Scout with the Cross

Country Parson

2011-12-09T23:17:00.000Z

When the Rector on his induction takes the key of the church, locks himself in and tolls the bell, it is his own passing bell he is ringing. He is shutting himself out from all hope of a future career on earth. He is a man transported for life, to whom there will be no reprieve .... for the day he accepts a country benefice he is a shelved man ... once a country parson, always a country parson.

Dr A Jessop, Vicar of Scaring in Norfolk, 1890.

How true! No time to blog either.

Lammas

2011-08-15T13:20:00.000+01:00

Lammas is celebrated on the 1st August each year and we celebrated it in two of our churches on 6th August being the first Sunday after the 1st August. Lammas comes from hlafmaesse, the Old English for loaf mass and is an ancient harvest festival celebrating the first fruits of the harvest. A traditional highlight was the eating bread baked using flour milled from the first grain of the year.

The origins of Lammas are uncertain. Many sources link it to the earlier pagan festival Lughnasadh, held in honour of the god Lugh. As with other pre-existing rites and rituals (e.g. Christmas), Lammas was absorbed into and adapted by the Christian church and it ranked as one of the most important dates of the year.

Though no longer as well known as it once was, Lammas is still celebrated by many people in Britain, other parts of Europe and elsewhere in the world, notably by rural Christian communities.

Sooffertry, as is done in many churches, but not in our Benefice. Using the bread roll it was consecrated along with the wine to become the body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ which we all shared during the communion around the Lord's Table. The symbology was very high.

As well as celebrating the first cut of the crop we prayed for the continued good weather so that the rest of the harvest would be brought in safely and that the yeilds would be high. We now look forward to celebrating the full harvest at our harvest festivals.

Bread Matters

2011-07-19T22:25:00.000+01:00

I am getting into bread making. A little sick of the stodge from the supermarket shelf and after making some from bread mixes in our bread making machine, I have now gone all adventurist and made some by hand and using an oven. The next step was to make my own sourdough starter to allow me to make sourdough bread, which was the traditional way of making bread. absolutely no additives at all, just great tasting bread.

Maybe I am getting an obsession, but I am even thinking of going on a 2 day weekend course on bread making before the end of the year.

Ingleby Open Gardens

2011-07-11T08:15:00.001+01:00

Ingleby Arncliffe and Ingleby Cross opened their gardens this weekend and the villages were busy althrough the weekend with visitors going around looking at the gardens and getting ideas for their own. Teas were avaialble in the Methodist chapel, the village hall and cream teas were a must at Sue and Clifford's with freshly baked scones.

A scarecrow competition was held and I was given the job of judging the winners. Not an easy task from the 19 scarecrows spread through the villages. The pictures, of 1st and 3rd are here.

A full set of pictures can be seen by clicking here

Osmotherley Churches Together Pilgrimage 2011

2011-07-04T23:35:00.001+01:00

The sun was shining bright and the temperature was about 25 C as I sat with Margaret outside of Church House eating our lunch. It was Ingleby Arncliffe School's day for the Sunday cafe and it was a shame to go home for lunch to come back again for the Pilgrimage.

In total there were only sixteen plus the three clergy who gathered at the Market Cross to start our pilgrimage to the Lady Chapel in prayer at 2.30 pm. Three more did join us en route. A minibus was provided to transport those who could not make the walk up the hill and the few intrepid walkers set off with Robert Gee and myself at the front carrying the Churches Together banner.

The timing of the walk was well planned and we arrived at the Lady Chapel at 2.57 pm, slightly warm from the walk. Being all in black is not the best colour for a hot summers day. The pilgrimage continued in prayer and hymns outside for a short while then we went inside the Lady Chapel itself for the rest of the service.

Fr Damien gave a really interesting talk on the history of the Lady Chapel and how it was rebuilt in the last century. It was then through to the other room, spend a few pounds in the shop and sit and chat over a cup of coffee and some scones and biscuits. A really nice afternoon.

Rural Ministry

2011-07-03T23:11:00.000+01:00

Our IME day in June was held at Thirsk auction market and was on Rural Ministry. Right up my street I thought and so it was. The Rev'd Richard Rowling, Rector of Thirsk and the Diocesean Rural Advisor introduced the day and in the morning Bob Baker from the Farming Business Support and Development Project told us about their work they do supporting the rural communities under the Churches Regional Commission. Graham Bulmer, Pauline Broadwith and Clare Wise were also there giving all the year 5 and 6 Curates from both Cleveland and York Archdeanaries the benefit of their experience.

It was good to meet up with some of my ex NEOC colleagues and friends and over lunch in the auction cafe we exchanged stories. The trip around this modern auction mart was very interesting. Certainly different from the Carlisle and Penrith auction marts I remember from the late 60's and early 70's. Showing my age again!

In the afternoon Elizabeth Clarke (Methodist Minister from Sowerby) shared her experiences of rural ministry with us giving us all an insight to the joys and sorrows.

All in all probably the best IME day in my two years, but being in rural ministry I am probably biased. It is both a challenge and a joy serving God in these rural parishes.

Savannah

2011-07-02T22:55:00.000+01:00

It is not often that I get to travel with my work, but this last week I have been to Savannah in Georgia in the USA. Flying out on Monday morning and then travelling back on the Thursday evening I had only managed to adjust my body clock when I had to do it all over again.

Savannah was warm, over 90 F and quite humid. On Tuesday evening we even managed a 30 minute walk down town and along the river, after having a really nice meal in Chris & Ruths. Wednesday evening the rains came and there were flash floods everywhere. We were dining only 200 yards from the hotel, but had to be driven back to the hotel because it was raining that hard.

The three long days of work went well and the people were really nice and friendly. This was one business trip abroad I actually enjoyed and I would not be sorry if I had to go back again.

Churches Challenge Completed

2011-06-21T13:02:00.002+01:00

Saturday 18th June and at 06:20 hours as we set off on our 32 mile hike with over 2000 feet of ascent and decent around the 11 churches in the parish, it was pouring down. Throughout the whole day we were never able to take our waterproofs off. It was wet.

The four of us, Chris, Stephen George and myself set off on this epic journey calling first at All Saints Ingleby Arncliffe and then doing the steep climb along the Coast to Coast and then the Cleveland Way to arrive at St Peter's Church in Osmotherley at 07:20 hours, there to be met by Margaret with coffee and tea, but more importantly the bacon and sausage buns.

The next stretch was the long walk along the Cleveland Way, from which there are some beautiful views,dropping off it to call in at Holy Trinity church in Boltby. At least along this long stretch of over 3 hours the rain eased a little and as we made our way to St Felix church in Felixkirk it even stopped raining. Margaret, Gill, Heather and Robert were there at Felixkirk with lunch which meant that we couldn't call into the Carpenters Arms, which disappointed a few of us. Still lunch was very nice and after a 45 minute stop it was along the road to St Wilfrid's Kirkby Knowle and then on to St Michael and All Angels in Cowesby.

Our next church was the Memorial Chapel at Kepwick just a half a mile or so over the fields from Cowesby and then the walk westwards to the A19 road and St Mary's Leake where the girls were there again with tea and a few cakes and scones
.

We left St Mary's at 16:00 hours heading over the fields, dodging the lively bullocks, and headed for All Saints in Nether Silton, suitable refreshed and invigourated. Then it was the short walk over the hill to St Mary's Over Silton. This is a lovely old church in the middle of a field with no utilities at all so is only used in the summer month. The lighting is all natural light supplemented with candles. It has alovely peaceful atmosphere.

From St Mary's our 10th church we had the long trek to St Oswald's in East Harlsey. The footpath we had to take through Over Silton went through the garden of one of the houses. It did not feel right walking through the garden, but that was the path. As we hit the A19 to cross over the rain started again after only having a few showers since midday. When we had crossed the A19 we found that the farmers have fenced off the path and we had to climb over 2 ditches and a barbwire fence to get to a stile over another fence and then the whole field had been planted with barley and the path not maintained. Hard going especially when you are feeling tired.

For me the stretch from Ellerbeck to East Harlsey was hard and when we reached the church it was a quick in and out. The last 1.5 miles back home could not come quick enough and as we entered the drive there was Margaret and Gill with a bottle of beer each. A really nice welcome home.

The whole route including stops took 14 hours 29 minutes. We said a prayer at each church and I am hoping to have raised about £1000 for Bungoma Calling a charity I am a Trustee of working with the Churches in the Diocese of Bungoma in western Kenya.

I am just waiting now to see what challenge Chris comes up with for us to do next year!

For all the photo's click on this LINK

Family History

2011-06-03T22:58:00.000+01:00

After leaving my Family History alone for several years whilst studying I have finally returned to it. My brother-in-law told me about ancestry.co.uk and I joined it this week. It is good and I have put in most of my family tree now and even added to it from research already done by others. There is just something about finding out your ancestry that is quite addictive.

I now have another live hobby to keep me occupied as if I didn't have enough. I am having to limit myself to 1 or 2 evenings a month.

Schools Ascension Day Service

2011-06-01T12:30:00.001+01:00

The Shrine of Our Lady of Mount Grace, known locally as the Lady Chapel, is the Diocesan Shrine for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Middlesbrough.

Located on a hill above the ruins of Mount Grace Priory and the picturesque village of Osmotherley, it lies within the North Yorkshire Moors National Park. The Lady Chapel site is close to the route of the Cleveland Way and affords panoramic views across the Vale of York towards the Yorkshire Dales and beyond to the Pennines. They are beautiful.

Founded in the 14th century by Carthusian monks, it has been a place of pilgrimage ever since. Generations of pilgrims have climbed the hill to visit this haven of peace in the midst of a busy world.

This was the location for the (albeit a week early) Ascension Day Service for the three primary schools of Ingleby Arncliffe, Osmotherley and Swainby and Potto. It amazed me how we managed to get all of the children seated in the Chapel with teachers, but we did. The service led by the Rev'd Linda Shipp and assisted by the Rev'd Ian Houghton and myself was a mixture of hymns, prayers and explanations using incense, bubbles and picture cards and the children really enjoyed it.

After the service two of the schools went down to Mount Grace Priory and had lunch then an afternoon of activities. The rain may have held off in the morning for the service, but it certainly did not in the afternoon. Although we all got a little wet it was still an enjoyable day.

Home Alone

2011-05-19T22:35:00.002+01:00

For the last ten days I have been home alone. My dear wife Margaret has been back out to Australia to visit our son Phil and his wife Helen again and to go to Helen's sister wedding. The novelty of being on your own soon wears off and although I have been busy, and boy have I been busy, you do miss the one whom you love in those quiet moments.

I wonder if God ever feels like that when we don't go to him each day in prayer. Building up that loving relationship through regular daily prayer is important and something we should all do. On Monday I have the privilege of going on a quiet day at Ampleforth Abbey and it will be nice to spend 5 hours in silence with God, not being 'home alone'.

Lambing Service

2011-05-17T22:40:00.003+01:00

It was the first time I had ever been involved with a Lambing service, but there I was at Holy Trinity church in Boltby with the Rev'd Paul Rathbone and 4 pet lambs that were only 3 - 4 weeks old. They were placed in a portable sheep pen in the church yard just adjacent the door of the church.

There was a good turn out of people in the congregation and Graham Bulmer from the Churches Regional Commission gave a short talk on how they can help farmers in a variety of ways. At the end of the service we all went outside and the lambs were blest, then it was back inside for coffee and home made scones - lovely. A really nice service and something completely different.

The life of a Country Parson.

Churches Challenge Training

2011-05-09T21:41:00.006+01:00

Shrine of Our Lady Mount Grace

On Friday I thought I had better start doing some training for the 32 miles Churhces Challenge sponsored hike. So after a busy day I decided to walk over to Osmotherley and back, with a small diversion to the Lady Chapel. The reason for the diversion was to check out how big it was for our intended visit with the three primary schools for our Ascension Day service. The conclusion was we need to pray for fine weather because we will all not fit inside.

The weather this late afternoon was lovely and the views from the tops were stunning. I dropped down into Osmotherley and visited St Peter's church. Four and a half kilometers with over eight hundred metres of ascent and four hundred of decent and it only took me fifty-one minutes. Time to head back home and with the diversion to the Lady Chapel and taking a slightly longer route home I ended up walking six miles and doing it in one hour fifty minutes.

This coming Saturday I have devised a circular walk starting and finishing in Osmotherley. Twenty-eight kilometres and I only hope the weather is as good as it was this Friday.

I am doing this walk for a charity I am a trustee of, Bungoma Calling, and if anyone would like to sponsor me then you can do so online securely by clicking on the title of this blog. Thank you and if you want to find out more about the charity and the work it does please click on this Bungoma Calling link.

Easter

2011-04-24T15:09:00.004+01:00

Our Lord is Risen - He is Risen indeed.

Today started with a 7 am sunrise service at St Mary's Over Silton. A lovely church in the middle of a field and although it is like going camping in that you have to take everything with you, the fact that we had to do this and there was only candle light accentuated the atmosphere in the church. Plenty of people had also rose early to be at the service, one couple coming from Guisborough.

