Bishop John has written this article for use in January editions of parish magazines:
Happy New Year! For me, it is always exciting to stand at the start of a new year with feelings of hope and potential for the year ahead.
Of course, it’s not that way for everyone. For many 2023 will already feel very daunting with the cost-of-living crisis, increased use of food banks and worries about being able to afford to put the heating on. I pray that those who are worried will find the support they need and that 2023 might not be as bad as they fear.
I have just returned from visiting our partner Diocese of Peru - going there is always an affecting experience. Poverty there is of a different order of magnitude: no running water or electricity, no work, no social security, no health care; enough food barely to survive. It’s a very humbling.
Although there is wealth in Lima, the majority of the several million inhabitants live in shanty towns. Elsewhere, the people are predominantly very poor. It is among them that the Anglican church mostly ministers. It was moving to visit and be offered hospitality in the poorest areas of Arequipa, at a food kitchen which we have supported financially. Money goes a long way there and donations from churches in the Diocese of Worcester during Lent 2020 enabled it to continue during the pandemic. It is one of quite a few projects among the poor which the Diocese of Peru organises.
Easter is early this year and Lent will be upon us before we know it next month. This year, we’ll be once again raising money for our friends in Peru. The need continues to be enormous, and I hope that many of us will be able to afford to share a little of what we have with them. In the meantime, please pray for all who are finding life difficult and for whom the new year is not as happy or exciting as it might be for many of us.
