Happy Reformation Day everyone! Brothers and sisters, let us rejoyce for today we commemorate the 500th Anniversary of the Reformation. Exactly on this very day, 500 years ago, in a city of Wittenberg, Germany a certain Augustinian monk has made a history. His name was Martin Luther, and he has truly reformed the Church. It was on October 31,1517, at the eve of the All Saints' Day, or All Hallows' Day back then to be exact, when Martin Luther has made public the proclamation of true Christianity aka the 95 Theses posted on the church door. It was the day that has forever change the Church. Christianity has once again returned to the basic teachings of Our Lord Jesus Christ. From that day forward the Reformation has begun, creating the variety of reformed churches all over the world, including my very own Church of England, and all the other churches within the Anglican Communion, such as the Episcopal Church for instance. The Lutheran Church was formed soon afterwards, back in 1529. The very same year a term Protestantism came into use, deriving from the Protestation at Speyer, Germany. In the years to come many different denominations within the Protestantism have been established. In the year 1817 the Lutheran Church and the Reformed Church established by John Calvin have formed an union, creating the Evangelical Church. In 1534 King Henry VIII has established the Church of England as a reformed and fully independent Church. The Reformation itself was a historical event, never seen before in the entire history of Christianity. Now, 500 years later, we are all witnesses to a huge impact of Reformation on Christianity today. Many historical changes have occurred during these 5 long centuries. Quite recently, even the Roman Catholic Church itself has finally accepted certain aspects of the Reformation on a famous Second Vatican Council.Today, in 2017, even the Pope Francis celebrate the Reformation in commemoration of a historical event that has forever change the Church and the entire Christianity itself! Yes, the current Pope as Bishop of Rome does indeed contribute a lot to the greater unity within the Christianity, much like his predecessor Pope John Paul II, ever since Pope John XXIII has summoned the Second Vatican Council back in 1962 and his successor Pope Paul VI led the Council to its conclusion in the year 1965. The ecumenism has been widely accepted as a way of co-operation and mutual understanding between the various Christian churches worldwide. Brothers and sisters, let us rejoyce on this truly historical and glorious day when the Church was indeed reformed according to the Holy Bible and the teachings of Our Lord Jesus Christ in a Gospel. So, indeed, today is a glorious day, a day of both the celebration and the commemoration. Let us celebrate our faith in Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Saviour, by accepting our differences and embrasing our mutual pillars of Christian faith! Praise the Lord! Hallelujah! Amen.