I want to begin by thanking you all for coming and for responding to my encouragement to attend one of these days. A question I am sure in the mind of many of you will be: why exactly have I called you together for these days and what do I hope they will achieve. I’ll say something about that first. There are, of course, a number of reasons and the way I would answer those questions now has developed from the way I would have answered them when I first conceived the idea. Basically it was an instinct that something like this was needed fairly early on in my time as Archbishop. In some ways it was like the decision to have the diocesan Eucharistic Day at Aylesford, a sense that people needed to be brought together. And it was interesting at the Aylesford Day that many people expressed appreciation for being brought together as a diocese. It responded to a real need felt by some people and it created an event whose rightness and whose significance was felt strongly by the people who attended it.

This day is, of course, a quite different kind of event. It’s specifically for priests and as well as prayer, together with celebration of Mass, will include social time and time for me to speak and for conversation in plenary, in groups and informally. It’s important to say two things. Firstly, it’s not any kind of diocesan synod, and secondly I wouldn’t want it to be seen in isolation, but organically connected to previous and subsequent meetings and, for my own part, to the unstructured and informal yet crucial and more long-term process of getting to know the diocese and engaging with the issues and challenges that face us today. But these meetings do I think have their own specific importance both symbolic and real. In particular I want to get a sense of people’s ideas, hopes, fears, expectations about priestly life in a changing situation and for you to share your thoughts with each other. Now that could sound as if the focus is on difficulty and problems and to some extent that is true. As Archbishop I’m very aware of the fact that many of you, many of our priests, will be retiring in the next fifteen years and there simply isn’t the inflow of younger priests that would be required to service the level of pastoral provision that has been in place now for several decades. And let me say in parenthesis here that I think tomorrow’s talk by Dr Judith Champ will be important for helping us to take a longer view than the period of time in which our present level of pastoral service has been developed and which we will now find it difficult to sustain. But I would also want to say that to talk about our present situation as one of "shortage of priests" is oversimplified and overly focussed on its negative aspects. For example, our problems are also related to issues like the condition and the location of church buildings. If we could magically rearrange our plant so that churches were of the size and in the location that we need now then we would be talking about it differently and not particularly in terms of a shortage of priests. Also the situation we’re in at the moment must be one of new possibilities and new opportunities, by definition. One of the things I often say, and I say it because I mean it, is that this is the best time to be a Christian and to be a priest. It’s the best time because it’s our time. It’s the only time we have. In God’s providence we are asked to live and respond in this golden age, not in a real or imagined one that existed previously. One thing I would like us to do is to unpack some of the opportunities and possibilities as you see them from the vantage point of your own parishes, and I have to say that as I go round the parishes I see all kinds of green shoots, life and vibrancy. I don’t think the way the Church will be in the future can be reduced to a simple formula. But I do think that as we look to the future it would be good to think and work in solidarity, in a cohesive way and with a degree of shared vision. Let me pause a moment here to consider that word that has become very much part of contemporary usage: if I were asked about my vision for the diocese I would say, first of all, that a vision is not something I import or invent. Rather, a vision is something you discover and the vision taking shape in my mind is certainly about solidarity and reconciliation – as far as priests are concerned of a presbyterate grounded in the fraternity, trust and a sense of common enterprise. These things are there but they can’t be taken for granted and are ever to be deepened and fashioned anew. And as far as we and our people are concerned it’s a colourful picture. In south London, and increasingly in parts of Kent, we have a great variety of people from many different races and nations who have a great variety of different experiences, understandings and expectations of life in the Church. And the great pastoral art in which I know many of you have great skill is to affirm and give expression to the specific ethnic identity of diverse groups while also integrating them into a coherent ecclesial reality which is a new and richer experience of Catholicity in which all our people play their part – everyone is involved. That community, marked by reconciliation and collaboration, would be a compelling sign to the wider multi-cultural society in which we live. As Lumen Gentium says, "a sacrament or instrumental sign of intimate union with God and of unity for the whole human race." Those, then, are some elements of a vision for the diocese. But I’m also looking for experience and for language to develop and deepen that vision.

But, to come down to earth a little bit, what I’d like to do is to talk a bit about priesthood today and then about the future and in terms of the future looking at it within the perspective and particularity of this particular diocese. And it’s probably also important to make the point that one of the reasons for gathering priests together is that priests are very immediately and directly affected by change, so hence the importance of sharing ideas about this now.

