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Archbishop of York to visit Diocese of Sheffield

Archbishop Stephen

The Diocese of Sheffield is delighted to announce that the Archbishop of York, The Most Reverend and Right Honourable Stephen Cottrell, will be visiting from the 16-18 June.

The mission will include a visit to Sheffield Cathedral on the Friday for evensong before having dinner with Bishop Pete and others from the Diocese. On Saturday Archbishop Stephen will meet at Diocesan Church House with Churchwardens and church grafting teams before visiting a War Memorial at All Saints’ Church at Laughton En Le Morthen to mark 100 years of the monument being there. Summer Fayres are included on the itinerary for Saturday at Laughton En Le Morthen and St Leonard Dinnington – proof you can’t have too many Summer Fayres in one day!

A prayer walk is also scheduled on Saturday from Laughton to St James Anston for a Mission Area Prayer and Praise service before evening teaching with Focal Ministers at St John Kimberworth Park. Archbishop Stephen will preach at Doncaster Minster on Sunday morning before hosting a lunch at St Mary’s Sprotbrough, to which all curates and their families have been invited, along with the IME team who support and train the curates in the Diocese of Sheffield.

He will later attend café church at St John’s Balby, the same place where he visited with Archbishop Justin Welby to announce triennium funding. Archbishop Stephen will meet with volunteers and service users in Balby of the multibank in operation there.

Speaking ahead of his visit, Archbishop Stephen said:

‘I’m so looking forward to visiting the Diocese of Sheffield in June and fascinated and inspired by your “you are the light of the world” (Lights for Christ) agenda.

‘I hope to bring a little bit of light and warmth to the Diocese of Sheffield. I look forward to working alongside Bishop Pete, Bishop Sophie and others in the Diocese, both to see what you are doing but also hopefully to have opportunities to share with others something of the goodness, the peace and the light which we see in Jesus Christ, and because of his death and resurrection – and by his spirit – can be ours too.’

The Bishop of Sheffield, the Rt Revd Dr Pete Wilcox, said:

‘Archbishop Stephen is a gifted evangelist and I look forward to welcoming him to our Diocese of the weekend of 16-18 June, as together we seek to proclaim the good news of God’s grace manifest in Jesus.  Archbishop Stephen’s programme begins in Sheffield on Friday, moves to Rotherham on Saturday and then to Doncaster on Sunday. I hope many across the Diocese will benefit from his visit as he preaches Christ crucified.’

The Bishop of Doncaster, the Rt Revd Sophie Jelley, said:

‘We so look forward to Archbishop Stephen’s visit to the Diocese of Sheffield. He has been a great supporter of our work here and is a natural evangelist who loves to help others shine as Lights for Christ. I am especially pleased to be able to welcome him to Doncaster. I know the Minister community will be thrilled to receive him and that his visit will be a blessing to all those he meets through the weekend.’  

Archbishop Stephen’s welcome message to the Diocese of Sheffield