Summer 2011
NEWS from
www.ridley.cam.ac.uk
In this issue: RE-IMAGINING TODAY’S WORSHIP What can we learn from Calvin? p 3
A PIONEERING SPIRIT IN THE CHURCH Moving from vision to reality p 6
MOVING INTO MINISTRY 2011 Ember List: pull-out centrefold p 7
THE PASTORAL PRIVILEGE Grace Sentamu Baverstock on the ordained life p 11
HOW CAN I DIE WELL? Society’s struggle to face death in a wholesome way p 12
EGYPT: LIFE AFTER JANUARY 25TH Bishop Mouneer Anis on the hopes and challenges facing the Church in Egypt today p 15
SEEKING SIGNS OF RECONCILIATION Revd Chris Butt on life in Bahrain during and after the protests p 16
Winds of Change: Residential training and the needs of the Church A gusty wind has been swirling around theological institutions in recent months. The Church of England has been urgently reviewing the kind of training pathways it will be able to afford, as university fees increase and Government funding for higher education is drastically reduced. In such a climate, there is pressure to view theological colleges as institutions whose sole purpose is to train clergy in a cost-effective way. This, of course, is part of the rationale for our building plans. Our proposed new facilities will improve our capacity both to act as a hub for activities which benefit the wider Church, and to train ordinands and youth ministers. We were surprised and disappointed when our planning application was turned down in October, despite the support of the City Council’s Planning Officers. We have now submitted a revised plan and lodged an appeal, as convinced as ever that our calling merits these Ridley can act as a strategic improvements, however blustery “canopy” for activities the climate.
Training of clergy is indeed our core activity. Yet this takes place in the midst of a wide array of other activities which benefit the life of the wider Church. In this edition of News from Ridley, you can read about ministry to children through our Centre for Youth Ministry, international engagement, the forthcoming Simeon Centre Conference on “Dying Well” and the development of the Centre for Pioneer Learning of which we are a co-sponsor.
We have long regarded this diversification as beneficial to our training of clergy. Staff who are involved in these which benefit the enterprising initiatives bring a wider wider Church perspective to their teaching. Ordinands benefit from the presence of students and clergy from other parts of the world. They also benefit from participation in the far-sighted ministries associated with Ridley. And with the funding support attracted by these diverse activities, Ridley is better able to survive financially in the volatile climate in which it operates. In this blustery financial climate, we are also preparing for our quinquennial inspection. In our inspection paperwork, we are drawing on an image from Daniel and Ezekiel to describe Ridley’s ecology. Ridley’s calling is likened to the cedar tree which provides shelter for the beasts of the field and rest for the birds of the air. This corresponds to Ridley acting more and more as a hub for activities which benefit the wider Church. This is true not just of its on-site activities but of activities carried out in its name elsewhere. Ridley can act as a “canopy” for activities through its premises, staff, students, links with a world class university, membership of the Cambridge Theological Federation and globallyrecognised name. 2
Andrew Norman, Principal of Ridley Hall
Planning Permission Awarded! Just as we were going to press with this magazine the application for planning permission for the proposed new building was approved. We had anticipated a tough battle getting it through but in the circumstances the Cambridge City Planning Committee voted unanimously that we be allowed to proceed. This is a wonderful answer to prayer!
The Development Office is now changing gear and redoubling efforts to raise the funds to get the building underway. We have in hand, pledged, or already spent, approaching £3 million and the total towards which we are aiming is £9 million, with another £1 million required for adjunct needs like upgrading the Dining Hall. There will be much more about this exciting challenge in the next News from Ridley.
The college would appreciate your gifts and your prayers.
Simeon Centre awarded two-year grant Welcome to Rebecca This Spring we welcomed Rebecca Cowen onto the Ridley staff as Personal Assistant to the Principal. She has previously worked in medical laboratories as a healthcare scientist, and this post brings her back to Cambridge where she studied for her degree in Natural Sciences, before completing an MSc in Clinical Biochemistry.
Rebecca enjoys playing the flute and piano, singing and anything musical, particularly being involved in her church music group. She also likes to relax with family and friends, read and walk in the countryside. In her “spare” time she is planning her wedding to Adam, due to take place in August.
Ridley on iTunes Ridley has recently uploaded seminars, lectures and sermons onto Apple’s iTunes Store. The audio files are all free and can be found by searching for “Ridley Hall” or by going to the University of Cambridge site on iTunes.
The files include Moule Memorial Lectures from Richard Bauckham and Jurgen Moltmann, along with the address delivered by Eugene Peterson at the Simeon Centre’s Restoring Prayer conference.
Further audio files will be added to both the iTunes Store and the University of Cambridge Streaming Media Service as they become available: www.sms.cam.ac.uk/institution/RIDLEY/collections
In late October 2010, the Simeon Centre was delighted to receive the news that the Sir Halley Stewart Trust had awarded it a grant of £18,000 per annum over two years to facilitate the ongoing work of the Centre. This Cambridgeshire-based trust has a Christian basis and is concerned with the development of body, mind and spirit, a just environment, and international goodwill. To this end it supports projects in religious, social, educational and medical fields. In a difficult financial climate, we are more than usually grateful to them for their confidence in the aims of the Centre, and their encouragement of our aim to work towards self-sufficiency.
Re-imagining today’s worship – what can we learn from Calvin?
