The Bishop of Blackburn, Rt Rev Philip North, has launched his 2023 Harvest Appeal, supporting the people of an Anglican Diocese in Africa currently living in exile in a neighbouring country.  

This year's appeal - Bishop Philip’s first since being appointed Bishop of Blackburn earlier this year - will raise funds for charity CRESS UK and, through them, will support the Diocese of Liwolo.  

Bishop Philip has issued a new video message, available here now on the Diocesan YouTube channel, in which he calls for a ‘generous’ response from parishes, schools and people across Lancashire to a cause close to his heart.

• You do not have to attend one of our churches or schools to donate to the Harvest Appeal; anyone can help. More details of how to do so are at the end of the story.

It was last summer, while attending the once-a-decade Lambeth Conference in Canterbury alongside hundreds of Bishops from around the world, that Bishop Philip met someone he has since described as ‘one of the most inspirational Christian leaders he has ever come across’.  

Bishop Joseph Aba is the Bishop of Liwolo, which is in the southern part of South Sudan. Just two days after he was elected Bishop, Bishop Joseph’s diocese was caught up in a destructive Civil War and he had to lead his people into exile.  

Then, in March this year, Bishop Joseph was invited to Lancashire by Bishop Philip to share his story in person with people of all ages.  

As a result, Bishop Joseph was welcomed in many schools and churches and met people from all walks of life. The whole visit has led to the establishment of a ‘friendship link’ between our two Dioceses.  

• Listen to an interview on BBC Radio Lancashire with our Being Witnesses Manager, Joy Rushton; speaking to Joe Wilson about the Appeal. Click here for the audio and listen from 1h 16m 42s. 
• You can read more about the March visit and hear Bishop Joseph speaking in a video recorded at the time all available on this page.  

Bishop Philip comments: “The work of Bishop Joseph is not just evangelism, discipleship and church planting. His vision for the future of his people is so much wider than that.  

“He is also involved in education and healthcare, particularly wanting the best possible education for the young of South Sudan; he is involved in the work of reconciliation, bringing together warring tribes and he wants to see agricultural security for all his people and to address issues around gender violence.  

“His vision is for a nation rebuilt with Christ at its heart and the more I spoke to Bishop Joseph, the more I began to see the possibility of a friendship link between our Diocese and the Diocese of Liwolo. 

“These friendship links are quite difficult to arrange, so I was delighted to hear about a charity called CRESS UK. They are a small English charity, but one that is present on the ground in the refugee camps in Uganda and offering real practical support as people try to rebuild their shattered lives and access proper healthcare and education. 

“That why my Harvest Appeal this year will raise money for CRESS UK and, through them, provide support for the people of the Diocese of Liwolo. 

“The people of the Diocese of Blackburn are monumentally generous when it comes to the harvest appeal, but I hope this year they will be particularly generous.”

• Visit our Harvest Appeal page here to read more about this year’s appeal.  
• There is also coverage of our appeal on the CRESS UK website here. 

Making a donation …  

• Donate online using a debit or credit card by clicking here. (select 'One-Off Gift and add Gift Aid if appropriate). 
• Donate by cheque, payable to 'Blackburn Diocesan Board of Finance Limited (Diocese Harvest Appeal)' and send to Blackburn Diocesan Board of Finance, Diocesan Office, Clayton House, Walker Office Park, Blackburn, BB1 2QE.  
• Download the Harvest Appeal QR code poster here in pdf or jpg format to enable donations and pin it to all your noticeboards. Why not laminate it and stick it to your external noticeboards as well for passers-by to see. 
• The QR code is also available on the Harvest Appeal page linked to above.  

Captions for above pictures, top to bottom:

• Bishop Philip speaks in a still from his Harvest Appeal video 
• Bishop Philip and Bishop Joseph during the March visit to Lancashire 
• The QR code for donations  
• CRESS UK logo 
• An Agricultural Officer demonstrates the planting of trees to people from the Diocese of Liwolo

Full text of Bishop Philip’s Harvest Appeal video message 

Last summer during the Lambeth conference I met one of the most inspirational Christian leaders I’ve ever come across …

Bishop Joseph Aba is the Bishop of Liwolo, which is in the southern part of South Sudan. Just two days after he was elected Bishop, that whole part of South Sudan was plunged into the most terrible and destructive Civil War. And so, Bishop Joseph had to lead his people into exile. 

They now live in refugee camps in the northern part of Uganda.

Bishop Joseph is serving some of the poorest people in the world; but, despite all the suffering and pain, what amazed me was the vibrancy of Bishop Joseph’s faith and his real ambition for the kingdom.

And now as those people start to return to their country; as they leave those refugee camps behind and go back to South Sudan he has the most wonderful vision of a nation transformed under Christ.

His work is not just evangelism and discipleship and church planting.

His vision is so much wider than that … he is also involved in education and healthcare; particularly wanting the best possible education for the young of South Sudan.

He is involved in the work of reconciliation, bringing together warring tribes and he wants to see agricultural security for all his people and to address issues around gender violence.
His vision is for a nation rebuilt with Christ at its heart. 

The more I spoke to Bishop Joseph, the more I began to see the possibility of a friendship link between our Diocese and the Diocese of Liwolo. 

These friendship links are quite difficult to arrange, so I was delighted to hear about a charity called CRESS. You can look them up online.  

They are a small English charity, but one that is present on the ground in the refugee camps in Uganda and offering real practical support as people try to rebuild their shattered lives and access proper healthcare and education. 

So, this year for my Bishop’s Harvest Appeal we will be supporting the work of CRESS. 

The people of the Diocese of Blackburn are always monumentally generous when it comes to the harvest appeal, but I hope that this year will be particularly generous. 

Generous with our money, knowing that every penny given to the harvest appeal will go to a really strong cause. 

But I hope above all we are generous with our prayer and we keep the people of Liwolo Diocese and Bishop Joseph, very much in our prayers as they seek to rebuild their nation. 

It’s not often we find really inspirational Christian leaders. 

Bishop Joseph really is one, and so I pray we can support him, his priests and his people with our generosity and our prayer and we can really make a difference.

• Information about Bishop Joseph can be found here 
• Information about CRESS UK can be found here