Summer 2010
NEWS from
www.ridley.cam.ac.uk
In this issue: MORE THAN GOLD The 2012 Olympics and your church p 4
BUILDING FOR THE FUTURE The vision behind Ridley’s plans p 4
THE FINANCIAL CRISIS Christian engagement with the issues p 6
THE 2010 EMBER LIST Pull-out centrefold for prayer p 10
THE SIMEON COMMUNITY A fellowship of prayer p 12
“TO LIVE IS CHRIST, TO DIE IS GAIN” Remembering Mark Ashton p 14
DELOITTE STREET WORLD CUP Changing perceptions of street children p 16
Houston, we have a Ridleian! “As you know, my arrival here was somewhat delayed and it feels like I have been making up for this ever since”, writes Kate Picot, formerly a hospice nurse, who graduated from Ridley last summer.
Martin’s supporting those with Alzheimer’s and their carers and am hoping that I’ll be able to start a parish Nursing Project at some point”.
It was months before she started her ministry at St Martin’s Episcopal Church, Houston, Texas, because of visa requirements. However, soon after Easter she wrote to tell us a little about her life and ministry as part of one of the largest Anglican congregations in the world with nearly 9,000 members. “Sundays are a busy day”, she tells us, “with six services held (four of which I help out at) and also an adult Sunday school class to support. I have already had opportunity to preach.... which was definitely a good experience, if a little scary with the large crowds.” But as she points out, someone with an English accent is bound to get a hearing.
As a parish St Martin’s is particularly sensitive to the dependency and substance abuse issues so prevalent in our culture, so the parish is “in the middle of raising money for a ‘Hope and Healing Center’ which will house the recovery groups already based at the church. I am meeting many people with this kind of issue and know that this will be a wonderful step forward in providing support. I went to a fundraising dinner last week... they are hoping to gather $24m for this project.” This is a lot of money, but “St Martin’s raised $45m ten years ago to build a new church and hall/restaurant... it is a different world here!”
If Sundays are busy, then Easter she categorised as hectic. “There were many different events going on including a replica of a marketplace in ancient Israel, which was an impressive stage set. With teams acting out various parts of the Easter story for the children, it was great to see what a church this size can achieve.” “So that’s church life, which is fairly all-conThen there are all the other things that are suming… I have been taken out for meals a normal part of parish life, like assisting with regularity – for the hybrid Tex Mex, but “...With teams acting at weddings and baptisms, “which have also my growing favourite which is Texas out the Easter story been great experiences”. BarBQ! I have not met any real cowboys yet, for the children, it Staff of large parishes like St Martin’s each even though the rodeo came to town a few was great to see have their own specialist responsibilities weeks back (actually a couple of the priests what a church this and Kate’s are in the area of pastoral care. wear cowboy boots to work which, matched size can achieve.” “Wednesday is my day to make hospital with a dog collar, is a very stylish look!).” visits in downtown Houston... the medical She ends by saying, “My main concern is just pacing centre is huge and comprises a network of over 100 myself and giving my energy to the things I should. hospitals. Obviously, with my nursing background, I have been quite a novelty here and am looking forthis is of great interest to me and I’m already making ward to that wearing off!” some links with the hospital chaplaincy teams.” She continues, “I have also been linked into groups at St
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Can anything good come out of Toxteth? Current student Rhiannon Jones reflects on the opportunities and challenges of a student mission. What do you think of when you hear the name of the Liverpool district of Toxteth? Perhaps, in light of its troubled past, you respond à la Nathanael – can anything good come out of there? However for one Ridley mission team, Toxteth proved to be the source of much good when they headed up there this Easter. Adrian Chatfield led twelve good students and true to where he had once gone on mission three years previously – to work with three Anglican churches, the Toxteth Tabernacle, Liverpool Chinese Gospel Church and the New Life Centre, as they held a week of special events under the “Passion for Life” mission banner. Students were involved in preaching, school assemblies, after school and youth clubs, accompanying senior citizens on a pilgrimage to the Promised Land (Wales), attending an Easter celebration at a centre for Yemeni women, beer nights, pamper evenings (it was tough), handing out drinks and hot cross buns in clubland on a Friday night, prayer walking and trying to find out from local people in and outside the church what signs of hope they saw in the area. One particular highlight for many was a Muslim/ Christian dialogue that took place on the Tuesday evening of the mission trip. Fred Frederick writes: “Adrian was invited to present a perspective on Christian spirituality alongside a Muslim perspective on the same topic presented by a senior Sufi Muslim. Some 80 or so people from both faith groups attended, and the speakers took turns to talk about prayer, its place in our relationship to our Creator, how God speaks to us, and what our hopes are for this most important of relationships. The dialogue was polite and gracious, and afforded great opportunities to befriend people of another faith whose world often seems to be quite separate from our own. It was a wonderful demonstration that a context shaped by respect and willingness to listen is very effective in enabling bridges to be built between people of different cultures and faiths.”
It was a week of being fed magnificently and for sleeping less than usual; for making new friends and for seeing God at work in good and surprising ways; for having our eyes opened to the challenges of ministry in all its forms outside the safety of theological college and for appreciating afresh the power and hope of the Easter story. Can anything good come out of Toxteth? It already has.