My other two services were at Ingleby Arncliffe and Osmotherley, which were more modern in that we had electric light. The procession of the Pascal Candle, the renewal of baptism vows and even some incense at Osmotherley all helped us to celebrate that our Lord has defeated death and is risen indeed. It was also nice to see all the churches with a few more than the normal faces that come most weeks.

There were just a couple of blips over this whole weekend on Good Friday, Saturday and today Easter Sunday. They made me just a little bit angry and I will have to work out how I tackle these two things.

Holy Week

2011-04-21T22:50:00.005+01:00

This week I have been on a steep learning curve. My first Holy week and Easter in the benefice and it started with a bang at both Osmotherley and Ingleby Arncliffe on Palm Sunday. The procession of the palms was great in both villages. I just wish someone had taken a few photographs. During the week I had introduced a service on the Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, which has not happened in the past, as we we continued our walk with Christ through to Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and eventually Easter Sunday.

Spiritually it has been an uplifting time and to see the support from the three parishes of Osmotherley, East Harsley and Ingleby Arncliffe has been great. With three people coming forward for healing on Wednesday I pray that a healing ministry maybe growing.

Today was something special as I took a days holiday to go to York Minster for the Maundy Thursday service and the blessing of the oils. It was a lovely service and I had the opportunity to spend some time with my very good friend the Reverend Graham Bowkett as well as meeting other friends.

Tonight we have had our northern benefice service in Osmotherley with the washing of feet and then the watch. I feel that the whole day has been so spiritual I will struggle to sleep tonight. But I have two services tomorrow, one of which is the three hour devotion after which it is off to Whitby for Fish & Chips. I may have to go for a run on Saturday!

Ministers in Secular Employment (MSE)

2011-03-27T22:37:00.003+01:00

This weekend I have been at Wydale Hall with a select band of ministers, Priests and Readers. It was the first annual meeting of Priests and Readers from York Diocese who have secular employment. It was a good weekend with input from some good presenters including the Archdeacon of Cleveland, Paul Ferguson, who because he is also warden of Readers stayed the whole weekend. Having a parish responsibilities as well as holding down secular employment as well is not easy with various demands from both sides. There is also the question how do you minister to people at work, or even do you? Something that we canperhaps only discern what God wants us to do in our own individual situations. A good weekend which will be repeated in 18 months time, with a lot more people there I am sure.

The Churches Challenge

2011-03-22T12:24:00.007Z

St Peter's Church, Osmotherley

Time to get my own back I thought, but now I am wondering if I did the right thing. Three years ago I was challenged by my good friend Chris to the Churchwardens Challenge to Climb Scarfell Pike in the Lake District; walk the parish boundery; complete the Lyke wake walk (40 miles); and finally run the Nottingham half marathon. Well we managed to complete all of that and now I have moved into this lovely idyllic rural benefice in North Yorkshire with 9 churches and a memorial chapel, I have challenged Chris to walk round all the churches in less than 24 hours.

St Oswald Church, East Harsley

I think I need to start the planning. and perhaps do some training as it will be approx 40 miles again. Our plan is to do it some time in June and that is not too far off.

Love

2011-03-19T21:48:00.004Z

This weekend the Gospel reading has that text that every Christian will know even if they can not quote where in the Bible it comes from. "God so loved the world that he gave his only Son so that everyone who believes in Him may not perish but may have eternal life." - John chapter 3 verse 16.

It is difficult to understand how anyone can have such unconditional love for every human being in the world, but God does. As we Christians walk on our journey through Lent to Easter and the Cross and Resurrection we need to understand the responsibility we have in our mission to share this with others.

Lent is not just about preparing ourselves for Easter, it is also about sharing that great love of God which was manifest by him sending his Son into the world to die for us. That unconditional love which some may not agree with, but which they cannot argue against.

Reader Sunday

2011-03-10T22:36:00.003Z

Last Sunday it was Reader Sunday in York Diocese, where Readers are encouraged to leave their own parish and go to another parish, generally preaching and assisting with the service. David Charlton the Reader at St Francis of Assisi came to both our services at St Oswald's East Harsley and also St Peter's Osmotherley. It was a pleasure to have David worship with us and he preached as well in both churches.

This is a really good initiative by the Diocese which has been running for a number of years and long may it continue. It is good for the Reader and good for the host church.

Wine Tasting

2011-03-01T06:12:00.002Z

Today we have been down to Mornington Peninsular to go wine tasting. The weather was a bit cooler this morning as we set off, first for a coffee which was probably the best skinny latte I have had on this holiday. When we came out of the coffee shop it was raining, but as we drove down the peninsular coast road taking in the fantastic views the rain stopped and the sun came out. On our way up to Arthur's Chair we stopped off at Murry's lookout to take in the view across the bay.

The first of our two wineyards was T'Gallant Winemakers which is the birthplace of Australian Pinot Grigio, wine exuding the Italian style and taste. We tried 6 wines here and several of us bought one or more bottles. We went into their cafe and had 6 half pizzas between the 10 of us. They were very nice.

The next wineyard was Tuck's Ridge that boasts the ultra premium cool climate wines of distinction (according to the blurb) and the Pinot Noir was very nice. Here we tasted 10 different wines and in the end I purchased a nice Red Cab Sav.

Next call was the chocolate shop, but because it was Tuesday it was closed so it was a long drive back along the freeway to Melbourne calling off at the bottle shop to pick up some alcohol for the BBQ tonight.

Concelebration

2011-02-28T09:49:00.005Z

After an excellent wedding reception and evening 'do' I crawled out of bed at 7.30 am to go back to Christ Church to take part in the 9 am Mass with Fr Jim and Fr Stan. It was nice to go back to the church and to meet the people of God who worship in the church. It is the oldest church in Melbourne being built in 1854 and the extension to put on what is now the chancel being built in 1870's.

There is a faithful worshipping community there and they have done a lot of work having built a Community Centre seven years ago to serve the community of St Kilda.

It was nice to take part in the Mass and to share in the fellowship over a cup of coffee afterwards. It is a lovely church doing a lot of good work and you can see the work that Fr Jim has put in. They are now at a turning point as Fr Jim is approaching retirement and they are looking at where God, working through them, is going to take them. I am sure that this Anglo Catholic church will grow from strength to strength having now a very firm foundation to build upon. May God bless them.

The Wedding

2011-02-27T20:10:00.008Z

(photo by Melina)

Saturday 26th February 2011 Philip and Helen were married at 4 pm in Christ Church St Kilda, the oldest Anglican church in Melbourne. It was a beautiful sunny day and although the temperature inside the church was cooler than outside, once all the 100+ guests arrived we knew it would be hot inside too. The wedding rehearsal had gone well the day before and Fr Jim Minchin and myself had divided up the ceremony in a way that still allowed it to flow for us, Phil and Helen and all the guests.

Phil and Helen had decided that they would not have hymns and for music Helen's cousin George played his guitar and he did so extremely well. There were a couple of really nice touches as well. Both Phil and Helen had learnt their vows and also the words used for the giving and receiving of the rings. As they moved from the Chancel arch after signing the registers up to the altar steps they were led up by their mothers who lit a taper each handing it to Phil and Helen respectively who then lit a wedding candle on the altar.

It was a lovely ceremony which was ended in the Greek style by the couple standing at the front of the nave and all the guests coming out to congratulate them before exiting via the side door. This meant that all the guests were outside as the Bride and Groom came out of the church as Mr & Mrs Lewis.

The reception was at the Riva in St Kilda and was Cocktail style with a free bar, all paid for by Phil and Helen. Jenna was the MC for the reception and she did a fabulous job along with the group Phil and Helen had booked to play the music. The speeches were very good too, even the one I cobbled together as Father of the Groom. There were quite a few people who had a bit of a sore head the next morning as we all danced and drank the night away.

Australia

2011-02-22T00:39:00.004Z

The sun was hot as we trekked onto the boat that was to take us out on to the Great Barrier Reef. We had only been in Australia for 5 days, but we had already packed a lot in.

We arrived into Melbourne with our friends for our Son's wedding to Helen and had spent 3 days with them checking out what was happening, having dress fittings for the girls, trips to the hair salon and I had a meeting with Fr Jim to talk through the wedding service. With all the prep done it was time to go and see a few sights, the first stop being Sydney.

In Sydney we only had one full day and two half days, so we pack as much as we could in. A trip on a water taxi to go under the Sydney Harbour Bridge, then a ferry trip to Manley to cat the views on the way and a few rays of sunshine on Manley beach. It was very hot as Jennie found out! Back in Sydney we had a drink at the Opera House and then took a long walk back to Darling Harbour via Sydney Harbour Bridge to get a photo of the plaque showing, "Dorman Long Middlesbrough", for Rachael.

The following day it was 36ºC as we left Sydney and flew up to Cairns to meet up with Phil, Helen and Ed (Phil's Best man). After a few drinks in their hotel it was an early night in bed before going on the Great Barrier Reef trip. The temperature was hot as we boarded the boat at 8 am in the morning and we set sail for the reef. Phil, Helen and Ed all being certified divers we going diving, Chris and Jennie we doing introductory dives whilst the res of us were going snorkelling.

We called off at 3 different sites on the reef and they were all fantastic, the second one was spectacular! The fish and the coral were so beautiful and we all saw a turtle and the divers even saw a reef shark. We certainly saw how generous God has been to us in giving us this world as stewards.

Today (Tuesday 22nd) the girls and Chris have gone to Daintree Rainforest (I have already been). An early morning start again at 7am and a long day. Tomorrow we fly back to Melbourne to do the final preparations for the wedding on Saturday.

BCP

2011-01-12T20:27:00.004Z

Sunday 9th January
This Sunday I went to All Saints church Nether Silton to take the 9 am BCP communion service. It was the first time I had been in this church presiding at a service and only the second time I had presided at a BCP communion service. I need not have worried as a part from a couple of minor things it all went ok, but I do need to keep practicing. We had a cup of coffee and a biscuit and hit the road.

The next service was a common worship communion service at Boltby. We arrived in plenty of time because they have moved their service from 10.30 to 11 am. This means you do not have to drive around the country roads from one church to the next like Lewis Hamilton, which was just as well with all the black ice on the roads.

When we arrive we found that the organist had fallen and broken the fingers in his right hand the night before. No organist so we were going to have to sing un-accompanied. For the congregation it was a good job my wife Margaret came with me. She can sing and I cannot! The service went well and a nice cup of coffee and a biscuit later it was time to head home.

One thing about being in a multi parish rural benefice is it does wonders for stretching your bladder. Ten churches and only one with a toilet!

Things are going well with my studies. My final essay in for my Doctrine course and the results from my first essay at a credible 63%. Still I now have a 10 minute presentation and 20 minute discussion to lead on 4 February on Ministry in Context looking at one of my rural parishes. Plenty of reading this week to do and reseach on St Oswald's.

This week my frame arrived and I fitted my OS map of the parishes into it and spent time on a church near you website looking at all our parish boundaries and marking them on the map. It now hangs above the mantle piece in my study and looks really great.

Friday morning I am doing an assembly at Ingleby Arncliffe Primary school on the theme of fear and courage. I think Captain Croc (glove puppet) will need to make a reappearance for that one and see how he likes Spiderman, so I must really get my thinking cap on.

This weekend I am at Wydale on the Living Stones conference organised by the one and only Rev'd Graham Bowkett, Curate at St Mary's Thirsk. It promises to be a good weekend looking at chaplaincy.

Christmas

2011-01-07T18:53:00.004Z

My first Christmas in the Osmotherley and Hillside Parishes and it was lovely. On Christmas Eve at 4 pm was the Crib service at East Harsley. The church was full and when you add up the numbers over one third of the parish were there. We had a service of carols and readings, read by the young people who had to go and search for the crib figures after each carol and put them in the crib. They were really great and everyone thoroughly enjoyed the service.

Then it was onto Osmotherley where we had well over 200 people in church for the Churches Together Crib Service. With Father Damien we followed a similar format and the local brass band played the music for the carols to their normal high standard. I must admit to getting a bit of hand cramp after having shaken so many hands, but what a nice problem to have. To see both churches full to capacity was a blessing and a great way to start the Christmas celebrations.

Midnight Mass was at Ingleby Arncliffe and considering the freezing icy weather thirty people braved the elements to welcome the Christ Child on Christmas morning. Taking the communion service was just the icing on the cake and we all wished Happy Christmas to everyone as well as giving the Peace.

The 9 am Christmas morning service at East Harsley was a struggle for some people and we had a lovely intimate Holy Communion service. Perhaps next year we will have to rethink the timing. Finally the Sunday service at St Peter's Osmotherley on St Stephens Day became the end of three days of services. A benefice service for all three parishes.

The next two days were spent at home relaxing for a while before having to do some of those jobs around the house that I had just not got round to. A lovely Christmas.

