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Next Chairman of Liturgical Commission announced

4 May 2004

The Rt Revd Stephen Platten, Bishop of Wakefield, is to be the next Chairman of the Liturgical Commission. He will take over from the present Chairman, the Rt Revd David Stancliffe, Bishop of Salisbury, in November 2005.

By then, the Commission's work on the Common Worship liturgical texts will be complete and the Commission plans to turn its attention to ensuring that the quality of worship offered in the Church of England is consistently high.

The Bishop of Salisbury, who has chaired the Commission since 1993, welcomed the appointment saying: 'Stephen Platten is a splendid and vigorous choice to lead the Liturgical Commission into its next phase of work. His diverse experience of worship in many different contexts both in England and overseas and his many ecumenical contacts will bring depth to his rich contribution to the development of our church's worship.'

Bishop Stephen said: 'In the Book of Common Prayer and Common Worship, the Church of England has excellent liturgical resources. Our task is now to ensure that the way those texts are used in parishes is to the same high standard and I am delighted to have been asked to contribute to this work. The liturgy should be at the vanguard of the Church's mission, ensuring those who come to our churches encounter services that are both inspiring and uplifting and so are drawn further into the worship of God and into a new or renewed faith.'

The Bishop, who moved to Wakefield from being Dean of Norwich, has always kept a close eye on liturgical developments. Having worked in two Cathedrals, he believes that they can set standards as centres of excellence, encouraging parishes in their own liturgical worship. He was behind the recent exhibition and conference which opened at the Vatican, and later came to this country, aimed at clarifying the place of Anglicanism in the world Church.