|PIC1|Mission teams from south east Asia, Canada, South Africa and Germany will descend on England's West Midlands in June next year for a series of local evangelistic missions ahead of the 2008 Lambeth Conference.

Taking advantage of the global conference of Anglican bishops held once every 10 years, some 30 Church of England congregations from across the Diocese of Lichfield area have formed direct links with the diocese's overseas partners.

The overseas partners come from the Anglican Dioceses of Qu'Appelle in Canada; Matlosane in South Africa; and Sabah, Kuching and West Malaysia in south east Asia; as well as churches from the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Mecklenburg in north-east Germany.

The linked churches are using the internet to exchange news about themselves and their local community.

The Rev Dr Michael Sheard, world mission officer for the Diocese of Lichfield, says: "CrossTalk allows people to pray with real understanding for each other, compare the challenges they face and reflect on their relative strengths, weaknesses and 'growing points'. E-mail makes this an exciting possibility today as never before. We can swap pictures and even video clips as well as words."

He added: "As part of our learning together, just before the Lambeth conference, the Lichfield church/parish will welcome a small team of two or three people from their overseas partner church to visit them for two weeks of mission, which can take whatever form emerges as the two partners think and pray together.

"Some will have a parish mission, others a time of study, and other might run a special programme for children or young people."

The overseas guests and their bishops will then join representatives from their host parish and the bishops of the Diocese of Lichfield at an international mission conference immediately prior to the Lambeth Conference 2008.