Bishop John has written a final article to be used in parish magazines as he retires as Bishop of Worcester.
On Sunday 29 September, the Feast of St Michael and All Angels, I shall bid farewell to the Diocese of Worcester. I shall lay down my crozier and leave it in the safe keeping of the Dean until a new Bishop is appointed.
It has been an enormous privilege to serve as your bishop for nearly 17 years and I shall leave with a profound sense of thanksgiving. I am deeply grateful for all the prayer, support and encouragement I have received from you and all the people of the parishes of the diocese.
When I come across doomsayers in the media saying that the Church is dying, I think of the countless times I have visited parishes here and been uplifted by joining in worship of all kinds, humbled by the unwavering commitment of people young and old, inspired by the myriad ways in which Christians not only care for one another but continue to reach out to their communities to offer practical help in all sorts of wonderful ways.
All over the world there are sculptures of the Blessed Virgin holding the dead Jesus in her arms. The most famous is by Michelangelo in St Peter’s, Rome. The epitaph beneath is one word: ‘Pieta’, meaning ‘Faithfulness’. Mary remained faithful even at the point when the sword made its deepest incision in her heart.
Mary is the model disciple and we should seek to be like her. Whatever our Christian calling – as the 113th bishop I am but a small cog in a big wheel – the best epitaph that any of us can hope for is ‘faithfulness’. May you be enabled by God’s Holy Spirit to remain faithful and may God bless you richly in the future.
Bishop John.
