At the moment we are sharing stories of deacons in their context. These might be stories of encounters or short reflections on what they experienced as God uses them in their ministry. Our fourth story is by Revd Caroline Brown, distinctive Deacon at St Peters Highfields in the diocese of Leicester. Ordained 2021 at Leicester Cathedral.
I’d just sat down in the staffroom with my packed lunch and a cup of tea. It was my first day in one of the local schools as a supply teaching assistant and members of staff slowly drifted in over the next few minutes. Over the chatter of voices came a “I know you!”, as we both tried to rack our brains as to how she could possibly have known me. I don’t wear my clerical collar in school very often and wasn’t wearing it that day. Gradually I could see her face changing as she recalled who I was and how she knew me: “You lead with the vicar at St Peter’s, at my uncle’s funeral”. There and then, in the staff room, she began to share about the day of her uncle’s funeral, how the service and conversations had an impacted on her, how she had thought about coming to church since then. On the following Sunday, my colleague and her three children came to church.
Since then, I’ve had the privilege of baptising her three girls and seeing them all become members of our church community, beginning to step into their own gifts and talents, and seeking to serve others growing in their own faith.
For me, this is one way my calling in my location as a distinctive Deacon is worked out in holding two jobs, jobs that in many ways share the same concerns in the day–to–day life of the local community. This is the carrying of “the bowl and the towel” into each and every situation, showing Christ’s love and grace.
Since that first conversation in the staff room, working in a multi-cultural and multi-faith school, has led to honest and open conversations, supporting and journeying alongside each other.
CofE Network of Distinctive Deacons 