Profile for the Post of
Transition Minister
(Associate Priest)
in the Parish of St Paul, Wokingham
which includes Woosehill Church (LEP),
St Nicholas’, Emmbrook, and St Paul’s, Wokingham
August 2016
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The Profile
This profile was compiled and written by members of Woosehill Church, St Nicholas’,
Emmbrook, and St Paul’s, Wokingham.
Address: Woosehill Church Chestnut Avenue Woosehill Wokingham Berkshire RG41 3RS
Web: www.thechurchonwoosehill.org.uk
St Paul’s Parish Rooms Reading Road Wokingham Berkshire RG41 1EH
Tel: 0118 979 2122 Email: [email protected] Web: www.spauls.org.uk
If you would like to find out more about the post on an informal basis, then please contact one (or more) of the people below: The Rector, the Revd. Richard Lamey 0118 327 9116 [email protected] Woosehill’s Senior Steward, John Hoskins 07710 272546 [email protected] St Paul’s Warden, Peter Wells 0781 083 7172 [email protected]
Appointment Process (Incumbent Stipend on the Oxford Diocesan Scale. The appointment is under Qualified
Common Tenure and is subject to enhanced DBS disclosure.)
Send your application form to: The Venerable Olivia Graham Foxglove House Love Lane Donnington Newbury RG14 2JG [email protected] Applications submitted by email should be followed up by a signed paper copy by the date
of shortlisting.
Closing date for receipt of applications: midday on Friday 23rd September 2016 Shortlisting: Wednesday 28th September Interviews: Thursday 6th October
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Table of Contents
The Profile ............................................................................................................................................... 2
Appointment Process .............................................................................................................................. 2
Foreword ................................................................................................................................................. 3
Introduction from the Rector, the Revd. Richard Lamey ........................................................................ 4
Partnership for Missional Church ........................................................................................................... 6
The Setting of the Parish ......................................................................................................................... 7
Church Numbers and Services ................................................................................................................ 9
Woosehill Church .................................................................................................................................... 9
St Nicholas’, Emmbrook ........................................................................................................................ 12
St Paul’s, Wokingham ........................................................................................................................... 14
The House ............................................................................................................................................. 16
Who we are looking for ........................................................................................................................ 17
Foreword
As an Archdeaconry, we are piloting the Partnership for Missional Church process for the Diocese,
and the eclectic mix of a dozen or so parishes/benefices involved has formed a fascinating
community of learning which is proving to be both enriching and enlightening.
The Rector has written a comprehensive introduction to this role on the following pages. Woosehill
is both mature, in the sense that the LEP has existed for more than 30 years, and young in that it has
only been part of the newly formed ecclesial unit with St Paul’s and Emmbrook for 4 years. They
have embarked on a spiritual journey of discovery of God’s purposes and God’s future, and the
energy which this has produced is palpable.
I endorse fully the sense of excitement and possibility which shine through these pages, and to
commend this job to anyone who is stimulated by diversity, an ecumenical outlook and a deep
curiosity about what God is doing.
Venerable Olivia Graham Archdeacon of Berkshire
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Introduction from the Rector, the Revd. Richard Lamey That we are able to advertise for a Transition Minister in the parish of St Paul, Wokingham is a
testament to the good shape Woosehill Anglican-Methodist LEP is in and how well this parish is
developing. This is a genuinely exciting and well-balanced job:
helping the Church of Woosehill to listen to God through an active and planned process of
development through Partnership for Missional Church (PMC) while building on a settled
and happy congregation,
having principal responsibility for Woosehill Church within a supportive and lively Clergy
Team,
treasuring the Woosehill way, especially the coherent Methodist and Anglican heritage,
while being energised by ministering on a regular basis at St Nicholas’, Emmbrook (a
Eucharistic community meeting in Emmbrook Village Hall) and St Paul’s, Wokingham (high-
church Liberal Catholic with a landmark building, incense and an outstanding parish church
choir).
It is an unusual job title but I hope that unpacking it word by word will help you see why we are so
thrilled to be where we are in putting together this profile, and how many opportunities the job
opens up.
Transition
This is an appointment under Qualified Common Tenure to do a specific piece of work in Woosehill.