Posada

2010-12-12T23:13:00.005Z

This evening the Posada came to stay with us. It has come from Mexico, but is becoming popular in the UK. Figures of Mary and Joseph are travelling around our village and they 'lodge' with a different family each night. There is an Advent candle to light some prayers that can be used, a free book mark and a cd with some reflective music to play.

A small booklet is there for anyone to write some thoughts in and some gold stars for people to write their own prayers on to them. They will be hung on the Christmas Tree in church when the Posada arrives on Christmas eve.

The time to just stop from our very busy life's and reflect for what is a short time helps to bring back into perspective what Advent is about. It is the time of waiting. Waiting for the coming of the Christ.

Scouting losses

2010-12-11T22:12:00.003Z

Two friends from Scouting have recently passed away and are now with our Lord. I took the funeral of Vernon Fisher yesterday at Middlesbrough Crematorium and there was standing room only. Ron Foster's funeral was today in a full Trinity Methodist Church.

Vernon was ADC Scouts with Ron and myself as District Scout Leaders way back in the early 1980's. Both were members of the Middlesbrough Gang Show and did many things for Scouting in Middlesbrough. Both will be sadly missed and we keep both Christina and Avril in our prayers.

Rest eternal grant to them O Lord and let light perpetual shine upon them.

Who really is Jesus Christ for us today?

2010-12-03T22:25:00.004Z

Dietrich Bonheoffer asked the question, “Who really is Jesus Christ for us today?” and I have been looking the Person of Christ (Christology) using two contemporary theologians, the Liberal theologian John Macquarrie and the Liberation theologian Jurgen Moltmann. Don't worry I don't have the answer, but neither do these two eminent theologians either, although maybe they think they do.

What they have shown me is that through Jesus Christ we have a route to God. A loving God and a God who has suffered on the cross. Jesus, a man who lived on this earth who was both fully human and was fully divine. A man who did many good things whilst he was walking this earth and who we do not remember all that he did in our creeds. Moltman put it very well when he said,

I have always missed this presence of the earthly Jesus in the Christian Creeds. Why is it reduced to a mere comma between ‘born’ and ‘suffered’? Ought we not to add – at least in thought –

Baptised by John the Baptist,
filled by the Holy Spirit,
to proclaim God’s kingdom to the poor,
to heal the sick,
to receive the rejected,
to awaken Israel for the salvation of the nations,
and to have mercy on all human beings?

Christology for 'above' or 'below'? I think I am now from below.

Advent Sunday

2010-11-29T22:06:00.002Z

On Sunday we held an Advent Lessons and 'Carols' service at St Peter's Church in Osmotherley. There was a 32 strong choir and they sang some beautiful pieces beautifully. The service was a Churches Together Service and although only 30 people were present in the congregation, considering we are in the middle of a very wintery spell with lots of snow about, it was a good turn out. It certainly welcomed in the new church year and set us up for the advent season and our run up to Christmas.

Needless to say the clergy only had 'bit parts', but it was nice to worship God this way with our Roman Catholic and Methodist neighbours.

Teesside Community Awards

2010-11-28T09:32:00.003Z

On Friday night I had the privilege of attending the Evening Gazette Teesside Community Awards dinner in the Thistle Hotel and meeting some of the finalists and winners. The Gazette along with the Thistle Hotel and all the sponsors put on a really professional evening that made it a special evening for all who attended, but especially for the people who all really deserved their awards and recognition, and also their families.

As the evening progressed there were times when there was not a dry eye in the room as we saw a short video clip of every finalist who had been nominated and why they had been put forward for their award. There were two standing ovations during the evening and I felt humbled to be in the presence of such people.

Click on the title above to take you to the Evening Gazette page.

Snow and no tree

2010-11-25T14:53:00.004Z

Yesterday the tree surgeon came and cut down the big cherry tree in our front garden. Lovely though the tree was it had grown too tall and its roots would affect the foundations of the house if it was left. No choice, the tree had to come down.

Then last night we had the first snow of this winter making a picture postcard scene, with the logs from the tree piled up near to where the tree was. The snow made getting into work more difficult taking thirty minutes longer than normal. It is though better to be late than not arrive at all.

Baptism

2010-11-21T22:38:00.002Z

Today I had the privilege of baptising Harris in St Peter's Church in Osmotherley. It was a very nice occasion and the family and friends of Harris all stayed back in church afterwards and shared the baptismal cake over a cup of coffee with all the church. Harris was welcomed into the church community and it was a church community event.

It is at times like this, when you reflect back on them, that your heart leaps as you capture perhaps a glimpse for a few seconds of the kingdom of God here on earth.

Remembering

2010-11-15T12:42:00.006Z

This week has been a time of remembering. On Wednesday I took my Aunty Margaret's funeral at the crematorium in Carlisle. Only my second funeral in nearly sixteen months after ordination and at one time having to fight hard to keep control of the emotions with some of the family in tears in front of me. Back at the house with my two surviving Aunts and other family members we look through all the photographs my Cousin Robert had found of his parents, my Aunty Margaret and Uncle John. For two hours with my cousins we reminisced about the times when we were children and what we got up to and chatted to my two surviving Aunts.

It is always said that it is a shame that we never find the time for the extended family to come together at any other time than funerals or weddings, and we all said that to one another.

Sunday was Remembrance Sunday and I had two services. The first was at East Harsley for both East Harsley and Ingleby Arncliffe villages. We held our service St Oswald's church at 9 am and then walked down to the war memorial in East Harsley where we remembered those in the armed forces who had been killed protecting their country from the First World War and laid the poppy wreaths, remembering those who had fallen. It helped make the whole service seem more real having a serving Army Major with us and to realise that in the last year 111 of our men and women have given their lives in the Afghanistan conflict.

The Osmotherley experience was totally different. It was a Churches Together service preceded by the British Legion parade and the two minute silence and laying of wreaths at the war memorial. St Peter's church was nearly full and Father Colin represented the Roman Catholic church in Osmotherley took a small part in the service. The local silver band played the music with the standard being marched through the church and laid on the altar during the first hymn.

It was a difficult sermon to prepare and deliver at both churches, but it appeared to be well received. I finished with the poem "In Flanders Field" written by John McCrae. with the two lines from the poem written in response to McCrae's poem by Monia Michael entitled "We shall keep the faith". Those two lines are,

" And now the torch and poppies red,

We wear in honour of our dead."

Time

2010-10-02T22:29:00.005+01:00

It must be a fact that as you get older time seems to go faster. There are not enough hours in the day or days in the week, yet you enjoy what you are doing. It is weeks since the Archbishop of York came and celebrated with us the 150th anniversary of the restoratation of St Felix church in Felixkirk, yet it feels as if it was only yesterday. What has happened to August and September?

The service with the Archbishop was good. and our meal in the Carpeters Arms afterward was excellent. But so much water has passed under the bridge since then.

I have now presided in services in eight of our ten churches so only two more to go! Tomorrow evening is a Songs of Praise in Ingleby Arncliffe with my previous church coming along and the music group TICK are playing three of the hymns. It should be a good evening with a church full and some good hymns and singing.

As I sit back and look at where God has led me I try and compare and contrast the differences between St Martin's and the Osmotherley and Hillside benefice I found the problem is there is so much difference that it is near impossible to do so. Seven different country parishes verses an urban parish. Within the benefice there is so much variety in the churches and the people that two services are never alike. The model of church is changing and for a multi parish benefice the only way church can survive is by changing and adapting to the local need.

Looking at 2020 what will be the model of church then and how do we ensure the Gospel will be heard then in all these parishes? It is By taking some risks, it is by thinking out of the box, it is by looking at the skills of the people of the churches and helping them to hone them and use them. It is not glamourous or 'sexy' work and at times it is hard graft, but no body said it would be easy.

The challenge is to stay focused, to be prayful and not be deflected by the few that have a different vision. As I walk along this path in a few idle moments I will blog our progress and you can walk with me if you want to.

Plum Jam

2010-08-16T22:06:00.003+01:00

Saturday evening, after driving 200 miles there and back visiting my sister in Carlisle, we wandered down into the orchard at the bottom of our garden and picked over 12 pounds of Victoria plums. They were nice and ripe and are sweet to taste.

Searching through our old recipe books we found a recipe for plum jam and with 3 lb of the plums we did a trial batch. It was not difficult to make and it tasted absolutely lovely. It reminded me of the times I spent as a child in the kitchen with my mother making jam and cooking cakes.

The reading from Hebrews this last weekend took us back through some of the Jewsh history of faith, just like looking through an old photograph album. Our family photograph albums remind us who we are and where we have come from and in our album of faith and faithfulness we learn that we are not alone and that we are part of a family of faith with particular traits and characteristics. It gives us hope in life, both in this world and in the next, and especially when we see that Jesus has already run the race and is there to fill in the missing bits and help us across the finishing line.

I must admit to enjoying plum jam.

Osmotherley Show

2010-08-07T18:21:00.006+01:00

Today was the Osmotherley Show and the sun was shining as we parked our car and wandered into the show ground at Home Farm, Thimbleby at about 12.30 pm. It is not on the scale of the Cleveland Show or the Great Yorkshire Show, but it did have lot and lots of events even if there were not many entries in some of them.

There were the usual Cattle and sheep there and show jumping and even an appearance from the Bilsdale hunt with their hounds.

Inside the various marquees the many and varied competitions were held. Ingleby Arncliffe School won first prize, (see photo above) and some of the cakes and jams look really nice. Shame you could not try them.

The show appeared to be well supported by the local public and everyone was having a good time. Eventually the rain did arrive, but it was only a passing shower and then the sun came out again. It was a good event were people could compete in a friendly way, exhibiting their God given skills in many different ways and have a good time.

There was also a 4.5 mile fell race with 700 feet of ascent and descent, (or was it 5.82 miles and 1250 feet?). Might try that next year and see if I can convince the Rev'd Graham Bowkett to join in as well.

St Oswald

2010-08-05T21:52:00.004+01:00

Today is St Oswald's day and is therefore the patronal festival of St Oswald's church in East Harlsey. I did my first service there last Sunday and it is a lovely church. (I will add a photo after this weekend)

Although the present church is thought to be the fourth on the same site it is not really known when the first one was built. What is beyond doubt is that from early Norman times there has been a stone built church on the site which was a chapelry to the parish of Erneclive (Ingleby Arncliffe), the mother church.

In 1855 the church was restored in the old Norman style and the north aisle was added. A gallery with several pews that had been erected in the west end in 1821 was demolished. The total cost was £1200 and was met by voluntary subscription.

The church is therefore relatively modern, although it does have a few ancient features remaining and is worth a visit. In the chancel there lies the effigy of a Knight that is thought to be Sir Geoffrey Hotham, who was Lord of the Manor of Harsley in 1316 and died at Harsley in 1326.

The East Window is lovely and represents the parable of the Good Shepherd and is very early 20th Century, while the St Francis window in the South wall is late 20th Century.

House Warming

2010-08-02T20:46:00.004+01:00

On Saturday we had what was going to be a small house warming party at our new house. As the day drew closer the numbers of people started to climb. In the end over 60 people came and we had a great time as we sat under the gazebo's talking drinking and eating. We had two tours on the go as well, one around the house and the other around the garden.

It was only supposed to go on from 2 pm to 6pm, but it lasted well into the evening with our last friends going at 9 pm. As usual I was doing the mans work on the barbecue, cooking sausages and beefburgers for one and a half hours with a queue about ten deep at one time. With the food we had and that which our friends brought it was a real feast and I'm sure we have a lot more wine than we started off with

It was really great to have everyone here and nice to know that we have so many friends and good work colleagues.

The following day it was the parish lunch. Another veritable feast. I am now nearly three pounds heavier.

Our Father, who art in heaven

2010-07-25T22:50:00.007+01:00

Today I had three church services, one of which was the Baptism of Oliver in St Wilfrid in Kirby Knowle this afternoon, and for a short time Oliver was the newest member of the Christian church.

All three services were with my training Incumbent, Ian. Still being a Curate in training once per month we are doing services together and for the sermon slot we did things slightly different today. The Gospel reading was from Luke Chapter 11 and that is where Jesus tells the disciples, in response to a question, the Lord's Prayer. Ian and I did a mini play where a Christian starts to say the Lord's Prayer and God answers him (or her). It is well written, not by us I hasten to add, with humour, but gets across some very important points about praying in general and how as Christians we should be living our lives. After our morning service there were quite a number of positive responses. It hit the mark with several people.

This evening we were at St Mary's Over Silton. It is an interesting church, 12th Century and now in the middle of a field with a walled church yard. It has no utilities and the light is from the natural light coming through the windows and candles. Quaint is a word you could use, but there is a depth of prayer in that church that in the silence you can feel.

A total of four parishoners were there and Ian and I 'performed' the same sermon. One person laughed at all the funny bits and the points being made certainly stuck. Over both services I think everyone was concentrating on the sermon from the beginning to the end and some from the morning service who were at the Baptism commented on it again.

