Archbishop Justin began his final day in our diocese with a celebration of 100 years of St Wilfrid’s Church, Cowplain. Former vicars Bishop Peter Hancock, the Ven Paul Moore and the Rev Ian Snares returned to take part in the service, and former curates were also dotted around the congregation. Bishop Peter preached, Paul and Ian both read lessons, while Lucy Moore led intercessions ahead of the celebration of the Eucharist by the Archbishop.

Current and former members of the congregation also shared their memories of their time at the church. Neil Eastwood, whose father was vicar in the 1950s, told a hilarious story about stealing marriage certificates from his father’s study and ‘marrying’ classmates at school for a small fee. Others talked about the development of the church plant at Westbrook Church, and recent efforts to bless the local community.

Among the congregation was Valerie German, now 83, who was a missionary in Kenya in 1974 when a young Justin Welby arrived as part of a cohort of young people spending a gap year working there, and ended up sleeping on Valerie’s floor. It was in Kenya that he first started reading the Bible, which led to his commitment to Christ in Cambridge in 1975. Valerie is a regular at St Wilfrid’s, and the Archbishop made a point of seeking her out to offer her Communion.

“It was Justin’s friend Robin who first gave him a Bible in Kenya, which he thought was a bit weird,” she said. “But he read it, and I think that led him towards faith. It was great that he brought Communion to me on this special day for St Wilfrid’s.”

The Archbishop was given the chance to experience the high-octane fun at Christ Church, Gosport, where they now host a service called ‘The Four’ on a Sunday afternoon. Families queue up outside the church before the doors open at 4pm and walk in through a stream of bubbles and a blast of music. They then get the chance to dance and sing high-energy worship songs, prepare some craft and play games before they sit down for a shared meal together.

On this occasion, the children were able to quiz Archbishop Justin with questions they’d prepared, including what an archbishop is and what it’s like to crown a King. The Archbishop prayed for Christ Church and two eight-year-old children, Levi Smith and Ruby Kemp prayed for him.

Kyle and Courtney Gray bring their six-year-old niece Isabella to Christ Church as often as they can, and have been part of the congregation for two years. They now help with Alpha and have encouraged other members of their family to come along.

“Our lives have been totally transformed by this church,” said Kyle. ”I came from a background that’s not religious, but I felt really welcomed here and it’s had a huge impact on me. We’ve got baptised and I cook the food for the Alpha Courses. We’re also running a Connect group on a Thursday for people who have addictions or who are struggling and need some healing.

“It was great to meet the Archbishop. He was interested in our work and what we do. It’s really good he's been able to come here.”