the Parish of St thomas' Brampton, Chesterfield

St Thomas' Brampton and St Peter's Holymoorside, Chesterfield

Rector's Letters February 1994-January 1995

Our vision statement: Sharing the love of Jesus

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February/March 1994	April/May 1994	June/July 1994
August/September 1994	October/November 1994	December 1994/January1995

February/March 1994

1993: Expanded Horizons
It was the year of being less parochial, of realising that there was life beyond Chesterfield. In March, there was that brilliant, multifaceted presentation, "Bread with nowt taken out" which revealed the breadth of God's missionary challenge across the world. The year ended with a three week visit from the Revd Charity Nyagawa from Tanzania, a new experience for us all - and for him.

We have had other interesting visitors, especially the five lively warm young Christians from India. I have just received a most entertaining letter from one of them, Jacob Kunnath - "My dear Uncle Chris and Aunt Pam", he begins! "Do convey my love to all my brothers and sisters." We have received various folk on placement, having a close look at what goes on here, an experience which makes us feel alternately important and vulnerable.

There has been an increasingly practical concern for the appalling situations in Romania and Bosnia in particular: one of our members actually drove to Romania, with a lorry load of medical supplies. Two of our young members have been in Africa and one has been recommended for training for ordination. There have been special Harvest and Christmas giving projects.

At home, the unemployment dilemma has been keenly felt and is being imaginatively faced. Both STEP (St Thomas' Employment Project) and the newly created Welfare Fund are almost underway. Folk are invited to give towards the latter, and to inform the staff of genuine hardship for consideration of a small grant. And so, probably, I could go on ...

1994: Going For Growth?
We face a year of challenge. I pray that we may have the heart and the faith to "go for it". When churches are outwardly successful there is a danger of marking time, feeling comfortable and missing out on God's best.

I invite readers to focus their thoughts, and then their prayers, on two things:

Vision Statement:
Going for growth in Christ: We aim under God to grow as we respond, individually and together, to the teaching of Jesus in holiness, worship, prayer, service and witness and as we reach out with the Good News of Jesus.

And our Motto:
Live a life of love, just as Christ loved us. -Ephesians 5:2

It can be quite a year. Yes let's "go for it"!

Christopher Frith

From the February 1994 edition of the magazine

April/May 1994

It is good to welcome Brian Porter back. We, especially folk at St John's, have missed him. He has served at Holy Trinity for five months and his ministry there has undoubtedly been appreciated greatly. It is not easy suddenly to change direction and to be working with completely different people. We are so grateful to Brian that he has been willing to do this. He and Barbara now look forward to being able to get "stuck into" life at St John's again and they deserve our prayers and support.

On Saturday 14 May. Sheila Pite and Judith Henderson are to be ordained into the priesthood. After all the anguish and all the fuss, it will be a momentous occasion. We rejoice with Sheila and Judith and will welcome the (slightly) increased scope of their already wide-ranging ministries.

I often get cross that the Church of England has made a bad choice of words. For instance, it calls its buildings "churches". So, it is not surprising that folk think that the church is a building rather than people, the people of God. I can't for the life of me think why that happened!

In the same way we call our chosen leaders "priests" and I find this even more confusing. Priests belong to Old Testament times: they were responsible for sacrifices to atone for sins; they were intermediaries between people and God. When Jesus came, he fulfilled the role completely. He is the great High Priest and there is no longer a need for any other priest.

True, every Christian is described in the New Testament as a priest in the sense that we all represent God to the world around and represent the world (in prayer) before God. The word priest is not used of church leaders. The Greek word is usually translated "presbyter" or "elder" and I personally am much happier to use those words, when referring to Ministers of the Gospel who are responsible for God's Word and His Sacraments.

Anyway, I have been able to get that hobby-horse off my chest, so to speak! Much more important, it will be great to have the ministries of Sheila and Judith properly authenticated and recognised. As far as most church members are concerned, the main change is that they will be able to preside at the Eucharist. Within a month or two, that will probably seem very normal and we will forget all this time when they haven't been doing so.

I am to have a sabbatical for three months. About two years ago, the PCC encouraged me to do so and the Bishop has kindly granted it. The return of Brian and the ordination of Judith and Sheila are certainly timely!

