministry with academic work of exceptional breadth and depth. The variety of areas of learning being explored during this Cambridge Celebration in your honour is testament to your wide-ranging scholarship. I hope that as a Welshman you will permit me to quote an English saint: In thinking of your ministry I cannot but recall St Bede the Venerable, who proclaimed, “study, teaching, and writing have always been my delight” (Ecc. Hist. V, 24).

Now that you have stepped down from academic administration, dear brother, I pray for the continued blessing of good health and strength for you, so that that you may continue to serve God and his holy people with the gifts of your estimable intellect for many years to come. “The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face to shine upon you, and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up his countenance upon you, and give you peace” (Num. 6:24-26).

I remain yours in Christ Jesus,

Kurt Cardinal Koch
Prefect