27th January 2026

Bishops from around the world join together to make pioneering visit to Kenya

Bishops from Dioceses around the world with links to The Church of England in Lancashire (Blackburn Diocese) will converge on Kenya this week for a gathering which is being supported by Christian Aid and is thought to be the first of its kind.

Rt Rev Philip North, Bishop of Blackburn, will be meeting with Bishop Joseph Aba, from Liwolo Diocese in South Sudan; Bishop Dintoe Letloenyane, from Free State Diocese in South Africa and Bishop Leo Paul of Multan Diocese in Pakistan. Blackburn Diocese is also linked with Braunschweig Diocese in Germany but they are currently in a vacancy period between Bishops.

The gathering will be groundbreaking because, while it seeks to further strengthen relationships between Blackburn Diocese and its link Dioceses, it will also have the additional purpose of fostering stronger long-term collaboration between the partner Dioceses as well.

The Bishops will be making the journey to Nairobi from profoundly different realities including one Diocese (Liwolo) where the people are living in exile due to ongoing war in their home country and another (Multan) where Christians are often persecuted.  

They will pray and seek to build strong personal relationships over the week they will be together – January 28 to February 3 - and will also take part in a variety of activities. There will also be time to relax, including a visit to Nairobi Wildlife Park.

The entire trip will be chronicled on social media via Bishop Philip’s and Diocese of Blackburn’s social media channels including Bishop Philip on Facebook and Instagram; Blackburn Diocese on Facebook and Instagram.

The core of the visit will be two days (Friday and Saturday) coordinated by the international charity Christian Aid. They will also be chronicling the visit on their own social channels. On Friday morning the bishops will have a roundtable with staff from the Christian Aid Africa Head Office in Nairobi.

They will attend a lunch at the All Africa Conference of Churches’ head office, alongside church leaders from Nairobi and representatives from partner organisations. This will be a chance to share in more detail what it’s like to minister in each of the different Dioceses.

Later that day, there will be a special moment when the group attends a service during which a new worship song, commissioned by Christian Aid and written by Kenyan artists, will be performed for the first time.

On Saturday, the Bishops will travel to Ongata Rongai (around 10 miles south of Nairobi) to meet staff from one of Christian Aid’s charity partners, Beacon of Hope.

Nairobi has many semi-permanent informal settlements of densely packed housing. Electricity and running water are for the few, food prices are high and many people earn less than a dollar a day – meaning putting food on the table is a daily struggle.

Beacon of Hope is working on urban farming projects, teaching families to grow their own produce, even in small spaces, to eat and sell. Initiatives like these are funded by Christian Aid, thanks to the generosity of its supporters.

During their visit, the Bishops will visit a resettlement camp to pray with people and to discuss the work being done to combat poverty and malnutrition.

Following their two days with Christian Aid the Bishops will attend morning service at Thika Cathedral on Sunday and will have a further day together on Monday to discuss the long-term future of the links between the Dioceses.

Commenting on his forthcoming trip, Bishop Philip said today: “I’m delighted to be able to travel to Nairobi to spend time together with my counterparts from Liwolo, the Free State and Multan.

“We all come from very different contexts - some marked by displacement and persecution - but we are one in Christ. In the coming days we will pray, listen and learn from one another and we are grateful for the support of Christian Aid and its partners on this special visit.”

Bishop Philip continued: “I want to hear how the Church is serving in fragile places and to ask how we in Lancashire can stand with them. My hope is that this time will deepen friendship, spark practical collaboration and strengthen our family of link Dioceses so that together we advocate for justice and proclaim the hope of Jesus.

“When one part of the Body of Christ hurts, we all hurt; when we walk together in Christ, we are stronger and more resilient.”

Frances Clemson, Faith Communications and Just Scripture specialist with Christian Aid added: “This trip will be an amazing opportunity for this group to find out about the challenges behind issues such as poverty, migration and climate, and to find out what they and their Dioceses can do to help communities push back against injustice.”

Captions for the above pictures:

• The four Bishops who are meeting together over the coming days in Nairobi are (pictured left to right) Bishop Philip North from Blackburn Diocese; Bishop Joseph Aba, from Liwolo Diocese in South Sudan; Bishop Dintoe Letloenyane, from Free State Diocese in South Africa and Bishop Leo Paul of Multan Diocese in Pakistan. 
• Bishop Philip North packing and getting ready for his trip to Nairobi in Kenya