Current ordinand Daniel Newman takes a look at what congregational Psalm-singing – encouraged by Calvin’s Genevan Psalter – might hold for the worship and mission of the Church in the 21st century. On 29th April 2011, Kate Middleton walked down the nave of Westminster Abbey to Parry’s anthem “I Was Glad”, a setting of verses from Psalm 122, leading one envious Roman Catholic journalist to comment, “The Anglican choral tradition is the finest in the world.” For a Church of England ordinand to follow this by writing about psalm-singing in mid-sixteenth century Geneva might therefore seem like a movement from the sublime to the ridiculous: in the city where John Calvin ministered, psalms in divine service were sung by the congregation in unison, unaccompanied by musical instruments. What has Canterbury to do with Geneva? Assembling for divine service on Sunday mornings, Sunday afternoons, and Wednesday evenings, the congregation in Geneva would sing the psalms in their entirety twice in a year. For Calvin, placing the congregational singing of psalms in unison at the heart of the church was a restoration of corporate worship to the people of God; the prevailing practice of professional choirs performing works in a verbal and musical language which few could understand was effectively worship by proxy. There is immense value in singing the psalms, according to Calvin. In the Preface to his Commentary on the Book of Psalms, he calls the Psalter “An Anatomy of all the Parts of the Soul”, in which the Holy Spirit brings our innermost emotional life to light, 3
so that in our need we may call upon God for help in prayer. He adds, “There is no other book in which we are more perfectly taught the right manner of praising God”, and he writes that the Psalms “will principally teach and train us to bear the cross”.
Calvin deliberately wanted music that was sung in church to have weight and majesty, and not resemble secular music used for entertainment. Many of the psalm tunes in the Genevan Psalter incorporated fragments of Gregorian melodies and ancient hymns, reflecting Calvin’s desire to retain a connection with the early church. The result was far from dour and lifeless: the syncopated rhythms of the psalm tunes led Queen Elizabeth I famously to dismiss them as “Genevan jigs”. These were songs to which soldiers marched out to battle and martyrs to execution. One of the musicians whom Calvin enlisted was Louis Bourgeois, whose most well-known tune is probably that which has come to be known as The Old Hundredth.
Originally used for Psalm 134, it was employed by the English-speaking community in Geneva for William Kethe’s familiar metrical version of Psalm 100, “All People That On Earth Do Dwell”. An arrangement by Ralph Vaughan Williams, along with Parry’s “I Was Glad”, was sung at the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II; Parry himself composed “Chorale Fantasia on ‘The Old Hundredth’”.
Re-equipped for new ministry Coming to the end of his year in Cambridge, Zion Ngoka talked with Richard Kew about his time at Ridley and the ministry to which he will be returning back home. Home is Owerri in the southeastern corner of Nigeria about sixty miles from the coast, and until last summer Zion played a significant role in the bishop’s pastoral and evangelistic engagement with the growing number of congregations and parishes in the diocese. Zion is spending the summer completing his MA dissertation before returning to Nigeria. While not sure of the exact nature of his new ministry yet, it is likely that he will be involved in clergy training and formation. Manpower and leadership are a major priority in a rapidly expanding church, so he suspects he will be teaching teachers to teach.
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While in Cambridge he has experienced snow for the first time in his life and has learned to live with the
The Genevan Psalter was completed in 1562; what will be the lasting cultural legacy of today’s Christian songs, four centuries from now? If a diet of regular congregational psalm-singing with distinctive music characterised by weight and majesty were reintroduced into divine service, what would be the impact on our robustness of faith, depth of prayer, and faithfulness in following Jesus? What effect would this have on the mission of the church? Daniel Newman, Ridley ordinand
Readers may also be interested in The Psalms in Christian Worship: Patristic Precedent and Anglican Practice (Hymns Ancient & Modern, 2008) – in which Anthony Gelston (Ridley 1959-60) argues that it is up to clergy and church people to make use of the rich provisions of the Anglican liturgical tradition past and present, if we are not to cut ourselves off from an element of Christian worship that has been, until recently, practically universal. (ISBN: 9781853119767)
cold. However, he will miss the wealth of libraries, especially theological libraries, that we have here. There is nothing Zion enjoys more than burying his head in some of the myriad books available. He will also miss the diversity of Anglican tradition that we have in the parishes and college chapels around the city, something that has given him a deep appreciation of the richness of Anglicanism. Zion is focusing on Applied Hermeneutics in his dissertation, which has immediate application in Nigeria. Not only must the Nigerian church ask and answer what sort of Gospel they have to share, but also how to communicate it in a rapidly changing society where old ideas and traditions are being challenged by an increasingly intrusive media.
We will certainly miss Zion and his gentle godliness when he goes home, but we know he will be glad to get back to his wife, Chizor, and their four children (it is wonderful that they have been able to keep in touch most days through services like Skype), as well as the Nigerian foods which he craves.
Pioneer School A unique school for pioneers in ministry
October 2011 to May 2012
Six Saturdays, each one resourcing and supporting you in your ministry Informing
Morning input from key speakers to bring you theological and practical resources
... and Forming
Afternoon hub discussion, reflection, prayer and worship
Find out more:
www.ridley.cam.ac.uk/cpl Andrew S. Dalton, 1949-2011 On Easter Day at his Scottish home, Andrew S. Dalton, Treasurer of both Ridley Hall and Wycliffe Hall, Oxford, died suddenly, and entered the presence of the Risen Christ. The Managing Partner of Dalton Strategic Partnership LLP, a global investment management company in the City of London, and a former Mayor of Kensington and Chelsea, Andrew was a tireless servant of Jesus Christ as well as the common good. Among many other things Andrew was a past Master of the Grocers’ Company, chaired the Oundle School Foundation, and served Magdalen, his old college in Oxford, as senior member of their investment committee.
As a college we offer our deepest condolences to his wife, Jennie, and Abigail, Frederick, Benjamin, and Eliza, their children. His burial took place in Scotland and there will be a London memorial service at a later date. Andrew Dalton will be greatly missed in many quarters.
Bishop of Ely’s first visit to Ridley Recently installed in Ely, Stephen Conway made his first visit as diocesan bishop to Ridley in late May. He came for dinner with members of staff, and in a “getting to know you” session shared some of his vision. It is clear that Ridley will have a valued role serving the Diocese of Ely in the years ahead.
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A pioneering spirit in the Church It has been a whirlwind time. In less than a year the Centre for Pioneer Learning (CPL) has gone from an idea to a reality. We now have four people working with the Centre, a website, opportunities to meet with key Church leaders, and a whole host of conferences, creative partnerships and plans for further developments.