The College of Evangelists welcomes David Male On Wednesday 21st April in Birmingham the Revd David Male was admitted to The College of Evangelists at the Annual Commissioning Service at St Martins in the Bullring along with two other evangelists. The College of Evangelists exists to recognise and affirm evangelists whose ministry is nationwide or at least beyond the confines of any diocese. It is not an academic institution but a support and resource group for its members, set up by the House of Bishops in 1999. At the Annual Service the new Chair of the Board of the College, John Inge, the Bishop of Worcester, was also welcomed. Ridley’s Tutor in Mission and Homiletics, the Revd Dr Paul Weston, became a member of the College in 2000, and we are delighted to see a second member of staff recognised in this way. David commented, “I feel very honoured to be part of the College and I look forward to learning with and from other evangelists from around the country. From my earliest days in the church I felt the call to be an evangelist and have seen the different ways that gift has worked out in my ministry.” More information: www.collegeofevangelists.org.uk 3
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More than Gold: 2012 Olympics
London Olympics are a God-given opportunity to celebrate sport and the God that gives us sport.
“A God-given opportunity to celebrate sport and the God that gives us sport.”
On a more local level with a few friends and a few Ridley ordinands I have begun planting a church (www.sportchurch.weebly.com) to reach people who are interested in sport but would never go near a church.
Nearly a third of the adult population of the UK are connected to a sports club. That is an amazing statistic. People often joke that football is the new religion and certainly it has its places of worship, its idols and its own liturgy. Yet sport is a wonderful way for churches to find places of connection. Over the last nine months I have been helping to bring awareness to churches of the possibilities that the London Olympics will bring in 2012. Through the national churches umbrella organisation More than Gold (www.morethangold.org.uk) there are lots of ways churches can get involved in outreach, hospitality and service. I really don’t want churches to get to June 2012 and then think, “I wish we had done something earlier”. It seems to me the
Building for the future Incremental progress towards planning permission has provided opportunity for “a fresh look at the underlying vision for developing our site”, says Principal Andrew Norman. My first direct encounter with Ridley Hall’s ambitious Development Project was in June 2008. It was the night before being interviewed for the post of Principal. By coincidence, a fundraising dinner for the project was held at Lambeth Palace, where I was then working, to which I tagged along. Straight after the dinner, I hitched a ride up to Cambridge for the interview, in a coach full of Ridley staff and students who had come to London for the event. Since then, the Development Project has been heading stepby-tortuous-step towards planning permission. Last summer, 4
The project had its roots in conversations about faith with parents at my son’s football matches, sometimes when I was the linesman! Having begun to think about how these kind of people might connect with Jesus, I set out to find people with a similar passion and we were off and running. We meet every other Monday in a local pub in Cambridge. Within this small but promising beginning we have a passion to see the gospel reach many others through more sports clubs. And my son’s reaction to the sports church? “Our two greatest loves in one thing, Dad!” Not a bad answer son! Revd David Male Tutor in Pioneer Ministry
a neighbouring property unexpectedly came on the market and it looked as though we might be able to purchase this and scale back our building plans. But we were massively outbid. Then we discovered that one of the listed trees beside the building plot was diseased and therefore needed to be removed. The building footprint consequently changed overnight from being ‘L-shaped’ to ‘T-shaped’ and neatly completed the ring of buildings round the croquet lawn. Meanwhile, the formal planning process was demanding all kinds of surveys and studies. A heritage assessment had to be commissioned, to chart what kind of development was compatible with the evolution of the site to date. Archaeologists came to look for Saxon, Roman, and Iron Age remains. A landscaping consultant had to be brought in to ensure new buildings would be accompanied by sympathetic blending with pathways and lush greenery. At critical points, the City Planning Department provided their own feedback on what might be acceptable within the closely scrutinised world of Cambridge colleges. From my point of view, as a recently appointed Principal, this rather cumbersome process has
Sporting witness Ridley’s growing passion to see the Good News witnessed to through sport (see also “More than Gold”, left) was worked out in style on the pitch in March this year. Sky Sports commentators dubbed ordinand Greg Cushing ‘Flying Vicar’ as he scored a try for Cambridge University in the annual Rugby League Varsity match. Just a week earlier fellow student Chris Lee (below, left) was given the distinguished Hockey Blue award when he was selected to be in the starting line-up against Oxford in the 110th Varsity match. Our warm congratulations go to both students.
had a welcome benefit. It has bought time for a fresh look at the underlying vision for developing our site. This has coincided with a major strategic review of the Cambridge Federation of Theological Colleges, of which Ridley is a founder member. As we add the finishing touches to our planning application, I am extremely excited about the benefit this project will bring. It will provide greatly improved facilities for our existing core activities. Beyond this, it will enable Ridley to contribute creatively and imaginatively to God’s work increasingly widely, building on its inspiring record of innovative work. Further details of the project will be publicised once the planning application has been finalised. In the meantime, I must confess to being impatient to get started. We have already received some very generous gifts and pledges and are praying for much more so we can start breaking ground at a time when the building trade is eager for business.
The legacy of the Gurneys, fulfilled in the present day One sunny afternoon in September last year I was chatting in the reception at Ridley when I saw there a copy of the history of Ridley Hall Cambridge, written more than seventy years ago. Term had not yet started and we were awaiting the birth of Zachary, our third child, and I had the feeling that I needed to know more about how the august institution of Ridley had begun. I thought it would be nice to begin reading the 400-page volume. Although Ridley officially opened its doors on 28th January 1881, needless to say there was a lot of preliminary work and fundraising required to launch the twin colleges of Wycliffe Hall, Oxford, and Ridley, here in Cambridge. So it was with great surprise that when I reached page 142 the name of one of my ancestors, the Right Honourable Russell Gurney, jumped off the page. He had a far more distinguished career as a lawyer than I ever did when I practiced law, becoming both a Q.C. and Member of Parliament for Southampton. He was at one time a Recorder of London and also an influential member of the Church Missionary Society. It was however the mention of a resolution by the Ridley Council that they should thank him for raising necessary funds and arousing interest and support in the project to build Ridley, that of course caught my interest. From the moment my wife, Sarah, and I walked into Ridley we felt it was a very special place, but the realization that my 19th-century ancestors had helped found the college and that I was now the beneficiary of such a legacy in the 21st Century, sent a wonderful tingling feeling through my body. We should not under-estimate the long term consequences of our prayers and investment in the advance of God’s Kingdom. Charlie Boyle (Ry 2008-10)
There are plenty of uncertainties about the future of the Church of England and the wider Anglican Communion. However, I am confident that the versatile facilities we are envisaging will put Ridley in an even stronger position to play its part in God’s transforming purposes in the days to come. 5
Grappling with the financial crisis Not surprisingly, grappling with the financial crisis that has gripped the world during 2007-9 has been a major part of the Faith in Business agenda in recent months. Our engagement has been focussed on two events. First, in November last year we joined forces with St George’s House Windsor to hold a consultation entitled Where Now? Reassessing Values and Direction in an Economic Downturn. Twenty-two eminent leaders from the worlds of finance, business, government, academia and the church examined from a Christian perspective the interrelated topics of the breakdown of trust, values and virtues, credit and debt, the shift of power from West to East, and the change in the ethos and practice of capitalism.
