Farewell to Phillip

At the end of December, our curate Phillip Dawson's time at St Giles came to an end. As he prepares to take up his new post, he offers this reflection on his time with us.

Several years ago I walked through the door of St Giles to talk to Alan (Tom’s predecessor) about training to become a priest. One of the first things he said was that a church like St Giles didn’t really need a curate these days, so I would have to find somewhere else to train. It is funny how things turn out! 

I wasn’t expecting to come to St Giles nor even to ‘work’ as a priest full time, but then I’ve never really had a plan in life. But I have been very fortunate to meet people along the way who have seen something in me and given me amazing opportunities. Not only in the church but in my earlier working life as well. I have learnt that great joy comes from attempting to reciprocate this generosity – what the church calls grace. To find out a bit about people, their gifts and talents, to encourage connections with others. We can’t direct or control the work of the Spirit, but we can provide a space for people to gather together and pray that we might see the Spirit at work in each other – then a new spark is lit, a new seed planted, new possibilities emerge.

It has been a great privilege to be with you for the past few years as Curate. It was always going to be a fleeting visit, but we have packed a lot in! The Saint Gilles pilgrimage, the walks and talks, the ministry at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, parish parties, study groups, book groups, family activity days, starting to improve the churchyard with the help of lots of volunteers from the community and all the wonderful services.

Thank you so much for the lovely send-off and the wonderful silver candlesticks, which Henry and I will put to good use when entertaining. Hopefully you will visit us at St Olave Hart Street now and again!

I leave you every good wish for the future and offer you the words of what has become known as the Romero Prayer, one of my favourites and perhaps one of the best expressions of what we are all doing that I have come across so far:

"We plant seeds that one day will grow. We water the seeds already planted, knowing that they hold future promise. We lay foundations that will need further development. We provide yeast that produces effects far beyond our capabilities. We cannot do everything and there is a sense of liberation in realising that."