Now talk about priesthood today can easily take a negative tack for all sorts of reasons. What I think we have to do is to face up to the problems but not see them in isolation from the positive realities. So let me offer some remarks about the context of priesthood and priestly ministry today. The first and perhaps most obvious is that we live in a very highly secularised society, individualistic and very much shaped by an ideology of choice which embodies a view of human freedom that is shallow and not informed by a Christian and theological understanding of freedom. It’s an environment that is, I think, inhospitable to much of what we teach and seek to witness to. Things like the absolute truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the absoluteness of the act of faith, and flowing from that the expression and living out of that faith in marriage, in priesthood and religious life. I think that is why some of the new movements in the Church find Britain a pretty infertile terrain and why they can seem somewhat strange in this culture. A separate but highly significant factor is the scandals that have received so much publicity and have been such a gift to people who, for whatever reason, are against the Catholic Church. And I would connect this with the fact that our Church’s teaching on sexuality is so sharply at odds with the accepted and acceptable thinking and practice of our society, the society in which our young people grow up and into which they are socialised. Taken together this makes our situation uncomfortable but - and this is a much more general point - I think the Catholic Church is actually at its best when its relationship with culture and particular cultural establishments and institutions is uncomfortable. But the child abuse business, and mishandling of it, has affected us but the extent of that effect depends I think on the individual. But there is no doubt whatsoever in my mind that the vast majority of our people regard their priests with love, respect, and trust. I see that all the time and we need to acknowledge that and celebrate it.

Having given those few somewhat negative contextual indications, I think it very important in this gathering to articulate and to affirm the absolutely critical and fundamental importance of priesthood. Perhaps the way to put this most sharply is to say that faith in the priesthood is inextricably connected with the totality of our Catholic faith. I have ordained five priests this year and I always find that ordaining a priest is a very special and moving occasion because it’s about the life and continuity of the Church. The Church comes into being through the Eucharist. It realises itself through the Eucharist and without the priesthood there can be no Eucharist. Of course, saying that will immediately give rise in the minds of some to the question of married priests and women priests. But I suggest that the right focus of this meeting is our present reality and our present discipline, and the spiritual, moral and pastoral dynamics of priesthood as we have accepted it and engaged with it. Let me allude to some of these dynamics. Since the election of Pope Benedict I’ve read some of his talks and sermons on priesthood and there is one recurring theme that has struck me and has figured in the sermons I’ve given at ordinations. It’s the fact that a priest is chosen and called away from his own agenda and his own ambitions to discover a new quality of inner freedom that comes from responding to whatever is asked of him, giving himself to a new situation, to demands and expectations that may be quite unanticipated; letting go of what he has been doing up to now and entrusting it to others. I’m sure that many of you, like me, are aware of how different our experience of life has been from that of our siblings. The commitment to celibacy and the promise of obedience create the framework for a particular kind of inner freedom which I think is very little understood by people who don’t live it. Sometimes people envy priests, sometimes they feel sorry for priests, but those sentiments issue from a fairly superficial appreciation of what being a priest involves. It does, I am sure, involve experiences of loss and isolation that are specific to it but also joy and fulfilment that belong to being a priest.

So priesthood is a demanding life and it must be rooted and grounded in personal prayer. If seminary formation does nothing else it must instil the need for prayer. And even if we lapse and drift from prayer, drift from the intimacy with the Lord that is prayer, we can always go back to it. Hence the critical importance of finding time and space for prayer in our own lives. This is a very individual thing but it’s something we must address. Since my mid-thirties I’ve made an individual directed retreat of some kind every year. I find that essential in order to re-find my bearings. And I find that there is a sense in which I’m always returning to prayer. Somehow we wander and stray in one way or another from the fundamental reality of our relationship with the living Lord who calls and chooses us and sends us, but that relationship is our true home. It’s where we belong.

And it’s where we belong whatever our struggles and weaknesses, whatever the conflicts or inconsistencies in our lives. There are two kinds of writings about priesthood that I dislike. One is writing that is overly pious and idealistic and that doesn’t integrate the raw realities of priesthood. The other is writing that focuses so much on the problems we might have that it loses sight of the depth and sublimity of priesthood. The two go hand in hand. We need a balanced view. In the context of the stresses and demands of today, priestly life is a tough call. We need to be confident in our strengths and to be honest, realistic and compassionate about our weakness and fallibility since that is part of our reality and the energy, the gift we bring to priesthood arises crucially out of our engagement and struggle with conflict. That I think is something that the media in this country finds it difficult to understand. In our a-religious culture people seem to think that if you’re a Christian, and especially if you are a priest, you’re setting yourself up as a paragon of all virtue and any inconsistency is hypocrisy. But, having said that, we should never settle for where we’re at now: the opportunity, the possibilities of conversion, of change, of growth, of greater wholeness, should always be the focus. We may have to wait for it but the critical thing is to always be open to it, open to an ever deeper, more faithful, more authentic priestly life and a confidence in God’s continuing work in our lives through the power of the Holy Spirit. In that context, things like confession, spiritual direction, retreats, possibly counselling, and the right kind of solidarity and fraternity with other priests are of fundamental importance. So, too, as you know, is balance in life, solitude, friendship, things that are life-giving for us. We do have many good things in this diocese to help with all that.

So, let’s consider some of the issues we face today and I want to focus on the two related issues, one of which I will call opportunities and possibilities, and the other I shall call pastoral provision, and they are of course connected. First the question of opportunities: renewal, new life, new beginnings. I know we all share the desire to develop and deepen the life of faith in our parishes and to have parishes that are of their nature places and sources of prayer and evangelisation – not as an added task but as part of the inner life of the parish.