banking? An interview that I will be carrying out with Lord Brian Griffiths in Faith in Business Quarterly may provide some of the answers. At Ridley, the speaker who sparked off the liveliest debate was Paul Mills, senior economist with the International Monetary Fund. A radical thinker, Paul offered a major critique of the debt-based financial
Turning from analysis of what went wrong to projection of what might go better, we followed up with our annual conference on Sustaining a Business Recovery, held at Ridley in the spring. This was attended by thirty-five people from a variety of backgrounds. The topics covered ranged from the survival of capitalism, the problem with debt and the role of regulation through to the changing world order, alternative business models and a theology of hope. Both events were friendly, stimulating and replete with fascinating insights and lively exchanges.
Members of the St George’s House Consultation 2009
system both from a biblical perspective (the Old Testament seeing debt as akin to slavery) and from a survey of the volatility, speculative booms and busts, misallocation of finance, poor lending decisions and entrenchment of differentials between rich and poor which have been especially marked in the debt-ridden economies of the USA and the UK.
In this necessarily short report, I shall highlight one Big Idea which emerged from each event. At Windsor, the financial services sector was subjected to thorough analysis. While public criticism of bankers may have gone over the top, we agreed that the sector has failed to respond to its critics adequately in that it has not come up with a convincing statement of the social good of banking. This is a particularly pressing question with regard to investment as distinct from retail banking. Investment banking as currently practised appears to be marked by arcane sophistication, huge risks and outlandish bonuses. Does it actually help the general public? Can we make further progress in understanding and reform with the aid of some highprofile Christians who work in the upper echelons of
Paul made several practical suggestions designed to encourage a move away from debt-based financing to other models, notably equity finance where there is a greater sense of partnership and sharing of risk on the part of investors. While not all delegates were entirely persuaded by his arguments, he offered a real challenge to us all to grasp the current crisis as an opportunity for Christians to speak and act boldly – confident that God’s Word embodies wisdom for his glory and our freedom. Richard Higginson Director of Faith in Business, Ridley Hall
articles ~ reviews ~ news ~ announcements quarterly
A forum to explore and promote the application of the Christian faith and values to working life in business, the professions, and public and voluntary service
The Journal of Faith in Business (Ridley Hall) and Industrial Christian Fellowship (ICF)
The Journal of Faith in Business (Ridley Hall) and Industrial Christian Fellowship (ICF) Visit www.fibq.org for more information including details of how to subscribe, or contact: Isolbel Weaspe (FIBQ Secretary), Wavey Crest, Harrow Green, Lawshall, Bury St Edmunds, IP29 4PB.
Faith in Business quarterly is a journal 6
relating Christian faith and values to the business world containing articles, reviews, news items and announcements providing a forum to explore and promote the application of the Christian faith and values to working life in business, the
Editors David Driscoll Richard Higginson John Lovatt
Ember List 2010 With this pullout centrefold we invite you to pray for this year’s leavers as they prepare for their future ministry, whether it be in the world of work or in parish or youth ministry.
Philip Atkinson & Rachel and Hannah
(formerly NHS Consultant in Public Health) Parish: St Aldates, Oxford Having experienced the delights of Cambridge for the last two years, we’re now going to “the other place”, to see how Oxford rates by comparison!
I’ll be working at St Aldates with a special remit to reach out to the poor and marginalised in the city. God’s goodness in creating this role has been all too evident, and we look forward to what he has in store for us!
Andrew Cooper (formerly IT Manager) Parish: St Paul’s, South Harrow I feel so privileged to have spent three years at Ridley. I’m grateful to both staff and students for all their support and friendship – its been challenging, but thankfully I’ve also laughed a lot. The prospect of leaving is rather frightening, but at the same time I’m keen to move on to the next stage and see what the future holds.
Brian Crowe (formerly CEO, Global Banking and Markets, Royal Bank of Scotland) Parish: St Catherine’s, Crook, Carlisle Diocese Just a single year at Ridley was an intensive but wonderful experience. I’m now looking forward to returning to rural church life in Cumbria, to serve a stable community where God is at work through the preaching of His Word and the movement of the Holy Spirit.
Ian Dyble (formerly Barrister) Parish: Holy Trinity, Brompton
Charlie Boyle (formerly Lawyer, Headhunter, Careers Consultant, Local Politician…) Parish: St Kea, Truro
Working alongside another Charlie (yes lots of jokes about two Charlies have already been made) in an open evangelical parish a few miles from the seaside and south of Truro. We’d all better get used to Cornish pasties, surfing and the rain of the West Country.
What a privilege to study at Ridley in mid-life and meet so many great people. It’s been a special time and I will miss Cambridge, Ridley and friends. However, Jo and I are really looking forward to the next stage of God’s plan, when the Dybles from the country hit the Big Smoke!
