C of E is the fastest-growing Church in Finland

CHURCHES that are part of the diocese in Europe are the fastest-growing in Finland, the Suffragan Bishop in Europe, the Rt Revd David Hamid, has said. The revival is largely a result of the settlement of large numbers of Anglican refugees from Sudan and South Sudan in Finland. Bishop Hamid made his remarks after attending a confirmation service at St Nicholas’s, Helsinki, a church founded by Russian Anglican refugees fleeing the Revolution of 1917.

Sudanese province waits to hear if it will become an independent Church

OFFICIALS from the Anglican Communion have completed a fact-finding mission to Sudan to consider if the province, currently a part of the Episcopal Church of South Sudan & Sudan, should become an independent Church. The delegation, which included the secretary general of the Anglican Communion, the Rt Revd Dr Josiah Idowu-Fearon, and the Bishop of Bradford, the Rt Revd Dr Toby Howarth, met with Sudanese government ministers, the province’s Archbishop and lay staff, and joined 2000 worshippers at a Cathedral service in Khartoum. The delegation will now prepare a report for the Anglican Consultative Council on whether the province should become independent.

Pope Francis sets up commission on women deacons

THE subject of women and the diaconate in the Early Church is to be explored by a commission established by Pope Francis. The body will comprise seven men and six women theologians from around the world. The Vatican has confirmed that the commission will not consider the possibility of women priests. The last RC theological commission on the issue of women deacons, which reported in 2002, concluded that deaconesses mentioned in the Bible were not the same as modern-day male ordained deacons.

Cologne Cathedral steps up its battle to stop gamers 'catching ’em all'

THE Roman Catholic cathedral in Cologne has begun legal action to force the makers of the smartphone game Pokémon Go to remove the medieval building from the game. Associated Press reported that the Dean, the Very Revd Robert Kleine, had told a local newspaper that the cathedral had been overwhelmed with visitors hoping to find Pokémon, and that the virtual-reality game’s manufacturers had so far ignored their requests to exclude the structure. “The cathedral is not a playground,” he said.