We have great resources for this. In Cologne, when the Pope arrived at the Marienfeld, the place where the vigil and Mass were held, he had a brief meeting with the bishops and spoke to us without notes. He said something that I found very encouraging. He said that we already have the resources, all that is necessary for the future of the Church. And I am sure that is true, and true for our diocese. Let me suggest that the task is to mobilise, energise and coordinate the resources that are already there. We need to harness and consolidate our resources. When I went round the deaneries, when I first came, I heard about all sorts of groups, cell groups, bible groups, Café groups. Recently I’ve heard of parishes having missions from the Sion community. And there are many other things as well. Initiative and imagination is there, and some of our priests have written up their ideas and reflections. Work for renewal and growth of the Church will be deep and lasting if it is rooted in your gifts, your convictions and your vision. What I’d like to discuss and get some sense of is the kind of ideas, initiatives, that you see as being indicated, as being where the Lord is leading us - what are the signs of the times? - and for us to have some initial discussion about this to perhaps try and build up some kind of picture, some kind of vision. Of course, I’ve already picked up a lot and this process is something that can be ongoing and taken forward in different context afterwards, but an initial sharing and feedback on the possibilities and opportunities that you see and are engaged with would be welcome. And, I would say, listening to other bishops, we have a lot going for us here in all sorts of ways.

I would value discussion and feedback on that and on the related issue of changes and developments in "pastoral provision" – that may not be the best phrase but I think you know what I mean. I’ve looked at schemes and plans for other dioceses and you are aware of initiatives that have been taken. I know one of the NCP motions was about the need for formation for change. This is not the place to go into these plans and initiatives in detail but I would mention the provisions in the Code of Canon Law for a situation in which, in one area, rather than having a parish priest in each parish, a group of priests are responsible for a wider area, sometimes living together sometimes separately with one priest named as the moderator. There are initiatives like that to my knowledge in, for example, Arundel and Brighton, and Hexham and Newcastle. Also, initiatives like clustering or linkage of parishes. This I did myself in Northampton. The practical and organisational process was different in each case and I think that is important. Changes in pastoral provision must be shaped by local realities which vary enormously. And they depend on collaboration between everyone, bishops, priests, deacons, religious, and all our people with all their varied gifts and potential. But change is always uncomfortable. We need to start locally and work, I suggest, incrementally and gradually. At one of the deans’ meetings I was at recently we talked about the question of provision of Mass, and this may be a way into the issue. There is no doubt that we are over-Massed in some areas. Just as we now have some parishes that we wouldn’t create today, so we have Mass schedules that we wouldn’t put in place now. Of course, some places need all the Masses they have because of the size of the church. Some priests have concern about loss of income if a Mass is stopped. But perhaps an honest and fresh look at provision of Mass within a deanery and even, where indicated, going beyond the deanery, is called for. Of course I know that things are already being done to progress this, but it may be the time has come to take this forward more systematically and strategically in such a way that thinking together within a deanery about Mass and sacramental provision can be the first step in creating new kinds of linkage and partnership that can create a framework for ministry to our people when one or other of the local priests retires and there is no replacement. That might pave the way for pastoral areas or sectors, which other places are looking at. I think the kind of collaboration and partnership between clergy and people that will be necessary to progress this is, in some places, already in place, but clearly it needs further development and an element of strategy. Perhaps this can develop into a process of discernment and review involving in the first instance the area bishops, in consultation with deans. But your ideas and present thoughts about this could perhaps also be the subject of some sharing. So a second topic of discussion, and that will be tomorrow morning. I would like to interject a word about priests from abroad. It’s very good to have in the diocese priests from Africa, Asia, and other parts of the world. Your presence reflects the ethnic variety of our people. It’s also clear, however, that we need to provide more in the way of inculturation, language support where necessary, and adjustment to lifestyle and to the ways in which we engage and collaborate with our people. We’re currently working to put something more structured can be put in place on this. And the presence of priests of other cultures is a positive element in a wider picture. We cannot look to them as a solution to a much bigger issue.

Now to our discussion. I’ll articulate the two questions for discussion but first I want to read two passages from Novo Millennio Iuente, the Pope’s message to the Church at the dawn of the millennium, because that, I suggest, provides a context and a mandate for this gathering and for the approach I’m suggesting.

Section III is about starting afresh but says this is not about inventing a new programme. It says the programme is there in the Gospel and the living tradition of the Church. But it goes on:

And earlier on it says this:

I’m looking for your ideas, experience, language, out of which vision and planning can be forged. And that in relation to two questions. Tomorrow morning, after Judith’s talk, the question will be: "What are your thoughts about ensuring and developing pastoral provision in our situation today?" Keep that in mind. For now I’m proposing: "What do you see as the key challenges and opportunities in priestly ministry today?"