1.

Opening Prayer

God our loving Father, pour out on us afresh the gifts of your Holy Spirit. Open our ears to hear your Word, open our eyes to see your presence, open our minds to understand your Wisdom and open our hearts to be more available for your mission so that strengthened by your grace we can truly be a sign and instrument of your presence in our world today. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Scripture Reading

"About this time, the number of disciples was increasing, the Hellenists made a complaint against the Hebrews: in the daily distribution their own widows were being overlooked. So the Twelve called a full meeting of the disciples and addressed them, "It would not be right for us to neglect the word of God so as to give out food: you brothers must select from among yourselves seven men of good reputation, filled with the Spirit and with wisdom: we will hand over this duty to them and continue to devote ourselves to prayer and the service of the word." The whole assembly approved of this proposal and elected Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, together with Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas and Nicholaus of Antioch, a convert to Judaism. They presented these to the apostles, who prayed and laid hands on them. The word of the Lord continued to spread and the number of disciples in Jerusalem was greatly increased."
(Acts 6:1-7)

Reading

"Here I would simply indicate some principles that derive from the vision I have sought to present. One is that we need to be open-minded. We may need to think not simply in terms of our own parish but of the wider community, particularly perhaps the deanery. Already in some places parishes are sharing resources in areas like sacramental preparation. It may be that the deployment of clergy and the availability of the Eucharist will undergo change, but this should not be an occasion for alarm or concern. It is important to remember that the present style and level of pastoral provision is of quite recent origin. In the three centuries following the Reformation, the communion and mission of the Church was lived out in a very different way from the structures that developed after 1850. The future will be different and crucially, will be characterised by greater involvement and collaboration of all the baptised - lay and ordained - all who are in full communion with the Church. The gifts and ideas of all need to be recognised, affirmed and nurtured. We will need adjustment and formation for a changed situation. But the Lord is with us and the future is in his hands."
(Towards a Vision for the Diocese, n.17)