Rector s Report - APCM 26 th April 2012

Transcription

1 Rector s Report - APCM 26 th April 2012 There s something slightly odd about being asked to give a report on the life of the Minster when you ve only been here for 85 days but perhaps, it s also quite helpful. It s odd, because you have all been here so much longer than I have some of you for a lifetime, many of you for twenty or thirty years so who am I to tell you anything? But it s helpful too because someone coming in new can, perhaps, see things with new eyes and state the obvious in a way that becomes less easy the longer you ve been around. So this evening, what I have to say is less of a report and more of a reflection on first impressions. I hope you will bear with me if you think I ve got things wrong. But I hope you will also be willing to hear some of my initial concerns - things that might, at first, feel slightly uncomfortable; because they may be saying things you know, but don t want to hear. And when I ve offered my impressions and mentioned my concerns, I ll try to suggest some of the ways in which I think we may move forward together to begin to address them. The first thing I want to say is, I feel called to be here and I m thrilled to be here. I ve told some of you the story of how it came about, and I have a very strong sense that I am the person God wants to lead the life of the Minster, for now. That s important for me; and I say it, because it s important for you too. I am conscious how much hard work and prayer went into the appointment process last summer and autumn and I believe that God has honoured that, and will continue to honour that in the years to come. That sense of vocation (and I will say more about that this coming Sunday) will be what holds us together when things get difficult as surely they will at some stage; but what matters is that we have been called together to work together. And that is something to treasure and to hold on to. So what have been my first impressions of Wimborne Minster? Well, I shall of course focus mostly on the life of the Minster congregation; but one of the things that is abundantly clear is that Wimborne Minster (the church) and Wimborne Minster (the town) are inextricably intertwined. The Minster building and its Green has a solid place at the heart of the community evidenced by the way in which it is used by so many people and groups. And the Minster, in what it symbolises as a spiritual and holy place, is also somewhere deeply present in the hearts of the people who make up this town community. It may not always be articulated, but my sense on coming into this town is that by its simply being there the Minster fills something of the spiritual vacuum felt by so many people in our generation. What I want to say to you this evening is, never to underestimate the power and the privilege of that truth. Wimborne Minster is unusual. In most cities and in the majority of our towns, and even villages across the country, the Church has lost that place of special affection in people s hearts: so here we must cherish it and build on it, continuously offering generous hospitality to all who visit and use the Minster whether or not they are pilgrims and worshippers; and continuously seeking to be alert to the ways in which we can be inclusive and make connections with the daily lives of all who pass by our doors. The Gospel is always relevant; so should the Church endeavour to be. But what about you the Minster congregation? What are my first impressions of you? Well, there are all sorts of things I could say, but I think three words sum up my first impressions: you are warm; you are good; you are diverse. David and I have been very touched by the warmth of your welcome to us, both in terms of your practical care and in the many however brief conversations we have had with you in recent weeks. You have made it easy for me to begin to feel at home. And my overwhelming impression as I think about those I have met during the past couple of months is that the Minster congregation is made up of good people who love God, who 1

2 love this place and who long for it to thrive and flourish. As I have spoken with people, I have been made aware of just how much people care about one another; of how significant are the relationships that span often many decades; and of the wonderful practical support that is given by Minster people to one another and to the wider community. I have been deeply impressed by the work of the LPAs, the Outreach Committee, Lunch and Chat, Oasis, the MU and so many other groups and individuals whose concern for others is evident in all they do. But what about that word diversity? Well it s a word I both rejoice in and am challenged by. I rejoice in it because it brings with it or should I say, you bring with you an immense richness: liturgically, theologically, politically and in the great range of things that give you a buzz, the things you are passionate about. All of that together makes for a Minster community that is interesting, stimulating, engaged, active and alive. My sense is that in Wimborne Minster, we have a microcosm of the Church of England: people come with different backgrounds, experiences and gifts; they are looking for different flavours of worship, preaching and activity; they have different views about some of the knotty issues that face the Church and the wider society today. I suspect that most people who call themselves Anglican could come to Wimborne Minster and find something to which to relate in its worshipping life and in the groups and activities that make it up. Diversity, at its best, is enriching for all of us and for those we serve. But, of course, there is a downside. Diversity can also lead to fragmentation. And the challenge is how to affirm diversity and at the same time hold together to a common vision and purpose. I suspect I m not telling you anything you don t already know but I see one of my key tasks in the coming years is to endeavour to help us reach a place where we have a sufficient sense of common purpose that our diversity becomes something that enriches our life together, rather than pulls it apart. Putting it another way, my task is to help us find the overarching sense of purpose that will enable us to rejoice in our differences, rather than allow our differences to become a drain on our sense of energy and purpose. It is a big ask and it is mirrored in the challenges currently faced in national as well as local church issues but it is what I believe we are called to and it depends on our willingness to meet one another with grace and generosity in our relating, rather than always wanting to get our own way. To pray for that grace and generosity is, I believe, to be willing to deepen our discipleship: for it means we are freed to live with our differences in a creative way, rather than a destructive way. Enough said. What else has impressed me in my first few weeks here? Well, I ve been impressed by - the high standard of music we enjoy in our worship; - the bells and the bellringers; - the praying core of the community in the daily offices of morning and evening prayer, the regular prayer groups, the e-prayer circle and the importance given to prayer as part of the life of our house groups; - the thirst to know and to know more about God both from the people who ve been here for years and from several who have started to come in recent weeks because they feel drawn by God; - the important place given to eating and drinking in the Minster s life; - the Minster s social conscience, exemplified by its Fair Trade status and the work of the Minster Eden Group and the Greenbelt Group in helping us to keep a wider perspective and challenging us to fulfil our wider responsibilities to society; - the good ecumenical relationships which continue to exist and are being built upon by a range of ecumenical activities; 2

