From the Church of England

Moving on in Ministry: RS Thomas poetry and the film Of Gods and Men guide priests through the S-curve of change

Priests working through the ‘S curve’ of change in their ministry should seek inspiration from 20^th Century poet and priest RS Thomas and the film Of Gods and Men, suggests the book Moving on in Ministry. Being launched this week at the Seventh Annual Faith in Research conference at Church House, London, the book comprises essays focusing on transition and change by respected authors in their fields*.

Realising that development can slow down then speed up in an ‘S’ shape , and can actually take place without moving to a new role, the book encourages priests to make  reflective and practical responses to moving on in ministry. It begins with an  essay by Tim Harle on the ‘S Curve’, to help priests identify where they are in the process of accommodating the change they are experiencing; and also to help them “live comfortably out of control”.

Mark Pryce uses the poetry metaphors for priesthood of RS Thomas to analyse change, looking particularly at the “self-in-relation to God” and the “mystery of God disclosed or hidden in others”; Thomas’s poem The Moor, for example, is quoted from: “There were no prayers said. But stillness of the heart’s passions – that was praise enough.”

Justin Lewis-Anthony then uses cinematic art via the films The Way, which depicts “the connection between parental bereavement and moving on”, and Of Gods and Men, to look at feelings of despondency; the latter tells the story of eight French Cistercian monks who live in a monastery in the remote Atlas mountains of Algeria.

Three essays analyse the results of research projects that listened to the voices of clergy. These projects focused on the changes associated with becoming a priest, beginning and incumbency, and with  changing career perceptions. Other essays study the challenges associated with the mixed-economy church, and unpack Scripture to attend to the themes of imagined identities, vocation and transition, and how they relate to mentoring and Ministerial Development Reviews.

Recommending Moving on in Ministry, the Rt Revd Steven Croft, Bishop of Sheffield, said: "Moving on in Ministry covers essential areas of transition and change for all clergy."

The Ven Julian Hubbard, Director of the Archbishops’ Council’s Ministry Division, said: “This is a stimulating read for all those involved in the continuing development of the Church’s ministers.”

Moving On in Ministry: Discernment for Times of Transition and Change, edited by the National Continuing Ministry Development Adviser Tim Ling, is the latest in the Explorations series from Church House Publishing, which aims to stimulate debate and challenge the thinking and practice of the Church at large. It is available now (ISBN 978 0 7151 4329 2, £16.99) direct from the CHP website or from local Christian bookshops.

ENDS

Notes to editors

*Full list of contributors:

Ian Aveyard, former Director of Ordinands, Canterbury Diocese
Mark Beach, Dean of Rochester Cathedral
Anthony Buckley, Chaplain at Alleyn’s School and Honorary Curate at St Barnabas, Dulwich
Amanda Bloor, Chaplain to the Bishop of Oxford
Tim Harle, Licensed Lay Minister (Reader) in the multiparish benefice where he lives, Lay Canon at Bristol Cathedral and Visiting Fellow at Bristol Business School.
Justin Lewis-Anthony is Rector of St Stephen’s Church, Canterbury, and Associate Lecturer at the University of Kent.
Tim Ling is the Church of England’s National Adviser for Continuing Ministerial Development.
Mark Pryce is adviser for Clergy Continuing Ministerial Education in the Diocese of Birmingham.
Jane Sturges is a Senior Lecturer in Organizational Behaviour in the Department of Management at King’s College London
Viv Thomas, Director of Formation and Honorary Teaching Pastor at St Paul’s Hammersmith.
Hazel Whitehead, Director of Discipleship, Vocation and Ministry for the Diocese of Guildford and Co-Chair of the South Central Regional Training Partnership

The 7th Annual Faith in Research conference will present current results from research in the areas of Church and Society, Mission, and Ministry to key change agents in dioceses in order to better inform policy development and practice. It also aims to develop networks of informed practitioners in these areas of research. The Ministry Stream of the conference is to be co-chaired by Bishop David Walker and Dr Tim Ling and will look at papers that cover Oversight, Entrepreneurship and Time Use in Ministry. The full programme can be found at: http://www.churchofengland.org/media/1668581/fir_programmeupdatedv1.pdf?dm_i=5DF,1JL84,5J5F0P,5A62I,1