Every two years, the clergy of our diocese are invited to join the Bishop in a three-day residential conference. Nearly two hundred of us have just returned from the Hayes Centre at Swanwick, where the theme was Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.The programme was rich and varied, with lots of stimulating input from an excellent panel of speakers. More details, including links to recordings of the sessions, are available at the conference website.
I was particularly struck by the good-natured mood of our gathering. This is a Diocese in good heart. We face growing challenges and complicated demands but I sensed among us a genuine collegiality. Among our various backgrounds and traditions we easily find issues on which we take different views, especially in a topic as potent as worship. But, as far as I could see, these differences were held within an even greater commitment to our common purpose of serving God in mission to the people of Leicestershire.
Leicester Diocese is blessed with very capable and gifted parish clergy, supported by an excellent central team and an inclusive, hard-working bishop. It's a generous place to be and I'm thankful to be part of it.