I am due to start the break on April 12 and will return to my role as Rector on July 12. The aim is to be thoroughly refreshed. Clergy sabbaticals have three ingredients:

1. Retreat, for quiet meditation and prayer.

2. Study. I am hoping to immerse myself mainly in the Gospel of John, as well as doing some general reading.

3. Relaxation. Pam and I are starting with a holiday, to which we look forward greatly.

I plan then to work from 9am to 5pm, five days a week rather than the 8.30am to 10:30pm, six days a week which I am used to. I am encouraged to develop a new skill, not related to work, and I hope to do something vaguely artistic.

I guess that three months will seem very short, but I am really grateful to have this opportunity.

I have every confidence that our churches will continue to thrive. The staff all have clear responsibilities, Matters related to St Thomas' should be advised to Sheila, St John's to Brian, St Peter's to Judith. Sheila will be responsible for co-ordination, working closely with Philip and the Wardens. Julia, my secretary, will be dealing with my mail. All administrative matters should be directed to the office.

Before all this, we shall be celebrating Holy Week and Easter. Dwelling in the most important events in history can be truly life changing. I pray that it will be, for many of us.

Christopher Frith

From the April 1994 edition of the magazine

June/July 1994

Dear Friends,

On Sunday 5 June the collect for Pentecost 2 is this:
Almighty and Everlasting God, by whose Spirit the whole body of the Church is governed and sanctified: hear our prayer which we offer for all your faithful people: that everyone in their vocation and ministry may serve you in holiness and truth to the glory of your name; through our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.'

It is thus an opportunity to consider the whole subject of vocations. In Roman Catholic lectionary Vocations Sunday is observed in the Easter Season and on 22 April, during Vocations Awareness week, I spent a day with Year 10 (14 - 15 year olds) students from St. Mary's R.C. School exploring Christian vocation and lifestyle. Coupling these events with the ordination services for women deacons to the priesthood within the Church of England at this time, it seemed appropriate to write about vocation and ministry.

What is your understanding of these terms? How do you follow God's call in your own life? After the day with St Mary's pupils, where I had tried to alter their perceptions both of clergy and single people, I thought again about my own assumptions about people's work or ministry or domestic arrangements. Do I recognise the difficulties people have in different situations or the opportunities to live out God's call for each of us, to be witnesses wherever we are?

Witnesses - showing that we are Christians - by our lives, our words and actions, by our love for one another, John 13:35. The Church of England Advisory Board of Ministry expresses this in the opening paragraphs of a booklet about Professional Ministry, under the heading 'Our Common Calling'.

"God is calling people everywhere to live in unity with him and with one another. Jesus responded fully to God's call and, one with God himself, he worked to reconcile humanity to God. Men and women who are called to be followers of Jesus continue that work today, trying to bring a broken and fallen world into unity with God."

This is the basis for all Christian ministry, which come from the Holy Spirit equipping people with different gifts for differing circumstances, but "all Christians are being called to use their own gifts in exercising a ministry of reconciliation in one way or another."

That is the challenge for each of us as we seek to discern the ministry to which God is calling us. May God guide you.

Sheila R. Pite

From the June1994 edition of the magazine

August/September 1994

For months we have, as a staff team, been looking at ways to address 'Living a life of love' in the midst of the moral (ethical) difficulties presented to us in the world around us.

There is so much 'grey' in the area of moral choices. The Bible is not a text book to show us exactly what to do in every circumstance. So I believe we need to engage in the process of serious conversation about ethical issues, so that we can, as Christians, be part of the process of changing and developing public opinion.

We are uniquely placed to seek the Holy Spirits' guidance and the Mind of Jesus as we search the scriptures for the principles which can guide our personal and collective code-making.

The scriptures are a rich source - the only source of God's revealed purposes for us all. In Genesis we have the scene set for our attitude to all life - God-breathed and in his image. We begin to form views about gender and marriage and to discover the nature of our problems as man is cast out from the Garden of Eden.

Exodus and the rest of the Pentateuch - (Ist 5 books of the Bible) provide us with law codes and expansions into rules formulated for the people God had chosen to be his own.

Many of the historical books could be said to be accounts of the struggles of the people as they failed to live up to the high calling they had been given.

In the Psalms, Job and Proverbs we have a rich source of thoughts about pain and suffering, jealousy, anger and greed as well as many more positive attitudes. The psalmists very often struggling with deep moral problems point us to trust in God as a way out of trouble. E.g. Psalm 40 'He lifted me out of the slimy pit .... he set my feet on a rock .... many will see and fear and put their trust in the Lord.'

