Former British Ambassador to the Vatican to speak in Shankill Parish Church this week
Former British Ambassador to the Vatican, Professor Francis Campbell, will speak at a special service in Shankill Parish Lurgan to mark the Annual Week of Prayer for Christian Unity.
The service, which is at 7.30 pm on Wednesday 24 January, has been organised by the Lurgan Community Outreach Group. Prof Campbell will take as his theme, “Faith and Power in the World Today.”
Since entering the British diplomatic service just over 20 years ago, Prof Campbell has served in many countries, gaining first–hand experience of living and working among a great variety of cultures and faiths, often against a background of conflict and divisions. He served as British Ambassador to the Vatican from 2005–2011, becoming the first Catholic appointed to the role since the Reformation. He is currently Vice–Chancellor of St Mary’s University, Twickenham, London.
Prof Campbell is a native of Rathfriland and after attending St Joseph’s Seminary in Belfast, part of the philosophy faculty at Queen’s University Belfast, pursued his studies in theology, philosophy and international relations in Italy, Belgium, Poland and the USA.
Other posts held in his distinguished career include that of Deputy High Commissioner in Pakistan, Service at the UN Security Council, the European Union, Amnesty International, Director of Innovation at UK Trade and Investment and Membership of the Advisory Panel on Anti–Slavery.