The distinctive diaconate, in my view, still needs to be taken more seriously as a vocational opportunity, within the Church of England.
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.
The answer is 'YES - BUT' ... it is hedged around with some important restrictions, the main one being that HCbE should only take place with the express approval of the bishop and even then, only for a limited time. This is from the Guidelines issued by the House of Bishops (I have highlighted some … Continue reading Can deacons take the service of Holy Communion by Extension?
I don’t think that I or the church as a whole can approach reconciliation ministry as if we think we are whole and sorted and can rescue a broken world.
Benedict You sought to start a simple school of prayer, A modest, gentle, moderate attempt, With nothing made too harsh or hard to bear, No treating or retreating with contempt, A little rule, a small obedience That sets aside, and tills the chosen ground, Fruitful humility, chosen innocence, A binding by which freedom might be … Continue reading FEAST OF ST BENEDICT
Christian Churches, East and West, especially in the past fifty years, have revived the diaconate as a permanent form of ordained ministry rather than a brief stage on the way to the presbyterate. These essays examine this development from the perspectives of history, theology and practice, showing ecumenical convergence on the renewal of an ancient order.
Protect the essentials at all costs: time for God; time for your family; and time for your ongoing training.
I don’t feel called to Eucharistic presidency, and never have! What difference would it make? It would be the most disabling thing you could do to me, because it would inhibit my ability to be in that liminal place on the threshold between the church and the wider community, exercising a “Kingdom” model of mission.
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 … Continue reading SHARED DISCERNMENT PROCESS Renewed candidate qualities and discernment processes 2019
I recently received an email from another diocese with an interesting question. In the forthcoming ordinations, should they, and if so how could they mark the fact that one (and only one) of the ordinands was for the distinctive diaconate? (The ordination of Julia Sierra by Gertrude Palmer) I consulted some fellow deacons, and here's … Continue reading WHEN YOU’RE THE ONLY DISTINCTIVE DEACON AT THE ORDINATION …
DRAWING UP A LEARNING/WORKING AGREEMENT GUIDELINES FOR DEACONS IN THEIR FIRST CURACY (IME 2) AND INCUMBENTS (image Dave Walker) All dioceses already have templates for working agreements which cover practicalities like hours to be worked, time off, mutual expectations etc. Although distinctive deacons need initially to learn the bread and butter of parish ministry, eg … Continue reading HELP WITH LEARNING/WORKING AGREEMENT GUIDELINES FOR FIRST-CURACY DEACONS AND THEIR INCUMBENTS
CofE Network of Distinctive Deacons 