The Church Of Ireland
Press Release

It must be something to do with age but it seems to me that it was only a few months ago that we met for the last synods and here we are again. Maybe at this early stage of the proceedings we should remind ourselves of the purpose of our gathering, for there is much misunderstanding about the nature of a Diocesan Synod and much ill-informed criticism. The first and foremost task of any Diocesan Synod is to review and report on diocesan affairs. We are here to discuss our finances, the work of the Diocesan Councils and other committees and to listen to those reports and to debate them. That is the basic task of a Diocesan Synod. Normally, and I hope that this year's will be no different, we hear prophetic voices expressing concern about the Church and its way of doing business. That is as it should be but let us not lose sight of our basic and sometimes not very exciting purpose of accomplishing the business of these dioceses.

As Archbishop I am constantly reminded of the extraordinary quality of the work that goes on in the parishes of these dioceses by clergy and lay alike. One can read much about that in the pages of the Church Review, of which more anon. Usually individuals are named and tribute is paid to their efforts but even that does not truly describe the really hard work of those involved in a variety of enterprises. Like the work of the priest we only see the tip of the iceberg.

TRIBUTES TO DECEASED MEMBERS

Some of those who give so much to parish and diocese are no longer with us since our last Diocesan Synods - Mr. Harry Deacon was a faithful member of Tallaght Parish and a member of these synods and Diocesan Councils. He gave generously of himself in the service of Christ's Church and we remember him with affection.

The Reverend Canon Billy Wynne was known by almost everyone in the Church of Ireland and far beyond. The founder of the Dublin Branch of the Samaritans he was for a time the only Samaritan in the Republic and came very close to total exhaustion in giving of himself to that work. Many of us here today will have received encouragement and help from his extraordinary ministry and that includes the President of this House.

The Reverend Aubrey Young was only a relatively short time in the Auxiliary Ministry being ordained in 1991, but whose life long before his ordination was already given to God whom he served so faithfully. The great number of people at his funeral bore rich testimony to the great number of lives he touched.

The same could be said of the late Bishop John Duggan, one time Rector of Glenageary and subsequently Bishop of Tuam. Latterly in retirement his work on behalf of the Spanish Church was greatly appreciated by that tiny Church and indeed his service was marked by being appointed Honorary Assistant Bishop of Europe. To the families of these faithful servants we express our deep and sincere sympathy.

BOARDS OF NOMINATION

Last year at these synods we were faced with a large number of vacancies and there have been a huge number of Boards of Nomination meetings throughout the intervening months. The very nature of these Boards means that much difficult and sensitive work is done which cannot be seen outside the small number of people involved. I must pay tribute to the hard work of these Boards at a time when it is very difficult to obtain a rector for any parish. Hours and hours are spent in searching for the right person to come to a parish and, on occasion, a considerable amount of travelling is also involved. In particular I must say a very special 'thank you' to the Diocesan Nominators who have of course, to participate in every Board Meeting. During the past year they have attended frequently two Boards for different parishes in one afternoon. This is a big sacrifice in terms of the time not to mention the wisdom of their advice arising out of rich experience. It is a loving service given willingly and generously and the dioceses should be very grateful for it. The fruits of their labour can now be seen and vacancies are down to two

I wish to continue on this theme for a few minutes. The Constitution of the Church of Ireland states that if a Board of Nomination fails to appoint within a period of three months the appointment lapses to the bishop. It never once crossed my mind when coming to these dioceses that such a situation would arise. Historically there has been little difficulty in obtaining rectors for vacant parishes in these dioceses but that situation has changed radically.

Already two appointments have lapsed to me - a situation that I do not like nor does any other bishop for that matter. When that situation arises my own custom is to call an informal Board to place a name before the members. If they approve then at least the prospective incumbent knows that he or she has not been foisted on the parish by the bishop but has the support of the parochial and diocesan nominators. By the way in both these instances the names of the incumbents concerned actually came from members of the Board of Nominators even though they had ceased to be a Board.

