To prepare for the Archbishop of Canterbury's second visit to China, a delegation of the England Bishops visited the Shanghai CCC&TSPM on July 28, 2017.
Three people of the delegation are Rev. David Urquhart, the Archbishop of Canterbury's Link with China, and the Bishop of Birmingham. As the counselor for Chinese affairs, the Bishop accompanied two archbishops of Canterbury on the trips to China.
Since the first visit to China in 2015, Justin Welby the Archbishop of Canterbury is planning one more trip to visit more places and deepen the knowledge of and friendship with the Chinese church for more cooperation.
Both sides were interested in theological education. Bishop Urquhart shared that a new mixed theological training pattern developed in Britain in which trainees mainly receive practical training in the church along with classroom teaching provided by seminaries or online courses. Rev. Xie Bingguo, chairman of the Shanghai Christian Council, stated that the church in Shanghai also held after-hours theological training programs to alleviate the shortage of pastoral staff.
At the end, the sides exchanged gifts and took group photos.
-Translated by Karen Luo
