To dream the impossible dream...
           To reach the unreachable star....
           This is my quest -
           To follow that star...
           No matter how far

Do you remember that song?  It was written (for the musical Man of La Mancha) in the early 1960s, a time of great change in society and culture.  As we emerged from the long shadows of the Second World War, we began to envision alternative ways of living.  In society, religion, politics and morals, the old certainties were questioned and even overturned.  And the whole of our culture was shaken to its foundations as men and women of a new generation began to dream dreams of a new and better world.

As you know, the Chinese name their years after an animal.  We're just finishing the Year of the Pig, and from February will be in the Year of the Rat.  This set me thinking: if we did the same in our church and parish, what animal would we be looking forward to in 2008?

My immediate thought was that this year will be the Year of the Ant. 

When I was in conversation with a young man in his mid-thirties recently he told me this about Christianity: it is only for the elderly or ill, because it is like a wonderful box of chocolates which you can only open when you die.  To a committed Christian this seems an extraordinary suggestion - a view of faith as an insurance policy.

There was a sense of celebration and anticipation in the air on the evening of July 3 in Badshot Lea. Carol Wilson-Barker, the long-awaited new team vicar, was installed in a service at St George's by the Bishop of Guildford, the Right Rev Christopher Hill. And although the service followed the required ceremonial format - which would have made it impressive enough - it was far more than just a ceremony.  The general consensus was that there was, as Carol herself says "a sense of joy".  There was also a sense of purpose.  In his address, Bishop Christopher talked about the "thousands of people out there and not in church tonight, who half believe and half doubt, who are asking questions about life and faith, about the world around us and the society we live in, looking for the meaning of life which quietly challenges the overconfident unbeliever".  He said that there were many such people in the parish and it was for Carol and the church to show them "the wounds of Christ's love".

We are delighted to announce the appointment of the Revd Carol Wilson-Barker as Team Vicar (subject to the usual CRB and health-checks). Carol comes to us from Cornwall, where she is presently curate in the Godrevy Team Ministry. She is married to Neil, and has two sons, Toby (8) and Guy (4). They hope to move into the Vicarage for the start of the second half of the summer term. Carol's Installation and Licensing will take place on the evening of Tuesday 3rd July at St George's. Put the date in your diary now! Please pray for Carol and her family as they prepare for their move to the parish.

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