The gathering I had here yesterday afternoon was as good as anything I have had in the whole tour. I have had some that were bigger, but few that had the same atmosphere and warmth as this one. This discussion was busy and interesting, with many hands up for the roving mike at any one time. There was great energy in the hall, and being there gave me a real lift.
To travel from St. Louis to Phoenix at this time of the year was to go from below zero to a very pleasant low twenties celsius. Before I went to give my talk I watched the Irish news on my ipad, and saw the interview with Cardinal Burke. I had heard so much about him during my two days in St. Louis, where he had been archbishop, and all the hurt people he left behind him, so I was interested.
I had a very interesting second evening in St. Louis. The woman with whom I was staying, who has a long association with the Womens Ordination Conference, invited some people in to meet me.
We ended up with a fascinating group. There were three Oblate priests, from their novitiate, twp diocesan priests, two Roman Catholic Women Priests, an Episcopalian minister, and a few others. It developed into a really interesting discussion on staying with the institution or breaking away, and on how to manage a new group, like the Catholic Women Priests, and keep them to some degree with a shared vision and strategy.
