Malines Conversations Group meeting in York, England

The Malines Conversations Group, an unofficial theological dialogue of Catholic and Anglican theologians, met in York, England, between Sunday 30 March and Thursday 3 April 2025. This was the eleventh meeting of the group, named in commemoration of the original Malines Conversations of the 1920s.

These early informal conversations, held between a small group of British Anglicans and European Catholics, were made possible because of the bonds of friendship between the members of the group. In the same spirit, the current Malines Conversations Group has been gathering annually since 2013. This was the second time that the group met in York. The Group was welcomed for daily worship at York Minster by The Very Revd Dominic Barrington, Dean of York, and to Bishopthorpe Palace for Evening Prayer by the Archbishop of York.

At Bishopthorpe, Archbishop Stephen Cottrell addressed the group on the topic of Baptism, a key theme for this year’s meeting, at the beginning of the process of drafting a new document on ministry. Speakers, including some invited guests, included Sr Dr Gemma Simmonds CJ, who helped the Group explore the synodal process of the Catholic Church, Dr Andrej Jeftic, Director of the Faith and Order Commission of the World Council of Churches, and Bishop Raimo Goyarrola, Catholic Bishop of Helsinki, who spoke on the deepening relationships between Catholics and Lutherans in Finland. Members of the group presented papers on topics including baptism and sanctification, ministry and theological method, and on the mundus imaginalis.

Celebrating the heritage of the Malines Conversations, the Group was co-hosted for dinner at Bishopthorpe by the Earl of Halifax, the great-grandson of the 2nd Viscount Halifax, progenitor of the original Malines Conversations, alongside representatives of the Anglican and Catholic dioceses, and religious communities across Yorkshire. As a sign of the friendship established during their meetings, the Archbishop of Malines at the time of the original conversations, Cardinal Désiré-Joseph Mercier, bequeathed his episcopal ring to Viscount Halifax. Lord Halifax subsequently had the ring embedded in a gold chalice and presented it to York Minster. This ‘Mercier Chalice’ was used for the Sung Eucharist in York Minster, attended by the members of the group, on Sunday 30 March.

The Group was also privileged to visit The Bar Convent, England’s oldest continuously-working religious house, where they celebrated the heritage and legacy of Mary Ward, and the brave, committed women who followed her heroic example at times of great danger for English Catholics.

A future meeting is planned for 2026, at a venue to be determined.

Anglican Members present

Revd Dr Kirsty Borthwick, Christ Church, Oxford
Revd Dr Jennifer Cooper, Canon Theologian of Newcastle Cathedral
Revd Dr James Hawkey, Canon Theologian of Westminster Abbey, London   
Right Revd David Hamid, Former Suffragan Bishop of the Diocese in Europe
Revd Dr Jeremy Morris, National Adviser for Ecumenical Relations for the Church of England
Most Revd David Moxon, Former Director of the Anglican Centre in Rome (online)
Revd Dr Nicholas Sagovsky, Former Canon Theologian of Westminster Abbey

Catholic Members present

Prof Joris Geldhof, Chair of the Liturgical Institute, KU Leuven
Ms Vera La Mela, Centre for Theology and Religious Studies, Lund University
Revd Prof Thomas O’Loughlin, Professor Emeritus of Historical Theology, University of Nottingham
Revd Prof Keith Pecklers SJ, Pontifical Gregorian University, Rome
Revd Prof Thomas Pott OSB, Pontifical Atheneum Sant’Anselmo, Rome
Sr Dr Gemma Simmonds CJ, Margaret Beaufort Institute of Theology, Cambridge
Br Cyrille Vael OSB, Monastic Association for Encounter and Dialogue, Belgium

Old Catholic Member present

Revd Prof Angela Berlis, Institut für Christkatholische Theologie, Universität Bern
 

Observers

Revd Martin Browne OSB, DPCU, Rome
Prof. Andrej Jeftic, Director of the Faith and Order Commission, WCC, Geneva

Invited speakers and other guests

Right Revd Anthony Ball, Director of the Anglican Centre in Rome
Most Revd and Right Honourable Stephen Cottrell, Archbishop of York
The Right Honourable The Earl of Halifax
Most Revd Raimo Goyarrola, Bishop of Helsinki
Most Revd Bernard Longley, Archbishop of Birmingham
Prof. David Roef Nieuwejaers, University of Maastricht
Right Revd David Stancliffe, Former Bishop of Salisbury