InterviewBlog | In conversation with Rachel Treweek
In conversation with Rachel Treweek
Author: Andy PeckPost Date: 06.06.19
Four years ago RACHEL TREWEEK became the first female diocesan bishop in the Church of England (July 2015) and the first female bishop in the House of Lords (October 2015). This high-profile national role is balanced with a hands-on approach to being with those with faith and those without faith in the Diocese of Gloucester.
ll As we are meeting at College Green, the diocesan offices that face Gloucester Cathedral, let’s start by finding out what your current priorities are here. What is in your diary?
There are several strands to my ministry. I’m called here as Bishop of Gloucester to lead and care for the diocese, looking at how we enable people to flourish. And I’m called to care for clergy. For example, I was showing the children in a school this morning my crozier (my shepherd’s crook) which represents the pastoral care side of leadership. Often when people hear the word ‘diocese’ they think about our worshipping communities, our schools and our chaplaincies but we also think about all the people of God, so the diocese for me is everyone who lives in this geographical area. How are we being an outward-facing church, reaching out to those who don’t know Christ, engaging with the hopes and needs – a phrase I use quite a lot – of people living in our communities?
There are obvious needs that people support such as foodbanks, parentand-toddler groups, youth groups and homeless work. And less obviously, people (like you and I, and not like you and I) have different everyday hopes and needs: we need to be asking how we are engaging with all people in our local contexts. Where does what we do resonate with others?