Peter Edwards
(formerly Broadcast Assistant, BBC Religion & Ethics) Parish: Great Malvern Priory, Diocese of Worcester
David Britton & Rachel & Isaac
(formerly Marketing Manager) Parish: St James West Streatham & St Paul’s Following three great years here at Ridley, we will be going to the parish of St James West Streatham and St Paul’s where I serve my title post. We are really looking forward to moving back to south London, continuing my training and getting stuck in with whatever God is doing down there.
Sir Edward Elgar found inspiration here at the foot of the Malvern Hills. Please pray for the clergy and congregation of Great Malvern Priory; especially the Vicar, John Barr, and the Bishop of Worcester, John Inge. Please pray for me as I seek to serve God and his people in this beautiful part of England.
Jerry Field (formerly Manager, Alpha for Forces) Parish: Holy Trinity, Brompton, Kensington Diocese Camilla, Samuel and I are really looking forward to planting a church in the near future!
Jan Bunday (formerly Teacher, part-time and Lay Minister, part-time) Parish: Potton, Sutton and Cockayne Hatley, St Albans Diocese My two years at Ridley have been fruitful and fun. I’m sad to be moving on, but then that is why we come here. I’ll be based at home and drive the eight miles into these Bedfordshire parishes. They’re a great bunch of people, and I’m looking forward to getting to know them better.
Fred (David Frederick)
(formerly Royal Marines Officer) Parish: Cromer, Norwich Diocese Praying to discern and follow God’s leading into fruitful ministry: “...and he did climb onto a surfboard because the crowds around him were too great...and he allowed them to stay and watch him surf after he had addressed them...”
Rebecca Gilbert (formerly Pastoral Assistant, St Stephens East Twickenham) Parish: St Mary’s Ely, Diocese of Ely After two great years at Ridley we’re really excited about our move to Ely and joining St Mary’s. We’re looking forward to learning lots and being part of all that God is doing at St Mary’s and in the town itself.
Will Leaf (formerly Business Solutions Manager at Martin Ward Anderson (Recruitment)) Parish: St Dionis Parsons Green, London Lisa and I have enjoyed a wonderfully rich and fruitful two years at Ridley. We leave with much more than we arrived with: two daughters (Naomi and Sofia), new friendships that will last a lifetime and a bigger picture and experience of God. We’re very excited to be returning to London and being part of what God is doing in Parsons Green.
Paul Harford (formerly Production Manager, Parliamentary Brief Magazine) Parish: St Peter and St Paul, Stokesley with St Martin’s Seamer
We have loved being at Cambridge, and are now feeling eager to return to our roots up north and raise our son as a proper Yorkshireman. It feels like we’re joining a church at a time of change, as it embraces not only a new curate but recently a new incumbent – it’s very exciting. Bye then.
Mark Harris (formerly Church Musical
Director and Language Teacher) Parish: St John the Baptist and St Mildred, Meopham with Nurstead, Rochester
We’ve had a fantastic time in Cambridge. Coming here with two kids, Bethany and Samuel, who’ve loved being here and being part of Ridley, we’ll leave with three – Annabel was born here! Katy and I have been blessed and challenged, found some wonderful friends, and grown in many ways. We’re really looking forward to serving the Lord and His Church in our curacy!
David Lloyd (formerly Private Client Solicitor at Penningtons Solicitors LLP) Parish: St Marys Hampton I would be very grateful if you could pray for Anna, me and Georgia to settle in to Hampton well as a family, that we would be faithful and courageous in all that God calls us to and that God would give us surprising and creative opportunities to share the good news in Hampton.
Derek McClean
(formerly Teacher of Religious Education) Parish: Parishes of St Margaret’s, Drayton, and St Edmund’s, Taverham, Diocese of Norwich I will miss the people at Ridley, but I am really looking forward to the challenges which the Curacy will bring. Please pray for my family as we all learn to adjust to the new situation.
Rob McDonald Claire Elisabeth Johnson
(formerly in Sales) Parish: Holt Benefice and Melksham, Salisbury Diocese It has been a wonderful two years for me at Ridley, and I will really miss the community here. But I’m very excited about starting my curacy in Melksham and Holt in Wiltshire, and I’m looking forward to learning and growing in a mission centred church. Thanks to everyone for a lot of love, patience and laughs!
Chris Lavender (formerly Bank Official) Parish: Headcorn and the Suttons, Canterbury Diocese My time at college has been vital in equipping me with the theological training required and I am looking forward to putting this into practice in parish life. Having been a weekly commuter at college it will be good to be back with my family full time and to be together in this new phase of life.
(formerly Associate Pastor, Alpha International) Parish: St George of Cappadocia with Greenfields United Church, Shrewsbury, Diocese of Lichfield Finally, after six years, one wedding, one birth, thirteen volumes of Barth’s Church Dogmatics, many happy walks to Grantchester and countless new friends, Rob, Anna and Sandy are leaving Ridley! We’re delighted to be moving to Shrewsbury and very excited about this next step in our ongoing adventure with a loving and faithful God.
Elisheva Mechanic (formerly Teacher and Missionary) Parish: St John the Baptist, Ipswich, Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich I have enjoyed studying at Ridley for these two years and look forward to my curacy in Ipswich. Roni and I will be juggling two homes, two gardens and six churches between us. Thanks to all the lovely people I have met at Ridley.
Chris Newman
Parish: Don’t know! I am currently not sure what I will be doing from June in terms of work but I am very much looking forward to getting married to Fran in September! I have loved my time at Ridley and thank God for bringing me here for these three years. I continue to trust Him for my life and wait (fairly) patiently for what will come.