ENCOURAGING NUMBERS OF ORDINANDS

Last year there were only eight stipendiary curates coming from the Church of Ireland Theological College but next summer there will be seventeen. I am glad to report that we as a diocese have produced a good number of ordinands quite beyond what could be expected from the number of people in the dioceses at least in this day and age, namely 8 stipendiary and 2 auxiliaries. Our excellent director of ordinands, the Reverend Ted Woods, tells me that we now have eighteen in our Fellowship of Vocations and since he reported that to me I know that three others hope to be added to that number. It is probable that six candidates for next year's Selection Conference will be sent on to me for interviews in the near future. The Church of Ireland now has 37 men and women training for the stipendiary ministry and a further 28 for the auxiliary ministry.

However, this good news must be tempered by a wider reality. I am not going to blind you with statistics but I should indicate some trends in the Church of Ireland as a whole. As of the 1st May this year when statistics were taken by Canon Cecil Hyland as Central Director of Ordinands, the number of vacant parishes throughout the Church of Ireland were registered with comparative numbers for the past two years. The report states that on the 1st of May in 1998, 24 parishes were vacant, in 1999 there were 35 and this year these were 47. In other words we have almost doubled the number of parishes vacant this year compared to two years ago, and this is a very disturbing trend. The age profile of the clergy should also be noted - 27% are under forty while 73% are over that age, the bulk of these between the age of 41 and 55. The number of clergy over 56 out-numbers those under 40 by a narrow majority.

Certainly an increase in those with vocations to the ordained ministry would be warmly welcomed. However, as I spoke of last year, I believe that God is calling us to look at ministry in the much wider context of lay ministry, locally ordained ministry and part-time stipendiary ministry, which is progressing right now. However, time does not permit me to explore those possibilities today.

There is another group of people for whom vacancies create a lot of hard work and those are the Rural Deans. They bear a heavy responsibility and I know that parishes express their gratitude for all they do for them during long vacancies, remembering of course, that this is on top of their normal work in their own parishes. No words of mine could express the gratitude and I feel for them but I want to say a sincere 'thank you' publicly.

CLERICAL CHANGES

There have been a number of resignations during the year - the Rev. Alastair Graham from Stillorgan; the Rev. Peter Campion who has returned to his home dioceses of Fredericton in Canada; the Rev. Chris Halliday who has gone to serve in the Episcopal Church in America and Dean Maurice Carey into retirement. All of them in different ways have given much to the dioceses and we wish them well in the years to come.

Within the dioceses the Rev. Willie Black moved from the curacy of St. Ann's and St. Stephen's to be incumbent of the Parish of Drumcondra, North Strand with St. Barnabas; the Rev. Jonathan Pierce from service with the Larche Community to Taney Parish; the Rev. Gillian Wharton from Diocesan Youth Officer and part-time curate of Leixlip and Lucan to be Chaplain of Rathdown School; the Rev. Lynda Peilow from the curacy of Castleknock to St. Ann's and Stephen's; the Rev. Katharine Poulton from the curacy of Greystones to being Bishop's Curate of St. George and St. Thomas and to the chaplaincies of the Mater Hospital and Mountjoy Prison, and the Rev. Bernie Daly from the curacy of Taney Parish to be Director of Pastoral Studies in the Church of Ireland Theological College

From parishes outside the dioceses came the Rev. Andrew Orr to Castleknock; his wife the Rev. Susan Green to the part-time chaplaincy of the Adelaide and Meath Hospital, Dublin, Incorporating the National Children's Hospital; the Rev. Arthur Barrett to Booterstown and Mount Merrion; the Rev. William Ritchie to St. Bartholomew's and Christ Church, Leeson Park; the Rev. William Bennett to Newcastle, Newtownmountkennedy and Calary and the Rev. Robert Deane to Swords, Clonmethan and Kilsallaghan with Donabate and Lusk, and the Rev. Charles Mullen to be Dean's Vicar at St. Patrick's Cathedral. To all of these clergy in their new spheres of ministry we extend a warm welcome with the prayer that their ministries may be fruitful.