Not a style of preaching you can use every week, but one that once in a while goes down well and gets some serious points across in a humourous way that people will remember.

Being a Christian Priest can at times be hard work, especially as a newly ordained Priest. It is on days such as today that God reminds me why he called me to this ministry and why he called me to minister in this place. Amen

Ingleby Arncliffe School Leavers Service

2010-07-23T15:33:00.004+01:00

Today I have been to the Primary School leavers service. Five pupils were leaving to go to their respective seniors schools at the start of the Autumn term. The staff and pupils had put together a great programme for the service and I gave the dismissal and blessing at the end.

One of the advantages of being House for Duty Priest is that I now get the chance to go into the schools. I have two schools in the part of the benefice that I live in, Ingleby Arncliffe Primary School, which is a Church School, and Osmotherley School. In my short time in the Benefice I can see that both schools are doing excellent work and Ofsted tends to agree with that.

Today the oldest villager presented Bibles and booklets on moving up to senior school, to the five leavers. It has become a custom here that the church provides the Bibles and booklets and they were all well received by the children. The singing was great and they played 3 tunes on drums that was really well done. Jules Form from North Yorkshire Music Service has done some excellent work with these children.

At the end of the service I don't know who was more upset at leaving, the children or their parents/Grandparents. Still it was a nice service to say goodbye to the five pupils and to thank God for their friendship and the fun times everyone has had with them in school.

Osmotherley Churches Together Pilgrimage

2010-07-22T20:45:00.003+01:00

Sunday saw the Annual Osmotherley Churches Together Pilgrimage with the Church of England, Methodists, Quakers and Roman Catholic congregations coming together to walk round each others places of worship to sing and pray. We ended up in the Methodist chapel where we also had a nice cup of tea and cake.

Bishop Martin, the Anglican Bishop of Whitby, was with us and gave a talk at the Methodist chapel. It was really good that the four worshiping communities can get together and worship God walking around the village. We processed behind the banner as we walked between our places of worship, showing the locals and the many visitors to the village, that the Christian faith is alive and well in this part of North Yorkshire. This should be part of the spur that we need in St Peter's to look at how we do mission in our rural communities.

Saltburn with the Cubs

2010-07-16T20:30:00.003+01:00

My wife is an Akela of a Cub Pack in Middlesbrough and for their last night they went to Saltburn with the Beavers and Scouts as a bit of a treat and she had preordered 50 portions of chips from one of the local fish & chip shops. Up to this week the weather has been really sunny and it has been the driest start to the year.

As we drove into Saltburn the heavens opened and the rain poured down. The wind was blowing and the only people out apart from us were the surfers. Still we walked through the rain to the pier and eventually the rain stopped and we ate our chips in the dry. The Scouts of course ran out into the sea on the basis they were already wet.

Not a bad evening, but would have been much better if the sun had been shining. The upside is the grass on the lawn is looking greener.

SKY

2010-07-09T13:37:00.003+01:00

Sometimes things just go wrong. Moving home we had a little bit of a nightmare with BSkyB who we have our television, telephone and Broadband through. It was one of those things where what could go wrong did go wrong and I think I always got the rookie customer services operator every time expect the last time.

But to their credit when I wrote in and complained they reacted quickly and well. So well done BSkyB you have gone back up in my estimation.

The same is also true for the church. We cannot get everything right all the time. We are human beings and not God. It is how we respond when things do go wrong which is important and sometimes that is hard to do.

As I look at the debate this weekend on women Bishops at General Synod I pray that we will see sense prevail and whatever the decision remember as Jesus said we should love our neighbour as we love ourselves.

Ingleby Arncliffe Village Hall Centenary

2010-07-04T21:24:00.004+01:00

Today was a normal day in the life of a country parson. Off for two services in two historic country churches followed by a safari lunch in three different venues in the village, topped off with a Songs of Praise in the Village Hall and unveiling the 100 year centenary plaque. Yesterday was a Coffee morning and a Strawberry tea, and boy can these county folk cook and bake well.

The Songs of Praise was an ideal way of taking the church to the community rather than the community having to go to the church and fitted in quite nicely with the Gospel reading from Luke ch 10 this morning of Jesus sending out the seventy-two to go into the villages and towns. Over fifty people were at the Songs of Praise with the majority of them coming back after going home following the safari lunch. It rounded off a lovely weekend for me and it was a nice ecumenical service with our friends from the Methodist Chapel joining in as well. We even had actions to, "If I were a butterfly".

New Home

2010-06-25T22:01:00.005+01:00

It is 5 weeks today since we moved to our new house in Ingleby Arncliffe and to the start of our new ministry in the Osmotherley and Hillside parishes. It is a rural setting in a small village with another small village, Ingleby Cross alongside it. Between the two villages there is one pub and the post office is in the pub 3 days of the week.

In this idyllic rural setting yet there are some who struggle with life especially in these hard economic times. There are others who have senior positions in the nearby towns and there are others who have long ancestry in the area and have both properties and land. All get on well together and the welcome we have received from everyone has been excellent.

God has placed both Margaret and myself into this setting and we will only through time find out why and maybe not even then. We definitely feel blest to be here, but leaving our previous church and all our friends was not easy and it was with some regret that we did so.

11 churches in 9 parishes is going to be interesting as I work with Ian the Vicar to minister to the approximate 3,500 souls within these parishes. It is perhaps the challenge that I need as I continue to try and assess what God is calling me to do. We have made one bold step in faith, but I am sure there will be more.

Learning to Lead in Public Worship

2010-06-09T12:35:00.005+01:00

Yesterday evening after spend all afternoon in a sustainability seminar I went to the first of six sessions on Learning to Lead in Public Worship held at St Oswald's church in Sowerby, Thirsk. Sixteen people were on the course which is part of the York Diocese 'Equipping God's People' suite of courses. The Rev'd Phil White is running the course assisted by some local clergy. The course looks at what is worship, reading the Bible, leading in intercessions and being a Eucharistic Minister.

From the session last night it looks as if it will be a really successful course and one that I feel will need to be repeated in the not too distant future when other people from the parishes represented there tonight hear more about it.

Part of the strategy, for rural ministry especially, is that parishes have to be more self reliant in public worship as the numbers of ordained stipendery clergy reduce. This along with the other EGP courses can equip lay people with the skills to be able to put into action the Ministry of the baptised.

Ordained and Goodbye

2010-06-07T08:32:00.005+01:00

On 27th May I went on Retreat at Wydale Hall with the Retreat Conductor being the Archdeacon of York, Richard Seed. Along with David Mann, the Diocesan Advisor on Vocations, we had a wonderful retreat in silence and solitude, but in community. On Sunday we drove to York Minster and there in a two hour service we were ordained Priest by the Archbishop of York.
The people ordained with me and the parishes in which they serve are:
Graham Bowkett Thirsk Team Ministry
Marie Edwards Middlesbrough St Agnes (now a radio star on BBC Tees as well)
Margaret Ellison York St Hilda & York St Lawrence w St Nicholas
Mike Fairey York St Hilda
Michael Grandey Haxby with Wigginton
Elizabeth Hassall Bempton w Flamborough, Reighton w Speeton
Paul Johnson Whorlton with Carlton and Faceby
Daphne Kitching Swanland
Matthew Martinson Beverley St Nicholas (Find out more about Matt)
Alistair Rycroft York St Michael-le-Belfrey
Andrew Simpson Hessle
Carol Tetley Anlaby
Rachel Young Beverley Minster

My first Eucharist was at St Martins yesterday when friends from other churches joined with the congregation of St Martins and St Cuthbert's. The church was nearly full and it was lovely. I did though have mixed emotions with the service being my first Eucharist and farewell service as well. The parish bought Margaret and my self a lovely love chair for our new large garden. Every time we sit in it we will be reminded of the sixteen lovely years we had at St Martins and where my calling to ordained Ministry is rooted.

On Wednesday I will be licenced into the Osmotherley and Hillside parishes, nine in total, in All Saints, Ingleby Arncliffe by the Bishop of Whitby the Rt Rev'd Martin Warner.

It is all change with moving house, a change in emphasis in my working life and working with a new clergy colleague in the Rev'd Ian Houghton and his lovely wife Mel King. We have already met quite a number of our new parishioners and villagers in Ingleby Arncliffe and they have made Margaret and myself really welcome. It will be hard work in these many small communities that are well spread taking the love of Christ to them, but it is a challenge I am looking forward to.

Ordination to Priest

2010-05-17T22:12:00.003+01:00

My interview with the Archbishop of York appeared to go well on Friday, but it is difficult to tell. I felt some of my answers to his mainly chatty questions were a little empty, but they were answered honestly. At 4.30 pm I was living in hope and praying hard that what I had done in my Deaconate year and had spent twenty minutes explaining would be good enough.

I need not have worried. The following day the postman dropped on our front mat a letter from Bishopthorpe Place. I opened it carefully wondering if it contained what I wanted to read. It did. The Archbishop said he would be pleased to ordain me Priest on 30th March. I breathed a sigh of relief and text my friends with the good news.

Being a Christian and knowing the love of God and our Lord Jesus Christ is so good.

4 DAYS

to Move Day

New Appointment

2010-05-10T23:52:00.003+01:00

The realisation hits you when you read in the Church Times newspaper about your new appointment and your friends text you to tell you that they have just read it. Life is just so busy with managing contractors in the new house to do the work that is required, before we move in, writing academic essays and appointing removal firms. And then I have to find time for the two most important parts in my life, my family and my God.

It would be so easy to squeeze them out with the busyness in my life, but they are so important to me that I make time to be with them. Quality time which helps me to recharge the batteries to get me through the day because it gives me the strength that I need. I sometime wonder if my faith was not as strong as it is would I be able to cope and I don't think I would.

Having said that our move date cannot come quick enough and with my interview with the Archbishop of York on Friday and ordination in 19 days time there is still a lot to do. I pray that God will give me the strength to get both Margaret and myself through this time.

Anyway its is off to York tomorrow for training on Eucharistic presidency for six hours.

11 days

to Move Day

Bishop's Chaplin

2010-05-05T23:31:00.003+01:00

It was the licencing and Induction of the Rev'd Jonathan Cooper at St Thomas's, Brompton tonight. The Bishop of Whitby, Martin Warner officiated and I was his Chaplin. It was the first time I had been Chaplin (thanks Grham) and I think I got it nearly 100% right. Sat down when I should have been standing and stood up when I should have been sat down, but I did it with confidence and if anyone noticed they didn't say anything.

Overall it was a nice service and to put the icing on the cake my previous Incumbent Father David Jago was there, so we had a good catch up natter over the tea and sandwiches afterwards.

I am sure that Father Jonathan will do a good job in his several parishes and as we will be in neighbouring parishes in the same deanery it will be good to be working with him again.

Tees Barrage 10k

2010-05-04T23:21:00.003+01:00

This is Chris and myself before the Tees Barrage 10k run on Monday. Chris did his best time of 49 minutes and 44 seconds and I did my best time of 59 minutes 11 seconds. I was pleased to break the 1 hour barrier and also to break the £100 barrier in sponsorship for 'Bungoma Calling', my charity of choice.

Essays - Church Leadership

2010-05-04T23:05:00.005+01:00

There are times in your life when you forget how much time certain things take to do. Currently I am doing an Independent Learning Unit as part of my degree. This entails quite a bit of research and writing it up in a 4000 word essay. The problem I have is two fold. The first is it takes more time then I have allowed to write a structured essay of that length, but secondly I am finding that 4000 words is not a lot when there is so much research and such a lot to say. Too many words then not enough.

Church Leadership is such an interesting subject. (I can hear the moans already). There has been a lot written on the subject, some of which I agree with and some of which I don't. My own Preference is to follow the model that Jesus gave us. He had a vision of what he wanted to achieve. He picked 12 people to share that vision with and to train up as he went out and worked through that vision finally empowering them through the Holy Spirit to go and deliver that vision to the rest of the world.

We need a vision in our church today. We need that which will motivate people into action. As leaders in our church we need to empower the laity and in doing so develop and grow their faith, knowledge and love of our Lord. A tall order. Are you up to it?

17 days

to move day

The Keys

2010-04-29T18:46:00.004+01:00

Today I picked up the keys for our new house. It is a nice house in Ingleby Arncliffe and we will be spending some time down there this Bank Holiday weekend. The keys came in a 'Fox's Heritage' tin and there are a lot of them, including one for the school notice board!

The three removal companies have now been around our house and one quote, surprisingly inexpensive, has arrived via email. Taking advice from my current Incumbent to get them to do the packing and looking at the quote it is a no brainer. They will be packing for us. It is now back to the sorting out of the loft and garage .... oh dear 24 years worth of clutter.

The countdown has now started

22 days

to Move Day

Tees Barrage 10k

2010-04-26T22:25:00.007+01:00

This 10k race is run on the footpaths and cycle ways alongside the river Tees. It is a circular route starting and finishing at the Barrage. There are some excellent views and it is not too hilly either. This is the fifth running of this race and it takes place on May Day Bank Holiday Monday. I ran the 3rd race and had to back out owing to illness last year so I am looking forward to running it next week.

