St John’s Wood Church is next to Lord’s Cricket Ground, and just to the north of Regent’s Park, opposite the London Central Mosque, and near three synagogues of differing Jewish traditions. The Vicar is the Rev Dr Anders Bergquist, born of Swedish parents, who has been there since 2002 and is involved at national level in ecumenical work with the Scandinavian and Baltic Churches. Since 2019 the Associate Vicar has been the Rev Kristina Andréasson, but she has recently moved to be Chaplain of Francis Holland School and Associate Priest at St Paul’s, Rossmore Road, and St Cyprian’s, Clarence Gate in London.

There were 28 members, three speakers and 10 members on Zoom in St John’s Wood Church. We were welcomed by the Vicar, the Rev Dr Anders Bergquist, and then our Lutheran President, Bishop Jana Jeruma-Grinberga, led the opening prayers.

Then The Annual General Meeting began. 20 members had sent their apologies.

Our two Presidents, Bishops Jana and David Hamid, were thanked by Dr Jaakko Rusama, our Lutheran Moderator, of their active and helpful support. Both had agreed to stand for another year and were elected unopposed.

The Minutes of the last AGM on 8^th MARCH, 2025, were agreed unanimously. You can find themif you click here.

The Co-Moderators Report was presented by Jaakko on behalf of himself and Bishop Paul Ferguson, our Anglican Moderator, and you can read it here

The Treasurer’s Report and financial statement followed. Our Treasurer, Patrick Litton, was unable to be at the meeting but had circulated the accounts and his report in advance and his report can be found if you click here and click here for the financial statement.

The only question raised was with regard to the debt incurred when the caterers for the Edinburgh Conference Dinner. Bishop Paul explained that all possible legal processes had been followed but it had become impossible to recover the debt. The matter has been reported to the Charity Commission who have noted that we have done all we can, have put procedures in place to ensure we won’t face a similar situation in future.

Bishop Paul expressed our gratitude to Patrick for his careful stewardship of our funds and the meeting showed its appreciation with applause.

Our Independent Examiner of Accounts, Lisbeth Pedersen, was reappointed to serve for 2026.

Officers and Trustees

It was noted that the Rev Joseph Nelson had resigned as a Trustee from this meeting. No election was necessary because we have more than the minimum number of Trustees. The Officers and Trustees will have completed their term of office by the next Annual Meeting so there will need to be an election then.

National Coordinators Reports were received from Dr Jaakko Rusama (Finland) and the Rev Fredrik Ulseth (Norway). You can read the Norwegian Report here and the Finnish Report here

The Membership Secretary’s Report was received and can be found if you click here

The Hamburg Conference, September 2026 is at an advanced stage of preparation. Bishop Paul said that it will reflect the distinctive nature of Hamburg. 37 people have booked so far but it is hoped that more will still register. Details can be found on the Events page of this website.

A-LS Young Voices has got off to a good start. Mary Kilikidi and Rebecca Daniel spoke briefly about it, Mary commenting that most of the members are men and it would be good to have more women joining their voices. Their report can be read by clicking here

Dorothy Knight suggested it might be useful to look at the Ecumenical Forum European Christian Women for which she is the England Co-ordinator.

There being no other business the meeting ended in prayer led by Bishop David Hamid.

We then turned to the Topic for the Day:

‘CARING FOR GOD’S PEOPLE’

The first Presentation, “The Church Engaging in Society”, was given by Bishop Rob Wickham, Chief Executive of the Church Urban Fund. It was a very lively session, and you can find it if you
click here

The Eucharist followed. The Celebrant was the Rev Kristina Andréasson, Chaplain of Frances Holland School and Associate Priest in the parishes of St Paul Rossmore Road and St Cyprian Clarence Gate in London. The Swedish Rite was used. The Preacher was Dr Anders Bergquist. The text of his sermon can be found if you
click here

Lunch came next, providing time for everyone to mingle, greet old friends and make new ones.

The second Presentation, “The Christian in Social Work”, was given by Natalia Pierson, an Ordinand in the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America who has more than 20 years in Social Work. She explained how in Social Work has developed in USA and how congregations contribute. You can find her presentation if you
click here

The third Presentation, “The Ministry of Chaplaincy” by the Rev Sarah Farrow, Campus Chaplain at King’s College in the University of London. She considered various definitions of Chaplaincy, spoke of some of the restrictions and tensions chaplains face, and described the multi-faith Chaplaincy in which she works. You can find it when you click here

That concluded a very enjoyable, helpful and challenging day and we are grateful for the hospitality given us by St John’s Wood Church.