The two distinctive ministries for a bishop, are, of course, Confirmations and Ordinations. Regarding Confirmations and this year I have celebrated 21 Confirmations since we last met and I consider these to be occasions of great privilege. However, I know that for many clergy it can be a time of heartbreak as they see some fall away soon after. Parents have a heavy if difficult responsibility in this regard, so I urge all parents to take a very close interest and to participate in their children's preparation. I know that it is not easy especially in these days but it can prove to be fruitful.

Personally I believe firmly that children should be welcomed to Holy Communion at a much earlier age. The majority of the bishops feel the same way and will be introducing a rubric to that effect at next year's General Synod. In many Churches of the Anglican Communion this is the custom. It makes much more sense to me that children go to Sunday School to learn about the ministry of the Word and then join adults for the ministry of the Sacrament, rather than the other way round.

The other occasion of great privilege, of course, is ordination. This year three deacons and one priest were ordained in Christ Church Cathedral on the same occasion. Tim Close was ordained for the Parish of Glenageary, Avril Bennett for Crumlin and Chapelizod and Patrick Comerford for Whitechurch Parish. The Reverend Roy Byrne was ordained to the priesthood and continues to serve in Christ Church Cathedral Group of Parishes. It was a truly wonderful occasion and yet again I thought how proud we all ought to be of our diocesan cathedral. Of course, the building itself is exquisite but it is well matched by the beautiful ordering of worship. The organ, the choir, the way in which the liturgy itself is ordered and expressed all combines to lift our hearts to Almighty God. The flagship of the dioceses is in the capable hands of the Dean and his staff and they deserve our praise. By the way if you have not seen the restored crypt make an effort to do so as it is absolutely magnificent.

SUPPORT FOR ARCHDEACON'S CRITICISM OF CORRUPTION IN IRISH SOCIETY

However if the liturgy in Christ Church Cathedral lifts our hearts to heaven we are quickly brought down to earth again as we read our daily newspapers. Certainly Archdeacon Gordon Linney had this experience when he spoke of the corruption rampant in the political, commercial and professional life of this country, in a sermon preached in his own Parish Church. He hit many nails on the head during the widely reported address. Contrasting the power of the wealthy and influential in our society with that of the marginalised, such as facilities for disturbed children, the treatment of haemophiliacs, asylum seekers and such like.

He challenged us to reflect on the nature of Irish society and whether material prosperity had dulled our conscience and moral sensitivity. He summed it up with these words I quote "If we are serious about Christian values, based on love of God and love of neighbour rather than self, then we need to think through the implications of our attitudes to society in general and politics in particular. At the very least they mean that goodness and integrity are essential to our national well being and that in our prosperity we have obligations to those who, for whatever reasons, live on the margins of society in Ireland and beyond. If our priority is self interest and indifference to others then we will see things differently and act differently" end quote. Bulls eye, Gordon!

It is difficult in the age of the Celtic Tiger to offer criticism without seeming to indulge in carping or begrudgery. There is so much that is good. Who of my generation would have ever believed that we would see people pouring into Ireland by the thousands to get employment, many of whom would have left because there were no jobs. I cite a small example of this. A few months ago I travelled to Newport in Wales to attend the consecration of the new Bishop of Bangor, our link diocese. Flying over on Saturday morning the plane was hardly half full, on our way back to Cardiff Airport for the return on Sunday evening I mentioned this to our taxi driver. "Well," he said "that will not be your experience tonight. The plane will be packed with Welsh people returning to work in Dublin". He was right, there were no seats to spare. Can you believe it Welsh people coming to Dublin to work? Only a few years ago the traffic was all the other way. How amazing, how wonderful. Unemployment is at an all time low and people are earning good money. Yes there is so much that is good.

