s a leaving lunch in the Cathedral Chapter house where I was joined by nearly a hundred friends and colleagues from around the diocese who I’ve been privileged to work with over the last ten years. It was great to catch up with people and to say thank you for their encouragement and support for lay education and training. I’m particularly grateful to my administrator Liz Watson who worked so hard to put the lunch together and to Canon Dr Roger Matthews and Bishop Stephen Cottrell who spoke at the lunch.
Along with the very enjoyable food and drink were some great surprises in the form of gifts for both the family and me and a card with many lovely messages. The gifts included a bottle of champagne (for Easter), a copy of Sir Alex Ferguson’s autobiography with a message from the great man and a cheque for an iPad 2! 
Pick your Artist U2I’ll tag Peter Banks, Gerardus, Simon Robinson and anyone else who’d like to have a go.
Describe yourself Running to stand still
How do you feel Magnificent
If you could go anywhere, where would you go With a shout (Jerusalem)
Your favourite form of transportation Elevation
Your best friend is a Angel of Harlem
You and your best friends are Trying to throw your arms around the world
If your life was a TV show, what would it be called I still haven't found what I'm looking for
What is life to you Beautiful Day
Your current relationship Two hearts beat as one
Your fear Vertigo
What is the best advice you have to give Hold me, thrill me, kiss me, kill me
I would like to die... One step closer
Time of day 11 O'clock tic toc
My motto I will follow
We spent a very enjoyable evening with friends at the 18th birthday party for a lovely young lady at the weekend, she is the sister of my God-daughter. I remember her birth and the privilege of being one of the first to see her and her adoring parents in the hospital. I also remember the following weeks as the baby was diagnosed with Down’s Syndrome and the determination of her parents over the years to ensure only the best for her in care and education. The birthday party gave the young woman the party she has dreamed of having and the joy on her face as she and her friends partied and danced was a delight to see.
Over the years in ministry I have had the privilege of getting to know several children, men and women with Down’s Syndrome. In one parish I prepared a young man called Alan for confirmation and I still remember vividly the reverence on his face as he knelt before the bishop. Alan used to come to church with a scarf draped as a stole around his neck, a piece of paper in his collar like a priest and he would always bring some bread for the communion. I suspected that Alan never thought we were a proper church; he preferred a more catholic service to our church plant services as we met in a school hall on the urban overspill housing estate. Alan had worshipped at another church in the town for a time, but some of the congregation found his attire and actions irreverent and he was discouraged from attending. Their loss was our gain because Alan and the others from the supervised accommodation on the estate were an integral part of our church life and ministry and I couldn’t imagine the church family without them. Alan died a few years ago.
Today the British Medical Journal has published a report suggesting a steep rise in the number of Down’s Syndrome diagnoses. Various factors have been identified to explain this increase, including a growth in the number of women deciding to start a family later in life and the wider availability of diagnostic tests. About 92% of those receiving a diagnosis as a result of screening choose to terminate the pregnancy. Yet, this is only part of the story.
On Saturday The Times ran a story stating that between 2000 and 2006 the number of children born with Down’s Syndrome had increased by some 15%. The explanation given is that more parents are willing to consider bringing up a Down’s child. Various factors have been suggested for this decision including; those with religious/moral objections to abortion, awareness of an increased quality of life and life expectancy for those with Down’s Syndrome, changes in social attitudes and integration into mainstream education.
Another reason given for the willingness of some to bring up a child with Down’s Syndrome is that they know people with Down’s or other disabilities. This seems to me to be key to our attitude to disability; when we know the person and not just about the condition then our perspective changes. This is in no way to diminish the challenges and sacrifices that many parents make in nurturing a disabled child; I am only too aware of all that my friends have given over the last eighteen years in caring for their daughter. However, I also know how much she has enriched the lives of her parents, brothers, sister, the wider family and her friends; it was clear for anyone to see at her birthday party on Sunday evening.
From left: David Lowman (Archdeacon of Southend), Michele Marshall, Marion Walford, Sue Iskander, Bishop Laurie (Bishop of Bradwell), Carol Ball, Dave Chesney and Steve Spencer.
Dave Chesney, Tim Ball (vicar of Holy Trinity, Springfield) and me.
Spent an enjoyable couple of hours with my wife and a glass of wine watching Becket (Paramount 1964) a few days ago. The film follows the relationship between Henry II played by Peter O’Toole and Thomas Becket played by Richard Burton. Based on the play Becket or the Honour of God by Jean Anouilh and with a strong supporting cast, I thought the two central performances were excellent. I had seen the film some thirty years ago; though the only scene I remembered was Henry and Becket jumping out of a young woman’s bedroom window! Well I was a teenager at the time. I also studied T. S. Eliot’s Murder in the Cathedral while at university and so have had an ongoing interest in the story.