(All of your other rights as a priest would still apply, but the appointment is being made for an initial
period of three years, with the possibility of one year’s extension). The single alternating-model at
Woosehill should have meant that this was the turn of the Methodist Church to appoint a Minister,
which they were keen to do. However, given the PMC process Woosehill (along with the rest of the
parish) are engaged in, the Methodist District and Circuit very generously offered to support an
interim Anglican appointment.
We are just going into the second year of the structured three year (or slightly more) PMC process,
as part of a pilot project run by the Archdeaconry. It is going well. It is hard work, a major
commitment. It is teaching us to think about God and the church and the community in new ways
and to learn to actively attend to the voice of God while going with the grain of who we are. PMC
starts from the belief that the church we are is the perfect place to start. It is not about revolution in
the life of the church but about a steady drawing-out of unexpected opportunities.
Lay leadership of PMC is a given, although the clergy have a key part to play. The first part of the
responsibility of the Transition Minister will be to support and inspire Woosehill Church to the
successful completion of the PMC project and to embed changed ways of thinking, working and
being which make a lasting difference to the life of the church and community.
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Minister (Woosehill)
The post is also to be the priest in Woosehill and for Woosehill Church. As minister you will build on
the excellent foundations laid by the Revd. Patrick King, with the same level of responsibility. You
will chair Church Council, be pastorally responsible for Woosehill, lead worship there on 3 or 4
Sundays out of 5 and plan and lead the celebrations of Christmas and Easter. Other priorities have
emerged from the PMC process which need to be addressed outside PMC itself, including developing
stronger links with The Hawthorns Primary School and external organisations meeting in the church.
In virtually every way you will be the Vicar of Woosehill. It is in essence a Team Vicar’s post with
responsibility for a single church, with the backing of the Revd. Catherine Bowstead (Minister of
Wokingham Methodist Church) and myself. Roughly speaking, about 70% of your time will be
dedicated to Woosehill.
Parish
The parish was formed in 2012 and we have
made good progress in learning to relate to
each other, to trust each other and to build a
common life, through things like a shared
weekly Bible study, a parish-wide Youth Group
held at Woosehill once a month and joint social
events. We also need to develop a corporate
response to the major new housing estate of
830 homes in Emmbrook which has just started
to be built. The Transition Minister will play a
key role across the three churches in
embodying the parish while celebrating the different strengths and rejoicing in the diverse beauty of
each church community. You will take your share of occasional offices and work with the clergy team
(chiefly the Rector, the Assistant Curate and the active retired priest) to serve the whole population
of the parish, building up our common life. Relations with the Methodist Circuit will also be
important- they are already very friendly and we are now looking to do more together.
It is, as this Introduction and this whole Profile show, a really exciting post. It balances change and
continuity, independence and collegiality, freedom and support. It builds on the firm foundation of
vibrant churches who are doing a lot of things well but who know that we should be doing more to
realise the Kingdom of God.
Please be assured of our prayers and thoughts as you consider what it is that God is calling you to
next, and please pray for us in turn as we seek to hear God’s call for this one parish and these three
churches, through the PMC process and beyond.
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Partnership for Missional Church The parish as a whole has adopted the Partnership for Missional Church (PMC) process to inform our
vision for the Parish.
So what is Partnership for Missional Church (PMC for ease)?
Briefly, PMC is a learning and exploring process in which a parish/benefice PARTNERS with others in
the area to learn, and to begin to practise, new spiritual and MISSIONAL habits which will enable
them to discover how and where God is already at work in the world and how and where God wants
them to share in that work. Why? Because we believe that the CHURCH should be the good news of
Jesus Christ lived out in the world, a world that is changing rapidly and in which that Good News is
desperately needed.
Participating churches meet together with the delivery
team three times a year over 3-5 years to learn, first, to
listen and discover who (and whose) they are, and then to
experiment with some new kinds of action in and with the
community. In the final phase congregations will begin
moving toward living in God’s preferred and promised
future for them and their communities. The end result will
be a culture change in the congregation.
In the Parish of Wokingham St Paul, the first year of PMC
is almost over. Each church has undertaken three discovery exercises to establish “where we are
now”, through interviewing a sample of members, building a timeline and assessing demographic
data for the parish. We have practised listening to God together and we are beginning to embark on
Missional experimentation – finding a project (or projects) that will stretch us out of our comfort
zones and take us out into the community to partner with “people of peace” who are already doing
God’s work in some way. For this we will need to set up mission innovation teams willing to take
some risks in faith.