David Oxtoby (formerly IT & Business Consultant) Parish: Stamford Parish in Diocese of Lincoln Excited to be returning to Lincolnshire for the next stage of God’s amazing adventure, picking up the vision again of “a million souls saved”. Equally exciting will be seeing how Christina’s church planting vision takes off. May we all build an army that marches on its knees.
Barnaby Perkins (formerly PA)
Parish: Parish of St Nicolas, Guildford, Diocese of Guildford
I have had a wonderful four years in Cambridge, where I have learnt an awful lot. During my time at Ridley I met my wife, Caroline. We are both looking forward to our move to Guildford and getting settled into life at St Nic’s. Thank you all for your support and prayers.
Rebecca Phillips (formerly Teaching Assistant) Parish: All Saint’s Childwall, Liverpool Diocese These last three years I feel a little bit as though God has taken me apart only to build me back together stronger. It’s been challenging, fun, a steep-learning curve and annoying, all at different times! I’ve made some life-long friends and now am just chomping at the bit to go and put it all into practice in Liverpool.
Peter Sanlon (formerly Parliamentary Speechwriter) Parish: St Ann’s Tottenham & Oak Hill College, London Diocese Five years at Ridley seem to have flown by - degrees, babies, coffee and conversations have all been a part of the whirl of activity. Many thanks to everybody and God bless. Peter, Susanna and Lewis.
Grace Sentamu Baverstock
(formerly Administration manager) Parish: St Luke’s Watford, St Albans Diocese My time at Ridley has been challenging and fruitful, and I am looking forward to moving to new pastures and getting stuck into parish life.
Luke David Tillett
(formerly Assistant Youth Worker) Parish: The Parish of St. Nicholas, Guisborough, Diocese of York “For all that has been – Thanks. “For all that shall be – Yes.” Dag Hammarskjöld (1905-1961)
Gill Toogood (formerly Property lawyer) Parish: Parish of Brentford (Team Ministry) in the London Area of Kensington Ridley has challenged, in both expected and unexpected ways, but it has also deeply blessed and I give thanks for that. I am to return to my sending Parish, a team ministry in West London; just another of God’s many surprises of which I am sure there will be many more! John, Ed and I will be a full-time family once again and we look forward to all that ministry in Brentford has in store for us.
Adam Webber
(formerly Outdoor Instructor, youth charity) Parish: St Wilfred’s, Cowplain, Diocese of Bournemouth Abi and I are really excited about starting a new chapter of our life back in Hampshire. Two years at Ridley have flown by and we will have many mixed feelings when we leave.
Steve Wilkinson & Tash, Beth & Isaac
(formerly Project Manager in the electronics industry) Parish: Corsham and Lacock Team, Bristol Diocese
A God of surprises has delivered a more rural curacy than I expected, so I’m now researching innovative ways to bless ploughs! Lacock church, set in a picturesque National Trust village (‘Cranford’) has a thriving ministry to tourists as well as to the parish. New schools, GCSE courses and the potential of a new cake decorating business present a mixture of challenges for the family.
Mixed Mode Pioneers The completion of the four-year Mixed-Mode Pioneer Training partnered by Ridley Hall, St Paul’s Theological Centre (Holy Trinity Brompton), and Westminster Theological Centre (St Mary’s Bryanston Square), marks the end of the first phase of Ridley’s ongoing commitment to formation for innovative patterns of ministry. As we continue to expand and develop our work with pioneer ordinands, we wish this cohort, now all ordained priest, God’s richest blessings as they continue in their ministries.
Simeon Centre interns Katy and Kara, as the Simeon Centre’s first two interns, have contributed richly to the Centre’s life, prayer and programmes, and to the community at Ridley Hall. They have also helped us to envision the internship programme, and we are deeply grateful for their partnership in the gospel. Katy Wehr
Mark Bishop Curate, Oaktree Church, Acton, West London Noelle Coe Diocese of Guildford Gareth Dickinson Mission and Community, Holy Trinity, Cheltenham Ed Flint Curate, St Mary, Bryanston Square, London Peter Hughes Pioneer Minister, King’s Cross Annie Kirke Missional communities, Kensington Episcopal Area, London
Andy Poultney Youth Adviser for Barking Episcopal Area and St James, Collier Row Adam Prior Youth Pastor, Soul Survivor, Watford Graham Singh Curate, Holy Trinity, Swiss Cottage, London Tim Sudworth NSM, St John the Baptist, Egham and Chaplain, Strode’s College Stuart Wright Curate, Emmanuel, Tollington Park, London
Philip Mann Associate Minister, St James, Gerrards Cross
I have truly enjoyed being a part of the Ridley community the last two years as an intern with the Simeon Centre. I am finishing an MA and plan to complete my dissertation by December. I am exploring a few options for my next steps and would appreciate your prayers for God’s leading. Jon Kara Shields Kara is returning home to the Blue Ridge to spend time with her husband (woohoo!), brother, sister, nieces (6 & 2) and nephew (6). She will be enjoying the opportunity to cook and bake, hopes to learn German and keep up a weekly board game night with some friends. She’s still waiting to hear about which exciting job she will get to do next, but looks forward to volunteering as a lay hospital chaplain and literacy tutor. In the long term she hopes to pursue further (theological?) education, start a family, and visit more of England and the world (in no particular order).
