In the midst of their retreat week at Whalley Abbey, and before the ordination weekend ahead, ordinands and their families have just gathered at Bishop's House for a lunch today, featuring great food and great fellowship!

It was a chance to celebrate the love, commitment and service of our ordinands and their families and also a chance for the Bishop of Blackburn, Rt Rev. Philip North, to express his thanks to everyone as they prepare to serve God in their parishes.

Please keep our ordinands in your thoughts and prayers as they continue onwards to ordination.

As our ordinands and their families gathered Bishop Philip spoke about the importance of this time of year to the ordinands and the whole Diocese and also the importance of their work to everyone in Lancashire in a new video available now on our Facebook page. 

Speaking directly to the ordinands after they had finished lunch Bishop Philip continued his theme from the video saying: "Make a difference in the lives of people you encounter. Don't tinker about and leave things the same. Try stuff out. Experiment and transform communities. Be ambitious."

And he added: "Don't be risk averse. Lead and make a difference in Jesus' name. Proclaim the gospel - it's a matter of life and death. Above all, enjoy it. Be joy bringers."

A total of 20 new Priests and Deacons are all set to celebrate embarking on a new phase of their lives, as a weekend of ordination services for our County approaches.

Keep checking our website for further updates including service details and more, all here: https://bit.ly/2FyCNT9 and follow our social media channels too.

There you will also find a page with pictures of each ordinand, alongside links to a short biography and 'questions and answers' for each of them to help you get to know them a bit better. 

• For the latest news stories on the ordination weekend over the coming days and into next week as well; keep an eye on this website's 'News' section (link above); on our social media channels (links to all at the top right of our homepage); in our Parish Update ebulletin and - via our press releases - in the local news media; including BBC Radio Lancashire. 

Four of our ordinands also feature in special new videos talking about their journeys to ordination and released across the week before the ordination weekend on our social media pages. 

Ronnie Semley, June 2025