Further information about PMC can be found at www.churchinnovations.org , http://www.stpauls-
wokingham.org.uk/tell-me/partnership-for-missional-church-pmc and Appendix 2 on page 35 of
http://www.oxford.anglican.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/Berkshire-Archdeaconry-Plan-
BC.SCO-15.11-14052015-21.pdf
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The Setting of the Parish
Location
Lying in the east of the Royal County of Berkshire and at
the heart of the Thames Valley, Wokingham is only 30
miles from London. It offers a pleasant blend of
countryside and town, historic features and up to date
facilities, big business and market town trading. The
economic prosperity of the district, together with a
pleasant environment and excellent transport links,
make it an attractive place to live and work.
Wokingham, a town of 38,000, still retains the character
of a small market town. Two major housing developments are about to start (one affecting
Emmbrook with 830 additional homes) and it remains to be seen how this alters the town- 11,000
extra residents are a lot to absorb. The town’s main function is to act as a shopping and servicing
centre for the surrounding area. The town centre has a busy market place, specialist shops, major
chains, and many restaurants. Further afield, Reading contains many major chain and department
stores, as well as the Oracle shopping centre. Within Wokingham there are three industrial estates
providing opportunities for small and medium sized companies to expand.
Wokingham has a thriving cultural community with a wide range of arts, sporting and leisure
facilities within easy reach, both within the immediate vicinity and at regional centres such as
Reading, Oxford and London. These range from local amateur theatre and music to internationally
renowned concert halls, cinemas, and theatres; facilities for diverse indoor and outdoor sports from
kayaking to skiing; beautiful local countryside; good libraries and leisure-time courses at local
colleges.
Schools in the Wokingham Borough are consistently high performing. The parish includes two infant,
two junior (one of them St Paul’s Voluntary Controlled School), three primary, and three senior. Each
of the Parish churches enjoys good links with their local primary schools, links we hope to build on in
the future.
Wokingham has unparallelled transport links, giving easy access to the major parts of the country.
The M4 and M3 run to the north and south, while the M40 is also close by. Wokingham station is on
the main Reading to Waterloo line – Waterloo is an hour away – and Reading is also on the main
Paddington line.
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The parish of St Paul (pink
area) lies to the south and
west of the centre of
Wokingham. It is in Sonning
Deanery in the
Archdeaconry of Berkshire
within the Diocese of
Oxford. The church of St
Paul, together with the
Parish Rooms, is located on
the main road running
between Wokingham and
Reading. To the west of the
parish is the large housing
development of Woosehill
served by the Woosehill
Church. The village of
Emmbrook is in the north of
the parish served by the
church of St Nicholas, which
meets in the Emmbrook
Village Hall. This is
expanding with the new
housing development to
the north west of the
village.
St Paul
Woosehill
Church
St Nicholas
St Pauls
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Church Numbers and Services Woosehill Church St Nicholas’ St Paul’s
Membership (electoral
roll)
112
(61 Anglican, 11 Methodist, 40
both/other)
25 195
Sunday main service attendance
55 20 115
Services – Sunday 8:45 Communion 1st and 3rd 10:00 Service of the Word 1st 10:00 Communion 2nd & 4th 10:00 Methodist 3rd 10:00 Café Church 5th 6:15 Taizé/Iona Service 4th
11:00 Community
Eucharist
8:00 BCP Communion 9:30 Parish Mass 6:15 Evensong & Benediction 1st
6:15 Healing 2nd
6:15 Choral Evensong 3rd
Services mid-week 8:30 Wed Morning Prayer 10:30 Wed House
Mass
8:30 Morning Prayer 9:30 Thu Low Mass 9:30 Sat Low Mass
In 2015: Weddings Funerals Baptisms
11 50 33
Woosehill Church
Background
Woosehill Church evolved from a house church to become an Anglican/Methodist Local Ecumenical
Partnership (LEP) in 1984, originally meeting in the local primary school. Our sponsoring body is
Churches Together in Berkshire. We are a ‘Conventional District’ for Anglican purposes with our own
churchwardens, electoral roll and church council. In March 2012, following a parish reorganisation,
we became part of a new parish, with St Paul’s and St Nicholas’. At about the same time, following a
reorganisation of Methodist Circuits in the area, we became part of the then new Berkshire Surrey
Borders Circuit within the South East District of the Methodist Church. There are nine churches in
the Circuit - Bracknell, Wokingham, Woosehill, Church @ Pines, Winkfield Row, Crowthorne,
Bagshot, Sandhurst and Yately, and High Cross Camberley, of which 3 are LEPS. Our closest
Methodist links are with Wokingham, a large and prominent town centre church with extensive
community facilities. The minister there, the Revd. Catherine Bowstead, regularly takes services at
Woosehill and both she and Revd. Jackie Case, the Circuit Superintendent, would welcome the
appointee leading occasional worship in the Circuit.
