When I was a child I always hated going to birthday parties, especially if there were going to be lots of people there who I didn’t know; I can remember hiding behind my mum and her telling me "not to be so shy". Shyness doesn’t go away as an adult and I still feel a twinge of it when I’m heading out to meet a group of people I don’t know. Ordination is definitely not a remedy for shyness, but it is an opportunity to take on a defined role in a community and to find a place for yourself in the world.
After my first in residence I do very much feel like I have found my place here at St. Giles and let me say how lovely that feels. Your welcome has been full of kindness and encouragement which leaves me with a great sense of enthusiasm for the future. I am looking forward to getting to know you all much more as time goes on and we can live a less restricted life.
I am of course here to journey alongside you as we discover the will of God for our lives and our church of St Giles. The first few months will be a time of listening to discern a common path and a direction of travel. I do have several immediate priorities which include looking to grow our congregation in number and to get our services in church out there on the web for all to see wherever they are. Key to this growth will be finding effective ways of raising our profile both within the wider church community, but also across London and the West End. The PCC and I will be looking at this over the coming months.
The one thing that I would want to say at the beginning of my time here is that the mission of God and His Church belongs to all of us. I remember reading a staggering statistic in the paper; that if each Church of England parish attracted just 5 more members we would not only halt the numerical decline of the church but reverse it. Little steps lead to big changes. If we all play our part in helping St Giles grow then we will bring in a brighter and more confident future. I look forward to working with you to lead St. Giles into a time of growth and a deepening of all that is special about this place.
With every blessing,
Tom