14th Sunday of Ordinary Time

3 July 2010

Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ

A couple of weeks ago I presented our vision for the future organisation of parishes.  Many people from throughout our diocese joined me in the Cathedral for a liturgy of the word.

This vision is contained in a booklet entitled ‘Parishes in Communion for Mission’.  I have made it available to all the parishes which make up our Diocese of Clifton.  I hope you will see a copy of this booklet because the proposals affect us all.  I would like to thank everyone who has contributed to the consultation which has led to the recommendations for the way forward.  All parishes and deaneries were invited to express their opinions.  The working party, who has drawn up the document and reported to me, has tried to reflect what they heard but sometimes what was proposed were differing opinions from the same parish.

In today’s gospel Jesus sends out 72 of his followers to all the towns and villages he was to visit.  He put his trust in them and he told them to trust in God for the accomplishment of their mission.  They went out in pairs not alone.  They faced what seemed an impossible task because they could see that the harvest was great but the labourers were few.  But they went and proclaimed the way of Jesus.  They came back rejoicing.  Through them, God was able to do infinitely more than they could have asked or imagined.  Jesus risked his mission to the fragility of his followers and in their weakness they witnessed to their faith in him. 

Over the centuries the harvest has always been great and the labourers have always seemed few in number.  Over the years Jesus has taken the risk of entrusting his message of life to his followers and they have lived it through the power of the Holy Spirit. 

Our diocesan pastoral guidelines ‘Called to be a People of Hope’ reminded us that we are today’s labourers and that as members of the Church we are a people for others.  Central to that recognition, is the truth that we are a Eucharistic community, called to celebrate and live the paschal mystery of Christ and to express the Eucharistic celebration in practical acts of selfless love.  The Church is still empowered by the Holy Spirit, who brings new life and opens new horizons. 

New horizons are often opened because of changed circumstances.  One of the changed circumstances for us is that there will be fewer priests actively engaged in full time ministry.  This means that parishes will have to share the ministry of a priest and will not always have a resident priest.  Already some parishes are doing this and we can learn from their experience.  What we can see is that change often brings new life and fresh ideas to communities.  People become actively engaged in the life of their parish.  New ways of working produce new ways of being the Church.  But change can also be difficult and painful.  We may have to let go of some of the things we hold dear.  We may have to make sacrifices. 

Jesus sent his disciples out in pairs.  Under the proposed new organisation, all parishes are being asked to work more closely together and to see themselves as the Catholic community engaged in celebrating and living faith for others.  Jesus knew that to send out a disciple alone could mean a lonely journey.  We need one another for encouragement and to share our gifts more widely.  I am asking parishes to produce plans showing how communities can work together more closely.  I am organising area meetings for the early part of 2011 to see how parishes are developing these plans and to hear what support is needed for parishes to be in communion for mission.

I finish with part of a prayer of Edith Stein.  It is my prayer for us all:
“Enkindle your love in us
and then walk with us
along the next stretch
of the road before us.

We do not see very far ahead
but when we have arrived
where the horizon now closes down,
a new prospect will open before us
and we shall meet with peace.”

With my best wishes and prayers

Bishop of Clifton

To be read and/or made available in all churches and chapels in the Clifton Diocese on the weekend of the Fourteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time, 3 and 4 July 2010.

You can listen to Bishop Declan read you his pastoral letter in the multimedia panel on the right.  You can download 'Parishes in Communion for Mission' in the multimedia panel on the right. 

You can watch Bishop Declan in the Cathedral read you his pastoral letter in the cliftondiocese.com cliplayer below.  The video below is for online viewing and is compressed in Flash format.  You can download the video in MP4 format in the multimedia panel on the right.