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The church building is modern, built in 1993, on land leased for
999 years from Berkshire County Council (now Wokingham
Borough Council) to the Trustees for Methodist Church Purposes
with a Sharing Agreement in place with the Anglican Church. It
comprises a multi-purpose hall for worship and other activities
together with 1 meeting room downstairs and a further 2
meeting rooms upstairs. The sanctuary can comfortably
accommodate 220 people and is cleared of chairs every week to
enable it to be put to other uses. We adjoin the site of The Hawthorns Primary School and other
community buildings.
Ministry and Leadership
The LEP was set up with shared Anglican/Methodist ministry, but in 2012 moved to a
‘single alternating minister’ model, beginning with an Anglican appointment, but still remaining part
of the Methodist Circuit.
Our governance is by a Joint Church Council (which fulfils the role of the PCC), with powers
delegated to it annually by two separate councils made up of members of our congregation and
representing the two denominations. The Joint Church Council meets 5 times a year, with a
leadership team of 5 Stewards and staff meeting once a month. For Anglican purposes, two of the
stewards are designated as churchwardens.
There is a clear tradition of lay leadership.
Worship and Learning
We use a variety of liturgies from the Anglican and Methodist traditions, and have room for
creativity within our services of the Word.
We have come to value greatly the marking of the church’s ‘special days’ with engaging and creative
services; Ash Wednesday, Easter Sunday and Midnight Christmas Communion have been particular
highlights recently.
We have a talented music group which plays for most of
our main services with music generally chosen
collaboratively by the minister/worship leader and the
music group leader.
For young people, there is Sunday Club, which meets
during the 10.00am service and a youth group for over 11’s, which meets monthly. There is also a
lunch club/bible study which meets on Wednesdays.
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Pastoral
A team of pastoral visitors visit members of the congregation in need of support and also make
contact with new members. The team meets on a regular basis under the leadership of the Pastoral
Co-ordinator.
There is also an active and well-supported prayer chain for emergency or more sensitive prayer
needs when the more public intercessions may not be appropriate. A monthly 'Together in Prayer'
meeting is usually led by a member of the congregation and prays for the needs of the church and
the community.
Mission
There is a thriving group for toddlers and their carers, run by members of the congregation and the
Parish, which meets on Wednesday mornings.
We have good links with The Hawthorns Primary School, but
could do better. One of our church members currently serves as a
school governor. A small team from the church takes assemblies
at the school and leads staff prayers, whilst the school uses our
facilities for major assemblies and for their nativity play. There
are also solid links with the new Windmill Primary School.
Other activities and groups:
A number of girls’ groups (Guides, Brownies and Rainbows) meet in the church building.
For some years we have run a Holiday Bible Club.
The Afterschool club meets in the church building.
“Cake bombing” in new estates
Christmas Carols at the local public house
Wider Church
We contribute fully to the Deanery Synod and the Circuit meeting; and are members of Churches
Together in Wokingham. One of our Church Council members is County Ecumenical Officer for
Churches Together in Berkshire.
A tithe of our annual income is allocated to various charities. Our current overseas nominated
charity is Emmanuel Ministry in Kolkata India and we are one of the sponsoring churches for
Soulscape, a Christian charity which supports young people in our local schools.
Finance
Our finances, whilst tight, are on an even keel. We pay a ‘parish share’ to both the Diocese of Oxford
and the Methodist Circuit. This has always been paid in full, but it does absorb a high percentage of
our income.
