Archbishop of York to read sermon at St Peter's Church in Burnley for Racial Justice Sunday

The Archbishop, one of the most senior figures in the Church of England, will give the sermon at the service.

The day is when the church focuses on the need to oppose racism in all forms and to focus on the need to pursue racial justice with renewed vigour.

Rev Cottrell is the second most senior cleric in the Church of England, having been appointed Archbishop of York in July 2020. He was previously Bishop of Chelmsford from 2010 until 2020 and before that Suffragan Bishop of Reading in the Oxford Diocese from 2004 until 2010.

The 65-year-old was ordained a priest in the Church of England in 1984 and served in parishes in London and Chichester before taking up the post of Diocesan Missioner in the Diocese of Wakefield from 1993. He then became Canon Pastor at Peterborough Cathedral, before his appointment as Bishop of Reading in 2004.

He is remembered by the wider public for preaching the sermon, at short notice when the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby went down with Covid, at the National Service of Thanksgiving in St Paul’s Cathedral in June 2022 to mark the Platinum Jubilee of the late Queen Elizabeth II.

Whilst the Archbishop made a brief informal visit to St Peter’s in 2022 to mark its 950th anniversary, this is the first visit of an Archbishop to the Parish Church in Burnley to preach and preside at a service in living memory.

The service will take the form of a celebration of the Eucharist, but it is a service to which all are invited and all are welcome whatever their faith or none.

The service will be attended by the Mayor and Mayoress of Burnley and other civic leaders, together with representatives of charitable organisations within Burnley and Pendle – in particular representatives of Building Bridges.

Speaking on behalf of St Peter’s, the Rector, Father Andrew Holmes said: “We are greatly honoured that the Archbishop of York has chosen to come to St Peter’s to preach and to preside at a celebration of Holy Communion. The Bishop of Blackburn will also be present.

“The visit will mark Racial Justice Sunday, when we will think again about the need to oppose racism and when we will focus on the need to pursue racial justice with renewed vigour. The service is open to any member of the public who wishes to attend whether they are members of other faiths or none. All are invited and all will be most welcome.”

The service will begin at 10-30am and the church will be open from 9-30am. Limited parking will be available in the school yard of St Peter’s School which is adjacent to the church. There will be no parking in the churchyard.