Training has gone very well, but I had to take two weeks out when in Australia and a week out for Gang Show. Still I hope to be under 60 minutes.

I have not been sponsored for a couple of years so I am being sponsored for 'Bungoma Calling.' This is a charity I am a Trustee of and it is to help the Anglican Church of Kenya in the Bungoma Diocese. The money will be used for training and for providing the training facilities. It is very much an enabler that will see the spread of the church which will also take with it schools for education and health centres for tackling disease and illness.

So far I have raised just under £100, but I would like that to be well over £200 and preferably over £250. If you have not done so already you can sponsor me.

Can I break 60 minutes? It is probably no more than 50/50. Look out for the photos here and on Facebook.

House for Duty

2010-04-25T15:59:00.007+01:00

Nobody told me how fast things change when you become ordained in the Church of England. Today it has been announced that I am moving from St Martin of Tours with St Cuthbert Parish in Middlesbrough to follow God's call to become the House for Duty Priest in the Osmotherley and Hillside Parishes working alongside the Rev'd Ian Houghton. It is a big change for me and for Margaret as we start to pack up our house and move to Ingleby Arncliffe next month, just before my ordination to Priest on 30 May in York Minster.

St Peter's Church Osmotherley

My first Eucharist and leaving service will be at St Martin's on Sunday 6 June so it will be quite an emotional day, having been at the church for 16 years and leaving behind a lot of good friends and really nice people three years earlier than I had anticipated.

My new parishes are nine in total with ten churches in the Deanery of Mowbray. It will be quite a challenge and means that I will be working less time in my secular employment to give the time required to do my parish work. It is exciting, daunting and so much different than what I expected as I studied on NEOC what seems a life time ago, but was only really less than twelve months ago.

As information becomes available it will be posted on this blog. Please keep the good people at St Martins parish, the Osmotherley and Hillside Parishes, all the clergy and Margaret and myself in your prayers at this time of change.

Quiet Day

2010-04-24T23:59:00.005+01:00

Today I was on a quiet day for the Deacons in Cleveland Archdeaconry, run by the new Bishop of Whitby, Martin Warner. The quiet day was held at St Mary's church and vicarage in Lastingham. St Mary's is a Norman church built in 1078 and has a beautiful Crypt.

The day began with morning prayer, BCP, followed by a talk by Bishop Martin. After a short coffee break there was two hours of quiet reflection and Bishop Martin took the opportunity to have a short chat with each of us. The sun was shining and it was a beautiful day, with beautiful views and I took the opportunity to re-read chapter 6 in Moltmans 'The Crucified God' and to wander round Lastingham reflecting on that chapter.

We then went back into the church crypt for a Euchastic at which Bishop Martin presided then afterwards we returned to the Vicrage where the Rev'd Alistair Ferguson and Denise had prepared a lovely buffet lunch.

It was a day to take some time out to be with God, to meet our new Bishop, and to start the process of reflecting on our ordination to the priesthood that is only five weeks away.

Gang Show Prayers

2010-04-11T15:17:00.004+01:00

Prayers from Middlesbrough Gang Show 2010

Loving Lord, we appreciate the gifts that you have given us
and the fun we have using them
We remember that there are others
who are not as fortunate as ourselves.
We pray Lord that through the efforts of this show
that Zoe's Place will benefit and help those young ill children.
and loving Lord we pray that you will be with us tonight to help the show
be the one that everyone remembers
because we smiled, sang and danced our hearts out.
Amen

Loving God, in this Gang Show
we come before you as your children.
We come to thank you;
to thank you for our founder Baden-Powell
and for Ralph Reader, for their vision and faith;
to thank you for the many Leaders and volunteers
who have given their time, their energy and their commitment,
to this great game of Guiding and Scouting;
to thank you from all of us who have enjoyed
and benefitted from the Gang Show
now and throughout the years.
And loving God, we pray that you will be with us,
to help us and to guide us through this last show tonight.
Amen

On Tour in Melbourne

2010-02-25T09:19:00.003Z

Melbourne has just so much to see. A great museum that really makes you want to go back again. The way they display the items and make them tell a story with interactivity on some is really enjoyable. We have been to the Botanical Gardens twice because there is just so much to see. Plants, flowers, trees and birds.

Yesterday we went up the Eureka tower to the 88th floor, which took just 38 seconds travelling at a maximum of 9 m/sec. FAST! The views over Melbourne were great and we went 'On the Edge' which is a moving glass room which moves out from the building and you can look at the ground through the glass floor, all the way down to the ground from the 88 floors above. The sound effects of a rickety old mechanism doing the moving was good!!!

We also went to a Holy Communion service at St Paul's Cathedral. It was St Mathias day and the Bishop of Melbourne took the service at it was the anniversaries of his ordination to both Deacon and Priest and also the 25th anniversary of his becoming Bishop. The service was lovely.

We even managed a trip to see Captain Cooks cottage which has travelled all the way from Great Ayton, only a few miles from home. They have set it up really well.

Down Under in Australia

2010-02-20T23:39:00.002Z

The snow flakes floated past the windows of the Boeing 747 as we taxied to take off. The cold weather of England was being left behind as we flew to Melbourne, Australia and to 36 degree sunshine. And the weather is as good as that, a stark contrast to the snow and ice and a welcome break.

It is really good to spend time with Phil and Helen and this next two weeks will fly by as well. Today is a chill out day and tomorrow (Monday) we will be going into Melbourne itself to look at some of the sights and possibly going on a river cruise. A time to recharge batteries and a chance to reflect on where my life is going and the changes that will be happening over the next 14 weeks as I prepare for my ordination to Priest.

Bungoma Calling

2010-02-16T21:38:00.007Z

I went to a meeting on Saturday in Scarborough to look at setting up a new charity possibly named, "Bungoma Calling". The charity is to try and assist the church in Bungoma and specifically the training of both the clergy and the laity. The training college is the Wycliffe Centre (above) and in 2008 we managed to get an electrical supply to the building and put in a fresh water tank. The water not only supplying the Centre with fresh clean water, but also the local population. The charity will also look at enterprise and development schemes and is all about helping the Christians in Bungoma, Kenya to help themselves.

The Reverend Phil White has been going to Bungoma since 2006 and the last two years has taken a team with him to assist in the work he has started. In 2008 I was fortunate to be able to go as part of the first team and I learnt as much from the Bungoma Christians as they learnt from me.

With Phil and a few others we are looking to set up this charity to help fund the work that Phil and others that will be going out to Bungoma this year and in subseqent years will be doing. As a potential foundation Trustee it is quite a responsibility to take on, but one which will reap many benefits in the Diocese of Bungoma.

New Bishop of Whitby

2010-01-29T12:25:00.004Z

On Tuesday the new Bishop of Whitby the Right Reverend Martin Clive Warner was consecrated at York Minster by the Archbishop of York. He is my new Bishop and although I could not be at York on Tuesday I will be at his welcome service at St Hilda’s Church, Whitby tomorrow morning.

The Archdeaconry of Cleveland has been without a Bishop for just over a year and it will be good to have him in place and taking up his duties. In the interesting and challenging times that the 21st Century is giving to the Church of England it will be good to get to know him and see where he believes God is wanting him to lead us.

Picture from The Press

Living Stones Conference - Between a Rock and a Hard Place

2010-01-18T22:53:00.008Z

The Living Stones Conference is an annual conference run by Curates for Curates in York Diocese at Wydale Hall. This year the theme was "Between a Rock and a Hard Place" and four very good speakers came along and told us about their own particular rocks and hard places. The two that I felt were particularly good were the session on the 'Stresses and Strains of a rural community' and hospital Chaplaincy.

It was quite a nice relaxed weekend with no IME 'staff'. A relaxed programme and I had plenty of time to pray and meditate on what we had been hearing, our own Rocks and Hard places and to listen to God and what he is calling us to do within our own ministry. In a way it was like a led retreat of sorts and I found the whole weekend gave me that space with our Lord I needed, even if the worship songs were a touch evangelical for me.

After being between my 'Rock and a Hard Place' on Friday to go and listen to others experiences within the church and their 'Rocks and Hard Places' you do not feel too bad. It is comforting to know that you are not the only one, to find out how they get through the difficult times and to have time with our Lord.

Graduation

2010-01-10T21:00:00.004Z

Today I graduated at St Chad's College, Durham University along with a lot of my friends. It has been a busy day with two church services in the morning then driving up to Durham for the Graduation service. We all packed into the small chapel in St Chads with a service presided by the Rev'd Dr Michael Chester and the preacher the Rev'd Canon Trevor Pitt. The final throw of the dice for NEOC and Trevor Pitts 65th birthday to boot.

We all received our Certificates and our hoods along with the Durham and Newcastle Readers and OLM's. Three years of study for our Diploma (HE) in Theology and Ministry and although it was hard work at the time the benefits are now being reaped.

Time now to reflect on the day and to enjoy the occasion.

Renewal of wedding vows

2009-12-31T20:33:00.004Z

Yesterday I had the privilege to assist at the ceremony of renewal of wedding vows and the blessing of a wedding ring. I had been approached by someone I know from the St Cuthbert's Centre to ask if we could bless her new Wedding ring. When she was asked if she would like to renew her wedding vows in church a really happy smile came over her face as she said yes.

It was really nice to see these two people, who do not come to church, take the time and trouble to renew their vows and have their new wedding ring blessed in the presence of God. The belief in our Lord is out there, outside the door of our churches. The trick now is to help them get to know our Lord better, what he can do for them and then to cross that church threshold.

It's Christmas Time

2009-12-29T15:59:00.005Z

Christmas day has been and gone and life is slowly getting back to normal, or as normal as it can do in England during a cold snap as long as we have had. Our Christmas service congregations were well down on previous years with the exception of the Crib/Christingle service. The main reason for this was the state of the roads and the footpaths which were more like skating rinks. People just did not venture across their front doorsteps and that was probably the right decision to make.

The problem is really with our local councils not budgeting enough money for a prolonged cold snap as long as this one. I must be nearly 10 years since it has been as cold and snowy as it has been this December and the cuts made by Councils can not be reversed easily in the space of a month, and probably even a year. Their logic maybe that is is cheaper for the NHS to treat a few broken arms and hips than to properly grit the roads and paths.

For those that did venture out it helped ensure that it was a Christ filled Christmas. To each and every reader of this blog have a happy and prosperous 2010.

Freemasons Funeral

2009-12-18T12:28:00.005Z

One of the things that happens to you when you are ordained and go to serve your title in a parish as a Deacon is that you have lots of new experiences and the learning curve is steep, no matter how long you have been going to church. This week I have done my first ever funeral and it was for a friend who was a Freemason.

The visit to the family was nice and I am glad that I had a proforma sheet given by a friend so I didn't forget to ask some of the right questions. The time just seemed to fly-by as we talked about Ted and his life and the family.

Part of my problem is that working in a secular job full time there is very little opportunity to observe a funeral and my Training Incumbent is recovering from an operation. I therefore had one short session with my fellow assistant curate and then it was home to walk around the living room practicing and making sure the timings were going to fit in with the allocated time in the crematorium. Oh yes and a eulogy and sermon to write.

There were already a lot of people there when I arrived at the Crematorium and after we were all in it was standing room only and the doors could not be closed. A quick look to see where the button were to stop and start the music and for the curtains and then it was time to get on with the service. It all past so quickly and I had to cut a part out of the sermon because of the number of people to get in and out. Yes I did make a couple of minor mistakes, but no one noticed and the family were pleased with the service.

One area of concern had been the hymn. The family had chosen Jerusalem, not the easiest to sing. But with so many Freemasons there I need not of worried. They sang it beautifully. It was a good send off for a very nice man who was a true gent. RIP Ted.

Opportunity

2009-11-30T21:21:00.005Z

When you start on your Christian journey you do not know where it is going to lead you. It gives you some hard times and some happy times, but I have always found that if you pray and ask God what he wants you to do, eventually that prayer is answered, even if it is not the answer you wanted.

I now have a challenge, or as I say to colleagues in my secular work, a development opportunity. It is a little scary as it will be a big change in my life. It is one of those points in your life where you have come to a fork in the road and you have to choose the right one to follow. I think some more prayer is required.

Argentina

2009-11-09T22:05:00.006Z

I have been fortunate in my life and I have had the privilege of meeting some very special people, two of who I keep in touch with via their blogs and Facebook. Why only in this way? Well one lives in South Africa and the other in Argentina. Both are people of God.

Catherine's husband, Nick, has been consecrated Bishop of Northern Argentina. They went out there earlier this year and I take my hat off to them. May God be with them and guide them as they do the work He has sent them to do in Argentina.

Reading their blog http://ampey.wordpress.com/ certainly puts my own tribulations in their place and reminds me of the time I was in Kenya. Another continent, but with many similarities.

