CTBI mourns the passing of Kathy Galloway

The news of the passing of Kathy Galloway was met with great sadness within Churches Together in Britain and Ireland. Kathy had been a stalwart supporter of the ecumenical movement over many decades, most recently as a Trustee of CTBI. As a member and some time leader of the Iona Community she brought a strong sense of a Christian spirituality of prayer and social justice.

The ecumenical work to which she has contributed is too numerous to give a comprehensive summary, but we remain indebted to her for her leadership in several areas. Most notably she served on the Working Group on Sexual Abuse which produced the report “Time for Action: Sexual Abuse, the Churches and a new dawn for survivors” in 2002, a brave and ground breaking report that was ahead of its time.

More recently Kathy was an unwavering supporter of the Palestinian people in their struggle for freedom and self-determination. Kathy attended the 8th Assembly of the World Council of Churches in Harare which took place at the end of the WCC’s Ecumenical Decade of Churches in Solidarity with Women. Years later, when the possibility of an Assembly being held in Britain and Ireland was being explored, she spoke of the determined journeys that African women took to get to Harare for that Assembly, determined to be there in order to make connections of solidarity. In many ways that sums up Kathy’s ecumenical witness, the importance of solidarity with one another especially in support of those facing war, conflict, poverty and discrimination. Kathy challenged us, supported us and led us in bold and courageous paths.

We mourn her passing, send our deepest condolences to her family and friends, and remain privileged to have shared Christian discipleship with her.

Photo: Iona Community