CPL originally grew out of David Male’s work over the years since he joined Ridley in 2006, in addition to his work with Westcott House and the Diocese of Ely. These three bodies are now the stakeholders of the Centre, ensuring this work is embedded in the life of the Church and providing support and oversight of the Centre and its activities through an Advisory Group. The Advisory Group is working very hard to help both the governance and the financing of the Centre as we try to find frameworks that will enable our development to continue.
The CPL Team meet together regularly to oversee the work of the Centre
The Centre has two functions. Firstly, to help all pioneers who are establishing new forms of church, to give them valuable opportunities to learn together through relationships, support, teaching and resources. This happens through mentoring, working
with small groups and being involved in conferences. But secondly we also want to help the Church think about how to help, support, nurture and develop pioneers so that an entrepreneurial and pioneering spirit is established throughout the Church. This has led to meetings with key leaders like the Bishop of London, and dialogue with regional groups of key “permission givers” from many denominations. The Centre is always keen to work with other groups and denominations who are serving pioneers. Already we have worked on conferences and courses with Fresh Expressions, Church Army, the Methodist Church and the Centre for Youth Ministry. Additionally we are developing relationships with significant individuals who are linking with us as Associates of the Centre, our first Associate being the Baptist evangelist Chris Duffett.
The team consists of Dave Male, Adrian Chatfield, Nicky Redsell and our student intern from Ridley, Peterson Feital. They meet together very regularly to oversee all the work of the Centre.
This summer is set to be very busy with three major conferences in September: Innovation and Tradition (a conference on catholic mission at Westcott), the third annual Breakout national gathering for pioneers, and the first ever International Conference on Fresh Expressions and Pioneering for other nations who are developing fresh expressions – already people have booked in from Australia, New Zealand and Canada. (See below for further information.) August sees the publication of Pioneers 4 Life (BRF) which is edited by David Male and includes essays by David, Adrian and Peterson.
In June and July David will be in Australia speaking at major conferences in Perth and Adelaide... and the team are already looking ahead to a Pioneer School starting in October! (See page 5 for further information.)
The International Conference on
Fresh Expressions and Pioneering Tues 6 – Sun 11 September 2011 Ridley Hall, Cambridge 6
www.centreforpioneerlearning.org.uk
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 and children’s ministry.
Ember List 2011
Jude Davis (formerly Pastoral Assistant) Parish: Doncaster Minster (Sheffield)
FULL-TIME ORDINANDS
I’ve enjoyed three years studying and living at Ridley Hall. I will always think back on it with fond memories remembering all the wonderful people I met and the fun adventures we had.
Madeleine (and Shamsher) Albert
(formerly Associate Minister for Young People) Parish: Longthorpe with Bretton (Peterborough)
David Edgerton
We are very much looking forward to the next step in ministry in Peterborough, where I will be Pioneer Curate at Longthorpe with Bretton.
(formerly Business Development Manager) Parish: Knowle Parish Church (Birmingham) Having enjoyed three years training in Cambridge, I am looking forward to working in Knowle and putting the learning into practice.
Susan Bowden-Pickstock
(formerly BBC Faith Producer) Parish: Bluntisham cum Earith, Holywell cum Needingworth and Colne (Ely) I’ve been training at Ridley to be an ordained Pioneer Minister doing a BTh in two years, which is a very silly idea if you also have four teenagers! In some ways it has been a crucible time, but the opportunity to get to grips with prayer, discernment and waiting on God has been the gold. I have so valued the input of Jane, Adrian and the Simeon centre. The staircase groups have provided much-needed laughter and support as has our Pioneer Group, who I will love forever. I’m now just wanting to be out there!
Peterson Feital (formerly Pioneer Evangelist) Parish: St James’ Muswell Hill (London)
Ridley Hall is the fifth Bible College that I have attended during sixteen years of ministry, and as a training place is a very healthy environment, grounded in prayer. As a pioneer curate I will be running the mission and evangelism department working in how to reach out to the creative industry. I will also be leading the teenagers in mission and discipleship! It will be So much fun!
Peter W. Gilroy (formerly Webmaster)
Simon Bradford (formerly Software Development and Business Analyst) Parish: All Saint’s, Milton (Ely)
We are staying in Cambridge so that I can pursue a non-stipendiary curacy at All Saints Milton, hopefully I will be ordained summer 2012. To pay the bills I will be working fulltime for HM Revenue and Customs helping to improve debt collection through the application of statistical analysis and process automation.
Parish: St Helen’s and St Luke’s Parish, Stapleford (Southwell and Nottingham) I grew up Roman Catholic (trained for the priesthood), and was nurtured in charismatic renewal, eventually serving in YWAM and then Vineyard Churches in the USA and UK. Eventually, my admiration for the Anglican church got the better of me! I’m delighted at the prospect of serving Christ within the Church of England.
Phil Goodacre (formerly Youth Worker)
Grant Cohen (formerly Hairdresser)
Parish: St. Thomas and St. Margaret Brightside with Wincobank (Sheffield)
Parish: St Anne’s with St Francis, Sale (Chester) I’m still at the stage of pinching myself asking “is this really happening to me?” With just a few weeks to go all I can do is hold out my hands and thank God for his faithfulness in fulfilling his promise because his plans for me truly have been for my welfare, plans which have given me a hope and a future.
I’m very thankful for my time at Ridley and will remember fondly the two years I’ve spent here. “Holy Spirit, you do not wish us to be anxious, you enfold us with your peace. It prepares us to live each day as a day that belongs to God.” (Brother Roger of Taizé)
Organised by The Centre for Pioneer Learning and the Cambridge Centre for Youth MinAndrew (and Lydia, Joanna & Phoebe) istry Cranston (formerly Secondary Design and Technology Teacher) Parish: Benefice of Christ Church Stone and Oulton-with-Moddershall (Litchfield)
Having grown up in Oxford it’s been fun to experience “the other place” for the last three years – and even beat Wycliffe in the recent “varsity” cricket match! Memories will fade but we hope friends will remain and we look forward to what God has in store for us in Stone.
