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Archbishop comes to town

Dr Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, has agreed to give a major lecture at the University of Glasgow.

The leader of the Anglican Church in England [and also of the world-wide Anglican Communion] will speak at a public event after accepting an invitation from the university's head of theology and religious studies, Dr Mona Siddiqui.

It is believed the visit, which will be open to the public on December 4, is his first to the university as archbishop.

Williams agreed to the trip when Siddiqui, the director of the centre for Islamic studies at the university, wrote to him after they worked together on a series of Christian-Muslim initiatives.

His trip was welcomed by the Catholic and Muslim communities. Archbishop Mario Conti, the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Glasgow, said: "He is an acclaimed theologian and has shown great sensitivity to the need for ecumenical and inter-faith dialogue."

Osama Saeed, of the Muslim Association of Britain, added: "Over the last few years he has been willing to talk about issues involving the Muslim community. I would certainly be interested in hearing his speech."

Siddiqui has developed a friendship with Williams through their work together on an initiative called Building Bridges, which allows Christian and Muslim scholars from around the world to hold in-depth discussions. Although Siddiqui said it was too early to know what subject the archbishop will tackle, she believes he will not shy away from discussing difficult inter-faith issues.

Full story at the Sunday Herald.