Bishop of London preaches at the Sailors’ Society Birthday Celebration Service
Howard Lake | 1 December 2008 | News Newswire
The 190th birthday of the Sailors’ Society was commemorated recently with a well-attended celebratory service, held at All Hallows by the Tower, the oldest church in the City of London. Guest preacher at the service was the Rt. Rev Richard Chartres, Bishop of London, who is also a Vice President of the Society.
The Southampton-based international charity held the London service to celebrate this landmark anniversary with its many friends and supporters from the City of London. In addition to this, a local service took place earlier this year in Southampton on the Society’s foundation date, March 18th.
During the service, the Society’s CEO, Robert Adams gave a brief history of the charity and its work in supporting seafarers in the UK and across the globe.
There has been an affiliation between the Bishop of London and the Sailors’ Society since the charity’s inception in 1818. At this point in history a licence was required from the Bishop of London before the Society could begin its work in the Port of London. The Bishop granted the Society its licence, and as a result, its ministry benefits thousands of seafarers in London. Since then, every succeeding Bishop of London has been a Vice President of the Society, and although a licence is no longer needed, the relationship with the Bishop has been maintained.
Reverend David Potterton, the Principal Chaplain of the Sailors’ Society, explained: “The focus of the service was on publicly thanking God for the past 190 years, and reflecting on the work of the charity since its foundation. The Bishop’s sermon was very thought-provoking and perfect for the occasion, which was attended by over 100 people.”
All Hallows by the Tower will also be hosting the Sailors’ Society Carol Service on Wednesday 17 December at 12.30hrs. The Service of lessons and carols will last approximately one hour and members of the public are warmly invited to attend. Please feel free to contact Ann Brogan on 02380 515 967 for further information. Confirmation of attendance would be helpful.
About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale.
He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.