we at last have the ability and opportunity to offer information about online courses available to distinctive deacons, which can be accessed from anywhere in the country.
Author: GillK
Gill has been a missioner in Nigeria, Romania and various parishes in England. She was ordained a 'distinctive' deacon in 1991. In this capacity she was warden of the College of St Philip the Deacon in Exeter diocese, and founder member of the CofE Network of Distinctive Deacons https://cofedeacons.org. She has also written the story of her own call, Deacon by Design. https://www.waterstones.com/book/deacon-by-design/gill-kimber/9781910719794
She's passionate about the diaconate and, now retired, continues to support those who are called to this ministry.
Loving God, your Son Jesus Christ, wept over Jerusalem. Today, we weep over Ukraine. We weep for those uprooted from their homes and lives. We weep for those cowering in basements. We weep for those who have witnessed death and destruction on their streets.
Disciples are to call down from the Jesus in their midst what they have the courage to open themselves to in his self-giving. For deacons this message may well be especially meaningful, but deacons do not take their name from here. They take that from another kind of diakonia. We see this clearly in what the later writer, Ignatius of Antioch, had to comment about the deacons among the Trallians: ‘they are not deacons (diakonoi) of food and drink but are officers (hypēretai) of the Church of God.’
Canon Dr Anne Tomlinson is Principal of the Scottish Episcopal Institute. She is also a deacon, and oversees Scottish Episcopal Church deacons through their training. Here's a fascinating video of her conversation with two deacon ordinands regarding their experiences of discernment and formation.
I am grateful for the generosity of resources, hospitality and welcome that the Methodist Diaconal Order offered to us as guests from different denominations: for their openness to listen to the ‘outsiders’ voices, and for the treasures gathered.
place of the diaconate in the diocese.
A Message from Church of England Network of Distinctive Deacons:
We are delighted that you have registered for ‘The Place of the Diaconate in the Diocese’ conference on April 30th. Please read this email carefully. It contains programme timings and joining information.
The dark nails pierce him and the sky turns black We watch him as he labours to draw breath He takes our breath away to give it back, Return it to its birth through his slow death.
The overlooking of the particular ministry of deacons is
almost certainly due to a particular kind of clericalism – the
association of ‘priesthood’ with ‘leadership’, and the propensity
to collapse general talk of vocation into the particular calling
to the ordained ministry of priest.
We deacons get used to people questioning our identity and purpose. It's not only individuals who fail to understand: sometimes a diocese will simply ignore our vocation and seem unable to fathom it or understand how it fits in with other ministries. It can be upsetting and distressing.
All this is far too common in the life of the #distinctivedeacon. To counter it, we've asked Bishop James Newcome to tell us how he sees the place of the diaconate in the life of the diocese.
CofE Network of Distinctive Deacons 