January 17, 2005

The Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Revd Rowan Williams, attended solemn vespers on Friday 14 January at the Roman Catholic Westminster Cathedral and preached at the service at the invitation of the Cardinal Archbishop, HE Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor, to mark Christian Unity Week. It was his first official visit to the cathedral.

Before the service, Archbishop Rowan opened and toured an exhibition being held in the cathedral on Anglicanism. "Anglicanism and the Western Tradition" was previously on show at the Vatican but has been exhibited since at several cathedrals across the UK. The exhibition will remain at Westminster Cathedral for the next month. Charting the history of Anglicanism, it highlights important ecumenical initiatives, such as ARCIC (Anglican Roman Catholic International Commission) and the International Anglican Roman Catholic Commission for Unity and Mission.

The Archbishop and Cardinal also prayed in the Chapel of Holy Souls for the victims of the Asian Tsunami. The following prayer was said by them together:

Lord, You are always faithful and are rich in mercy.

We pray for our brothers and sisters who have died, or who have lost loved ones and livelihood in the Tsunami earthquake disaster.

We know that every life is sacred to You, and that each person is held in Your hands.

We commend the dead to Your loving care, those who mourn to Your compassion, those who fear to Your comfort, those who despair to Your protection.

We ask this through Your Son, the Light that shines in our darkness, Jesus Christ. Amen.

Anglican Communion News Service, London