3 - the strong links with the civic community and the important role that the Minster continues to play in town life; - the dedication of the employed staff of the Minster and their commitment to making the complex Minster machine work effectively; and I ve been impressed by the clergy team here both active and retired and I want to place on record my thanks to them for their support and encouragement in these early weeks in my time here. So what are the things that concern me and how might we begin to address those concerns? Let me identify six that come to mind not that I m suggesting we can address all of them at once! 1. Management issues Although it is a Church, Wimborne Minster is also a business. The scale and complexity of the work which goes on in this place requires us to operate in ways that exemplify and demonstrate good practice in the management of people, systems and finance and in regard to our legal responsibilities. Gone are the days (and rightly so) when the Church could get away with it because it was the Church. Our responsibilities as employers, trustees and custodians of buildings and assets must be taken seriously and require us to put in place the necessary management structures to enable the Minster to function effectively. Our lay employed staff do an excellent job, but it has become clear to me even in the short time I have been here that there is the need for an Administrator to have oversight of the business side of the Minster s activities. As I said to the PCC, I have been called here to be your priest and you leader not your manager. So it is that the PCC has delegated to the Standing Committee the task of setting in train a process to appoint a parttime Administrator, as well as to pursue the necessary appointment of a new Shop Manager following the retirement of Diana Slatem. There are of course financial implications in this, and it is my intention to work with others to establish a programme for the autumn of this year which will include teaching on the costs of the Church s ministry; on stewardship, giving and gifts; and which will offer an opportunity for us all to review the level of our personal giving to the work of God in this place. I am not ashamed to talk about money - it is part of God s provision for the work of the Kingdom - and it is important that we face up realistically to the fact that, at present, our outgoings are not matched by our income. 2. Pattern of worship I want to affirm the diversity of worship that is on offer at the Minster. I love the Book of Common Prayer and I love good music. The Parish Eucharist is at the heart of our worshipping life and the Family Service offers a more relaxed context in which less formal styles of music, liturgy and activity can be explored by adults and children alike. As I have said earlier, diversity is important and adds a richness to our common life that I would not want to lose. But to put it bluntly six services on most Sundays is simply too many. Most of our cathedrals offer a maximum of four. And that is without the many extra services often on a Sunday afternoon that the Minster willingly hosts for the wider community. When you add into the mix the fact that most baptisms are currently done privately at 12.30pm on a Sunday, then matters become even more complex. I have not yet come to a view about what should be done; what I am clear about is that something has to be done to rationalise the number of services whilst maintaining their diversity both musically and liturgically. Moreover, I am concerned that there are rarely 3