However, as we are reminded in the Old Testament there is a warning. '…….. when you eat and are full, take heed lest you forget the Lord, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage'. Our tribunals have revealed an enormous not a can but a veritable bucket of worms. All of this cannot be blamed on the Celtic Tiger for much of it took place when the Tiger was but a cub.

All of us are shocked by the revelations but none more so than those who have neither wealth nor political clout and to whom society plays little attention. The homeless, the aged, the sick who cannot afford medical insurance - such people have little or no influence through the ballot box so it is up to us to press the political system for action.

RACISM

I make no apology for returning to a subject upon which I have spoken on many occasions simply because it is a deadly poison afflicting our society to an ever increasing degree - I speak of the evil of racism. It is likely that this satanic attitude was always to be found in our society but with the influx of asylum seekers, refugees, immigrants and foreign tourists the fake mask of tolerance has been ripped away savagely. Week by week if not day by day the newspapers report ethnic inspired attacks sometimes involving robbery accompanied by foul abuse and sometimes simply by racial abuse. There must be many, many more incidents which never become public either because the victims are afraid to do so or because, as tourists, they will have returned to their homelands and unlikely to be able to give evidence even if the perpetrators should be apprehended.

Examples abound concerning this shocking attitude. Some months ago a university lecturer married to an African lady, who has lived here for over twenty years, told me that it is only in the last three years that his wife is uncomfortable, to put it mildly, walking the streets of this city.

A foreign doctor who has worked in a hospital for several years says that after years of walking to and from work, she now goes by car because of the foul abuse to which she has been subjected. A man writing to the newspapers recently told of his shock when he got off the train at a Dart station with some Japanese tourists and heard the tirade of abuse hurled at them by children in the 12 / 13 age group.

Irish parents of a daughter married to a sallow-coloured European say that their daughter and son-in-law are now nervous about coming home for holidays because of the unpleasantness they have experienced in this land of a hundred thousand welcomes. The rest of this address could easily be devoted to the giving of such examples but these must suffice.

As human beings such attitudes should shock us to the core. We do not have to be particularly religious to realise that this is an evil thing. Humanity does not consist of one colour or one tribe but of many colours and tribes that enrich our humanness. As Christians we betray our beliefs if we adopt such attitudes. Every Sunday at least we proclaim that we believe in God the Father, creator of heaven and earth. That is not simply a dry doctrinal statement but a belief that governs our attitudes not only to the environment but also to human beings who are different to us. He is the Father of all peoples regardless of race or colour. We proclaim our belief in Jesus Christ, His Son and that He came to redeem the world not just white people or black people, or brown people or yellow people but all people, everywhere and at all times. We believe in God the Holy Spirit, who sanctifies without regard to race and colour. Jesus Himself in one of His most beloved parables holds up the greatly despised Samaritan as the model of good neighbourliness. There is no place for xenophobia in the witness of the Gospel.

For too long, far too long, there has been a deafening silence from the political leaders of our country concerning this evil. It was therefore a pleasant surprise recently to hear Mr. O'Donoughue, Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform outlining steps that the Government intends to take in fighting this evil. These steps include ratifying the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. This should be speeded up because of two new laws, the Employment Equality Act and the Equal Status Act introduced in Ireland. He is also revisiting the Incitement to Hatred Act to see how it could be strengthened. Other measures were also outlined all of which are useful tools for the struggle.

CALLS FOR CONCERTED EFFORTS TO ERADICATE RACIST ATTITUDES

However, as we all know, laws while essential are still unable to change attitudes solely by themselves. A concerted effort needs to be made to change the minds of those with racist tendencies. Politicians, Church leaders, union leaders, the media, schools, sports people who are icons to so many young people, all such people must make a concerted effort if progress is to be made, and a different type of harvest is to be reaped from those elements in our society who sow such evil seed.

