ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY AND VATICAN.

Press, Volume LXV, Issue 19691, 7 August 1929, Page 17

ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY AND VATICAN.

to rin; entTOR of th* press Sir,— May I ask the privilege of your vastly greater circulation to correct a serious mis-statement, which, being published in a London paper some time ago, was cabled to Tut Press in good faith as newsf It will be easily realised that it has occasioned surprise and incredulity, and it is well for the sake of peace to have the question cleared statement was made by the Archbishop of Canterbury to the Church Assembly on June 17th, as follows:"Last April, while I was stilr abroad, a statement was published In a leading London newspaper, with every prominence of headline# and large type, that it was on represen tations from the Vatican that the Archbishop of Canterbury decided not to make his proposed visit to Jerusalem. A statement so inherently improbable had little credence given to it in this country (England). But it has been widely circulated by the Press in Italy, in Greece, in the Near East, and in many other parts of the world, and has given rise to much natural misunderstanding, and, indeed, perplexity. I feel, therefor*, obliged to use this occasion which may secure wide publicity for my words to say that tho statement was entirely untrue. When I regretfully informed the High Commissioner and the Bishop in Jerusalem that for mere lack of time I could not visit the Holy Land, so far from having been in flueneed by these alleged representations, 1 had not iven heard of their existence. lam permitted to add that the Foreign Office did not receive any representation from the Vatican, or from any responsible quarter on tae subject." _ i, It will be seen that the Roman Catholic Church was not responsible for the allegation.—Yours, etc., H. O. HANBY, Editor, "Church News. August 6th, 1929.