The news may have been bad, but you would not have guessed it from the applause at both venues, Bretargh Holt near Kendal on January 17th, and again at Our Lady & St. Edwards, Fulwood on the 19th. The diocese had invited Parish Priests and parish financial committees to hear the results of last year's financial Review and subsequent Report, but they were met with much more than that.

What was on offer may have fallen a long way short of the "Mission" suggested in the Bishop's opening speech, (see Bishop Patrick’s Opening Address) but then again, it was certainly much more than a meeting about money. The diocese had rounded a corner, "big time" One could almost call it "Regime Change." For some, of course this was no surprise. They had always wondered just what change of direction would come with the new financial and administrative arrangements. This, rather than simple loyalty to old friends, had been the real source of their concern all along.

But most were hearing the hard financial facts for the first time. Many actually expressed gratitude for being allowed into the secret. Thanks for the headache? Certainly it sounded so, as the suggestions and ideas began flooding in, even before we left for home. The presumption seemed to be that the diocese would continue to share its secrets in the open way it was now doing. For everyone's sake let's hope that proves to be the case. The new found openness met with genuine readiness to help. It was probably too much to expect this paper to have been given much credit. Questions and criticisms are not always welcome even if they prove a healthy part of the process. But we like to think we have played our part. Others did too. Though no names can be mentioned we must remember that the original Financial Review of January 2005 was intended for the Trustees only. Our new openness came only with a struggle.

Fr Luiz Ruscillo brought a note of hope into the grim financial facts with his clearly planned and carefully articulated vision for the future of Catholic education in the diocese. His bright-eyed and bushy-tailed delivery looked like a light at the end of a very dark tunnel. Still there was real concern in Bretargh Holt where many noticed how "Collaborative Ministry" was re-defined without any reference to Baptism and the innate dignity and call to mission that sacrament bestows on each one of us. What vision of the church was this that was being offered us? Collaborative ministry was being turned into "Co-operative Ministry," or as we used to put it, "Helping Father." The subject was not part of Fr Luiz' presentation in Fulwood. Perhaps because it had not gone without comment at Bretargh.

But certainly for most people attending, the clouds parted, if only a little, over the two days. For all the bad news and the tough challenges ahead, there was a prevailing mood of support, even optimism. Above all there was a willingness to help both in the fields of finance and of mission. After all the care with words and all the meticulous planning, it seems that we are getting somewhere even if the exact location of that "somewhere" still concerns many. (Further coverage in Bishop Patrick’s Opening Address, An Accountant Comments and The Education Issue)