In this respect I welcome warmly the attitudes expressed at the recent IT & GWU Conference particularly the words of Mr. Peter Cassells. He said that it would send a very clear statement to Irish workers "if" I quote "they (the unions) were to say that anyone found guilty of racism or xenophobia in the workplace would be immediately expelled from the union". Similar statements were expressed by Inez McCormack of ICTU and Mr. Des Geraghty of SIPTU, whose Union now represents over 2,000 non-nationals. I was delighted to note the words of Mr. Brendan Butler, IBEC's Director of Social Policy who said I quote "unless action is taken Ireland's economic progress could be jeopardised". He said that there was evidence of workers from overseas resigning their jobs because of racism and went on. "If Ireland develops a reputation as a racist country, foreign workers will not locate to Ireland". He reminded us that the Government estimates that 340,000 people will be required to fill jobs in the next 6 years.

I would urge our parishes that have groups of people of different ethnic origin to try to bring them together with parishioners and indeed with people from the wider community. I am aware of such efforts being made by both clergy and lay in many parts of Ireland and I commend them strongly. Canon Sinnamon for example has been the moving force behind the setting up of a Three-Faith Forum, consisting of dialogue between Christians, Jews and Muslims and I congratulate him in this visionary venture.

VICTIMS OF VIOLENCE IN NORTHERN IRELAND

Amongst the most deeply hurt of all people living on this island are the victims of violence, the vast majority of whom live in Northern Ireland. That was underlined for me by the media coverage of the release of para-military prisoners from the Maze just over two months ago.

At the time the columnist, Mary Holland, wrote 'There was champagne and confetti to greet the 46 Provisional IRA prisoners who left the Maze last Friday. Even allowing for the joy of their relatives in welcoming the men home, this was a breathtakingly insensitive display. It may not have been designed to rub salt in the wounds of many sections who watched the scenes of celebration on television but it might as well have been".

Can we even begin to imagine the heartache of those watching whose husband, or son, or daughter, or mother, or father, or relative or friend will never come home? What price a few years or even a few months in prison for committing the most barbaric and heinous crimes to the years of pain, loneliness and anger of those who face the rest of their lives with a terrible sense of emptiness and loss? The photographs of loved ones butchered and murdered may fade on the mantelpiece but the pain of the memory will never go away. Surely the heaviest price paid for the peace process must be for thousands of people the release of such killers or potential killers on to the streets of villages, towns and cities in Northern Ireland.

The miracle is that there are so many who can accept this price. Mary Holland's column, to which I have referred already, tells of the reaction of one of the victims on the day of the release. Alan McBride's wife Sharon died by a bomb placed in a fish and chip shop on the Shankill Road in 1993. He said "I have to accept it, but I never felt it was just, quite the opposite. I've always thought that this one part of the Agreement was wrong and unjust. Having said that we wouldn't have the Good Friday Agreement or the peace process or the setting up of a government if it hadn't included prisoner releases".

I would love to think that I could have adopted the same attitude if my wife had been murdered but could I? I do not know. Yet there are many people who have adopted a similar attitude i.e. to accept their pain for the greater good and that is the miracle of it all.

Of course, there are many more who cannot reach such moral heights and who are we to judge them? But they underline for us the huge task of reconciliation that lies ahead even if the political process continues at Executive level. Hatred and suspicion runs very deep in the hearts and minds of a great many people - a fact which is brutally revealed to us during the marching season. As Christians we are committed to the way of forgiveness which surely must be one of the most difficult elements of the Gospel we proclaim. It is not simply a matter of preaching, important as that may be but of showing that spirit in our own lives. The example of the late Gordon Wilson was the most powerful sermon of all for he lived what he proclaimed in a most remarkable way.

As we pray the Lord's Prayer we say, "forgive us our sins - as we forgive those who sin against us". This makes absolutely clear what Christ demands of us and it is a hard but unequivocal challenge.

