A PERSONAL REFLECTION

Celebrating 50 years as an ordained priest is a very strange and surprising experience to me! Now I know that the saying 'time flies' is so true. It also leaves me wondering what I have achieved in these fleeting years.

I wish to express my sincere thanks to those many people who over these years have supported me as a person and as a priest. I know this support and encouragement includes love, understanding, humour, forgiveness, prayer, faith, with a large dosage of patience! First of all, of course, are my parents and my brothers Jack and Tony. My parents and Jack have died since my ordination. May they be with the Lord. Then there are so many friends, numerous parishioners from parishes where I have served, the bishops of the diocese, fellow. priests and clergy from other Christian Churches with whom I have prayed, laughed, shared our common faith and from whom hopefully I have learnt.

My wish is that this celebration today is not just for me but for all those in the ordained ministry and indeed all the people of God who form the Body of Christ. May it be not only a time for looking back but also for looking forward to a developing understanding of the meaning of priesthood which in itself hopefully will bring new styles of ordained ministry, reflecting new in sights and new challenges to the Church in the modern world. May this Mass manifest our sharing in the priesthood of Christ and be an experience of what 'collaborative ministry' means to our communities and so encourage us to move forward to implement the decisions of the Nottingham Assembly.

I pray that this liturgical experience expresses our joy, thanksgiving, unity and love. May our involvement deepen our appreciation of the Eucharist as the worship of God, a call to serve each other as brothers and sisters in the Lord, and a challenge to work for justice and peace in our broken world.

It is a pleasure to share this special time with you. Let us pray for one another remembering those many people who are a part of this story yet cannot be with us today.

Father Terry