Phil Greig (formerly Rochester Assistant Director of Education & Diocesan Advisor in Voluntary Education) Parish: St. Mary the Virgin, Chartham (Canterbury)
Phil will be moving back to his sending Diocese to be ordained deacon on July 2nd, his 35th birthday, in Canterbury Cathedral. His wife, Lucy, will be working part-time for Cambridge CYM. Phil is looking forward to working with the vicar, another Phil, in helping the parish in setting up pastoral and healing teams and developing the youth work, amongst other things…!
Heston Groenewald (formerly Youth worker) Parish: Ravensbourne Team Ministry (Southwark)
These three years in Cambridge have been something of a roller coaster for the two of us, but the ups have far outweighed the downs. Very sad about parting company with so many wise and wonderful people, but very excited about the move back to south London. We’ll take lots of great memories with us – and a dog collar!
Samuel (and Hannah, Seren & Poppy) Haigh (formerly Bus Mechanic) Parish: St Mary’s, Wootton (St Albans)
Coming from Yorkshire I have found it difficult to come to terms with my two children being born in the South! Fortunately Ridley has been a wonderful place to live and learn and we will miss it dearly. We are looking forward to sharing the amazing Good News of Jesus Christ with the people of Wootton.
Steve Harris (formerly Partner in a law firm in the City of London) Parish: St Mary and St Michael, Trumpington (Ely)
My time at Ridley has given me many of the tools with which to begin my future ministry. I will be a selfsupporting curate in Trumpington, on the southern side of Cambridge, so as well as finding my feet in this new role I will also be setting up my own legal practice at the same time.
Tom Holbird (formerly Youth Pastor, St Paul’s Hammersmith) Parish: St James Gerrards Cross (Oxford)
Katy and I have had a memorable three years at Ridley Hall in which our family has grown from two to three. We will miss this bubble but we also can’t wait to get to Gerrards Cross and roll up our sleeves.
Gregory Holmes (formerly IT Consultant) Parish: St John the Evangelist, Fareham (Portsmouth)
Life has been an ongoing transition from Navy Clearance Diver to the software industry and then Ridley! I think the next move promises to be the most exciting. I feel privileged to have been at Ridley and so grateful to the staff we have - though I am looking forward to being closer to the sea!
Amanda Howett (formerly Senior Lecturer in Speech and Language Therapy) Parish: St Michael’s, Boldmere (Birmingham)
I was not expecting an appreciation of cricket, playing darts and developing a liking for malt whisky to be outcomes of theological education, but it’s been fun! As has learning lots and meeting some great people. I am very excited to be returning to Birmingham and beginning my ordained ministry in Boldmere.
Eleanor Jeans (formerly Director of Music at Emmanuel Church, Loughborough ) Parish: St Luke’s Thurnby (Leicester)
Highlights of my time at Ridley have included directing the gospel choir, learning to play croquet and being part of a community both in challenging and encouraging times. I’m really looking forward to my curacy, a church on the outskirts of Leicester where I hope to learn lots about mission as well as using my musical gifts in outreach.
Rhiannon Jones (formerly Radio Producer) Parish: Manchester Cathedral (Manchester)
After two intense years in the deep south at Ridley, I am heading back north to become an “experiment” (their term!) at Manchester Cathedral – a lively, busy and, some might say controversial, centre of worship. There is a great team in place and I am looking forward to working alongside them in whatever ways open up.
Chris Lee (formerly Missionary)
Parish: Holy Trinity Brompton (Kensington area, London) I found my time at Ridley really formational. I have made some life friends, I hope. We will see what the future brings but whatever it is I am sure it will be exciting.
Chloe Light (formerly Midwifery Care Assistant)
I’m leaving Ridley to get married to a previous Ridley ordinand; Fred, who is about to be priested this summer and has almost completed his first year of his curacy in Cromer. I will be continuing my training with ERMC in Norfolk. I will be working part time at Cromer hospital as a healthcare assistant. I have enjoyed being part of a fun and caring community at Ridley, and I am thankful for the friends I have made here.
Calum Lindsay (formerly on the staff at Holy Trinity
Brompton) Parish: All Souls, St Margarets, Twickenham (Kensington area, London) I loved the teaching, the challenge of theology, the city of Cambridge and the croquet but will sorely miss my friends, staff and students alike. However I am looking forward to getting on with the job and being back in a parish community. The new P(recinct)-Staircase was fantastic! Please pray for re-entry back into London life, for continuing to learn and for more of the Holy Spirit.
Diane Marchment (formerly Accountant)
Parish: St Ninian’s, Douglas (Sodor and Man)
Jon Oliver (formerly Chaplain to the Nightclubs in Bournemouth) Parish: Pioneer Curate with St Mary’s, Sholing (Winchester)
Get me outta here! Following our wedding in August, Tammy and I are enormously excited about working together to explore opportunities to engage in the mission of God and plant fresh expressions of church in the suburbs of Southampton. Although I’ll be ministering among the current congregations too, our priority will be pioneering evangelistic engagement with those in the local community untouched by existing patterns of church life.
Leah K. Philbrick (formerly Children and Young People’s Minister, St Michael and All Angels, Blackheath) Parish: Sutton Team Ministry (Southwark)
Having spent two years being challenged, changed and inspired at Ridley I am looking forward to the next stage of ministry and all that God has prepared as I become established in a new community as part of the Sutton Team Ministry.
Corin (and Nicky) Redsell (formerly Editorial Manager for a publishing house) Parish: Lordsbridge Team (Ely)
I am looking forward to discovering what God is doing in the communities we will be part of and joining God in this, journeying with those we encounter into a deeper sense of God’s presence.
Russ Smart (formerly 18-30s Development Worker) Parish: The Good Shepherd, Romford (Chelmsford)
I have really enjoyed my time at Ridley and living in a beautiful place like Cambridge. It has been hard work but I know that it’s all been worth it. I’ve met some great people who have encouraged me about the future of the Church of England. I will miss many of the staff and students but I am excited to be moving on to be curate at The Church of the Good Shepherd in Romford, a charismatic evangelical church, with about 200 people and a large staff team. God is good!