STREET VIOLENCE AND UNDER-AGE DRINKING

For a number of years it was elderly people and young women who feared for their safety at night on our streets and they continue to be in jeopardy. Now young men and children have joined them in facing danger and extreme violence on our streets. Only a very short time ago a teenager was attacked and beaten to death outside a Dublin nightclub in a most brutal fashion. Following this there was the dreadful fatal stabbing of a twelve-year-old child and the gardai questioned a nine-year-old. Our hearts go out to the parents of all the young persons involved as they try to come to terms with their grief and their shock. May they be conscious of God's presence with them during this dreadful time.

Of course, the latter tragedy was not inspired by alcohol and drugs as would seem to be the case in most of the crimes of violence committed by young people. Under-age drinking is certainly a major scourge in our society and seems to be aided and abetted by adults who should know better. Although not associated with underage drinking I understand that many of the nightclubs that young people frequent offer cheap alcoholic drink on certain nights to attract custom. This is a most cynical exercise and should be utterly condemned by society. It is matched by some college societies who offer free drinks during Freshers' Week, and this in institutions who are preparing young people who will play an important role in society.

A recent survey amongst children blames lack of facilities for the ever-increasing scourge of youth drinking and drug abuse and also highlighted concerns about personal safety from attack. It will be very difficult to wean people away from the present outlets to facilities that are drug and alcohol free but it is possible, as some clubs have illustrated.

HOMELESS CHILDREN ON OUR STREETS

All this is accompanied by a steady growth in the number of homeless young people. Father Peter McVerry is a bright light in his valiant attempt to combat this appalling situation. However, he cannot combat this shocking circumstance alone. It needs urgent action by the State to provide the badly needed facilities to meet this very bad situation. We could do something about it by lobbying our Dail representatives in order to urge the Government to action.

Remember children as young as twelve will this very night be looking for somewhere to lay their head. Just imagine how we would feel if it was your child or mine. Remember also that at this time 665 children at risk are awaiting to be allocated to a social worker and this in the age of the Celtic Tiger. Figures for 1998 showed that there were 3984 children taken into care and we can be reasonably certain that this number has not decreased.

I have paid tribute to the work of Father Peter McVerry but there is another person who again and again powerfully lashes the Government for its failure to provide the necessary facilities. I speak of High Court Judge Peter Kelly who never fails to highlight the plight of young offenders. He is obviously a man of compassion and deserves great credit for his efforts.

As Christians we must never forget our Lord's own injunction "Suffer the little children to come unto me and forbid them not for such is the kingdom of Heaven" and again "Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea".

PRAISE FOR WHITE PAPER ON ADULT EDUCATION

Mind you the Government have taken a very important and commendable step to give authority to many more people to break through what is a difficult barrier for many in our society, namely further education. The White Paper on Adult Education is to be warmly commended even if there have been expressions of reservation about aspects of funding. However, a very important step has been taken, which is imaginative and visionary and this ought to be acknowledged.

Adult Education has gone on in almost every community throughout the land for many years and organised by very dedicated people. Yet there can be no doubt that up until now it has been the Cinderella of the broad field of Education and only existed because of the skill, sacrifice and dedication of teachers and others without much assistance from the State. The picture conjured up in our minds of this area is of people attending evening courses in arts and crafts but much more has been going on. I remember seeing on TV some time ago the joy expressed by some women hardly in the flush of youth celebrating their success in some subjects of the Leaving Certificate. Their pride, not only in what they had accomplished, but also the hope of bettering their lot in life was most moving.

The fact is that in Ireland only 23 % of the population are engaged in Adult Education, which is only slightly more than half of the European average. This White Paper in time ought to do much in addressing this imbalance. However, the statistics are not the most important factor of this enterprise. People of my age will remember that then the aim for young people on the whole was to find the type of employment which would guarantee a job for life with a pension at sixty-five.

