Bishop David's address to the Friends of the Diocese:

Dear Friends, many of will likely know how I came to be here. It is a classic and typical “Diocese in Europe story”. The journey to this moment began on 2 June 2002. I was standing at a bus stop in Rome. My mobile telephone rang. It was Bishop Geoffrey Rowell. He was just about to go into the opera house in Kiev with the then UK Ambassador. He asked me, as if it were a completely normal conversation between the opera house in Kiev and a bus stop in Rome, if I would consider becoming the suffragan bishop in Europe.  

Colleen, my wife, was with me at the bus stop. She saw the blood drain from my face, and my jaw drop. But she knew something was afoot when I hung up the call and said, “Oh, let’s forget about the bus, we’ll get a taxi!” So, the journey began. It was about four months later, at the Friends of the Diocese in Europe gathering just a few days after my consecration, that I celebrated the Eucharist for the first time as a bishop. It was among this very gathering. For me it was a fitting inauguration really, for the Friends of the Diocese epitomise one of the great qualities we treasure in this diocese, namely that we are a community of friends. 

For the past 21 years, without doubt, I have been blessed to have what I believe to be the one of the most fulfilling and enriching jobs in the Church. You will all know that the diocese is difficult to explain to outsiders and to many in other parts of the Church of England. But I can sum up my experience serving our communities from Iceland to Moscow, that it is a family of committed and loving people – friends. A truly rich and diverse, if scattered community, which seeks to live the Christian life in the Anglican Way. It is a place where, of all the dioceses in the Church of England, we live with a profound vision of ecumenical outreach and collaboration. It is, among all Church of England dioceses, a beautiful multicultural and multiethnic mosaic. These two particular aspects of her life, her ecumenical spirit and her multicultural reality, are very close to my own heart, as they would be to Scottish, Burmese, Canadian, and someone who has worked on the forefront of official ecumenical dialogue for over 30 years. It has made it a real joy to serve this diocese as one of its bishops.  

I am not sure what inspired Bishop Geoffrey to take a risk on me; no doubt it was because of his unparalleled love of adventure! But I say thanks to him this night, for his incredible generosity in his invitation so many years ago that started this journey.   

But to the friends gathered this evening, I want to say how grateful I am for all the kindness and support you have given me over these couple of decades. I have felt supported by your prayers and encouraged by your collective wisdom and commitment to this unique enterprise we call the diocese. It is truly wonderful to have one’s ministry undergirded by the support you give, which complements all the support I get from Bishop Robert, and close diocesan colleagues, in particular Canon Deacon Frances, as well as the support, which has been both loving and indeed hugely sacrificial from Colleen. As you can imagine my absence from home, visiting communities in the diocese, averaged about 160 days per year.  

British Airways tells me my journeys add up to about 70 times around the world and there are still 4 months of steady commitments to go. So, the journey does continue for a while. But when 29 February 2024 comes around, I sense it will be the right time to take my foot off the gas pedal as they say in Canada. I will miss all of you, and all the friends in the chaplaincies. But like when all friends part, they do not say adieu, but au revoir.