Ian Snares (formerly Head of Membership and
Fundraising, Evangelical Alliance) Parish: Ilfracombe Mission Community – Parishes of St Philip & St James and Holy Trinity (Exeter) Jo and I arrived in Cambridge in 2009 with a one-yearold (Jonathan) and move to North Devon this summer with another one-year-old (Annabelle)! God has led us quite unexpectedly over our time here, not least to an exciting and somewhat unique curacy that opens up great opportunities for ministry and gaining expertise and experience. We’d certainly value your prayers.
Paul Stephens (formerly Customer Service and Operations, British Airways) Parish: Parish of Forest Row and Ashurst Wood (Chichester)
I’ve had a rich, challenging and fruitful time at Ridley and I’ve also found some wonderful friends here. I’m really looking forward to being a part of all that God is doing in Sussex.
Jody Stowell (formerly student at Spurgeons College, completing a Bachelor of Divinity) Parish: All Saints’, Harrow Weald (Willesden Area, London)
My constant prayer as an (about to be) ordained woman in the Church of England is that I will more and more understand what Irenaeus meant when he said “The glory of God is a human being fully alive”. I pray for this kind of abundant flourishing, for me and for those amongst whom I will serve.
Juliet Williams
(formerly Project Manager, evangelism charity) Parish: St Agnes and Mount Hawke (Truro) While I will be very sad to leave Ridley (and the croquet lawn) I can’t wait to get back to the Cornish landscape where parish life awaits. Please pray for a smooth transition and that I would love those in my parish.
Stephen Wilson (formerly Relationship Manager, Institutional & Alternative Fund Services, HSBC) Parish: Overton and Laverstoke with Freefolk (Winchester)
Two years at Ridley have been an interesting, often challenging and rich experience, which has flown by. We are very excited about the move to Overton and we are looking forward to getting stuck into life in the parish and all that God has in store for us.
PART-TIME ‘MIXED MODE’ ORDINANDS Sue Butler (formerly Teacher and Pioneer leader) Parish: “Thirst” Cafe Church (Ordained Pioneer Minister) and St Philip’s Church (Curate) (Ely)
I am looking forward to the challenge of continuing to see the Fresh Expressions “Thirst” Cafe Church, which meets in a local primary school continue to grow and mature. I will also enjoy working alongside Revd Stewart Taylor at St Philip’s Church in Mill Road where I will be learning the “traditional ropes”.
Tony Hodder (formerly Founder and CEO of Close House, a charity working with disadvantaged young people) Parish: St Martins Church (Hereford)
I will be working as an Ordained Pioneer Minister in a parish of over 21,000 people. My ministry will be looking at ways of engaging with the community and exploring new ways of being “church” in that community.
INDEPENDENT STUDENTS Jaiye Edu (formerly Fundraising Assistant at Christian Aid)
I look forward with hope and expectation to what God has in store. I look back on all that has been with thanks, and more thanks.
Zion Nzechinyere Ngoka (formerly Director,
Episcopal Pastoral Ministry Team and Chaplain to the Bishop, Anglican Diocese of Owerri Nigeria) Parish: CATOL Owerri (Owerri Nigeria) Looking forward to combining my former role with pastoral clergy formation, growing and empowering church workers in pastoral skills.
The Centre for Youth Ministry Please pray for students at the Cambridge Centre for Youth Ministry who have just completed their final year at Ridley. 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: Lydia Aggrey Tanya Bond Jeremy Bottrill Suzy Bower Jane Burton Sam Clews Tom Copestake Joseph Crisp-Hihn Luke Holloway
Matthew Howell Lauren Johnson Harriet Leefe Stuart McTurk Amarilla Molnar Ewan Petty Lauren Crisp-Hihn Rachel Young
The Church’s mission to children – GRACE in action In the past few months I have been enjoying the challenge of working as Senior Tutor at Cambridge CYM and leading on the Children and Families stream at the Centre. During this time, it has been rewarding to explore with students, colleagues and our partners the core principles of ministry with children and their families. Kathryn Copsey in her book From the Ground Up highlights the African proverb that it takes a village to raise a child. The village refers to the family and community around the child. The GRACE principles have been identified in order to inform how this support can be offered in a way that builds on the needs of children and their families.
Growth through Play – Healthy development promotes learning, fosters spirituality and affirms the individual. Children need opportunities to explore, enquire, create, imagine, build, work together, take risks, rest and pretend. Play not only provides these experiences but encourages children to socialise and communicate. Play reflects the creativity of the creator in whose image we are made. Relationship and Community – We are all created by a relational God whose desire to relate with us led to his incarnation. Relationships are built through clear communication – verbal and non verbal. Children respond to conversation; adults learn about the child’s world through encouraging them to articulate their thoughts, inviting them to contribute their ideas and providing a safe environment for them to pose their questions.
Acceptance and Unconditional Love – Archbishop Desmond Tutu reflects that “unconditional love for our children means that we truly love and accept them regardless of whether they succeed or fail, behave or misbehave”. It is a privilege to be able to get alongside parents, offer support and walk the road together, empowering them to remain faithful to their child, resilient to the weariness of the challenge, and persistent with their efforts. Community with Responsibility – Many families today do not have local extended family, so the responsibility of the “tribe” or “village” falls upon the community in contact with the family. It is also paramount that we encourage children to understand the responsibility they have to contribute and participate within the community that they are part of. Empowerment – The Jewish faith places the child in the midst of the family ritual of the Passover, giving responsibility to the youngest member of the family to ask pertinent
questions regarding the elements of the meal to reinforce meaning to the ritual. Jesus himself took a child, the least important of society, and placed him in the midst of the people to challenge adult thinking. By holding and blessing a child he reinforced the value of children and affirmed the need for adults to learn from their openness and humility (Luke 9:46–48). The mission of the church should therefore be to support the child’s network as well as supporting the child themselves in their spiritual journey. These principles underpin the children and families courses offered at Cambridge CYM. Please do contact me if you would like to discuss them further. (See advert opposite for contact details.) Lucy Greig, Senior Tutor, Cambridge CYM
The pastoral privilege of ordained ministry
Grace Sentamu Baverstock writes about her experience as Curate during the year following her graduation from Ridley. “Living the dream” is a phrase I first heard at Ridley Hall from a fellow ordinand, which he later used to describe his curacy. It was all he had hoped for and more, and this has been my experience during the first year in Holy Orders serving the community of St Luke’s Watford. The people who make up this church are very loving and accepting, and have embraced me and my husband. So overall I am writing from a position in which I feel I have entered the promised land, especially as I was seriously ill during my theological training and I feared I would not finish the course or be ordained. Therefore it is with deep gratitude that I review my ministry so far.
