During the summer of 2022, I had the opportunity to be one of the stewards at the Lambeth Conference. Youth aged 18–30 from around the Anglican Communion were invited to come to Canterbury, England to assist with running the conference. We got to do a huge variety of tasks, from helping bishops with wayfinding to setting up and running venues, from counting attendance to staffing seminars and speeches. The conference was hosted at the University of Kent, with one day where we all took buses — and then boats on the river Thames — to Lambeth Palace in London.
Before stewarding the conference, I was doing an internship at a church in Durham, England, but prior to that I worshipped at St. Laurence, Coquitlam. Because I was already in England, Jason Wood, the youth minister at St. Laurence, suggested I apply, so I did and was accepted.
I went into it with very little idea of what to expect but was blown away by the community that immediately became apparent. Of the 40 stewards there, we represented about 20 countries from all around the Anglican Communion, including three Canadians. We mostly worked in smaller groups during shifts — my group had, in addition to myself, people from Panama, India, Pakistan, and the United States. Very few of the stewards had met before, and despite coming from all over the world and from so many different roles within our churches (there were stewards who were deacons, priests, youth ministers, engineers, architects, and students, just to name a few), we immediately connected. We really felt like family through our faith, and our common task of working behind the scenes to assist bishops and keep the conference running smoothly. We’re all keeping in touch, and regularly sharing messages and pictures of what’s going on in our churches and communities.
Maybe even more impactful, was the sense of connection within the wider conference: bishops were coming in from so many different contexts, with so many different opinions, and yet there was a tangible feeling of community. Throughout the conference so many people were praying for connection and unity, and it really felt like those prayers were answered.
I came to the Lambeth Conference with little understanding of the importance of the Anglican Communion, and even less of my own role within it. I left with a deep appreciation of the way that we are all part of God’s Church, and how we, even when we might rarely meet each other and might disagree on things, are family. It has affected the way I think about and how I pray for the worldwide church. If there is one thing I would like to share from my time at the conference, besides saying thank you to everyone who prayed for it, it is how interconnected we are, and how important each and every one of us is in the worldwide Communion.
IMAGES
- Bishop John Stephens takes a selfie with conference steward, Elisa Korner of St. Laurence, Coquitlam.
- Elisa Korner, Emily Clough, Josh Floberg, Sean Murray, and Oshin Gill. Photo: Sean Murray
- Elisa Korner on London Day directing delegates onto boats after visiting Lambeth Palace. Photo: Oshin Gill