The Bishop of Blackburn has celebrated the Diocese’s centenary at a special Eucharist service, encouraging those gathered that “the fire of the Gospel of Jesus Christ will never be extinguished.”
Rt Rev Philip North gave the sermon marking exactly 100 years since the Diocese was formed on 12 November 1926. The service at Blackburn Cathedral on Thursday brought together clergy past and present, congregations and civic leaders to recognise the service, worship and mission of the Church of England in Lancashire.
Bishop Philip reflected on the past “generation of careful builders who have built that part of the church of God which is the Diocese of Blackburn.”
Urging those gathered to look to the future, he said: “We will never give up or let up as God’s builders. The fire of the Gospel of Jesus Christ will never be extinguished. And across Lancashire we will declare it with every breath in our bodies. For the Christ we proclaim is truth and life and the world’s only hope. And the building we build is his celestial body.
“Which is why we are and will always be a people of joy. We rejoice because Jesus has triumphed. We rejoice because this Diocese is his. We rejoice because he will never, ever let us go.”
The service reflected on the generations who have served Jesus in Lancashire through churches, schools and chaplaincies; alongside the role of the Cathedral, elevated from St Mary’s Parish Church by an ‘Order in Council’ when the Diocese was created.
Remarking on what it meant to be a diocese, Bishop Philip said: “It is not a convenient administrative unit. It is not a board of finance or a bank account. It is most certainly not a branch of head office in York or Canterbury or London. No, a diocese is a family of Christians, overseen by their bishops. A family made one because they look to the one Christ.”
Concluding the service was a specially-composed hymn based on the centenary theme, ‘All for Jesus’.
It capped off a year of events organised with the theme in mind, including a ‘Big Day Out’ in Blackpool in May, a centenary conference in July and a missions weekend where thousands attended community events hosted by 170 churches in September.
After the service, Bishop Philip said: “We are deeply grateful for all those who have gone before us and for their legacy. Yet our focus is not simply on what has been achieved. We believe God is calling us onwards with renewed confidence, courage and joy.
“As we prepare to launch our new diocesan vision, ‘Joyful Followers of Jesus’, we do so with a determination to be ever bolder in service and proclamation. We want more people to encounter Jesus Christ, more communities to be transformed by his love and more lives to be changed by the Gospel. We have paused briefly to celebrate our past, but we now look forward expectantly to our next century of mission and ministry across Lancashire.”
The new vision was launched at an event on Saturday, guided by the principle of healthy churches transforming communities.