Gratitude that my health has not merely held but continues to improve, gratitude that being a newlywed has aided my ministry and not detracted, gratitude that God has gone before me and prepared the right place for me to learn what it means to follow him and lead his people. Looking back over the past year, three highlights stand out: Pastoral encounter: What strikes me the most is how total strangers open up to me and tell me the most personal things. For me this is the privilege of ordained ministry: to journey with those undergoing times of great distress and sorrow.
Washing feet on Maundy Thursday: I have had my feet washed several times before but never been the washer. I found the whole experience deeply For me this is the privilege of ordained ministry: moving and a revelation. to journey with those Mission: St Luke’s have a undergoing times of great pre-school and I was deep- distress and sorrow ly moved by the fact that the church had no relationship with the parents and carers who daily come into the church building to drop off and collect their children. So after discussion with my vicar I started serving tea and coffee on Wednesday mornings in good quality take-away paper cups. At first the parents were wary and found it hard to believe that it was for free, but six months later relationships have been forged, and there is now a team helping. We have begun offering prayer, which people have begun accepting, and one grandma is seriously exploring the Christian faith with us.
This first year has flown by and I eagerly await being ordained priest in July and seeing what further adventures God has in store. Revd Grace Sentamu Baverstock Assistant Curate St Luke’s Watford
Equipping to Serve...
BA Honours Degree in Children and Family Work and Practical Theology
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How can I die well? Reaction to the BBC’s screening of a death on primetime TV (“Inside the Human Body” – May 2011) is a salutary reminder of our society’s continuing struggle to face death in a wholesome way. The Simeon Centre is acutely aware that there are particular life contexts where prayer is desperately needed, yet in such situations we may not know how to pray, or what to pray for. At times of transition and crisis, our confidence in God may be shaken and our “soul refuses to be comforted”. Of all such times, the journey towards death is perhaps the most poignant. Increasingly it is a sensitive subject involving much pain and anguish, and provoking passionate debate. This is why we have chosen “Dying Well” as the topic of our second major conference.
How can I die well? Will I be able to die well if there is too much pain? How can I walk with, support and guide others who are facing death? Hardest of all, when they want to take some control There are hard questions over that journey, how being fought over... can I walk with them which demand prayerful in Christian integrity? wisdom and risky faith These are the cries of the heart. Alongside them, there are hard questions being fought over in the light of new scientific developments, which demand prayerful wisdom and risky faith. In the face of a growing debate which will not soon go away, we believe that we have been called to offer a context in which Christians can prayerfully open up end-of-life issues and listen to the full range of voices, without the vitriol of much media representation. “Dying Well” – to be held at Ridley Hall September 15–17 – will offer a safe space in which we can express ourselves thoughtfully, passionately and diversely.
A range of speakers will explore end-of-life issues from a variety of perspectives: legal, medical, theological and spiritual. The panel represents the breadth of position and opinion in the current debate, and there will be much opportunity for participant engagement. In particular, we will focus attention on appropriate care and support, including pain management, the autonomy of the individual within the context of community and faith, and the question of assisted dying. It will not be an easy conference, but our 12
prayer is that it will help Christians to engage with the wider debate, make responsible decisions in the light of contemporary research and medical competence, and remain faithful to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. From him all life comes; to him all life must return. Adrian Chatfield, Director of the Simeon Centre
Dying
Well
Faith and Compassion in Dialogue A conference hosted by:
theological insights
medical viewpoints
prayerful discussion legal perspectives
The Simeon Centre for Prayer and the Spiritual Life Venue: Ridley Hall, Cambridge Date: September 15-17, 2011 Speakers include: Dr Raj Munglani Dr Elaine Storkey Professor John Keown Professor Paul Badham Rev Dr Brendan McCarthy
Booking and information:
www.simeoncentre.co.uk
A journey of discovery
LIVING WITH DYING by Grace Sheppard RRP: £12.95 ISBN: 9780232527834 (Darton, Longman & Todd, 2010)
Written in 2010 by Grace Sheppard, this is a book about her experience of caring for her husband in his last years. When David Sheppard, retired Bishop of Liverpool, and Ridley graduate, was diagnosed with bowel cancer in 2001, husband and wife embarked together on a “journey of discovery”. A cancer survivor herself, Grace found that she was “living with dying” as they experienced the journey together. Facing cancer, facing fear, experiencing and giving friendship – the themes of her previous life and writing – are covered in this her last book. She writes of
the shocks, and of her “shock-absorbers”: family, friends, journal, spiritual director, garden, mini-respites, painting. She offers an invaluable tip to managing the volume of telephone calls: each morning she composed a new answerphone message, giving information and inviting a response, which would be heard, appreciated and answered as appropriate at the end of each day.
Along the twists and turns of the journey she describes giving thanks for small joys as “banking resources for when the going became tougher”. She was asked to do a painting for Passion Week on “The Agony in the Garden”. It was for her an agony, until she fell upon the verse in Luke’s Gospel: “And the Lord sent an angel to strengthen him”. Then she comments on the many acts of friendship that had sustained them both: “There is strength in the struggle for us too… Angels came and ministered to us: very human angels, but angels nonetheless and This is a book about they strengthened us”.
living as well as dying – about the carer as well as the cared-for. It is a treasure-trove for both.