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St Nicholas’, Emmbrook St Nicholas' Community Church exists to worship God and to be
a means of enabling people to live in and realise the presence of
God's Spirit in the World. To spread the message of God's Love,
as revealed to us in the life, death and resurrection of our Lord
Jesus Christ. To support one another in community, by prayer
and through care, so that we may grow into the fullness of our
own humanity. All this we celebrate in the Eucharist.
We live out our Mission Statement individually and corporately
through our Sunday Worship, vital Fellowship Groups and
involvement in community concerns and activities.
Background
St Nicholas’ Church was established in 1977 in the Emmbrook area of the Parish to serve the growing
population there. Set up as a Community Church, its
congregation of 20-25 meets for Sunday worship in
Emmbrook Village Hall.
From the outset, St Nicholas’ was set up to “look and feel”
like a worshipping community in its own right, with its own
governance and a large measure of control over its own
finances. St Nicholas’ Council is constituted as a sub-
committee of the St Paul’s PCC.
Worship
The Eucharist is at the heart of the worship for St Nicholas’, with a less formal Catholic style than at
St Paul’s. The congregation is drawn largely from Emmbrook. Lay participation is a key feature of St
Nicholas’ character, both in worship and wider Parish events.
St Nicholas’ holds an all-age service known as “See! Hear! Live!” on the first Sunday of each month,
in which our young people are encouraged to participate. This service is much appreciated by all and
is an important part of St Nicholas’ worship.
Many of the congregation are involved in setting up the worship space each week and packing things
back in the cupboard at the end of the service – hence the
nickname ‘The church in the cupboard’.
The congregation at St Nicholas’ join the St Paul’s congregation for
special services and for many parish social events. A number of
Parish-wide initiatives have their origins in St Nicholas’ activities,
including “First Steps”, for pre-School children and their carers, and
the Wednesday morning “House Mass”.
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Fellowship Groups
Three Groups meet regularly to share in friendship and support, and to deepen their faith through
reading and prayer. This is an area which is open to a fresh vision and fresh input but which is
already in good health and which makes an important contribution to the life of the church.
Lay Leadership
Lay leadership is very strong at St Nicholas’ with a clear
identity within the church which emerges from its
strong sense of community. A chaplaincy service has
developed and operates at Emmbrook (senior) School,
“Open the Book” is taken in to Emmbrook Junior School
and a “Praying the Streets” scheme is run, whereby two
local roads a week are leafleted, inviting residents to
submit any requests for intercessory prayer to be
included in our weekly services. Many of the
congregation are involved with community groups and
activities.
Recent Events
As well as participating actively in Partnership for Missional Church our congregation was
represented at a Leading Your Church into Growth (LYCIG) conference last year. As a result of this
several successful outreach events have been held, designed to make new contacts in the
community. These include ‘Praise and Puds’, and an excellent afternoon tea which were well
attended by local people. We are keen to offer more of these in the future.
Future
A major change in Emmbrook over the next few years is the building of a large new housing
development and St Nicholas’ has to respond proactively to this over the coming months and years.
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St Paul’s, Wokingham
The Church
The church was consecrated in 1864. The elegant spire is a
well-loved local landmark and can be seen from all round
Wokingham. The building itself is richly decorated with
stained glass windows depicting the life and work of St
Paul. The church also has a fine ring of eight bells.
We are an inclusive church imposing no conditions on
anyone wishing to join our community. We fully support
women’s ordination, and the admission of young children
for communion.
Worship
St Paul’s has a long-standing Anglo-Catholic tradition. The
Eucharist is at the heart of the worship here. St Paul’s uses
liturgical vestments; incense and bells are used at most
sung services. St Paul's supports a traditional robed choir
of 25-30 singers led by our Director of Music.
The major festivals are observed at St Paul’s including the
Easter Triduum, Corpus Christi, major saints, and Festivals of
Our Lady.
The church bells are rung by an enthusiastic and friendly band
of ringers of various ages for Sunday Mass and during Tuesday
evening practices throughout the year.
The Parish Rooms
The Parish Rooms are two minutes’ walk from
the church along the Reading Road. They are
widely used by many church groups and local
community organisations and families.
