Clergy Gather for Day of Recollection at Clare Priory

Bishop Peter Collins, twenty-seven priests and two permanent deacons gathered at Clare Priory on 3 April for the Diocese of East Anglia’s Lent Clergy Day of Recollection.

The day was led by Holy Ghost Father Eamonn Mulcahy, a priest currently serving in a parish in Stoke in the Archdiocese of Birmingham.

In a series of thought-provoking reflections, Fr Eamonn challenged those present to renew their commitment to ministry, calling them to be priests and deacons formed after the heart and mind of Christ.

Focusing on the moment of Jesus’ baptism – when He is affirmed as God’s beloved, the one in whom God delights – Fr Eamonn explored how this profound sense of identity shaped Jesus’ entire ministry. He encouraged the clergy to reflect on how Jesus’ mission was to reveal this same truth to others: that all are beloved of God, and that God delights in each person.

Fr Eamonn reminded the gathering that this understanding led Jesus to the margins of society – to the rejected, the excluded, the put-upon, the disdained, to those who felt anything but loved by God and those whom religious leaders often overlooked. Jesus wasn’t a cultic priest, not according to the religious definitions of his time. And yet, his life was entirely priestly – and he became the perfect sacrifice.

Several attendees also asked for Fr Eamonn to be invited back for future days of reflection, recognising the value of his message in helping to renew and inspire the clergy in their vocations.

The Diocese’s Lent Clergy Day continues to be an important opportunity for spiritual nourishment, fraternal support, and personal renewal – and this year’s gathering at Clare Priory was no exception.

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