4 any members of the regular congregations present at baptisms and also that some of our services may feel very alien to the many wedding couples and visitors who join us from time to time. My hope, in due time, therefore, is to work with members of the Worship Committee and the PCC to draw up a future pattern of services that not only affirms the present needs of the Minster congregations, but also allows us to think creatively about those who don t yet come and what their needs might be. To address such matters will be hard for all of us and will require that same grace and generosity of which I have already spoken. But, I believe it is a path we must have the courage to tread. 3. Age demographic of the congregation In your Parish Profile, the PCC were straightforward about the fact that the majority of worshippers at the Minster are over the age of fifty. Very often, of course, it is those of more mature years who have the capacity and the time to volunteer in a way that those with the responsibilities of younger families do not. I am immensely grateful to the vast band of people at the Minster (many of whom it has to be said are over seventy!) who undertake a huge variety of tasks and hold significant responsibilities which ensure that the life of the Minster runs smoothly. But we have to take seriously the need for succession planning: and the need to nurture younger leadership within the congregation. And to do that, we have to have younger people to whom to turn. This connects, I believe, with our patterns of worship, but my hope is that initially through the contacts we already have with wedding couples and baptism families we may be able to integrate younger people into the active life of the Minster and so build up a pool of people who, in due time, may take on some of the responsibilities currently held by many of you. The clergy team and I are already thinking of different ways to do baptism and wedding preparation so that couple and families will have the chance to meet each other as well as the clergy; and what I would like to see is some cross-generational linking so that newcomers may, for example, be linked with adoptive parents or (for the babies) adoptive grand-parents within the Minster congregation, who will keep an eye out for them and offer personal support, care and encouragement as needed. 4. Deepening faith and nurturing our spiritual life I regard this as one of my primary responsibilities as your priest. There are many opportunities already to teach and nurture faith through preaching, house groups, bible study and so on. I have not yet had a chance to meet the members and leaders of the various house groups; indeed, there seems to be some mystery around how many there are, where they meet, who leads them and what they do? I m sure the picture will become clearer to me soon, but I sense that one of my tasks (without becoming too directive and heavy-handed ) may be to enable a greater sense of coherence and commonality to the themes that we study and seek to grow in. Such deepening of faith in a more focused way will be essential, I believe, if we are to find that common sense of purpose and direction to which I alluded earlier. Alongside this growing in discipleship for regular members of the congregation, it will also be important for us to continue to offer places of nurture for children, young people and for those who are new to the faith. I m pleased to say that there is already the nucleus of a group of adults seeking to prepare for confirmation and Brenda and I will be working on setting that up within the next few weeks. 5. The Minster building We have a fine building and a significant number of visitors who come to see it and its contents each year. It is important that we make our building as attractive and accessible as 4

5 possible for it is a key asset in our mission. But it also has to be functional for our use as a place of worship and for those who use it for concerts, events and exhibitions. That can be a challenge, particularly when a medieval building does not easily lend itself to adaptation for contemporary use and storage needs. I am aware that there are a range of ongoing questions to do with the fabric of the building not least the issues of storage and the location of the Children s Corner. I am not going to comment on these at this stage, except to say that my own view is that these things need to be looked at strategically with a sense of an overview of the whole, rather than being addressed piecemeal. Again, such matters will relate directly to our understanding of what we are here for and our overall vision and purpose. For my own part, I shall want to encourage us to think big about our needs and the needs of mission. This may mean that certain things take longer, but dealing with the immediate is not always the best policy. 6. Communication Finally, I want to make a very brief comment about communication. We live in an age when communication is fast and ever-changing. It is hard for us to keep up. And yet it is also vital for us to do so at least to some degree. I am grateful to those who are involved in maintaining the website, in liaising with the media and in working hard to enable our own internal communication. However, at some point in the reasonably near future, I think it would be wise for us to undertake a communications review and to explore ways in which our present systems and methods may be developed and enhanced. I have said a great deal more, perhaps, than you and even I had anticipated. But I hope that what I have said makes sense and, in some ways at least, is recognisable as a picture of the Minster which you know and love. For me, and for all of us, the key question is Where is God leading us now? The answer to that question will, I believe serve as the framework for all that we decide and do over the coming years. It will also become, I believe, the impetus and the catalyst to release the energy and the resources we shall need to do it. So it is vital that we discern the answer to that question well. And it is vital that we discern it together. I can be the one to help us to reach that point, but there will be little use in me coming to a conclusion unless the vast majority of you come with me. To that end, I believe we are called to pray and to work together over the coming months so that the picture becomes clearer and our sense of excitement ever-deeper. Prayer is at the heart of the work of discernment. But so is hard work. Firstly, therefore, I am therefore planning that there should be a Day of Reflection in or around Advent this year when I shall lead us in a quiet day, when we shall wait together on God in the hope that we may hear his voice about our future work. Secondly, I am planning to take the newly elected PCC away for a day together early in 2013 so that we can draw up a strategy for the future a strategy which we shall bring to this same meeting, this time next year, and which I pray will be blessed by God so that the people and work of this place may bring him glory in the years ahead. Thank you for allowing me to share in that exciting journey with you. The Revd Vanessa Herrick 26 th April