All Saints

2009-11-04T23:25:00.006Z

Sunday was All Saints day and it was time to dust off the Thurible and get the incense out. What I did not expect as Deacon was that I would be censing the Altar. A run through with our head Server and Thurifer gave me that little bit more of the confidence I needed, then it was time for the service to begin.

Carrying the Gospel above my head as we walked into the church I must admit I was going through in my head how I was to cense the altar and the right number of swings in the next couple of minutes. The smell of the incense was nice as we processed through the nave to the sanctuary and then I was swinging the thurible and walking round the Altar. It certainly adds to the service and only doing using it on 'high days' does make it that little more special. There was for me a relaxing into the service, which was becoming part of me as I traversed around the Altar.

The problem came when it was time to read the Gospel and the Thurifer came to me to add some more incense into the thurible. I did that alright, but I forgot to switch my radio mic back on before going out to read the Gospel. Everything had gone so well up to that point. God has a strange way sometimes to stop us getting too big for our boots, so I really had to concentrate on projecting my voice. It made me realise how good the voice coaching on NEOC had been.

So All Saints day service was good and with the incense that little bit special and for me a new experience to pack in my bag of new experiences.

St Cuthberts Centre

2009-10-29T16:01:00.004Z

As part of my responsibilities as an Ordained Minister I have picked up being the Chair of Trustees of a charity called the St Cuthberts Youth and Community Centre. This is working in a part of Middlesbrough which is in the worst 10% deprived areas in Britain. It is working with the youth of the area and the older generation as well and trying to get the comunity to be a community.

The problem as always is getting the commitment from local people to help run the Centre and from Funders to fund it. With a turnover of £55,000 per year it is a small business, which is also a registered charity and a limited company. It does take up a lot of time in managing and administrating the company with one full time and several part time employees. The challenge this year is getting the funding and keeping it going.

The advantage is the contact with the community, the children and youth and the elderly. Slowly the church will be able to be seen to be making a postive impact and will be able to spread the Gospel, not by shouting it from the roof tops, but by actually living and doing it at the sharp end. There are no 'pats on the back' or recognition ceremonies for this type of work, but that is not the reason that we do it.

Seeing the joy on the childrens faces and the happy smiling faces at the luncheon and friendship club make it all worthwhile.

I will keep this blog up to date with our progress and you will be able to track what we do on our new website, which is currently under construction. http://www.stcuthbertsyouthandcommunitycentre.co.uk/

The eye of a needle

2009-10-10T12:58:00.002+01:00

The Gospel this week tells us that it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God. In this time of economic uncertainty with many people loosing their jobs, it can be very easy for us in the developed world to whinge and moan about how we are so badly affected, but we are comparing that against where we were two years ago. In the second and third world countries we are the rich man that Jesus tells to go and sell all his possessions and give them to the poor and follow him. This Gospel reading therefore pulls us up short, reminds us how lucky we are and that we should, as Christians, be more philanthropic with our money and possessions.

To a Degree

2009-09-29T21:52:00.004+01:00

Tonight I have been to my Biblical studies course at York St John University in York. About an hour and fifteen minutes from home so it is a bit of a rush getting there on time from work. It is my second week out of the twelve weeks and it was really nice to be able to travel with a fellow student of three years, Marie and to find I knew three other people on the course. Margaret who I spent five days with at Wydale Hall on a Called to Listen course learning the skills of Christian listening; Stephen and Coreen from the Methodist church who were on some of my NEOC study weekends. It is good to catch up with friends who I have not seen for a goodly number of months and to start making new friends as we study how to interpret the Bible.

The style of the course is so different to NEOC that it is a refreshing change and the fact that to date it does not appear to need as much input and preparation on a weekly basis. Still it is level 3 and there is a 1500 word exegesis, a presentation with 500 words of notes and oh yes a 3000 word essay.

So where is God in this. Part of the answer I think is in relationships, both old and new, being there for others and them being there for you. And part is in the learning, learning how to look at the Word of God and to be able to interpret it better than I can now and applying in the context of the society I find myself living and working in today.

Catchup

2009-09-28T20:35:00.008+01:00

Boy time is really flying by as a Deacon. It only seems 5 minutes since I was ordained Deacon and so much has happened and so much water has pasted under the bridge. Some of which has been very good, some frustrating and some really heartbreaking. So this catch up blog may ramble a little.

I did manage to get 10 days holiday with my lovely wife and friends on the Greek Island of Zakynthos, which was a great time to basically stop the world, get off and relax. It was a beautiful island typified by the dragon fly in the picture. The only problem was the weight I put on so I now on a diet and going to Slimming World.

Whilst on holiday it was a good time to theologically reflect on what had happened since my ordination. Becoming chair the Trustees of the St Cuthberts Centre Youth and Community Project I hardly needed to be an ordained Minister, but the church has two foundation Trustees and I ended up as the chair. So suddenly I am the 'MD' of a small business with 4 part time and 1 full time employees, running out of money and doing a lot of good work in a deprived area of Middlesbrough, where our church really only has this as its presence. Where is God in this I asked myself? Well I am still working this one through, but I am getting there. Seeing the work that is being done with the children and the youth is good, also the luncheon and friendship club for the older members of the community; six young people who left school with no qualifications find employment through the Entry 2 Employment scheme run in the Centre is really good. Over 100 people a week pass through the centre doors so I am praying hard all the grant applications we have made come through. It will be a tough year ahead though.

I have also decided to finish off my studies by going for my degree. A BA in Theology and Ministry. Some people think I am crazy holding down a full time job; my ministry; my home life and then continuing to study, but I enjoy the studying. It is intellectually stimulating and challenges me.

There are many frustrations with various people because I am a bit of a perfectionist. I do believe that God is calling me the way he has to do this type of work for him. I cannot see where it will lead to, but I have to put my trust in him that he has set me on this path and I have to walk with him on this part of my journey. I am lucky because I have a very supportive wife, family and friends. Without them it would not be possible.

I will keep blogging to keep anyone that reads this up to date with what is happening in my Ministry and my life. Thank you for taking the time to read it. The Peace of Christ be with you.

Baptism

2009-08-24T20:35:00.004+01:00

Such a busy time it has been since my ordination, but it has been good. The learning curve has not been too steep and fitting in my work for the church around my secular work and family life has been a bit of a challenge, although the latter has suffered a little.

Tonight though makes it all worthwhile. I have been to do a baptism preparation with a very young couple and a lovely baby. Talking to them about the start of a new journey of faith and what baptism means and trying to help them understand it all. It is a privilege that I feel I have been given where people invite you into their lives for a short period of time and you have a chance to show them what God's love is all about.

I am looking forward to doing the baptism service in our Chapel of ease, St Cuthbert's in about six weeks time.

70th Anniversary

2009-07-19T20:46:00.005+01:00

This month we are celebrating the 70th Anniversary of our Church, St Martin of Tours and it certainly feels as if I have had to hit the ground running after my ordination 2 weeks ago. Last week there was a PCC, a Wedding and then a pilgrimage to Holy Island. This week there have been meetings; a concert on Friday night; A family fun day followed by a Barbecue and then my first services as Deacon today.

The concert was great although with only one practice the night before my guitar playing was a little rusty, but the girls from Whinney Banks Youth Club did a great dance routine and one of them sung a solo and had a beautiful voice. Friday night is usually a difficult night for the Youth club to get them to attend anything so for them to come into the church to dance and sing was a fantastic achievement and they brought a lot of their friends along too, which really gave it a good community feeling.

Saturday saw the family fun day with climbing walls and several large inflatables. As the first few youngsters came through the gates and tried them they were getting on their mobile phones to tell their friends. By lunch time more then 100 local children from 3 to 20 had been through the gates and there were other activities both for them and for the adults. This again was a huge success for the church working in the local community.

It was early in that day that I had my first pastoral encounter as a Deacon. Keith walked into the church as we were setting up. He had obviously been sleeping rough and although he looked older than his real years, he was probably only in his mid twenties. I sat down with him and made sure he had a cup of tea and a scone to eat, his breakfast. He talked and I listened and talked to him for nearly twenty minutes before he slowly stood up and decided to go. He moved gingerly as his joints were so stiff from sleeping rough for so long. He was not really prepared to accept the help on offer to him, all he wanted was his train fare home to York. It was sad really because I knew that it was money for more alcohol that he really wanted and I found out later he has been a 'regular' for the last couple of years.

The family fun day was a huge success and I met a lot of people including our community police team, James and Viv. After seven hours and a lot of tidying up it was time to go home and start preparing for the church BBQ. It was a reasonably relaxing evening as Chris and I cooked on the BBQ for 30 of us in the Vicarage back garden and probably had one drink too many, but it was hot work.

Today is Sunday and my first service as Deacon because last Sunday was an open air service on Holy Island. Would I remember what I had to do and when? Two services and both were different, but it all went off fine and the congregations were so nice giving me encouragement and even the odd compliment.

Next weekend is the flower festival. Does a Deacons work never stop? I think I will be going into my secular job tomorrow for a rest! And I must remember to find time to be.

York Minster Ordinations

2009-07-15T20:30:00.005+01:00

There is something about being called into Gods service that is special no matter what it is. I was fortunate enough to be a bit like Samuel and only really responded after ignoring or not understanding the first calls from God. But like Samuel I did eventually say "Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening." That was five years ago and on 5th July I was ordained Deacon in York Minster by the Archbishop of York.

The Ordination Retreat was at Wydale Hall from the Thursday to the Sunday of the ordination and it was a time of preparation. The worship and the led silences were just what was required, but the chance to go to confession, something I have always found hard to do, just touched the right place, and from then I felt I was right with God.

Being ordained in York Minster by the Archbishop of York was a privilege that can not be expressed in words. A Minster full with over one thousand people watching and supporting fifteen of us being ordained was a sight to behold. But it was for me those few seconds of the ordination when the Archbishop laid his hands on me and called down the Holy Spirit and then anointed me. I can not explain how I felt, but the whole process does change you. It is not the dog collar, although that does feel strange, it is what I can only say is the Holy Spirit working inside me.

Now I am at St Martin of Tours with St Cuthbert's Parish in Middlesbrough as Deacon and Assistant Curate, where there is a lot of work to do in this urban deprived area of our town. There are several challenges facing me here as I juggle a full time secular job with my ministry. I am sure I will have lots of interesting stories to write in this blog.

A big thank you to all who have prayed for me in the lead up to my ordination. I felt as if I was surrounded by prayer. Thank you.

Ordinations

2009-06-29T23:29:00.005+01:00

Sunday was overcast as we walked into Ripon Cathedral. Marjorie and Bridget were being ordained deacons by the Bishop of Ripon & Leeds Diocese, and two other fellow NEOC students, Carol and Katie were with me to support them on this momentous occasion. At the same time Ruth and David were being ordained Deacon in Durham Cathedral and other ex NEOC students were being ordained Priest.

Three years of hard work on NEOC coming to an end and as one chapter in life's book closes another one opens. This Wednesday I go with 14 other ordinands to a meal with the Archbishop of York and then on Thursday it is our pre-ordination retreat at Wydale, in the lovely North Yorkshire Moors. On Sunday I will be ordained Deacon and at the same time in Newcastle the ordination of Priests will be taking place. But in Africa another momentous occasion is taking place when the Bishop of Bungoma in Kenya, Bishop Eliud Wakubala with be enthroned (or is it inaugurated) as Archbishop of Kenya. Having spent two weeks in Kenya last year with Bishop Eliud it is moving that these two totally separate church events are happening on the same day.

God works in mysterious ways and I pray that all ordinands (and Archbishops) will work for the Kingdom-of-God-on-earth-as-in-heaven.

INCA at the RSPB Centre Saltholme

2009-06-05T23:10:00.004+01:00

Yesterday I was at the twenty year anniversary of Industry Nature Conservation Association (INCA for short) at the newly opened RSPB centre at Saltholm on Teesside. What does INCA do? For the last twenty years it has been working with industry on Teesside to make the Tees Valley a leader in sustainable development. Nature working hand in glove with major industrial plants.

Funded by local industry it has worked hard to bring the areas natural beauty back for the people of Teesside. There are now salmon, seals and even otters in the River Tees and they have just release their smack bang up to date review of the area to show the progress that has been made.

With the RSPB opening its £7m new reserve, Teesside is a definite tourist attraction. Only open for approximately four months it has already passed its yearly visitor numbers set for it first year. And when you go there you can see why this is. The facilities are great and the number of different birds have to be seen to be believed.

It is really good in these hard times to see such success and all down to the beauty of Gods creation.

Zoë's Place

2009-05-20T22:22:00.004+01:00

Zoë's Place is somewhere that is close to my heart. 'Zoë' is the Greek word meaning 'gift of life', and at Zoë's Place they believe that life is precious no matter how long it lasts.