That attitude has now all but gone as Minister Willie O'Dea put it. "The notion of a job for life, even of a skill for life has become as extinct as the dinosaurs ………… The concept of security of employment has been replaced by that of employability". This in turn must mean that there must be flexibility for people to ensure that they can be employed and that must be a very important element in Adult Education. Many of us must know even within the confines of our families and friends how often educated young people can change direction in life simply because they have the education to enable them to make that change.

Now the Government's multi-million pound promise of measures for this under-funded sector should make this possible for many thousands more people. It will enable them to take more charge of their own lives in the area of employment. That is a very exciting prospect and we pray that many will be able to find greater fulfilment in their lives.

However, Adult Education must never be confined solely to the needs of the market. As human beings we are not placed on this earth simply to service some great economic machine or even worse merely to become fodder for its voracious appetite. Life is more than work; life is more than standard of living; life is more than material possession - if that were what it is all about what a crippled and confined life it would be. Jesus said "I have come that you may have life and that you have it more abundantly".

THE DIOCESAN MAGAZINE

The Church Review has served our United Dioceses well for many years and I must express our great sense of gratitude to the Reverend Canon Desmond Harman, who for almost 20 years undertook the demanding task of editor. This was but one of the many tasks performed by him at diocesan and central Church level. His appointment as an Honorary Secretary of the General Synod last year means he has less time for diocesan matters and resulted in his relinquishing the post of editor.

In his work with the Review the Rev. Cecil Bryan and Mrs. Betty Griffith assisted him. Warm tributes were paid to the dedication and commitment of these three people at a reception in March but I cannot talk about the Church Review without again expressing our gratitude to them. We also of course, owe a huge debt of gratitude to our Diocesan Communications Officer, Valerie Jones, who gave immeasurable assistance to the team and continues to do so.

In May this year the Reverend Nigel Waugh took over as editor and I want to thank him and to wish him well in this very responsible work for the dioceses. I want also to welcome Ms Charlotte O'Brien as Business and Circulation Manager and to wish her many years of fulfilment in her task.

The Church Review is the primary means of communication between the parishes and the most useful way of letting people know what is happening in the parishes and of advertising diocesan events. Even in this electronic age, people like to have the news in their hands, to read it at their leisure and to keep it for reference. The Review is read cover to cover in many homes in our parishes.

The medium of print may seem old fashioned but the methods by which the news is gathered and printed is up to date. In the last six months, most review correspondents, including myself, have sent their notes to the editor via email. This is the most efficient way of sending material and it has the added benefit of accuracy. What the parish sends is what is printed. The spelling of names of people and places and the accuracy of dates, which were previously very difficult to ensure, can now be completely correct. Or if they are not correct, the fault now lies with the sender. If your parish is not on email then you should consider looking into it. The dioceses are grateful to those who write the parish notes month by month and who submit photographs. We are also extremely grateful to all who distribute the magazine and collect the subscriptions in the parishes.

The last few years have seen increases in the cost of printing and publishing and the Church Review has eaten into its limited reserves. It is now necessary to improve its financial situation so that it can remain viable. A reduction in quality is not an option. We must make sure that our diocesan magazine is colourful and readable and that it represents us in a bright and attractive way. The Dioceses has made a contribution towards the cost of equipment and staff. There has been a recent increase in advertising rates and in the New Year there will be an increase of eighteen pence per copy on the subscription price. These small increases, together with the support of the dioceses, will be sufficient to maintain the viability of the Church Review. The long-term future depends entirely on the support that comes from the rectors, parishes and people of the dioceses - your support in other words.

It is my hope that every member of synods and each member of your Select Vestry will subscribe for a copy of his/her own. As I am sure you know, it is common for one Review to be passed around and read by several families. If everyone who reads the Church Review actually buys his / her own copy, there will be no financial difficulty.

I encourage you to give the Church Review your support and promote it within your parishes.