'Councils of one sort
or another have been a constant challenge to me
throughout my 37 years as a priest' the bishop told them.
'I was ordained by Bishop Derek Worlock, a theological
adviser at the Second Vatican Council, who was an expert
on the role of lay people in the Church.
I have worked closely with Pastoral Councils and I know
their strengths, their potential weaknesses and the
criticism they attract'.
The Bishop was impressed by the reports he had heard.
'They were outward looking', he said, 'and they had a
spirituality to underpin them'. I see real leadership
there'.
He wanted, he said, to emphasise the Pastoral role of the
Council and was committed to developing its role within
the mission of the Church.
'Councils should be a resource for mission', he said. Try
to draw others into your work, without excluding those
who don't want to join in'.
The Council was formally established by Bishop Leo
McCartie in 1990. It meets three times each year,
acting as an advisory body for the bishop, and
providing a two-way channel of communication with the
Deanery Pastoral Councils. There are two lay
representatives from each of the eight deaneries in the
diocese, as well as Religious Sisters, Deacons and
priests. |
 |
| Picture: Paul Hardy. From top left:
Joe Borg (Luton); Peter Van Cauwelaert (Milton
Keynes); Peter Swindlehurst (Aylesbury); Sheila
Kneebone (Luton); Lynn Groves (Milton Keynes);
Sister Brenda DHS; Francis Thompson (Observer);
Peter Webb (High Wycombe); Jacquie Young
(Bedford); Peter Roberts (Kettering: face
obscured); Anne Murphy (Aylesbury); Mary Bull
(High Wycombe: Chair); Kieran McKeown (Slough):
Roni Russell (Slough); Bishop Peter Doyle. |
|