Zoë's Place is a home from home for babies who have life limiting or terminal illnesses, special and complex needs to varying degrees. It can take up to six infants at any one time and there is also accommodation and ample facilities for the whole family if these are needed. They offer palliative and respite care for babies/infants from birth to five years old and afford each individual respect and dignity regardless of gender, race, culture, religious beliefs or disability.

I was lucky enough to be involved through my church and the company I work for in helping to raise funds for Zoë's Place when it was being built or should I say converted from a Convent. It therefore has a lovely chapel and the team at Zoë's Place have worked hard to make the whole building and grounds what it is now. It is a lovely place to visit and is a happy place as well.

As with all hospices in England they get very little Government funding and it costs around £800,000 a year to keep it running, most of which is raised locally on Teesside. As far as I know there is only one other baby hospice in the UK.

Keep Zoë's Place in your prayers as they provide a specialist service to families who need that loving care at a time in their lives when life itself can be hard. I thank God for people like Mark Guidery and his team at Zoë's Place.

Gurkhas

2009-05-07T22:58:00.005+01:00

I have enjoyed watching Joanna Lumley in the many parts she has played, especially Sapphire and Steel and of course as Purdy in the Avengers. Recently she has been doing a sterling job of fighting for the Gurkha's. This Government has made another massive blob in its handling of the Gurkha situation. Men who have fought for this country, won medals for their bravery being refused entry and residency. It beggars belief.

Joanna Lumley has fought for the Gurkha's and last week helped win a parliamentary vote on an opposition motion that defeated the government. Today it appeared that the government still had not changed their policy, so under the eyes of the nation, through the television media, she talked to the MP and immigration minister the honorable Phil Woolas. See the video on the BBC

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/8037181.stm

Morally the government got this wrong. It is about time they got their immigration policy right. Joanna Lumley has managed to bring this into the public domain. Well done to her. Yes immigration is not a easy problem to solve, but there is something called common sense. Come on Gordon Brown lets see some from this flagging Labour government, before it is too late.

Benedictine Spirituality

2009-05-05T22:13:00.003+01:00

This last weekend we were on our penultimate NEOC weekend looking at Spirituality. We had a choice of three, Franciscan; Ignation or Benedictine, the only caveat was that we had to choose one that we had not done before. This narrowed the choice down to one for me, Benedictine. So who was St Benedict and when did he live? He lived from 480 - 550, was born in Nursia and educated in Rome. He turned his back on his wealthy family to live the life of a hermit. A community gathered around him and he began the business of ordering his day around times of prayer; times for reading and reflecting; times for working and cultivating his garden and times for resting.

So for me I set up a systematic timetable for prayer, study and work throughout the day and we had two times set aside for communal prayer together in a side chapel. I cleared the desk in my room and set out my prayer space. We used four offices for prayer, Terce; Sext; None and Vespers.

This whole set up was me. I am an Engineer by background so I am a systems person and everything being timetabled suited me down to the ground. I knew where I was, what I should be doing, when I should be doing it and how to do it. The simplicity of it all is what really makes it. Even the work was in a way worshipping God because I was using the physical gifts he gave me. The whole day reminded me of a book I read when I was trying to discern God's calling for me, it was the 'Practice and the Presence of God' by Brother Lawrence. This was it for me. I can see why Cranmer based the Daily Office of Matins and Evensong on the work done by Benedict.

When something spiritual connects with you like that you don't want to let go, but days like this come to an end. Then what we have to do is put what we have learnt into practice. That is what I intend to do with God's help.

Title Parish

2009-04-30T18:55:00.005+01:00

It was confirmed last night. The Archbishop of York is allowing me to serve my Title at St Martin of Tours with St Cuthbert parish in Middlesbrough, subject of course to a successful interview with him in a few weeks time. Here in less than nine weeks I will be welcomed into the church as their new curate and I hope that I will be given some responsibility for St Cuthberts, the chapel of ease in the picture above. But it will be a bit of watch this space, because life at the moment appears to be a bit of a roller coaster ride and things can change very quick.

But, if as appears at the moment, I will be going there, my wife has given me a book of Rhymes. One caught my eye and I think she is trying to tell me something about my preaching.

PROPHESY SMOOTH THINGS

It makes me hot beneath the skin
to hear the Vicar preach of sin,
I find it, too, a hateful trial
to hear him counsel self denial;
I simply sit and stare agast
if he suggests that I should fast,
and find it quite absudly droll
to hear him speak of self control;
but when he starts to damn divorce
I write him off, as merely course.

The world is surely sad enough
without his preaching all this stuff;
and if some people sin a bit,
why need the Vicar mention it?
Why must he spoil, with brutal punch,
our appetite for Sunday lunch?
Why can't we have a nice address,
on golden-hearted happiness,
or elegant, sororous words,
on pretty flowers and dicky-birds?

Time for a Rhyme by S J Forrest.

Swine Flu

2009-04-29T22:28:00.007+01:00

Swine Flu has hit the headlines lately and today the World Health Organisation has raised the alert level from level 4 to level 5, which means a pandemic is imminent. The next level is the pandemic is here. Three more people in the UK have been confirmed with the virus and a school in Devon has been closed for seven days.

Companies are dusting off their pandemic flu Business Continuity Plans, if they have them, or are rapidly writing plans. It not only affects their own staff, but their suppliers, their customers, their bankers, etc etc. This on top of the current economic climate may be catastrophic for some businesses.

But what of our churches? How will it affect us and more importantly how will it affect clergy? How does the church key into the local Civil Contingencies plan or Local Authority Emergency Plan for Pandemic Flu? As death tolls increase as well as pastoral care there is the need for funerals. There are so many questions at this time and we all have to pray to our Lord that he will guide us through the times ahead and that the leaders of our countries, communities and churches have done everything they can and are suppose to have done.

Hopefully we will have learnt from the last Pandemic in 1968 and put that learning into our plans for today. Although the UK has made some good plans and stock piled a lot of tamiflu anti viral drugs if this flu hits in a big way then even UK plc will be stretched to the limit.

Is this time to worry? I don't think so. Should we panic? No, but we should make ourselves aware of what we should do and the UK Government website can be found by clicking on the title of this blog entry. Also a leaflet will be coming through every letterbox soon. Read it and keep it safe so you can refer to it again.

It is also a good time to take stock of our spiritual life. Who is God to me? A time to pray and maybe; a time to talk to your Vicar, Minister or if you are lucky enough to have one, your Spiritual Director. This is not to be morbid, but at times such as this when a Pandemic flu is on the horizon and the world is in an economic mess it maybe the right time to ask what is important to me in my life?

Three for the price of two

2009-04-28T19:20:00.009+01:00

Today I have been into hospital as a day patient to have an excision biopsy of a small lump, a basel cell cancer, on my eyelid and a skin tag on my neck which was very annoying. When I saw the consultant before the operation he said there was a second skin tag on my neck and did I want it to be taken off. Always one for a bargain, three for the price of two seemed a good idea.

The problem was there was no bed for me so it was decision time; sit in the Resources room and get changed in the toilets or go home and wait for another appointment. I decided on the former. At 2.45 pm I went down to the theatre. The operation was only under local anesthetic and it was quite strange being awake when they were making the cuts, pulling and pushing and then sewing me up. The staff could not have been better, keeping me informed all of the time what they were doing. The worst bit was the local anesthetic injections. Boy did they sting at first!

The NHS is a great institution, but it is fully stretched. The staff were working hard just to stand still and although it was a little annoying at the time sitting in the resources room, reflecting back I would not like their job.

Tonight I rang a friend of mine who has just had confirmed he has prostrate cancer. He only found it out by going for a pre-retirement medical where they do the blood test for this condition, otherwise he would not have found out. Having these tests done is something I would recommend to all men over 50. Hopefully my friend has caught his early enough, but without that test he would still not know.

A strange day and tomorrow I have to ring the Diocese to find out what is happening to my Title parish.

What an economic mess!

2009-04-22T22:24:00.005+01:00

Today was budget day and what a mess we are in. £175bn addition national debt this year and not much less next year and the years after. We are going to be paying this off for many years to come. And who will suffer? Yes those high rollers earning over £150k per year are going to pay at 50% tax rate, but it is those at the other end of the scale who will suffer more. Jobs are disappearing, livelihoods are being destroyed, families are breaking up from the stress, houses are being repossessed and where will it end?

As a church we need to be out in out parishes supporting people, but will we go and show God's love? It's a big ask, but it is where we should be. Jesus said “It is not the healthy that need a doctor, but the sick …. I did not come to call the virtuous, but sinners” (Matthew 9:12-13).

Music and The Divine Mercy

2009-04-19T23:10:00.007+01:00

Music can make worship if played properly. At Easter School we had music at our Morning and Evening prayer organised by Marjorie our music leader and pianist. There was Marjorie, Bridget and Carol on recorders, Andy and myself on guitars. We had a great time trying to fit in practices between the various study sessions and sometimes it was a bit 'rough and ready', but enjoyable all the same.

Today is Divine Mercy Sunday and tonight I have been playing with TICK, the music group from my home church of St Martins. We were asked to play at a service of blessing and dedication of The Divine Mercy at St John the Evangelist in Middlesbrough. The music was several Taize chants where we provided the music and the backing singers and St John's provided the Cantor. It was a lovely service with Bishop Robert coming all the way from London and Fr John Paul Leonard from the Roman Catholic Church and Fr Andreas from the Greek Orthadox church in Middlesbrough, along with clergy from some Middlesbrough churches.

Jesus said to St Faustina, "I desire this image be venerated throughout the world. I promise that the soul that will venerate this image will not perish. I promise victory over its enemies already here on earth and especially at the hour of death. I Myself will defend it as my own Glory."

To find out more about St Faustina you can go to this website. http://www.faustina.org/

Easter School

2009-04-18T23:54:00.004+01:00

Easter School finished yesterday, Friday, after eight nights away in St Chad's College, Durham. During this time we were studying that great theological tome, The Crucified God, The Cross of Christ as the Foundation and Criticism of Christian Theology, by Jurgen Moltmann. We only had time to look at chapters 1 -3 and chapter 6. Chapter 6 is the meaty bit in the book and I will leave the heavy theology to another time. But one question that came up early on in the book was did God die on the cross? Did He suffer and die?

On thing for sure is there can be no resurrection without the cross. Yet how many Christians go to church on Palm Sunday and the next time they go is Easter Sunday. Holy week has so much to offer and what was a really nice start on Maunday Thursday when we arrived at St Chad's, was we were split into groups and then washed each others feet. What surprised me was that some of the fifteen ordinands there with me had not seen this before and neither had some seen the Good Friday service with the veneration of the cross or had they been to an Easter morning vigil. We went to Durham Cathedral, 100 yards from St Chad's, for the Easter morning vigil and it was a beautiful service. They gained such a lot from this, but if they have missed this what have I been missing?

We also studied Mark's Gospel. This is the shortest Gospel and believed to be the first Gospel to be written. The Bible studies were run by the Rev'd Trevor Pitt, Principal of NEOC, and Bishop Tom Wright, Bishop of Durham who gave up two hours on Good Friday to look at Mark's Gospel with us. Not only did they both bring the Gospel alive, but in doing so they also shown us how to study the Bible in different ways to try and get to the meaning in the text.

We were told of a local retired priest who has memorised all of the Gospel of Mark and has given presentation on Mark by reciting the full book from beginning to its end, all from memory, with only one break in the middle. At one recitation only 20 - 30 were expected and over 80 turned up. All were enthralled by this and at the end (the original ending) were all left hanging there, having to finish the story off for themselves. Another example of how the Bible was meant to be read out loud to people who are listening, not reading along with you.

This has set ideas racing through my mind on how I could organise such an event once I enter into parish ministry.

Easter School was hard, it was fun, it was worshipful and everyone who was there, both staff and students, worked well together. But even in such a close knit community such as NEOC and NEITE, because we all come from different traditions there is still a brokenness which reflects the state of the church we worship in. Some students come from that part of the church that can not take part in a Eucharist presided by a female priest. Sad though it is, it shows that this brokenness is still there and we still need to work at bringing all the strands together into communion with each other.

A day is a long time in the C of E

2009-04-08T21:49:00.003+01:00

I think the original saying referred to politics rather than the Church of England, but for me the last 24 hours has been a whirlwind. Telephone calls and conversations all of which have a bearing on my future life and ministry, that has me at the present not knowing whether to stick or twist.

Then I reflect on how Jesus' disciples must have felt on that first Easter. Not knowing what was really happenning and how it was going to affect them. They had three days of not knowing until Christ rose from the dead and then appeared to them. They trusted in Jesus and reaped the rewards which are there for all of us, including me.

As I prepare for my nine day NEOC Easter School starting tomorrow I need to put it all into God's hands, to pray about it and act on what he tells me. This is what we all should do. Pray, Listen, Act. I think my problem is sometimes I don't do the middle part well enough.

Leaving my family for nine days at this time is a bit of a wrench, but after these nine days there will only be four more NEOC Sleeps to ordination. I will miss my family, but I will be with my NEOC family, compensation for me, but not Margaret.

