Events in 2003 - London, St Albans, Brugge, Lyon

The Pont du Change, with the Church of St Nizier, where Paul Couturier made his first Holy Communion, in the distance.

Tuesday 21 January

'The Invisible Monastery'
An evening celebrating Paul Couturier, architect of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, 7-9 pm
At the World Community for Christian Meditation, St Mark's Church, Middleton Square, London EC1

Saturday 22 March

Spiritual Ecumenism
A Day Conference, 10-30 am to 4 pm at Westminster Cathedral Hall to celebrate the influence of Christians' "spiritual emulation" of each other, the influence of prayer for unity on the life of the churches, and the real advances in ecumenism through living in the "Invisible Monastery".

Addresses included

• Couturier and the Church Unity Octave in the history of Catholic Anglicans
  Brooke Lunn, Editor of the Catholic League's 'Messenger'
• The Anglican Benedictines of Nashdom and Blessed Maria Gabriella of Unity
  The Rt Rev'd Dom Basil Matthews OSB, Abbot of Elmore Abbey (formerly Nashdom)
• Couturier and Shrewsbury, Methodism's Ecumenical Pioneer
  David Carter, Joint Methodist & Catholic Theological Commission (2003 is also the Tercentenary of the Birth of John Wesley)
• The Invisible Monastery 1953-2003 and the Dynamic Role of Spiritual Friendship
  Paul Renyard, Chaplain, the Living Spirituality Network
• Couturier, Spiritual Emulation and the Chemin Neuf Community
  Dr Timothy Watson, University of Newcastle, and Member of the Communauté du Chemin Neuf
• Paul Couturier and his Contacts with Anglican Benedictine Nuns
  Sister Mary Michael CHC, Community of the Holy Cross, Rempstone
• Spiritual Ecumenism in Action : Pastoral Unity in the East End
  Roderick Leece, Ecumenical Officer, Stepney Area of the Anglican Diocese of London
• Spiritual Ecumenism - Christian Community Restoring the Environment : Living Waterways
  David Bookless, Director, A Rocha UK
• Paul Couturier, the Week of Prayer and Unity of Humanity in the Creator
  Mark Woodruff, Secretary, Society for Ecumenical Studies

Click here for details of the commemorative book about Paul Couturier containing the addresses and proceedings of this conference.

Weekend of Celebrations in Lyon 22 - 23 March

Saturday 22 March

• 2-30 pm to 5-30 pm : An afternoon on Paul Couturier's life and ideas, with witness accounts of those who knew him, at the Université catholique de Lyon, Salle Jean-Paul II, 25 rue du Plat, Lyon 2
• 2 pm to 5-30 pm : Celebration for Young People of all denominations at the Temple du Change, Place du Change Lyon 5
• 6 pm to 7 pm: Ecumenical Liturgy for the faithful of all Christian Churches, in the Cathedral of St John

Sunday 23 March

• Each Christian confession invited those of other Churches to special Services or Eucharists. The Catholics gathered the Church of St Francis de Sales, rue Auguste Comte, Lyon 2e, a building where the Abbé loved to say Mass, and where he organized the first meetings of the Week of Prayer for the Unity of Christians
• 11-45 am : Unveiling of a Commemorative Plaque in honour of the Abbé Paul Couturier, in the presence of Monseigneur Philippe Barbarin, and the Senator-Mayor of Lyon Gérard Collomb as well as the mayors of the 2nd and 5th arrondissements, to mark the renaming of the St Georges Footbridge as the Passerelle Abbé Paul Couturier, quai Tilsitt-Lyon, Lyon 2
• 2-30 pm : A tour 'In the Footsteps of the Abbé Couturier', visiting places associated with Paul Couturier in his life and activity : the Institution des Chartreux, where he taught for several decades; the Church of Saint Nizier, where he made his first Holy Communion; the cemetery of Loyasse where he has lain at rest for half a century

Pastor Conrad Reiser, President of the World Council of Churches, and Cardinal Walter Kasper, President of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, were invited to preside jointly at this weekend of celebrations.

For further details contact Centre Unité Chrétienne, 2 rue Jean Carriès, 69005 Lyon, FRANCE. Telephone +33 04 78 42 11 67. Fax +33 04 72 7768 99.

Monday 24 March

The Fiftieth Anniversary of the Death of Paul Couturier
The Abbé was specially commemorated at Sung Mass at 5-30 pm at Westminster Cathedral on the Vigil of the Solemnity of the Annunciation of our Lord. Bishop Alan Hopes, vicar general, read a letter of greeting and commendation of the work and prayer of the Abbé Couturier. This was also the eve of the Centenary of the opening of Westminster Cathedral in 1903.

There followed a Reception and an address on The Life and Vision of Paul Couturier by Dr Timothy Watson of the University of Newcastle and a member of the Chemin Neuf Community.

Click here to read the Order of Mass, the greeting from Cardinal Murphy O'Connor and the Homily by Bishop Alan Hopes.

27 - 30 March

International Ecumenical Fellowship British Region - Annual Meeting
The BR-IEF residential gathering at Hengrave Hall, near Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk. Themes include the Ecumenical Spirituality of Paul Couturier, and ecumenical studies in the context of the university and in training for ministry.

Saturday 10 May

Dare to Share
The Focolare Movement and Churches Together in England joined forces to present a lived experience of new life in the ecumenical structures, at the Institute of Education, London.

More information on Focolare is available from the Focolare Centre for Unity, 69 Parkway, Welwyn Garden City, Herts AL8 6JG, or telephone 01707 332950. Or email here.

