I have been asked to write “something about myself” for this edition of the newsletter – never the easiest of tasks – but as my placement at St John at Hampstead is coming to an end, I am very glad to have this opportunity to express what a wonderful experience it has been.
Many of you will know by now that I am currently in training for ordination in 2010, studying part-time at Cuddesdon in Oxford (where Fr Stephen also trained!). As I have a husband, Jeremy, and two sons, Hugo (12) and Guy (9), whom you may well have met, I didn’t feel able to commit to being away full-time. Fortunately Cuddesdon offers the possibility of what is known as Mixed Mode Training, so I have been studying there from Monday to Wednesday, and then working in my home church, Emmanuel, West Hampstead, for the rest of the week.
As part of the course, we are required to do two placements, one a Community placement, which as you may know from my preaching, I spent in Holloway Prison Chaplaincy, and the other a church placement. We are expected to find a church where we can experience new forms of worship, and see a different kind of congregation.
I have been involved at Emmanuel for ten years, and been a licensed Reader (like Handley) since September 2006. Emmanuel is a church with a very young congregation, many of whom have come to faith quite recently. It has a Catholic liturgy with incense and bells and a modern Mass setting sung by the congregation. Although I am now very accustomed to this style of worship, I grew up at the other end of the liturgical scale as a member of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers). I have therefore had very little experience of more traditional Anglicanism, including the choral tradition and the liturgy of the Book of Common Prayer, and I was aware that this was a significant gap in my Anglican experience and understanding. This led me to look for a church placement which offered traditional and BCP services, and with clergy and an experienced congregation who could explain them to me…
I already knew Fr Stephen from the Deanery Mission Action Plan Working Party in 2004, which he chaired, and at which I acted as Secretary. Mother Sarah had also been extremely helpful to me when, about three years ago, I began to wonder whether God was calling me to ordained ministry. As the only woman priest I knew locally, she was kind enough to meet me for a couple of confidential chats in Starbucks, and I have been very grateful to her for sharing her own experiences, and for her advice and support.
I therefore tentatively approached Fr Stephen to see if he might be happy to take me on for two months, and heard that Mother Sarah would in fact be on leave, but I could help with some of her preaching slots, and even lead the Women’s Bible Study Group (the other two priests not being eligible for this task!). Knowing that St John’s has a reputation for erudition, longstanding church experience, and a very high standard of preaching, I approached the placement with some trepidation. However, I was touched from my first day at the church by the warm and open welcome which I received from both clergy and congregation.
I have been especially interested in sharing in the Prayer Book services of Holy Communion and Choral Evensong on Sundays, and I am grateful to Fr Stephen for his insights into their theology and practice. I must also express my thanks to those members of the 8am congregation, whom I greeted on several occasions with questions about why they liked the Prayer Book, what it meant to them and what they thought of its theology! They responded to these interrogations with unfailing grace and generosity.
The effective combination of beauty and dignity with family-friendliness at the 10.30 am Parish Eucharist has also helped me to reflect on how the two can be successfully integrated. My sons have been very impressed by all the different groups of Sunday School on offer, which are clearly made possible by loyal volunteers willing and able to take it on.
I have also spent Thursdays at the church, where Fr Stephen and Fr Jim kindly allowed me to “shadow” them at the Holy Hamsters toddler service, the Communion service at Branch Hill nursing home, some home communions, and the Parochial School Assembly. I feel I have been given many opportunities to observe, discuss and take part in different aspects of ministry, and to reflect on them. This is just as well, as on my return to College, I have to give a presentation and theological reflection on my experiences, as well as chairing a discussion about the points I raise…!
I can hardly believe that the two months are flying by so quickly, and that my last Sunday with you will be 5 July, the day of the church picnic. It has been a joy and a privilege to meet you all and to join in your worship, and you will remain in my thoughts and prayers. Thank you for making me so very welcome amongst you.