Have a lovely Christ filled Easter.

Thursday 2nd April

2009-04-03T12:37:00.004+01:00

It was a nice sunny day as I parked my car and hopped on the Park & Ride bus into the centre of York. I was off to a meeting of Christian Listening Tutors from York Diocese, Acorn and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Middlesbrough. York Minster looked good bathed in the bright sun light as I walked to my meeting.

Christian Listening (CL) in York Diocese has been very successful in training people to listen to others in the presence of God and its methodology helps the speaker to be able to start the healing process that is needed in peoples lives today. We heard of pastoral teams who use CL and of work in GP's surgeries that are having a benefit. Future courses were looked at as well as a planned Called to Listen for 2010 over 2 weekends at Wydale.

It was also a chance to catch up with what is happening to the Training Team with the appointment of the Rev'd Dr Gavin Wakefield. The rejigging appears to have a reasonable element of lay ministry education, which can only be good.

Part of the day was to look at how the training material is being reviewed and changed. Pat Dale from Acorn took us through some of the proposed changes and listened to our comments. Overall the view was they are making some good improvements.

It was also good to meet up with new tutors and my old friends and to hear their news including from Phil how his next trip to Bungoma, Kenya is going. It was a good day and a welcome distraction from my studies.

The Eucharist

2009-03-30T23:26:00.006+01:00

I have just returned from my NEOC theology night class on the Eucharist and looking at it's early history. Did it come from the Last Supper as Matthew, Mark and Luke in their Gospels imply? If so why does John not mention it in his Gospel? Paul's letter to the Corinthians also has some Eucharistic elements in it in chapters 10 & 11, but he also has the meal. How much were the authors influenced by what was happening at the time they were writing, rather than the time they were writing about, because all the Gospels were written 40 plus years after Christ died and Paul's letter to the Corinthians being the earliest of all the writings mentioned above.

Other questions that came up were is the bread and wine just bread on wine or is there a change in the substance? Do I believe in consubstantiation (Luther) the bread and the wine changing in substance to co-exist with the body and blood of Christ, or transubstantiation (Catholic) the bread and wine becoming the body and blood of Christ whilst still retaining the form of the bread and wine? Well I do know where I am and that is at the catholic end of the the Church of England, but tonight has certainly given me a lot more to think about and reflect on. That is the beauty of studying theology it questions some long held beliefs that I have had and makes me think about them. Some I have changed my mind upon others I have not, but it has been a really fantastic journey I have been on in the last two and a half years.

Now though it is time to turn my attention to Easter School at St Chads college in Durham. We will all be there for 9 days starting on Maundy Thursday and we celebrate Easter in Durham Cathedral. The pre-reading is Moltmann which is not easy reading so it will be a challenge. Will I survive? To find out just watch this space!

Time

2009-03-14T18:50:00.004Z

Where is time going to I keep asking myself. Since coming back off holiday I have not had two minutes to myself so time goes flying past me like the stars do on Startrek when the Enterprise is travelling at Warp factor 9. And that is what my life feels like at the moment. The hours, the days, the weeks are just flying by and I am running to stand still. Time I think to drop out of warp and go on to the impulse engines, to take stock of where I am and what is happening.

It is Lent. Yes it is and I decided this year to give up more than I normally do. Why? Well when I was talking to Paul, our taxi driver in Goa, he fasts in the day light hours in Lent and gives up meat. Also, and perhaps the main reason, I have seen poverty in Africa and not eating on Thursdays the hunger reminds me that there are many people who feel like this all the time. So I have this year given up chocolate, biscuits, alcohol and on Thursdays I fast in the day light hours. The first Thursday was quite easy and I thought I have not been hard enough on myself, but the last two have been hard. I have also found out I drink alcohol more than I thought I did. You notice when you have to think about what soft drink am I going to have. The money I am saving from all of this will go to St Timothy's Lenten appeal.

Panjim

2009-02-09T12:50:00.005Z

Today we took at taxi to Panjim, the capital of Goa. Paul was our taxi driver and he is a Christian. You could tell without asking by the cross and the statue of the Madonna and child on his dashboard.

After going to an art exhibition and then to the Lacosste shop to buy a poloshirt we ended up at the church of the Immaculate Conception. I was a bit of a climb in the hot humid weather, but the effort was worth it.

Inside it was no cooler but ther was a good contrast been the simplicity of the church and the ornate sanctury area.

Paul told me that every Sunday the churches are full to overflowing. Maybe we can learn something from them.

It's time to Goa!

2009-02-07T09:08:00.005Z

We have been in Goa now for nearly a week. The weather is fabulous and the temperature is 35º C or more each day. We went to Aswen beach yesterday. It is remote so not many people go there and you can just relax and spend the time reading or pondering. The food is great with 6 massive tiger prawns, cooked in garlic butter with fries for only the equivalent of 4 quid.

Goa has a Christian heritage, Roman Catholic, once being a Portugese colony. The Hindu's and Christians live well together in this part of India. They have some beautiful churches and their faith, like Kenya, is not complex. They are not afraid to show if they are Christian with Christian symbols in cars and outside their homes and shops. Some walk miles each Sunday to go to church and the children are all well dressed and well behaved, no matter what cast they are or how much money they have, or don't have.

Both Margaret and I are having another excellent and relaxing break here and Gwen, my sister, is finding out the delights of Goa for the first time

Encounter Bungoma 2009

2009-01-28T17:20:00.006Z

Last year I had an absolutely marvelous time on a church mission to Bungoma in Kenya. With 5 others we were guests of Bishop Eliud for two weeks and went around this young diocese visiting churches and teaching Sunday school teachers and clergy. It was a really humbling and unforgettable experience which has helped in my formation as a Christian in more ways than I can mention. Look back at some of my blogs from when I was there.

We then went from the sublime to the ridiculous in that we had 2 days in the Masai Mara. This gave us time to relax and reflect on Bungoma and have 4 wild life safari's. They are so much better than you see on the television. Finally it was back to Nairobi and 2 nights there where we looked around the Kibera slum and at some of the projects that are being carried out there.

Rev'd Phil White who led this CMS mission is leading another CMS mission this year back to Bungoma, with a similar programme. It is a chance in a life time not to be missed and if it is something that you are thinking and wouldn't mind finding out some more then click on the title of this blog or on this link. http://www.stjamesscarborough.co.uk/bungoma.php

You will not regret it if you go, but you might if you don't. So pray about it and see where our Lord leads you.

St Timothy's Patronal Festival

2009-01-27T22:07:00.005Z

Yesterday, 26th January, is the day we celebrate St Timothy and it was therefore the patronal festival at St Timothy’s. But who is St Timothy?

He was born of a Greek father and Jewish mother, Eunice. He became a close friend and companion of St Paul, who later wrote two letters to him.

Paul ordained Timothy as Bishop of Ephesus in the year 65 AD, where he served for 15(?) years. Timothy tried to halt a pagan procession of idols, ceremonies, and songs in the year 80 AD or 97 AD, depending on which source you believe. In response to his preaching of the gospel, the angry pagans beat him and then stoned him to death.

The patronal festival last night was a lovely evening supported well by the church congregation, but poorly by the deanery. As I have said in a previous blog this church is situated in a difficult part of Middlesbrough. It is not therefore unlike what Ephesus might have been like and taking the gospel out to the people is not easy and there are some parts that are not safe to go into, especially after dark.

After two weeks at St Timothy’s I have found there is a lot of good in the faithful band of Christians who have a big moutain to climb. A bill of £200,000+ for roof repairs and no financial reserves. There is also a perception of mismanagement within other church circles, but the reality is totally different. That begs the question of how much time and effort should we spend on managing other people's perceptions?

It will be interesting to see how long the church authorities are prepared to support this church, because it is not financially viable. Time to roll the sleeves up!

Training

2009-01-23T22:56:00.004Z

The last two days I have been doing some training. Yesterday was an energy master class looking how we can save energy at work without affecting safety or operational needs. There were only two or three teaching points, but the work done by the team and what they are going away to do should save a minimum of 25% of our electricity usage and therefore an equal amount of CO2.

There was a good encouragement to use the plug in electrical meters both at work and at home. Although using energy efficient light bulbs is good it is generally not where we use the majority of our electricity in our homes. Fridges, freezers, washing machines and tumble driers are heavy users. Microwaves, especially older ones are surprising as well.

Last night was spent at a Environment partnership meeting looking at the climate change adaptation modelling that has been done for the NE of England for 2050. This modelling did not tell a good story and 2050 is only 40 years away!

The evening ended with a debrief on my placement at All Saints by the two church wardens, so I collapsed into bed last night.

Today has been a training day on how to handle a works based major incident. Centred around two exercises it certainly made you think and realise just how our Emergency Services operate and what information we need to provide to them to enable them to assist us. Although we have not had a major incident in the 30 years I have been in the company, it does not do to be complacent and this training is valuable to improve our skills.

It was quite nice therefore relaxing in St Timothy's before saying evening prayer and I am looking forward to robing this Sunday.

Industry keeps up the training of its people so that they can function at a high level. It will be interesting to see what the church does after I'm ordained and especially after IME (Initial Ministry Education) 4 - 7.

A hectic schedule

2009-01-18T16:00:00.005Z

On Friday night I was out at the NEPIC (North East Process Industries Cluster) Annual Awards evening at Hardwick Hall with reportable another 599 people. A black tie job so had to dig out the old DJ and bow tie. I was a guest of Growhow a local company whom I do some business with. It was really good to see the awards given out to companies and to young up and coming people in the industry. But the icing on the cake was all the ‘prize’ money was being donated to various schools to further science education. In total £20,000.

Then it was back home to get to bed to be up early to catch a train to Oakhill college on the outskirts of London to go to the AOCM (Association of Ordinands and Candidates for Ministry). I was not quick enough just over a year ago and was voted the AOCM Rep for NEOC. Having said that there is a good community feel these days to the meetings and things are getting done, especially the production of a new handbook.

The next major AOCM event, and my final one, is the Day Conference on Listening and Understanding. There are several interesting speakers being lined up on some very topical subjects for the Anglican communion. This is to be held at St Martin in the Bull Ring in Birmingham in April and should be an interesting day. More details will be on the AOCM website and will appear in this blog.

Saturday was a long day with half of it spent on trains up and down to London, but still a lot was achieved.

After Sunday

2009-01-15T08:37:00.003Z

This last weekend I was at a workshop on ‘After Sunday’ given by Peter Sinclair and Sarah McTimoney at NEOC, St Chads in Durham. So what is After Sunday? It is a project initially funded by the Durham Diocese Mission Fund about a way of being the church in and for the world. One of the main challenges for Christians in this age is to help the world to recognise the activity of God in our midst.

Christians don't take God into the world. They discover God actively working there for good through all sorts of people and situations whether Christian or not. God challenges us all to join in with his mission of love to the world.

People of faith recognise that call to partnership and that forms the basis for their faith in action.

An interesting project with links to plenty of resources. The concept of the gathered church being 2% of our lives and the dispersed church being 98%. What we do at home, work and in our leisure time is as much about our Christian life as is the 1 hour or so in church on a Sunday morning. We therefore need to know our faith to be able to live it in our everyday life.

To find out more check out its web site at http://www.aftersunday.org.uk/ and see what you think of its logo.

NEOC Mountain

2009-01-14T19:10:00.002Z

I came across this cartoon from Dave Walker that I thought summed up where I am on NEOC. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Cartoon by Dave Walker. Find more cartoons you can freely re-use on your blog at We Blog Cartoons.

Is that TP holding the sign?

A new challenge

2009-01-14T11:59:00.006Z

This first two weeks of the year have set off at quite a whirl, time just seems to have past me by, but as I look back there has been a sense of achievement. I finished my placement at All Saints and left there on 4th January. It was quite an emotional time and they presented me with a card, a lovely triple picture frame and a cheque to buy myself an alb. Very generous. I will remember my time there with fondness and the people I met there and the work we did together in the Lord's name.

Now I am looking forward to a mini placement for the next six months up to my ordination and God has sent me to St Timothy's in Hemlington, near where I live.

St Timothy's has changed from a High Anglo Catholic church using the Roman Missal to a more broad Anglican church with Evangelical leanings using Common Worship. It is in a difficult area of Middlesbrough and this change in its churchmanship has also changed the congregation to some extent. The church building itself is only 30 years old, but was poorly design and constructed and is therefore in need of a lot of maintenance work.

I have history here because I worshiped here from 1986 to 1994 and was Church Treasurer and was one of the Church Wardens when it became a parish in its own right, breaking away from St Peter and St Paul in Stainton its mother church. So it will be like a coming home as well.

This 6 month mini placement will be a time to observe how the Vicar and the church are able to witness for our Lord and work to being able to sustain their presence in this part of town where churches 'fear to tread'. They have a big challenge so please keep them in your prayers.

http://www.achurchnearyou.com/hemlington-st-timothy/