Archbishops to address immigration during Cambridge visit

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, and the Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu will address the political and human rights issues associated with immigration during their joint visit to Cambridge this week.

The Archbishops will begin their three-day visit on Wednesday with a visit to Oakington Immigration Detention Centre. There they will meet the multi-faith chaplaincy team, as well as detainees and staff, to highlight the political and human rights issues before giving a homily at a short service.

On Friday afternoon, the Archbishops will look at the response of the major Churches to homelessness by visiting the Emmaus Community at Landbeach, home to up to thirty formerly homeless people. The community strives to not only shelter but also work in accordance with the principles of acceptance, sharing, working for others of greater need and self respect.

The Archbishop of Canterbury will deliver two lectures entitled 'What Difference Does it Make? - The Gospel in Contemporary Culture' and 'Faith, Reason and Quality Assurance: Having Faith in Academic Life'. Dr Williams will later join with local clergy and diocesan staff at St George's Church in Chesterton for a seminar on the subject of 'New Churches for New Communities'.

The Archbishop of York, meanwhile, will deliver a lecture entitled 'A Broken Society?' at Great St Mary's and will address the 'Changing Chaplaincy' conference at Anglia Ruskin University. Dr Sentamu will speak to students of the Cambridge Union, and will conduct several pastoral interviews with students at Pembroke College.

Dr Sentamu will also conduct a Q&A with school children and sixth formers, in addition to attending a 'Policing in the Community' meeting with researchers and practitioners at the Department of Criminology.

The Archbishops will conclude their visit by taking part in a seminar entitled 'Faith in the Future'at Great St Mary's Church chaired by Madeleine Bunting, associate editor of The Guardian newspaper. This will be an opportunity for the Archbishops to recap the themes of their previous lectures, provide a reflection on the experiences of their visit and answer questions that have been submitted over the previous days with the aim to provide a vision for the future.

Dr Williams said, "Together with the Archbishop of York, I am greatly looking forward to this visit, and to engaging with the local community in Cambridge and the different aspects of life in one of the world's great universities."

The Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu said, "I am delighted to be able to engage with the students and to work alongside the Archbishop of Canterbury on a visit which provides a wonderful opportunity to listen and learn of Cambridge's future plans on a wide range of important issues."