John Cleese, playing the ever-exasperated Basil Fawlty of Fawlty Towers, memorably enquired: ‘Well, Madam, may I ask what you expected to see out of a Torquay hotel bedroom window? Sydney Opera House perhaps? The Hanging Gardens of Babylon? Herds of wildebeest sweeping majestically before you...’
If the sarcastic tirade had continued, I wonder how long it would have taken for Cleese to get to the line – ‘814 church leaders in the Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches’. And yet from 13-15 November, from my Torquay hotel window, there they were… all descending on the Riviera Conference Centre!
However, it was not the vast number of delegates (the highest yet), the stunning views of Torbay (also enjoyed from my hotel window), nor the significant upgrade on Hemsby holiday village (the somewhat grungy old home of the FIEC Leaders’ Conference), that were the most inspiring aspects. Rather, the ‘Transforming Church’ conference was encouraging on a number of other fronts.
Last Word: wisdom
‘Mum, what should I do when Harry tells me he won’t be my friend unless I let him cheat on …