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Today, we celebrate the great feast of Pentecost, a moment of profound importance
in the Church’s liturgical year. It was on this day that the Holy Spirit came upon the
Apostles and the early followers of Jesus Christ, transforming them from hesitant
disciples into bold witnesses of the Gospel. Empowered by the Spirit, they went out
into the world to share the Good News—and the Church was born.
That same Holy Spirit is alive and active today, in us, and in the life of our local
Church here in the South Berkshire Pastoral Area. Pentecost reminds us that we
are not called to stand still, but to go forward, guided by the Spirit, to bring the light of
Christ into our communities.
Over the past year, a Senior Leadership Team—made up of two parishioners from
each of our parishes of Bracknell, Sandhurst & Crowthorne, and Wokingham, and
our clergy—has been prayerfully reflecting on how we, too, can respond to this call.
We’ve been working within the vision of the diocesan 10-year plan, “You Will Be My
Witnesses,” which invites all of us to become truly Christ-centred, and to allow the
Holy Spirit to shape our daily lives.
The Bishop’s recent visit, along with diocesan officers, was a moment of
encouragement and hope. We felt it was important to give you a sense of the
direction we’re heading, and the work that has been done so far.
The Bishop has challenged us to build a Church that is missionary in outlook—one
that recognises and nurtures the unique gifts and charisms of every person. He’s
asked us to find ways to reach those who are struggling or feel forgotten, and to
consider how we bring more people closer to Jesus Christ through His Church. This
means building bridges across our three parishes and supporting each other more
intentionally.
Already, we have made progress:
 We are encouraging formation through groups such as RCIA, Alpha, Called
and Gifted and Life in the Spirit seminars
 A Communication Team has been formed to ensure clear and unified
messaging across our parishes.
 Plans are underway to create a shared website for our pastoral area.
 A joint Finance Team has come together, and all parishes are now using the
same financial systems for transparency and collaboration.
 We’re also mapping all our parish groups so we can share best practices,
resources, and support.
Looking ahead to the autumn, we will hold gatherings that will encourage feedback
and foster deeper collaboration and stronger relationships between parish groups
And, we’ll also begin thinking about choosing a name and vision statement for our
pastoral area that reflects our identity and mission.

But let me be clear: none of this can succeed without you. This is your
invitation—our invitation—to help us shape the direction of our pastoral area. We are
all called, all gifted, all sent. The Church is not just the Clergy or leadership teams—it
is every one of us, together.
Let us ask the Holy Spirit this Pentecost to renew our hearts, inspire our service,
and give us the courage to build relationships that reflect Christ’s love. May we be a
people on fire with the Spirit—ready to go out, make disciples, and bring Christ’s
presence into every part of our lives and our communities. I would leave you with a
question the Bishop posed to us. If our Parish closed today, would anyone notice?
Would there be any gap in meeting the needs of the community above and beyond
the Mass and the sacraments? Let us all pray about how we would answer that
question today and how we should be answering it in the future.
Thank you, and God bless.

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