The Centre for Youth Ministry Please pray for students at Ridley’s Centre for Youth Ministry who have just completed their final year in youth work training. Their training placements have been varied, from church- and community-based youth projects to national youth organisations. Some will continue in these posts after graduation, others will be going into new posts in an equally diverse range of roles. This year’s leavers are: Simon Burns
Marcus Mak
Anna Crane
Jayne Menlove
Joy Faulkner
Kirstie-Louise Bottiglieri
Bianca Ferreira Da Silva Nicky Murray
CYM students graduating this year, pictured with the Centre’s Director Jo Griffiths, Assistant Director Robin Barden and Administrator Fiona Bell-Williamson
Nicky Gleeson
Lara North
Anna Goalby
Alex Rayment
Charlotte Hancock
Phil Shaw
Gavin Hicks
Rachael Tabert
Deborah Jones
Leanne Wale
Preaching with an eye to the future HOLY
BIBLE
the word would simply be, “Why”. The course aims to create a reflective practice of youth ministry, and the way I began to undergo this transformation was through a persistent, repetitive, “Why”. “Why do you believe that?” “Where has that idea come from?” “Why might someone else disagree with you?” I suppose my time at Ridley gave me the tools to dismantle my perceived orthodoxy in order to release the event of faith within me.
Explore with us how what the Bible says about the future can profoundly shape our preaching and living.
Bishop John Taylor & Revd Dr Andy Angel
7th–9th Sept 2010 at Ridley Hall, Cambridge Resource & Refresh Residential Conferences for Lay Readers/LLMs Visit: www.ridley.cam.ac.uk/readers.html Or call: 01223 741079
The journey of youth ministry training Tim Leeson (Ridley CYM 2004-7) looks back on how his time at Ridley CYM shaped his outlook and ministry. When I think about some of the most significant milestones in my journey of faith and ministry, my time on the CYM course at Ridley Hall easily stands out. The course was never easy. On an academic level, the step from school to university-level writing is almost by definition a big one, and it took time to get used to the new expectations. But, more significant than the academic challenges presented to me by the course were the personal ones. I started the course aged 19, quite sure of what I believed, looking not so much to learn new things (because I knew almost everything I needed to know already) as to get a qualification to enable me to tell more people what they needed to believe. CYM soon shook that mentality out of me. If I could sum up three years of teaching in one word,
The credit for my personal and academic transformation is of course due to the teaching staff, the lectures, and the studying, but it is also due to the open and welcoming environment at Ridley Hall, where a group of 20 or so youth workers could feel comfortable and safe grappling with issues that, at the very least, felt life-changing. It might seem obvious to say that God was involved in my journey, but the course’s great achievement is making us aware of God’s activity in our lives. I now work for the CYM course one day a week. It is a joy and honour to be involved in the lives of the students on the course, as they grapple with the same big questions that I grappled with. It is fun to see them challenged, and inspiring to see how their questioning leads to different answers to the ones I’ve come up with. I am proud to be involved in an institution which steers, shapes and guides people as they work for the Kingdom. I am proud to have been shaped by CYM’s “Why”, just as I am now proud to be asking the question myself.
The bride wore green wellies Ridley students’ wedding pictures seldom appear in the national press, but those of Grace Sentamu arriving at the church on a snowy December day for her marriage to Tim Baverstock were very widely circulated. The Times introduced the story with the headline, “The bride wore green wellies”, and other newspapers were just as creative. Tim and Grace, who is graduating from Ridley this summer, were married at a ceremony at York Minster during the really unpleasant winter weather just a few days before Christmas. The wedding was conducted by Grace’s father, Archbishop John Sentamu. We hasten to add that the bride had changed her shoes by the time she walked down the aisle! 11
The Sound of Freedom Reflections on the power of music in mission I feel distinctly unqualified to write too much about the Ridley Hall Gospel Choir. I spent most of last year away from college and only joined the choir for a few months. During that time, however, I had the privilege of working with some highly committed singers, who were passionate not only about their music, but about the effect it could have on people’s lives. From a concert at an immigration reception centre to a mission in Hampshire, the Gospel Choir sought not just to entertain, but to bring something of the joy of the Christian faith into the lives of their audiences. Music is a profound gift. The interplay of voices, the complex of dissonance and harmony, rhythm and tempo: all these express the creativity of God whose likeness human beings uniquely bear. All music, but particularly music in praise of the creator, can lift us beyond ourselves to contemplate God, and in so doing, to share more fully in God’s own life.
One of my top five cinematic moments is from “The Shawshank Redemption”. Andy Dufresne, an intelligent, cultured man locked away in a Godforsaken prison for a crime he had not committed, plays a duet from “The Marriage of Figaro” Ridley Gospel Choir’s latest over the prison tannoy system. CD is available online at The stunt earns him weeks in www.ridley.cam.ac.uk/shop solitary confinement. But his captivity had brought light and hope to the other inmates. It was as though a bird had fluttered into their dank cave and showed them something of the truth which lay beyond its festering walls. This truth is my lasting memory of the Ridley Hall Gospel Choir: in it, normal people gave their voices to the service of God, and by doing this were raised to share in God’s love for his world – whether this was bringing a note of joy into the lives of illegal immigrants, detained for deportation, or into a rather mundane shopping centre. And in doing this, the walls which separate us from God began to dissolve. Barnaby Perkins (Ry 2006-10)
The Simeon Community
– where possible – about three times a year for prayer, fellowship and a growing sense of friendship.
At the launch of the Simeon Centre in late 2007, I suggested that its vision should include the formation of some sort of community of prayer.
At a recent meeting, we talked about the indefinable character of the Community. Members were adamant that it is neither an organisation nor an institution. Rather, it is a movement of the Spirit to which individuals belong for a season, in which God uses our faithfulness to each other for his Kingdom purposes.
