Diocese of Chichester

The event was hosted by the Diocese of Chichester in St Nicholas Church in Brighton and was intended to help people from all traditions and different churches consider the privilege and demands of a calling to ordained ministry and to hear about the different contexts in which to serve in the church.

Experienced clergy were on hand to share their insights and experience. Rebecca Swyer (a Distinctive Deacon)spoke on Well-being for Clergy and their households. Michael Turnball (a Distinctive Deacon) spoke about Hospital Chaplaincy. And the audience heard from Martha Mutikani about being a parish priest and Lucy Hollingsworth about Self-supportingMinistry.

The event coincided with Vocations Sunday on April 30^th an annual event intended to encourage individuals to consider what God might be calling them to.

The day was led by Keir Shreeves, the Diocesan Director for ordinations. He said. “I was really encouraged by how the day unfolded. We had good numbers of people exploring a vocation in the church and this day was intended to help them consider the next steps. We gave them the space to listen to some of our clergy, and opportunities to reflect and ask questions.

Lou Shorey was one of the attendees. Lou is from St Mark’s Church Holbrook. She said, “Attending the day was really helpful. Initially, I had a touch of imposter syndrome as I sat in the church and looked at everyone else there who looked far more qualified than me. I was quickly put at ease by Bishop Will’s reflection on Jonah at the beginning of the day because he reminded us that one’s submission to a sense of calling to ordained ministry, and God’s abundant mercy, very quickly put to bed any sense of one’s own inferiority and failing.

As the day continued, the variety of speakers and the ministries that they represented, painted a picture of what serving in the Church of England can and does look like. The pace of the day was right, the good weather helped(!) and the opportunities to reflect, ask questions, and chat over lunch with some of the team running the day were welcome.

One’s vocational calling is indeed unique, and it is days like these that aid the discernment journey brilliantly well. Thank you.

Matthew Bland attends St Mary’s Church East Grinstead and thought the Vocation’s Day event was well structured. He said, “I found the Vocations Day useful. The content of the talks was deeply informative and painted a very attractive - but also realistic - picture of what ordained ministry is like in the Church of England.

“I was grateful that it covered a wide breadth of experiences of ordained ministry, ranging from parish priest to distinctive deacon, chaplain to self-supporting minister.

I thought that the structure was also well thought-out, offering plenty of opportunity for questions as well as providing the space for making connections and having informal conversations with the other discerners - something which is important at this stage! As well as this fellowship also really valued the time of worship we spent together in the Eucharist.

“If you were unable to attend yourself and you have questions about ordained ministry please do get in touch.

Further info: https://www.chichester.anglican.org/ordained-ministry/