In the Gospels Jesus often teaches in parables, sometimes in 'sermons' expressing ideals for living as citizens of the kingdom of heaven. E.g. 'If someone strikes you on the-left cheek, turn to him the other also'..

Paul's letters often address practical problems, demonstrating his confidence in the Holy Spirit to guide into all truth and to show us the mind of Jesus.

These letters contain some wonderful insights into the way we should 'live a life of love'. (Try reading 1 Corinthians 13 afresh. To be made aware of just how high the standard is). Throughout the scriptures we are aware of the 'sanctity of life'. In our dealings with one another we are encouraged to proclaim forgiveness, reconciliation and compassion. We are all caught up in the consequences of selfishness, pride and disobedience.

Only in Jesus can we find 'the Way, the Truth and the Life'.

Judith Henderson

From the August 1994 edition of the magazine

October/November 1994

With October comes the long-awaited new congregation at St Thomas'. We prayed long and hard that God would show us how it should happen. Now, we seek His blessing.

The new service will be at 9.09am! This is perhaps bizarre, almost certainly unique and without question both memorable and convenient (sandwiched between the existing 8 am service and the 10.30 am one which will start a bit later at 10.45am)

It's a time of new opportunities - to learn, to serve, to live lives of love (our 1994 motto) and to grow individually and together. We look to God. We sow. We water. He alone can bring growth.

The Church of England has hit the headlines again. The Bishop of Cirencester has been brave enough to relieve one of his clergy of his responsibilities - after a year in which to sort out his thinking - because he said he did not believe in God.

In some quarters there has been an outcry but the Bishop's action seems fair enough to me. It is true that wrestling with doubt is an integral part of Christian living. However, speaking for myself, if my doubt were to cause me to declare "God is just a human creation," I would not be able to say the Creed without my tongue being firmly in my cheek. Nor would I feel able to continue with integrity acting as a Minister of the Gospel.

Those who say they hold a humanist view of God say that if God is a meaningful concept at all, He is "in us" but certainly not "out there." Orthodox biblical doctrine agrees that God is "in us" by His spirit. But it also affirms that He, the Creator, is "high over all." We don't have to choose one view or the other. He is both imminent and transcendent (to use the technical words), both part of his creation and distinct from it.

This is the God of faith, the God of the Bible. The God of Jesus. A mystery beyond human comprehension. But, an optional belief for a Christian, let alone a Christian minister? It cannot be.

Christopher Frith

From the October 1994 edition of the magazine

December 1994/January 1995

Rector's letters to church magazines vary from the trivial to the profound. They may be banal, boring or barmy. They may even manage to be interesting, to extend the horizons of readers, even to be prophetic. My contributions are usually in-house, with just an occasional swipe at the wider world, or church. I try to take seriously my responsibility to encourage unity and communication in our rather complicated set-up. This time in particular, I make no excuse for a domestic letter.

Philip Herrick is leaving his post as our co-ordinator to become company secretary for a local firm. In his three years with us, he has set up our Church Office and given the work of St Thomas' an excellent administrative foundation. He has worked long and hard with tremendous skill, in addition to giving us the benefit of his wonderful musical gifts and financial and word-processing knowledge.

Most readers will be aware of what a demanding six months the Herricks have been going through. Bethany, their third child, was born in May, with a non-functioning digestive system. (I have to rise non-medical terms!) Philip and Karen know the journey between Chesterfield and the Children's Hospital in Sheffield incredibly well as they constantly travel between the two. It has been amazing the way Philip has achieved so much on our behalf in this time.

So, I want to say first how very grateful we are to have had Philip on our staff. Secondly, it is great to know that Philip, Karen, Emma, Jonathan and Bethany are going to remain at St Thomas'.

Thirdly, for Philip's sake, for our Churches' sake and for the Kingdom of God's sake, it is vital the we build on his foundation. We can see that the administrative, Office Manager side of his role is working well. The other side, which Philip has always referred to as "the people side," now needs a great deal of attention.

Christopher Frith

From the December 1994 edition of the magazine

See also: Looking Backwards, Looking Forwards -Philip Herrick looks back his time as Church Administrator

Rector's Letters 1995