The Parish Office, run by the Parish
Administrator, is located in the Parish Rooms.
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Mission
St Paul’s engages in a number of mission and outreach projects
including:
Love Wokingham – a stall run in the market place to engage with Saturday shoppers
Open the Book – a successful presentation of the Word in local schools
Charities currently supported are The Link, The Children’s Society, and The United Society
Christmas Carols in the Market Square
Activities and Organisations
Junior Church – The children meet every Sunday during the morning service in term time.
Mother’s Union – A very strong branch of the MU, meeting monthly.
St Paul’s Church of England Junior School – St Paul’s is a Voluntary Controlled School and has strong links with St Paul’s Parish. Rated by Ofsted as ‘outstanding’.
Assemblies run in 5 other local schools
Rainbows & Brownies – Meet in the Parish Rooms every Tuesday.
Welcome Club – A social club for over 50s with a regular attendance of around 30, meeting once a month.
St Paul’s League of Gentlemen – a well-established men’s group meeting regularly for fellowship.
Social
St. Paul’s has an active social committee, which arranges a variety
of events throughout the year. These include: annual summer
barbeque, quiz night, harvest supper, occasional theatre trips and
monthly Sunday afternoon walks. These events are not intended
to raise money, simply to cover their costs and provide
opportunities for relaxing and socialising together.
Parochial Church Council
The PCC has 15 ordinary members. The PCC meets
approximately seven times a year. A lot of the work of the
PCC is done by Sub-Committees which are appointed by
the PCC and report back to the PCC. These cover areas like
Mission and Outreach, Youth and Children, Music and
Worship, Finance, Fundraising and Pastoral Care of the
Congregation. The finances are currently good and have
enabled us to pay our Parish share in full.
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The House
23 Sheridan Way, RG41 3AP The house was purchased by the Diocese of
Oxford in Autumn 2012. It is a large,
extended, detached house with four
bedrooms situated in Woosehill, but handy
for the rest of the parish as well as the
wooded countryside which surrounds
Woosehill.
The ground floor accommodation
comprises an entrance hall with fitted
hardwood flooring, an L-shaped, dual
aspect lounge with hardwood flooring and fireplace with coal-effect gas fire, a dining room with
ceramic tiled flooring, a study with hardwood flooring, a cloakroom with WC and hand basin, a
kitchen/breakfast room with integrated oven and grill, gas hob with extractor hood over,
dishwasher, and upright fridge/freezer. There is also a utility room with a washing machine.
The first floor comprises a master bedroom with built-in wardrobes, en-suite bathroom with bath
and independent shower over, bedrooms 2 and 3 both with built-in wardrobes, bedroom 4, and a
family bathroom with bath and independent shower over. The property has the benefit of uPVC
double glazed windows and doors, an attached double garage, large driveway providing ample
parking, and a good-sized rear garden.
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Who we are looking for We are looking for someone who has read this far and is feeling excited about joining a newly
formed parish that is still exploring ways of working together, but which is justifiably proud of what
we have already achieved in our first four years.
We are looking for someone who can meet at least some of what we think we need, while offering
something different as well.
To be specific, we are looking for somebody who:
will join us on our PMC journey, and be the spiritual leader for Woosehill.
is passionate about God’s church being active in the community, enriching the community
and transforming it, who will themselves be active and visible in the community, developing
established connections, e.g. with local schools, and forging new ones.
longs for God’s church to grow in every way and is inspired by working with people of every
age, who has something to say to those who have only just started to think about God and
those who have been coming to church for decades;
will value and honour the way each of the three churches does things, and will rejoice in that
diversity, including the Methodist inheritance at Woosehill; who will really enjoy leading
worship across the whole parish and find the range of worship refreshing;
We hope that you’ll have:
a strong sense of how much God loves you, and a longing to make that love known to others
in action, word and prayer,
a longing to be part of a Team, to work with others, to minister to them and to be
ministered to in turn,
lots of ideas about what you’d like to try,
and the wisdom to know that some of
those things won’t work, and to learn from
what ‘fails’ as well as what ‘succeeds’,
a commitment to the wonderful routine
and variety of Parish life,
and a sense of humour (it always says this
in adverts, but we really mean it!)
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