click - Parish of Greater Whitbourne

Letter from the Bishopof Hereford“Do you not know that in a race therunners all compete, but only one receivesthe prize? Run in such a waythat you may win it. Athletes do it fora crown that will not last, but we do itfor a crown that will last forever.”These words were written almost2,000 years ago by St. Paul to Christiansin Corinth and are especiallyappropriate at the moment.I am always challenged by the hoursand hours of practice that top athletescommit to, as well as their single-mindedness and dedication, not justover a few days or weeks or months,but consistently over many years. Ifthey are prepared to go to theselengths and make the associated sacrificesrequired for their sport, howmuch more should we be prepared tospend dedicated time over weeks,months and years for God’s work,which is the goal and meaning of ourlives?A few weeks ago, over 500 Year 6children from our Church Schoolsgathered in their Cathedral focussingon the theme of “Going for Gold”.Among other things, they were askedwhen they were last told that theywere “as good as gold”?Their theme prompted me to explainto them that bishops wear a gold mitre,with its distinctive shape and colour,as a reminder to all of us of thegift of the Holy Spirit, which, on thefirst Pentecost / Whit Sunday, wasseen as a golden flame of fire on theheads of each of the disciples. At ourBaptism, and when we come to him infaith, God gives his Spirit to each ofus - and not just to bishops! Each ofus is a “dwelling place of God’s Spirit”- God in us. He is the “gold” in us, ourtreasure, our real worth.As we delight in the spectacle of theOlympic Games, celebrate the Olympiansand praise the medallists, let usbe encouraged to review our owntraining, so that the gold that is alreadyin us may shine out. That needsus to grow into a way of being morein tune with God’s Spirit at work inus, and it needs us to do something,too. It needs us to recommit to ourtraining of prayer, worship and learning,which leads us deeper in our collaborativeworking for the commongood, serving one another and ourcommunities better.Bishop Anthony PriddisAgricultural Chaplain’sReportBovine TB UpdateThe Badger Trust's challenge to Defra'sproposed cull took place in theHigh Court on 25th and 26th June. Ifupheld the two proposed pilot cullsin Gloucestershire and Somersetcould be delayed or scrapped. TheTrust argues that the culls should beoverturned on three grounds: thatthey fail the strict legal test of"preventing the spread of disease";that Defra's cost-impact assessmentis flawed; and that the Secretary ofState did not have the legal powers togive Natural England responsibility toissue licences for the cull. Althoughculling badgers is likely to reduce theincidence of bovine TB within the des-13 August 2012