The ‘Call to Serve’ summer school for young leaders in Anglican churches across the Province of Jerusalem and the Middle East was held this week in Famagusta. 

St. Mark’s in Famagusta and St Andrew’s, Kyrenia hosted services for participants, who came from churches across the Province: Amman in Jordan, Nablus in the West Bank, Galilee, Jerusalem, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Qatar and Famagusta.

The group comprised Palestinian, Indian, Sri Lankan and Nigerian young people aged 18-35, who said that some of the things they would take away from the week were  ‘new experiences’, ‘ a wider perspective’, ‘new frameworks for understanding and methods for dealing with difficult situations ‘.
Participants said that they valued the meaningful personal connections they had developed with others from across the Province and held felt encouraged and strengthened by this. 

The summer school was supported by USPG (www.uspg.org.uk) and organised by the Anglican Alliance and representatives of churches in Jerusalem, Nazareth, Amman, Aya Napa and Kyrenia, with members of St Mark’s Famagusta providing invaluable practical support.

Dr Peniel Rajkumar, from USPG, provided an engaging and thought-provoking series of presentations and activities on the theme of  ‘The Tent of Abraham and Sarah’. 

Revd Anne Futcher from Larnaca gave a presentation at St Andrew’s on the Social Concern work of our Diocese and participants took part in an educational tour of North Nicosia, provided by the Home for Cooperation (www.home4cooperation.info). The group also visited St Barnabas, Salamis and Varosha. This was particularly moving and poignant, because of events in the West Bank on that day. 

The summer school included Eucharists celebrated by Bishop Sean, Fr Nael Abu Rahmoun, Vicar of Nazareth (at St Andrew’s) Revd Deborah of Limassol – and concluded with a Eucharist lead by Fr Mark Derry of Qatar, which Bishop Sean attended. 

At the time of writing, the participants are travelling to their respective homes across the Middle East to continue their missions, knowing, – in the words of one – that ‘peace is fragile and costly and we must do our best to nurture it’ and that, quoting Dr Peniel – ‘we should not be spectators, but spectactors’, and feeling ‘connected, united and inspired’ .