This week, I have been attending a meeting of the British Pharmacological Society (BPS) at Harrogate. I teach and research pharmacology, the science of how drugs work and have been a member of the BPS for over 25 years. The society organises a large meeting every year just before Christmas; there are talks about matters of current scientific interest and there is also the opportunity for people to show their latest findings my means of posters. This year, my PhD student had a poster. Over the years my routine at the meeting has changed; once I avidly attended all the scientific sessions and sought out the big names in the field who I wanted to impress. Now I am more inclined to linger drinking tea by the posters and chatting with old friends before retiring to a nearby tea room or pub. There has been another change; now, when I attend, I wear my clerical collar. I have occasionally got some strange looks, but I have never encountered any hostility. Instead, people who do approach me often want to talk about their own faith or are curious about mine. The dog-collar is obvious, but there are other forms of identity such as cross lapel-badge that achieve much the same thing. A symbol can be powerful.
