It was a question that the Archbishop of Canterbury had never been asked before.
Fifteen-year-old Yasmin Smith, from the Bay C of E School in Sandown, wanted to know if there was anyone who Archbishop Justin Welby had not wanted to pray for. She asked her question as part of a visit by the Archbishop to the Isle of Wight school.
He said it was a brand new question for him, and admitted there are people he struggles to pray for. But often once he starts to talk to God about them, the Holy Spirit helps him to actually believe what he’s praying.
Yasmin said,
“I always thought that bishops and archbishops had to pray for everyone. So it was good to hear that he does find it difficult. It was a convincing answer.”
The Archbishop visited the Bay C of E School and Christ the King College in Newport during the first day of his three-day visit to our diocese. He met more than 2,000 students for a series of question-and-answer sessions at which no question was off limits. He talked about his personal faith, his experiences as Archbishop, what it felt like to crown the new King, and the current conflict in Israel and Gaza. That evening he was quizzed by churchgoers at Holy Trinity Church, Bembridge, and the next day he met staff and inmates at HMP Isle of Wight.
Archbishop Justin began his visit to our diocese at Christ the King College in Newport, a joint Church of England/Roman Catholic secondary school, where he blessed a classroom which was being used as a chapel for the first time. He was accompanied by the Bishop of Portsmouth, the Rt Rev Jonathan Frost.
The Archbishop then met students in three different sessions, each of which included worship led by an accomplished student band. Among the questions he was asked by students were those about how he became Archbishop, how many services he attends each week, and whether he ever regretted becoming a priest.
At the Bay C of E School, Archbishop Justin was welcomed by a samba band as soon as he stepped out of the car. Inside, he heard a joint choir from the primary and secondary sites singing, and then prayed for both parts of the school as he blessed two commemorative plaques. He spent time in the school’s library, where Yasmin Smith and others asked him questions.
He then took part in two student conferences with pupils from the Bay C of E School and Niton Primary School, where he was asked more questions about his faith and his role. Among them were queries about the Bible verse that had helped him the most, his attitude towards fossil fuel as a former oil executive, and his role at the Queen’s funeral and the King’s Coronation. He described one of his proudest moments as being with refugees last week in Armenia.
Then he had a chance to meet parents picking up their children from the primary site of the Bay C of E School, and spoke to staff after the school day was over.
Bram Lorenz, whose son Buddy, aged 7, goes to the Bay C of E School, said,
“You don’t expect to run into the Archbishop when you are picking up your child from school, but he was very relaxed and we appreciated it.”
In the evening, Archbishop Justin took part in an evening at Holy Trinity Church, Bembridge, during which he was asked questions that had been contributed by churchgoers, villagers and children from Bembridge C of E Primary School – the Archbishop didn’t know what he would be asked in advance. A full congregation also sang hymns and worship songs that had been specially chosen by the Archbishop, with a choir and music group accompanying them.
The vicar of Bembridge and Archdeacon of the Isle of Wight, the Ven Steve Daughtery, posed the questions alongside newly-ordained deacon the Rev Clare King. The questions included a discussion about the Archbishop’s difficult childhood, and his conversion experience in Cambridge. He also spoke about how his faith helped him when his daughter Johanna died 40 years ago in a car crash.
The questions he answered touched on the current tragic situation in Israel and Gaza, the supposed decline of the Church of England, and the current state of British society. He answered one question posed by a parishioner who had lost her husband and wanted to know about the part of the Creed that mentions the resurrection of the dead and the life eternal.
He said,
“When our daughter died 40 years ago, we were so aware of the presence of God.
“I held her in my arms as she died, and it felt as though Jesus was stretching out his hands and I was handing her over to him. My mother had been an alcoholic, but came to faith and stopped drinking. When she died on July 15 this year, I was with her. We were praying for her and it felt as though we were passing her into the hands of Christ too.
“Grief is utterly devastating, especially the loss of a partner or a spouse. But our hope is that this world is not all there is. Christians have believed for thousands of years that their experience of Christ in this world means that they can trust him to take them into the next world. When everything in this world fails, we need to know that this world is not everything there is.”
Among those listening were Laura Campos Albuquerque and Joe Norton-Jones, who moved to the Isle of Wight in the past six months and have started coming to Holy Trinity Church.
She said,
“I appreciated his honesty, how raw he was and how personal it was. “It was great that he was happy not to know the questions in advance and that he wasn’t avoiding hard topics. It meant that it felt authentic and he came across as trustworthy.”
Day Two of the Archbishop’s visit to our diocese began with a breakfast with clergy from across the Isle of Wight, held at Holy Trinity Church, Bembridge. Parish clergy, retired clergy and chaplains heard the Archbishop talk about the vital role of parish priests, and the need to ordain more clergy.
Archbishop Justin and Bishop Jonathan then travelled to HMP Isle of Wight, where he spoke to inmates, chaplains and prison officers in the chapels of both the Albany and Parkhurst sites of the prison. He talked again about his alcoholic mother, whose life was also transformed when she was able to stop drinking in 1968 and become a disciple of Jesus. He was with her when she died in July this year and was grateful to hear her last words: “I shall see God”. He said,
“My mother’s life was transformed by Alcoholics Anonymous, by the medics who were involved, but also by the power of the Holy Spirit.
“God changes people through the miracle of forgiveness, so you know you are loved, whoever you are, whatever you have done. It gives you hope and a sense of purpose.”
The Archbishop’s visit continued during Saturday and Sunday on the mainland, including conversations with community leaders, a visit to HM Naval Base and the chance to worship with three different congregations in Cowplain, Gosport and Petersfield. More details on www.portsmouth.anglican.org/archbishop.
News shared by Neil on behalf of Portsmouth Diocese. Eda
