Conferences 20 4) Valuing carers, 5) Valuing liberty - equality and diversity issues, 6) Valuing spiritual life in older people, 7) The value of volunteers in caring, 8) Valued in dying. Audio recordings of the workshops are currently being enhanced to improve their quality and will be put on the Pilgrim Homes' website in the next few weeks. They'll also be available for purchase on CD. Positive Responses to Dementia, in Bradford There were two workshops at the conference on dementia in Bradford, giving the opportunity of attending both. Roger Hitchings took the workshop on Practical Reponses in the Church, and Janet Jacob took Practical Responses in the Home. Feedback comments were requested here, too, and in general they were positive and appreciative. ' Originally I was not interested in coming,' wrote one attendee, ' but a group from my church was coming so I made a late application. I expected to fi nd out more about dementia.' Were this gentleman's expectations met? They certainly were, and he added, ' The conference was very good and much higher than my expectation.' In a fi nal comment, he said, ' I thought the opening session was remarkable.' This was an address by Dr Grier on ' Spiritual responses to dementia'. His fi rst point was that people are made in the image of God, and ' if we don't see the image of God in the demented person we're going to have a very diffi cult time ever ascribing value to them.' Perhaps like many other kinds of disease, dementia shows to those who don't have it our own brokenness and our need of grace. ' If there's anything you experience in working with and caring for a person with dementia, it is the sad grief of brokenness,' he said. It brings with it a gift. In caring there is the gift of unconditional service and unconditional love, where there is no reciprocity. ' With no capacity to reciprocate in serving, I look at dementia like many other diseases as a gift of Christ to His church, in order to develop that unconditional service and love.' Dementia also increases our desire for communication. Dr Grier talked about the spirit to spirit relationship. Janet Jacob

Conferences 21 ' In fi rst Corinthians 2, 11 we read these words: " No man knows the thoughts of a man save the spirit of the man and no one knows the thoughts of God save the spirit of God."' When Mary, pregnant with Jesus, visited Elizabeth, she found that Elizabeth, who was past child- bearing age, was pregnant, too. And when Mary hailed her from the doorway the baby in Elizabeth's womb leapt for joy. ' Can you explain that to me?' asked Dr Grier, ' Did the baby have signifi cant language ability? Was it able to read Scripture? Did it know what was going on? Absolutely not. Something was going on here that we don't often talk about; and that is the intimacy of the work of the Holy Spirit that goes beyond, that transcends everything that we think about ... In Romans 8, we just learn '" His spirit bears witness with my spirit that I am." The Holy Spirit is the glory presence of Christ in our world and there's an intimacy of relationship between the Spirit and the person with dementia, so that there's a witness.' ' I would suggest to you that we think a little bit more seriously about the immediacy of the work of the Spirit with the spirit of the demented person who externally cannot manipulate anything but may I assure you, that person is open to God. They may not be open to us, but they are open to God. And for the care-giver, that should be an enormous comfort.' God has called us to care compassionately for people who can't be healed, and at the same time we need to keep in mind the day when God's promises will all be fulfi lled, where ' there's no need of a candle and there's no night for God shall shine upon them'. Then the Aaronic blessing will be fulfi lled, in that day. The audio tracks for the Bradford conference will be put on the website once they have been enhanced, and will be available, also, on CD. Lunch in London They may not be open to us, but they are open to God. And for the care-giver, that should be an enormous comfort.