This is a book about living as well as dying – about the carer as well as the cared-for. It is a treasuretrove for both. There is much “before” and also “after” David’s death: the funeral; the aftermath; the therapy of tears, of music, of answering letters of condolence, of the kind of gratitude that is, in her experience, the hallmark of the hospice movement; the picking up of a new rhythm, of being busy but not too busy, not afraid to be still. The intertwining of our own living and dying with that of family and friends creates (to use a phrase of Grace’s) a “beautiful patchwork” of love and friendship. “I have found” she writes in her introduction, “that the giving and receiving in faithful friendship has made all the difference to living with dying. We all have to die one day. The important thing is to be ready, and then we can get on with living.”
A treasured gift in memory of Bishop David Sheppard One of the most distinguished Ridleians since World War Two was David Sheppard, for many years Bishop of Liverpool. Bishop Sheppard died in 2005 and his wife, Grace, towards the end of 2010. Their daughter, Jenny Sinclair, has donated her father’s extraordinarily beautiful cope and mitre to the college, and we hope that in due course these will be on permanent display.
We are profoundly grateful to Jenny and her family for this wonderful memorial to her parents’ ministry, and especially their commitment to ministry and mission in the city.
Photograph taken by the Liverpool Echo on Bishop David’s retirement in 1997; courtesy of Jenny Sinclair
Grace herself (pictured left) died a few months ago, which adds to the strength and poignancy of this book. Rosemary Kew, Administrative Assistant at the Simeon Centre
“For fellow travellers on the same journey this book will give comfort, courage and direction; for others, it will provide insight into the journey.” Archbishop Desmond Tutu
“Party time.... balloons rain down on Bishop Sheppard and his wife, Grace, after his retirement service at Liverpool Cathedral.” 13
The tale of the $100 bill Like me his name was Richard, and it was immediately evident that he was an engaging, larger than life personality. These are essential qualities for the conference speaker with the misfortune of drawing the afterlunch programme slot. Richard’s light-hearted jokey presentation didn’t tell me anything new, but reinforced old lessons in an engaging manner. I sat back and enjoyed myself. Lulled into a false sense of security I suddenly became aware he had left the podium, then a couple of seconds later he stopped right in front of me, asked me my name, and what I did. Richard is a leading Jewish development and fundraising director and he wanted to illustrate one very simple point. He decided I would be his foil. His next question was whether I would give to support survivors of the Holocaust. You would need a heart of ice to say no. I realized this was not a hypothetical exercise when he asked what I would give. I had recently returned from the USA, had very little British money on me, but in my wallet was a crisp
A tribute to John Paulson (1921–2010) John Paulson was an extraordinary man whose significant gift to Ridley Hall several years ago encouraged the college to move forward with the new building that we are planning. The following is an appreciation of his life by his brotherin-law, Bishop David Pytches. Sir John Paulson, who died on April 1st, 2011, was born on February 5th, 1921, in East Dean, Gloucestershire. He was brought up and went to school in the village of Lea before moving to Cambridge at the age of fifteen. A course of business studies at Loughborough was cut short when he was called up for military service in India, where he was commissioned and served as Aide de Camp to the British Viceroy until 1945. “Demobbed” in 1946 he was offered a commission in the Royal Navy at Portsmouth, where he was also first licensed as a lay reader. Later serving on HMS 14
new $100 bill. I told him I would be willing to give it, he put out his hand and I gave it to him.
To the entertainment of the other conferees, including Ridley’s Principal sitting beside me grinning like a Cheshire cat, he had just illustrated the most fundamental tenet of fundraising: you won’t often receive money if you don’t ask for it. I am now on the mailing list of the Jewish charity for which Richard works – and have already learned a lot from their materials, making my $100 look like a good investment. However, I was bowled over when, after the session had finished, Richard pressed into my hand a substantial gift for Ridley Hall!
At Ridley we ask for your support not because we are greedy beggars! We ask because we have the most wonderful cause that we want you to invest in. Our brief is not to take care of Holocaust survivors; Ridley’s exciting mission is preparing the new generation of Christian leaders for that entity, the Christian church, which is always only one generation away from extinction. This is a huge and holy responsibility. So when Ridley invites you to give, what we are doing is giving you the rare opportunity to make a significant investment in God’s future purposes. This is actually an investment in eternity. Richard Kew, Development Director
Ganges near Felixstowe, he was invited to a tennis party at Holbrook rectory where he met his future wife Daphne Pytches. After their marriage he started up his own property management business and became very successful.
His enjoyments included cricket, gardening, family histories and leading worship at St Peter’s Church, Horningsea, where a great deal of restoration work was done as a result of his generosity. He was also generous in his support of his wider family, various traveling evangelists, ordinands, and institutions including Ridley Hall, where his nephew-in-law Christopher Cocksworth, now Bishop of Coventry, was Principal until 2008. He was very enthusiastic about the new building project at Ridley. He also pioneered the first Pentecost Praise service at Ely Cathedral in 1989 which continued for the next ten years. John Paulson died just a few days before his sixtieth wedding anniversary and was buried in St. Peter’s churchyard. He leaves Daphne, his wife, a son and two daughters.
The Church today in Egypt “Upon this promise we look at the future” The Presiding Bishop of Jersualem and the Middle East, Mouneer Anis, who spent several months on sabbatical at Ridley in 2006, describes the impact on the Church of the recent events in Egypt. How is the revolution that overthrew the former president influencing life in the Anglican Church in Egypt at the moment? The members of the Anglican Church in Egypt, like all Egyptians, are hopeful about the outcome of the Revolution. However, we cannot call every uprising a Revolution until we see the outcome. A Revolution will definitely lead to real transformation of the lives of the people in the country. It is too early to judge the outcome now. Many Christians and moderate Muslims are concerned because it seems that some Islamic groups are trying to kidnap the Revolution and call for an Islamic State. This will definitely restrict citizens who are looking for a civil and democratic state. There is also a fear, especially in view of the recent attacks on Christian churches, that the national unity of Egypt would be at risk. So, I can say that there is a mixture of hope, concern, and fear.
