Feb. 12, 2008, London

The Archbishop of Canterbury announced the formation of the Windsor Continuation Group, as proposed in his Advent Letter, to address outstanding questions arising from the Windsor Report and the various formal responses from provinces and instruments of the Anglican Communion.

The members of the group are:

• The Most Rev. Clive Handford, former Primate of Jerusalem and the Middle East (chair)
• The Most Rev. John Chew, Primate of South East Asia
• The Rt. Rev. Gary Lillibridge, Bishop of West Texas
• The Rt. Rev. Victoria Matthews, former Bishop of Edmonton
• The Very Rev. John Moses, former dean of St Paul's, London
• The Most Rev. Donald Mtetemela, Primate of Tanzania

Dame Mary Tanner, co-president of the World Council of Churches, will consult. Canon Andrew Norman of the Archbishop of Canterbury's staff, and Canon Gregory Cameron of the Anglican Communion Office will assist the group.

Bishop Clive Handford, who will chair the panel, said,"We are conscious as we undertake this work that the Archbishop has given us an important responsibility to assist the Communion to move forward. A significant element of our work will be face-to-face conversation with those who have key roles in shaping the future of our common life. I believe in the Anglican Communion, and hope that our work will help it to find healing and new strength."

The group will be working intensively in the period running up to the 2008 Lambeth Conference, where its initial work will contribute to the shared discernment of the bishops in strengthening the life and identity of the Anglican Communion.

The Archbishop of Canterbury commented, "I am deeply grateful to those who have accepted the invitation to carry forward the important work in our Communion's life that I indicated in my Advent Letter. This is a demanding assignment. I trust they can count on our prayers throughout the Communion as they bring their combined wisdom and attentiveness to the strengthening of our common life through the Windsor Process."