THE Community of St Anselm (CoSA), a flagship initiative of Archbishop Welby, has celebrated its tenth anniversary, after completing “a process of discernment” about its future.
The CoSA was launched in 2015 and sought to encourage Christians between the ages of 20 and 35 to experience a “radical Jesus-centred community” of prayer and service (News, 25 September 2015). Each year since then, its members have lived as community members in Lambeth Palace, participating in prayer, worship, and service in the wider community. A number of non-resident members have also been part of the group while working in secular employment.
During the past decade, 175 people have graduated from CoSA “after living, working and worshipping at Lambeth Palace”, a statement from the Palace said.
Eighty current and former members, from ten different cohorts, took part in three days of worship and events last week, “focusing on themes of coming home, thanksgiving and journeying, whilst renewing their commitment to reconciliation and service”, the statement said. “In CoSA tradition, members prayed together, washed up together, prepared meals together, and celebrated together.”
Regarding CoSA’s future, the statement said that “a process of discernment” (News, 10 January) was completed in January. A small number of members would remain in Lambeth Palace during the transition period to the next Archbishop, “and then resume as a community of formation in Autumn 2026.
“The residential location is not yet fixed. There will continue to be a dispersed community that meets largely virtually. CoSA will continue as a community of prayer, reconciliation, and learning drawing on the spirituality of St Benedict, St Francis and St Ignatius and the figure of St Anselm.”
The Chaplain to the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Revd Tosin Oladipo, said that, during the past decade, CoSA had “enriched community life at Lambeth, offering prayer, worship, and different perspectives from all around God’s rich and vibrant world”.
