“Be teachers and explorers of the faith, with and for others. Enthuse and inspire… out loud and out there….” Revd David Runcorn encouraged Readers at the annual Admission, Licensing and Rededication of Readers, which took place at Wells Cathedral.
Friends, colleagues and parish supporters joined seven new Readers who were licensed by Bishop Ruth and nine who were welcomed into the diocese and the benefice in which they will serve. The annual Readers’ Day is a celebration of Reader ministry in the diocese.
In her charge to the Readers Bishop Ruth said, “It's very easy to focus ministry upon the ‘doing’ of it, the service to which we are called, whether one of preaching and teaching, or expressed in other practical ways. My charge to you today focuses on the ‘being’.” She went on to say, “ I am not asking you to become raging optimists, always being positive, or avoiding realism. But rather that we should be living in the strength of the knowledge of God’s love for us and his ability to overcome all that is evil, sinful and wrong in our world. The coming of Christ into the world was all about God wanting to come amongst us, to share in the pain and vulnerability that we know, and to bring us hope through his death, renewing and remaking the relationship we can have with him.”
You can read the full text of Bishop Ruth’s Charge at the bottom of this page.
Seven new Readers were licensed. The candidates for admission and licensing as Readers and the benefice in which they will serve are:
- Rosemary Brown - South Quantock
- Sandi Kiddle - Abbas and Templecombe, Henstridge and Horsington
- Gary Orriss - Crook Peak
- Ann Philcox - Sedgemoor
- Donna Pilgrim - Weston-super-Mare: Christ Church and Emmanuel
- Andrew Savage - Street
- Fergus Stewart - Hardington Vale
To be welcomed to the Diocese of Bath and Wells and the benefice in which they will serve are:
- Dr Ruth Briggs - Ham Hill Villages (Wells Archdeaconry)
- Sonya Clarke - Isle Valley Benefice (Taunton Archdeaconry)
- Lindsay Glazebrook - St Luke’s, Bath (Bath Archdeaconry)
- Claire Horton - Diocesan Warden of Readers
- Dr Edmund Marshall - Chew Valley East (Bath Archdeaconry)
- Robert (Bob) Taylor Aller - High Ham with Low Ham and Huish Episcopi cum Langport (Wells Archdeaconry)
- Paul Thurlow - Keynsham Team Ministry (Bath Archdeaconry)
- Peter Wright - South Quantock (Taunton Archdeaconry)
- Sally Beazley - St Thomas with Horrington, St Cuthberts with Wookey Hole
You can see more photos from Saturday's service on the Bath and Wells Facebook page.
Readers are lay people in the Church of England, from all walks of life, who are called by God, theologically trained, and licensed by the Church to preach, teach, lead worship and assist in pastoral, evangelistic and liturgical work. Find out more about reader ministry in Bath and Wells.