The Portal February 2015 | Page 3

THE P RTAL February 2015 Page 3 Portal Editorial Will Burton W hat a start to the New Year it has been! The Holy Father’s visit to Sri Lanka, those awful shootings in France, the question of ‘Free Speech’ and whether it alone is sacrosanct. We add our own small piece to these discussions. Elsewhere in this issue of The Portal, you will read thoughts on these subjects from some of our regular contributors. Ecumenism On 26th January, 2015 The Right Revd Libby Lane was ordained a bishop in the CofE. Remembering that our Ordinary, in his last interview with The Portal, said that the Ordinariate was about ecumenism, we have set out on a whole series of articles and interviews about this important subject. The first of these appears in this edition of The Portal. It is an interview with The Revd Canon Alison Joyce, Rector of the CofE church of St Bride’s, Fleet Street in the City of London. She has some interesting things to say about ecumenism in general and the future of inter-church relations in particular. Future editions of The Portal will contain interviews with a number of prominent people involved in ecumenical discussions. From the Catholic side we have secured an interview with The Most Revd Bernard Longley, Archbishop of Birmingham, one of the Catholic members of ARCIC (Anglican - Roman Catholic International Commission). We shall also bring you the views of others involved in ecumenical discussions with the Catholic Church. These will include Commissioner Bill Cochran of The Salvation Army; a representative of the Methodist Church, and one from the Lutheran Churches. Furthermore, we are also planning contributions from the Eastern Orthodox churches. As if all that were not enough, the Ecumenical Marian Pilgrimage Trust is organising a Pilgrimage to W