It was almost an afterthought, and I don’t recall thinking very hard about it. The idea impressed itself on me; it did not come from me. ...several people told In retrospect, it looks very much as if it had us that they had been the hand of God on it. Immediately after the “waiting for something event, several people told us that they had like this for a long time”, been “waiting for something like this for a whatever this was. long time”, whatever this was. More than two years later, with nearly thirty people around the country sharing in the life of the Simeon Community, we continue to wonder at the gentle way in which God often brings about his purposes. I still struggle to define what the Community is. It is certainly a group of people who pray for Ridley Hall, for the work of the Centre, and for each other, as well as for specific and often confidential needs. Members of the Community also support the work financially and practically, and we meet together 12
For me, this has been a really important part of my exploration of the life of prayer in community. We are an improbable bunch of people, who have no reason to belong together except our common sense of calling, no compulsion to stay together other than that of Christian love.
We have, therefore, been very cautious about “recruiting”, hoping rather that others will sense this call too. If, and only if, your spirit is stirred by God in response to this, we’d love to talk with you, as you explore another step in your life with a great God, and his people. Adrian Chatfield Director of the Simeon Centre for Prayer and the Spiritual Life
Beyond the gates of Ridley Some readers may not be aware that in addition to working full-time to teach and help form Ridley students, staff members are often serving the Church at large, even during the pressures of term time. Take Ridley’s Vice-Principal Mike Thompson, for example. In November he led a teaching day for curates and lay readers at St Martin’s, Castleton for the Diocese of Manchester, helping them to think through the ideas and challenges of new perspectives on St Paul and the difference that could make in their preaching. In October he led a day for more than 75 Canterbury Diocese clergy and lay preachers on ‘Preaching the Gospel of Luke’, in preparation for the many readings from Luke in the lectionary this year. Last June Mike spent a day with 80 or so clergy (and both bishops) in the Diocese of Derby looking at new perspectives on Paul’s letter to the Romans and the apostle’s strategy as a pastor. And shortly before that he led a similar day, teaching and encouraging about 70 retired clergy and their spouses at Manormead in Hindhead. But not all extra-Ridley ministry is preaching and teaching. Mike has been a member of the Ridley Gospel Choir from its inception five years ago. When he isn’t singing bass, he’s playing guitar to accompany the group. This year they have sung at churches in Milton and in Landbeach, as well as performing ‘in public’ at the Grafton Centre in Cambridge. In addition to their term-time engagements last year, the Gospel Choir led a weekend mission based at the Church of the Good Shepherd, Farnborough in Hampshire. The mission included working with young people from the local estate and performing in a shopping centre, giving testimonies and encouraging hearers to attend evangelistic services in the church. This summer while on holiday in North Carolina Mike will be offering a teaching day for the clergy and laity of the Diocese of East Carolina where he was originally ordained thirty years ago. Mike is no exception; all of our teachers are active in different forms of ministry outside of Ridley. He and the other teaching staff are not able to accept every invitation they receive to speak, but they are happy to consider them. There is more to Ridley than meets the eye!
Being Creative to the Glory of God 10am to 4pm, Saturday September 11, 2010 Far from a quiet day, this Simeon Centre event may turn into quite a noisy day! Since God the Creator created us in His image, our aim is to encourage you to turn your own creativity into prayer by nurturing the gifts you know about, and by stretching yourself into an area you have never explored but would like to.
L ea
rn a new
skill to the glory of God to reativity in Turn your c
r praye word
music
IT WAS GOOD:
drama
Being Creative to the Glory of God
art
No prior skill is required. After an introduction there will be four hands-on workshops (Art, Drama, Music and Word). The sessions will be repeated after lunch, and you will be able to sign up for two. Then we will gather for a closing act of praise and worship. * Turn your creativity into prayer * Learn a new skill to the glory of God Book your place now using our secure online credit card processing system at: www.simeoncentre.co.uk It Was Good: Being Creative to the Glory of God will be held at Ridley Hall on September 11, 2010. There is a registration fee of £20. Drinks will be provided; please bring a packed lunch. For more details call us on 01223 746593. 13
Changes in the Church of England give good reason for hope that a “life-giving church will emerge” Bishop Graham Dow speaks to the College on the occasion of his retirement as Chair of the College Council Graham Dow is the quiet, thoughtful bishop who since 2003 has chaired the Ridley Hall Council. Having retired from the Diocese of Carlisle last year, this spring Bishop Graham has passed leadership of the College Council to David Urquhart, the Bishop of Birmingham. Ridley’s ministry has continued its advance during Bishop Graham’s years, with new initiatives like the Simeon Centre for Prayer and the Spiritual Life seeing the light of day, as well as the necessary longterm preparations for constructing new buildings that will be vital for the college’s future. These might be challenging times, but Ridley Hall is not going to miss the wonderful opportunities being offered to it.
Ordained in the latter part of the Sixties, Bishop Graham has been a witness of the radical changes in society that have taken place since then. He recently told the college that at the outset of his ministry the church was often at the heart of community life, but that is no longer so. Christians are now a counter-culture, something new to the Church of England, and to which it is seeking to adjust. This means we must think long and hard about “how we position ourselves in the (now) dominant culture”. Shifting
“To live is Christ, to die is gain” It was with great sadness that we heard of the death of the Revd Mark Ashton (Ry 1971-73) on Holy Saturday, at the age of 62. Mark had known that his cancer was terminal for over a year. Mark had been Vicar of St Andrew the Great Church in Cambridge since 1987, during which time the church grew considerably. His warmth of character combined with boldness of faith will be missed by all who knew him. Writing in the last year of his life, in a booklet entitled On My Way to Heaven, Mark points to the resurrection of Christ as the place to find confidence in facing death. Subtitled ‘Facing death with Christ’, the publication addresses with stark honesty issues of faith, life and death. “My death forces me to face the resurrection of Jesus”, he writes. “No longer is it a bald fact of history for me. It is of crucial significance for every person who faces their own death honestly. Until I am dead, I cannot know what will happen to me after my death. But Jesus has already risen. If I know him now, I will know him then. He is my assurance in dying, and his resurrection is central to Christianity.” Speaking at a gathering of friends and family in July last year, Mark described his final months in terms of his faith as “the best and richest part 14
circumstances mean a reordering of priorities with “mission now clearly on the church’s agenda, and this is a huge change”. While the times might be strenuous there is good reason for hope: God has not cast us on one side, and from this roiling “a life-giving church will emerge”. Perhaps the greatest encouragement is that the Church of England is moving beyond maintenance, “and things are developing fast for mission-oriented ministry”. His message to the college was positive – we live in exciting times, with plentiful opportunities waiting to be grasped with both hands by the next generation of Christian leaders.
of my life”. He drew strength from Paul’s words in Philippians, “To live is Christ, to die is gain”, reminding his listeners that in biblical thinking the end of our lives is a person, not an event – the person of Jesus Christ. Our thoughts and prayers are especially with Mark’s wife Fiona and their three children.
