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Editorial
Ecclesiastical Diplomacy … or Counterculture?
Stephen Platten
Back in the early 1990s an unlikely guest was ushered into the presence of the Archbishop of Canterbury. Clad in cassock and doffing his Basque beret, Martin de Zabala knew his way round Lambeth Palace, even if his English was rather broken.
‘Good morning, Her Excellency’, Martin began, in response to the audience but, within a very short time, he and the Archbishop had struck up a warm and productive relationship. His Grace was relaxed about being Her Excellency for the day! Martin, a Basque secular priest, had – with the encouragement of his bishop – pioneered links between religious orders across international boundaries both religious and geographical and with assistance from the Archbishop’s Office. But then, in contrast on another occasion, there was a fiery meeting between a member of the Archbishop’s staff and Canon Michael Bourdeaux. Bourdeaux had founded Keston College which fearlessly worked to expose the dark links between Russian prelates and the KGB and to support Christians living under the Soviet regime. However, on various occasions, Lambeth had nevertheless sought diplomatic exchanges with the then Metropolitan for the Russian Orthodox Diocese of Moscow... as a new order began to emerge, and following the collapse of the Soviet Union. Michael was furious and said so, but Michael was a warrior, while the Archbishop’s staff were trained to be diplomats. In this, cooperation between Lambeth and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office brought benefits to both even though there were times when policies diverged – the FCO pursued British interests – that was their task. The Church of England’s task was to seek the kingdom of God.
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