‘Our diocese’ not ‘my diocese’, bishop tells laity

THE BISHOP of Brentwood is to consult the laity of the diocese to help plan for the future, writes Rose Gamble.

“It is ‘our diocese’ not ‘my diocese’,”wrote Bishop Alan Williams in his pastoral letter for the first Sunday of Lent. “We have to steer a course forward together for our common future and I would much rather do it in dialogue with people than present it as a fait accompli.”

Each parish is to appoint a member of the laity who, along with local clergy, will assess parish resources and represent fellow parishioners’ ideas, thoughts and concerns to a Diocesan Strategic Planning Group. The appointments will be for two years initially, and training will be provided.

As inspiration for the scheme Bishop Williams referred to the Synod on the Vocation and Mission of the Laity where Saint Pope John Paul II talked of the need to develop “dialogue and discernment … consultation and collaboration with the lay faithful, women and men”.

“Discerning together the future of our diocese involves storytelling and listening,” he added. “We need to listen to each other’s stories of how God has worked in our lives; and is still accompanying us. In sharing our stories we then begin to write together a new narrative.”