Sweet taste of India

Not the Monty Python Gas Man Sketch, but the Visa queue at India House the other day. Lucy (aka the Bishopamma) and I are going, with Leslie Stephen, Director of Education, for a week in the Diocese of Nandyal, part of the Church of South India.

Earlier this year Bishop Lawrence came to visit us and spoke to our head teachers conference. Now we are going to his diocese, bearing greetings, to meet people and lay strong foundations, we hope, for a really fruitful mutually educational partnership, meeting clergy, helping with a chapel dedication, and seeing how we can be part of the Nandyal schools & clergy development programme. I’m very much looking forward to meeting people, and discovering new opportunities and friendships. I’m very keen to learn from Indian faith siblings how Church feels in the context of thousands of gods and languages, and a fully ecumenical diocese.

All will be revealed, but not every day, or perhaps even any day this week. Bangalore is hi-tech, but a lot of the time we’ll be in Nandyal (Andhra Pradesh, too small for the Rough guide) and rural villages and schools. Anyway this week’s about meeting people, not tiddling with technology. So, the blog's on the blink for next week, but I'll take the camera and a notebook, along with the Imodium and antimalarials. Watch this space!