Saturday 17 May

'That they all may be one' - But How?
The Society for Ecumenical Studies, the Newman Association and the ecumenical St Albans Centre for Christian Studies hosted this major conference at St Albans Abbey.

• Dr Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury
• Cardinal Walter Kasper, President of the Pontifical Council for Christian Unity
• The Revd Elizabeth Welch, Moderator of the United Reformed Church 2001-2

To read their speeches, click here.

27 - 29 June

Spiritual Ecumenism : The Vision of Paul Couturier for the Unity of Christians
An international interconfessional weekend at the English Convent, Brugge-Bruges, Belgium, to study and celebrate the influence of Christians' "spiritual emulation" of each other, the influence of prayer for unity on the life of the churches, and the real advances in ecumenism through living in the "Invisible Monastery".

Addresses included

• Paul Couturier and the Monks of Unity
  Dom Thaddée Barnas OSB, from the Abbey of Chevetogne, Belgium, Editor of Irénikon
• The Holy Spirit and Ecumenism
  Professor Adelbert Denaux, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, International President of the International Ecumenical Fellowship
• Paul Couturier and England
  Prebendary Brooke Lunn, St Paul's Cathedral, London, Editor of the 'Messenger' of the Catholic League)
• Christ in the Hymns of Charles Wesley : A Spirituality for all Christians
  Fr Francis Frost, Foyer Sacerdotal, Ars-sur-Formans
• St Thomas More on Unity : A True Spirituality for Ecumenism
  Dr Kevin Eastell, Director of the Moreanum, Université Catholique de l'Ouest, Angers, President of the Catholic League
• Couturier and Shrewsbury - two Ecumenical Pioneers
  David Carter, Joint Methodist Roman Catholic International Commission
• Paul Couturier, the Chemin Neuf Community and the Invisible Monastery
  Sister Muriel d'Hoffschmidt, member of the Communauté du Chemin Neuf at La Hulpe, Belgium
• Paul Couturier, the Week of Prayer and the Unity of Humanity and Creator
  Mark Woodruff, Secretary, Society for Ecumenical Studies

Click here for details of the commemorative book about Paul Couturier containing the addresses and proceedings of this conference.

26 - 29 August

Conference in Commemoration of Abbé Paul Irénée Couturier 1881-1953

The Ecumenical Society of the Blessed Virgin Mary will be arranging a Conference as a tribute to Paul Couturier, in particular to commemorate his hard work to promote ecumenical understanding between Catholics and Orthodox. The event will be a collaboration with the Society of St John Chrysostom (US website) and the Fellowship of St Alban & St Sergius.

Addresses included

• Paul Couturier : Anglican and Catholic Encounters Remembered
  Canon Richard Rutt, former Anglican Bishop of Leicester, now a senior Catholic priest in the Diocese of Plymouth
• The Abbé and the Reverend Henry Fynes-Clinton of the Church of St Magnus the Martyr in Early Ecumenical Relations
  Fr John Salter, priest in the Melkite Patriarchate of Antioch, and President of the Anglican and Eastern Churches Association
• Evangelisation and Unity: The Significance of John Wesley
  David Carter, Joint Methodist & Catholic Theological Commission (2003 is also the Tercentenary of the Birth of John Wesley)
• Dialogue between the Orthodox and the Catholics of the Eastern Rite
  Archimandrite Serge Kelleher, Dublin, editor of the Eastern Churches Journal
• Convergence between Evangelicals and pre-Reformation Churches
  Dwight Longenecker
• An Anglican and a Catholic View of Mary 1686-1703: Two Tracts Compared
  Peter Sibley, ESBVM Archivist
• Father Ignatius Spencer, 1789-1865: Remembering Another Pioneer
  Amanda Hill
• Lutheran Ecumenical Engagements
  The Revd Thomas Bruch, Lutheran Council of Great Britain
• The Diaconate as an Ecumenical Opportunity
  The Revd Paul McPartlan, Professor of Dogmatic Theology, Heythrop College
• St Basil's House and the 'Invisible Monastery'
  Joan Rutt, former Secretary of the Fellowship of St Alban & St Sergius

It took place at Woldingham School, a Catholic Secondary Independent School founded by the Society of the Sacred Heart, some of whose members made notable contributions to the foundation of the Ecumenical Society and to the cause of Christian Unity.

Pilgrimages

The Catholic League arranges ecumenical pilgrimages each year, usually staying in religious houses where a strong and friendly spiritual relationship has been built up over many years. Ecumenical Pilgrimage was strongly recommended by Paul Couturier as it leads to 'spiritual emulation' and greater depth and longing in the prayer for Unity. The following visits took place in 2003, and featured commemorations of the father of Spiritual Ecumenism:

• Paris 16 - 20 May
  An Easter weekend with the Benedictine Nuns of the Blessed Sacrament, at Montmartre
• Paris 20 - 24 June
  Corpus Christi weekend with the Benedictine Nuns of the Blessed Sacrament, at Montmartre
• Bruges 10 - 14 September
  Holy Cross weekend with the Benedictine Daughters of the Church at the Béguinage

Further details on the Catholic League's ecumenical pilgrimage work are available from the General Secretary, Christopher Stevenson, 27 Moor End, Newby, Scarborough, Yorkshire YO21 5SL, United Kingdom. Telephone +44 (0)1273 378572, or email here.

The Unity of Christians: The Vision of Paul Couturier