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Fr. Neil has been rector of Holy Trinity since May 2003. He moved to White Rock from Vancouver’s West End where he had been at St. Paul’s Church since 1988. During that time he served as both associate priest and rector as well as chaplain to the Anglican patients at St. Paul’s Hospital. Prior to that, he worked at a number of parishes in London, England. He was trained for ordained ministry at St. Stephen’s House, Oxford.
As a priest, Neil places a very high priority on the liturgy. “I agree with Matthew Fox, the theologian, that it is a great sin to bore people to death for an hour on Sunday morning and call it worship!” He says “We try to make our time together a really positive experience - involving as many people as possible with a balance of ages and gender as we equip ourselves by word and sacrament for our ministry”. Growth was one of the priorities named by the parish when it produced its profile in 2002. This happens, Neil believes, when a Christian community meets two specific needs of its members. “People are increasingly clear about their reasons for choosing a church - they need help with the spiritual life and want to be part of making the world a better place. We need to look at how effectively all the things we do as a church help meet these goals”.
Quite a lot of Neil’s time and energy goes into helping people identify their gifts and talents and then encouraging them to use them in the service of the Kingdom. Holy Trinity is a church that sees itself as a ship with no passengers - all crew!
The Rector is in the office most mornings and is easily contacted at other times. Monday is his day off. He looks forward to meeting you and doing what he can to help and support you.
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