Lambeth Bishops on a Newport Bus

l to r: Bishop Don Johnson of West Tennessee (USA), Bishop James Leftwich, Assistant Bishop of North Queensland (Australia), Bishop Filadelfo Olivera of Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), Bishop David Beetge of the Highveld (South Africa), Bishop Dominic Walker of Monmouth (Wales)

You don’t expect to see one bishop on a bus, let alone a bunch of them! But five bishops recently boarded the open-top bus for a sightseeing tour of Newport. Bishop Dominic was delighted to welcome four colleagues and their wives from overseas to spend a few days in the Diocese before going to the Lambeth Conference. Our World Mission Officer, Irene Doull, worked hard to organise a programme of visits, including the tour of Newport with visits to Caerleon, the Newport Ship and Tredegar House. ‘Brother Thomas’ took them round Tintern Abbey and told them of his life as a medieval monk and the Mayor of Newport entertained them to a buffet supper at Mansion House. They went down Big Pit, toured the Welsh Assembly Building, and visited the Lightship in Cardiff Bay and St Fagan’s.

The visitors stayed with clergy and shared in the Sunday worship of their host parishes before joining the congregation in Newport Cathedral for evensong. Visitors and hosts thoroughly enjoyed their time together.