Copies of On my way to heaven: Facing death with Christ cost £1.50 each, available from 10ofThose: Email: sales@10ofthose.com Tel: 0844 879 3243 ISBN: 978-1-90617-308-1
Preparing for a cheque-less society Getting our first chequebook is a rite of passage as important as passing the driving test. On leaving school my father sat me down in front of the bank manager, I signed the appropriate documents, and in return received a chequebook and warnings about its misuse. It may surprise you to discover that in a few years our chequebooks will be taken away from us! By 2018 we will be living in a cheque-less society, and chequebooks will be as useful as a vinyl record in an age of iPods. We are already under pressure to use anything but cheques, and this will only increase in coming years. The digitally savvy are already way down this road – but here’s the rub: three out of four charitable gifts are made by cheque. We can be certain that as 2018
The last of our cheques will be cleared on October 31st, 2018.
approaches it will be increasingly difficult to use cheques for our giving – whether to church or to Ridley Hall. Many fear that this changing approach to handling money is likely to hurt charitable recipients – but it needn’t. To be forewarned is to be forearmed, and in preparation for the changes we are seeking to provide as many ways as possible for you to continue (or start) giving to the college. People who have computers can go straight to the front page of
the Ridley website and click on “Make a donation”. This will take you to a secure website where you can make a gift by credit or debit card. You can even Gift Aid your donation by checking one little box. If you want, you can even give anonymously! But if you want to give to Ridley on a regular basis, go to the ‘Giving to Ridley’ spot on the front page menu, then click on ‘How to give’ and download the appropriate Standing Order form. If you don’t have a computer you can call us at 01223 741079 or drop a line and the form will be mailed to you. Instructions for US citizens on how to make your gift tax deductible are also provided. We will of course happily continue receiving cheques from our friends and supporters for as long as the banks will allow! Richard Kew, Development Director
Pioneering in ministry National Mission and Evangelism Advisor for the Church of England, the Revd Paul Bayes, was one of a series of high profile speakers at Ridley’s Pioneer Life & Service class this year. The focus of pioneer training is to equip students to follow their passion and calling to connect with those outside the normal orbit of the church. Paul engaged the student pioneers in reflecting on how to envision and build new Christian communities, within the existing structures and framework of the Church of England. 15
Deloitte Street Child World Cup Ridley Council member Chris Rose speaks of his involvement in an inspiring event. On 14 March 2010 in Durban South Africa, former England international and FIFA 2010 World Cup Ambassador Gary Mabbutt made the draw for the inaugural Deloitte Street Child World Cup. For the next week teams of street children from South Africa, Tanzania, Brazil, Nicaragua, Philippines, India, Ukraine and the UK competed in a tournament followed by ten film crews and press from around the world. The crowds turned out in force to provide a uniquely South African atmosphere, vibrant with vuvuzelas, drumming and dancing.
A small start... The project grew from unpromising beginnings. We were a handful of people, mainly from Cambridge, advised that our idea was impossible and far too risky. But our small investment became testament to a generous God, as we were joined by many people enthusiastic to be involved, whether as volunteers, fundraisers, donors, or by giving their endorsement – David Beckham, Alex Ferguson, Gordon Brown and Desmond Tutu, to name but four. The Street Child World Cup was set up by Christian human rights organisation Amos Trust, in response to the groundbreaking work of partner project Umthombo Street Children. Millions of children have to survive on the streets of our world’s cities where they are routinely abused by members of the public and by the police who often round up street children to clean up the streets. The Street Child World Cup was set up to challenge this practice and the pervasive view that these children are worthless. Our hope was that changed perceptions would then lead to pressure being placed on local authorities to work with NGOs to develop informed and caring strategies.
We wanted to place these children’s experiences and the reasons why they were on the streets at the centre of a new drive to have their legal rights realised. To this end the children took part in a groundbreaking conference that for the first time placed street children’s personal stories centre stage and caught their take on the issues which mattered most to them. The children went on safari, visited a water park, played human foosball at an event organised by corporate sponsors Deloitte, and were shown round the streets of Durban by Umthombo street children.
...making a big difference The public started to see and recognise street children not as something different but as children – and when we see them in the same way as we see our children or our siblings it is so much harder to treat them as less than human. As a result, when a round up occurred in Durban during the event, it not only received extensive media coverage but also triggered crucial negotiations between the Municipal authority and Umthombo Street Children about ongoing strategies for work with street children and a firm commitment to end the practice of round ups.
Humanity in community In his book No Future Without Forgiveness, Desmond Tutu described the South African concept of Ubuntu: A person with Ubuntu is open and available to others, affirming of others, does not feel threatened that others are able and good, for he or she has a proper self-assurance that comes from knowing that he or she belongs in a greater whole and is diminished when others are humiliated or diminished, when others are tortured or oppressed.
When we start to make Ubuntu a reality, we become involved in something truly remarkable. Chris Rose Associate Director, Amos Trust