Bishop Robert shared this week:

"The Venerable Dr Peter Hooper, Archdeacon of France and Switzerland, will be leaving the Diocese in the summer. Peter ‘re-joined’ us in December 2020 having been a Chaplaincy Warden in the Toulouse area for many years in the 1990’s and early 2000’s, as well as being an Ordinand through our Diocesan process ahead of ordination and some 15 years of Parish Ministry in the Leicester Diocese. During his time as Archdeacon, Peter has recruited a remarkable 20 chaplains for France and 7 for Switzerland. He has been active ecumenically with both Protestant and Catholic colleagues in France and The Old Catholic Church in Switzerland. He has led ground-breaking constitutional work in France, enabling our chaplaincies to have new constitutions that conform with revised French law, in the process of which he established a new national legal presence for the Archdeaconry which has enabled us to become members of the Federation of Protestant Churches. In the post Brexit environment much work has been done to establish an effective Visa route for new incoming Priests into France as well as understanding the complicated Swiss work permitting process at a Cantonal Level. His work has often involved gruelling and difficult engagement with chaplaincy conflict where he has achieved resolution to deeply entrenched issues. In the ‘Post Covid-era’, Peter has been travelling for about 150 days a year and has become something of a Diocesan expert for cost-effective travel arrangements in and around France and Switzerland.

With his recent marriage to Liz in May of last year combined with the amount of travel required to effectively fulfil the role of Archdeacon, Peter has after a good deal of soul-searching (and conversations with me) discerned that he now needs to better balance his vocation to (newly) (re-)married life, his role as a husband, and his role as an Ordained Priest. As part of this re-balancing, he will be returning to the Diocese of Leicester, taking up a role to assist in the change process taking place in the Diocese. Peter will be saying farewell to the Diocese in Europe and colleagues at various events over the coming few months, including our June Synod. We are enormously grateful for all that Peter has given us, and I hope that his remaining months with us (last official working day will be 31st July) are happy and fulfilling." 

Peter said:

“Discerning God’s call is truly a lifelong journey and forms a significant part of any desire to follow a discipleship pathway. It is a continual process at whatever stage in life or ministry we may find ourselves in. The way that we respond to the challenges and indeed at times, sacrifices, we may encounter in how we respond to God’s discerned call is what shapes and demonstrates our Christian nature. 

I will of course be sad at leaving so many friends and colleagues behind in the Diocese, the last years have been an extraordinary roller-coaster ride with God’s wisdom, guidance, and hand so visible in so many different ways. 

I leave with a sense of what I was originally called to work on accomplished, and a new calling emerging that takes me back to the Leicester Diocese. The joy of sensing God leading me to something new is tempered by the ending of my ministry here, I shall miss the Diocese greatly”

Please hold Peter in your prayers, with thanks for all he has given us and for his future.