At last! We’ve been waiting for these for a couple of years.
… our work of discernment explores a call to ministry which is relational …. missional … collaborative …. diverse and adaptive.
The House of Bishops has approved and commended a new Shared Discernment Process. Bishop Mark Tanner writes
(It) … is designed to foster lifelong discernment and formation.
THE SIX QUALITIES
… The Six Qualities havee been developed with the ordinal in mind, and with a view to broadening access both to the ‘unseen-called’ and the ‘excluded- called’. The six qualities are:
- The call to ministry …
- Love for God …
- Love for people …
- Wisdom …
- Fruitfulness …
- Potential …
There follow two grids, looking at these six qualities, one for priest and one for distinctive deacon. Each of the qualities is looked at under four headings: in relation to Christ, Church, World and Self.
Many of the qualities needed for ministry are generic and therefore the same for both ministries: however, the deacon grid does refer to diaconal qualities. I’ve highlighted these on the scan below:
Here is the priest grid, for comparison:
Ministry Division is preparing a working document for DDOs to use, a
model where testing and assuring evidence of knowing and doing will mainly be done by Dioceses working together in a region with being and growing as the focus of a second stage more akin to the current BAP.
The TIMELINE for this developing work is scheduled to finish at the end of 2020. The first new panels under this Shared Discernment Process will begin in January 2021.
Please let me know what you think, either in the comments here, or on our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/DistinctivelyDeacon/ or via Twitter @WardenGill or via an email to deacons@tutanota.com
(Image from Unfinished)
CofE Network of Distinctive Deacons 
Such an encouragement in my last week of curacy as a (distinctive) deacon. It feels now that deacons have a more recognised ministry and voice in the CofE . . . Complimentary to priests and bishops; who together are called to model and equip all the saints for the various ministries in and beyond the church. Thank you ministry division!
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Doesn’t mention PRAYER – it is ok to be a good listener, but more important to spend time listening to God.
Perhaps less emphasis on DOING and more on BEING
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In fact under the ‘Self’ column it says ‘Is prayerful and studies the Bible’ which they see as being servant-hearted. When I submitted our grid to Ministry Division (at their request) we emphasized intercession as being particularly diaconal.
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