Always Hope

A vicar in Cornwall has taken up driving for Sainsbury's delivery service . [warning to readers of a delicate constitution: links to Daily Mail website]. Of course the idea of the worker priest, or minister in secular employment, is a well-established and noble one. We've long benefited from the ministry of priests who earn their living in other jobs, taking their vocation to work, and bringing back their multi-faceted experience to the Lord's Table. What sets the Revd Martyn Pinnock aside is that he offers a less theologically nuanced reason for his new job, ie. he needs the cash. In fact he is not officially a Minister in Secular Employment at all, because he is a stipendiary priest, paid by the church. Or, to be precise, half-stipendiary. This isn't a criticism of my old diocese, Truro. Or at least, not a criticism of Truro in particular. But without a doubt, there will be people around in Mr Pinnock's parish and his diocese who will frown on this as an ...

I began writing this on Tuesday, my usual day off. Not normally a day when I would be hunched over the keyboard, but this week I had the time because I'm luxuriating in a whole week off. A perfectly usual experience, except in the case of vicars, when the idea of a "week off" becomes quite complex and problematic. Last week on Twitter I intercepted someone's tweet who had spotted a clergy friend who was enjoying an entertaining day out. His reply was along the lines of "blimey, what it is to be a vicar and live the life of Riley" etc. I have no complaint against this person, who is a good guy and obviously meant no harm. It was just a variant on the age-old witticism that every parish priest hears on a more or less weekly basis, "of course you only work on Sundays, don't you?" There are a few versions of this, my personal favourite being "not another holiday?" if one takes leave at any time within about a year of having previously d...

I've been thinking about this post from Andy, On (not) being ordained . You need to read it, but in short, he describes his journey to the point firstly, of being called to ordination training as a pioneer minister, and now, of deciding not to proceed to ordination.  It's something of a cry of the heart, but also reflective and challenging. Andy reveals a certain degree of hurt without being at all bitter. He exposes some of the weaknesses of the modern Church of England, but is still able to affirm its strengths.  Two observations particularly struck me. The first was "old habits die hard - actually, many of those old habits don't need to die".  Although it's a truism, the reminder that "traditional church" is still where it's at for most churchgoers is a challenge to the way in which we present new ways of doing church.  The second is much sharper - "there is a degree of salesmanship in any church ministry".  I don't think Andy ...

Last week I found myself part of a quite heated debate on the question of "volunteers". The context must remain confidential, but 'a person' expressed his suspicion of the idea that certain people in ministry see themselves as volunteers. He described how he gives short shrift to any self-supporting clergy who believe that they only need to do "the things that they want to" in ministry. To a certain extent this is standard stuff, heard from Bishops and Archdeacons throughout the land. Still, this person was not simply grumbling, but expressing a theological conviction - that gospel ministry is not voluntary. Jesus said "follow me" and did not add "if you want to". So, the argument runs, those of us who are called to something in the Christian life (and this does not apply only to clergy) do not do it out of voluntarism, but obedience to Christ. The implication of this is that if you accept a particular office or role in the church, you ac...

Comments on a post earlier this week prompted me to write a little bit more on the role of the clergy. This is a matter for hot debate at the moment, particularly in the light of the changing shape of the church and the need for more missional leaders. Without attempting to produce the final answer to the question, I offer the following observations: The clergy are human. I know some people don't believe this (indeed some of the clergy themselves don't believe it), but they are. This means there is no ontological difference between the question "what is the role of the clergy" and "what is the role of people in all kinds of ministry". The parishes that the clergy serve are enormously diverse in their situation, character, needs, and aspirations. "Vicar" is a job description, but this is only part of what it is. Ordination is an attempt to recognise gifting for the benefit of the church, and gifting comes from the Holy Spirit who provides the hug...

Last night here at Kea I ran an introductory evening for a group of people who I'm hoping will join me in a leadership course over the coming year ( CPAS Growing Leaders ). It looks really good and I'm hoping that they will take up the opportunity. I came to the evening with some concern about how it was going to go but ended up really enjoying it - and I think I know why (apart from the great company and good response, of course). The whole dynamic of a leadership programme in the church is something which breaks down the clergy/laity mentality in church. If I was asked to list the things that I find difficult about my work, that would be near the top of the list - the idea that once you get the round collar on, you somehow become a different species to the rest of humanity (and yes, I know some people really believe that, but I don't). I admit to being slightly in two minds about this. I'm actually all in favour of having professional clergy, who are not only gift...