responding to this growth, and continuing to celebrate our tradition.

The atmosphere at Mass, and at such gatherings as these, is lovely. We are inspired not only by our worship, but the depth of fellowship and acceptance we encounter. My heart never fails to lift when I enter the pulpit and see such a diverse and happy group which I am proud to call my brothers and sisters in Christ.

Having said all this, I have to say that we are not successful, in worldly terms, and mistakes have been made.

To begin with, I ask you to cast your mind back 12 months. At the parish dinner last year I gave an overview of where we had come from, what direction we should be heading, and 3 particular projects for the next few years. I should have kept my mouth shut!

Before any of the projects could get off the ground the Vestry was faced with the reality that our Day School was in serious financial difficulty. This was nothing new - but all the efforts we had put into saving it were to no avail. The difficult decision to close the school was made. This was followed almost immediately by the ultimatum from the City to either fix the hall, or it would be closed. Not even a glamorous project to entice us!

You know how the story ends, though. We are looking at it tonight. And not only here in the hall, for the project was over-subscribed, enabling us to do one of those projects I presented last year: the removal of the sanctuary carpet & the re-surfacing of the wooden floor. On Sunday, you will see what a wonderful transformation this has brought about.

Despite these set-backs, these 2 events gave us a God-given op