In the light of the political changes, what does the future look like for Egyptians Christians? Bishop of Ely feature The future is very unpredictable. No one can guess what the new Egypt will look like. The Church may face hardships, and may have more freedom. Whatever happens, we know that the Church is His and
He promised that the gates of Hell will not overcome His Church. Upon this promise we look at the future. In a statement on 17th February 2011 I said, “Our beloved country Egypt is going through a critical time which requires all of us to be united, working together in order to achieve ‘freedom, democracy and social equality’ which are at the heart of the Youth Revolution of 25th January 2011. Without achieving these goals, the Revolution will have been mere words. Therefore, with strong hands, hopeful hearts and with patience, we all need to work each in our own field, until Egypt becomes a developed democratic country. Only then will Egypt regain its pioneering place in the Middle East, a position it has held over the centuries.” How will the revolution impact upon the relationship between Christians Bishop Mouneer interviewand Muslims in Egypt?
The relationship between Christians and Muslims is good in general. However, there are some fanatic fundamentalist groups, like Salafi and Gamaat Islamaia, who try to stir Muslims against Christians. I am involved now in what is called Beth el Aila, the House of the Family, which is composed of Christian and Muslim leaders. This is an initiative of the Grand Imam of Al Azhar and Pope Shenouda III. The goal of Beth el Aila is to enhance the national unity between Christians and Muslims and to address the issues that put this unity at risk.
Will there be new opportunities in Egypt that will open up to the Christian community? The Christian community has a great opportunity to focus on unity between denominations and sharing the love of God in word and deed with all society. The Church still has lots of openings to serve the community in the areas of health, education, and development. What sort of hopes and dreams do you have for the future?
I hope that God will intervene to protect Egypt from the risk of civil war. I hope that churches will work together for the glory of God. I also hope that we would be more involved in serving those who are not kind to us. I dream of organizing a summer camp for Christian and Muslim youth. Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Saviour. Habakkuk 3:17-18
“Tonight our beloved Egypt started to write a new chapter of her story. I pray that no single group would dictate its agenda but all of us must be given the right & the freedom to write together this chapter.” Bishop Mouneer Anis, writing on February 12th, 2011 – the day former President Mubarek stepped down.
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Seeking signs of reconciliation in Bahrain The Winter issue of News From Ridley included a well-received focus on the work of Ridley alumni in the Middle East. Nobody at the time could predict the wave of protest and revolution that was to sweep across Africa and the Middle East. We return in this issue to the author of one of those articles, the Very Revd Chris Butt, for a first-hand insight into the recent events in Bahrain. “The Cathedral Community is very largely expatriate, though very international in make-up and so the impact on us from the State of Emergency is limited,” said Chris Butt, Dean of St Christopher’s Cathedral, Bahrain, when we spoke to him in late April. “Compared to a month ago, life is considerably calmer. There are only minor inconveniences such as police roadblocks.” What has been the impact of events on the Cathedral?
“Some families were relocated to other Gulf States, and many were anxious to leave their homes to travel. Family life within the Community has been disrupted with many wives/mothers returning to their home countries, and the curfew meant that many evening meetings had to be curtailed – our Lent Course on Reconciliation ran over into Easter. But the life of the Cathedral has continued throughout the crisis.” Have you felt in danger yourself?
“We have never felt under threat, even when a large group of protestors marched past the Cathedral. The government gives freedom to the Christian community to worship and yesterday a delegation of Church leaders met the Prime Minister.” He continues: “My concern is not for the international community, but for divisions in the local community.”
“There are very serious tensions between the Sunni and Shia: those who have been friends for many years, now regarding one another with the deepest suspicion. The main ‘security’ activity of army and police is in the Shia villages and people who were involved in the protests at the Pearl Roundabout are being arrested, imprisoned, or dismissed from their jobs. There are often sounds of helicopters, tear gas cannisters, and gunfire in the Shia villages. 150 people have been dismissed from Sports Clubs, and many more from workplaces. Undoubtedly there have been extremists among the protestors, some who have caused considerable damage, but the protest initially was a peaceful one.”
You mentioned the Cathedral’s Lent Course on Reconciliation. What signs of hope do you see within the country for reconciliation between the Sunni and Shia? “For healing to take place there will have to be dialogue, and the Crown Prince was instrumental in voicing that need with the support of the King, but the voices for dialogue have fallen ominously silent.”
Chris Butt with religious leaders at the recent “Living Room Dialogue”
“I have tried to engage with religious leaders and in a recent Living Room Dialogue we were delighted to welcome Sheikh Salah Al Jowder, Imam at the Al Khayer Grand Mosque and Dr Muhammad alZekri, former Director of the Centre for Cultural Diversity. There was an open exchange and we felt that a bridge had been built.”
“As those who are entrusted with the gospel of reconciliation, the Christian community here must ask the question of how that ministry is best expressed in the context of Bahrain at this particular moment of its history.”
New Grove books from Ridley tutors How to interpret Old Testament law by Philip Jenson In recent times the laws of the Old Testament have been criticized as irrelevant, arbitrary, primitive or offensive. Christian readers have sometimes tried to distinguish ceremonial, civil and moral law, but this is not what the Old Testament does, and in important places the New Testament affirms the continuing validity of the whole law. This study offers a new approach that interrelates different levels of law and suggests how law can play an important role in spirituality, doctrine and ethics.
The Ethics of Executive Pay: A Christian Viewpoint by Richard Higginson
Differentials in pay have continued to raise questions in the media, and at times of cut-backs are especially controversial. Although Scripture might be thought to have little to say on the matter, this study highlights how themes of justice, accountability and proportionality actually have a direct bearing on the issue. It proposes some clear criteria by which differentials might be evaluated. Grove books cost £3.95 each with free UK P&P and can be ordered on 01223 464748 or from www.grovebooks.co.uk