What future for rural parishes in the Church of Ireland?

As I see it our rural parishes face two significant challenges:

1. The present model of one incumbent for each group or union of parishes is no longer fit for purpose in many places:

• Fewer parishioners and falling sustentation is increasingly leading to the appointment of part time clergy.
• At the same time administrative pressures on incumbents are growing, eg for safeguarding trust, GDPR etc.
• The work of a singleton incumbent is increasingly stressful and far too many succumb to the pressure.

2. We need to ride two horses if the church is to flourish in the future. We must both develop fresh ministries for new younger and hopefully growing congregations, at the same time as we continue to provide traditional ministry for existing dwindling and aging congregations:

• Small aging congregations fear their churches may be closed. They are suspicious and often resistant to change, while often recognising change is inevitable.
• There is unlikely to be sufficient critical mass and resource in most groups and unions of parishes to support the development of new ministries and fresh expressions of church to build the church of the future.

One pathway to the future could be clustering existing groups and unions into wider ministry areas. Each might consist of up to 4 or 5 existing groups and unions, with a ministry team consisting of several full- and part-time stipendiary clergy with additional NSM, OLM and Reader support.

• Ministry teams would provide mutual support and absence cover for individuals, so reducing stress on incumbents.
• Administrative support would be shared across the ministry area.
• The pooled resources would both provide ministry to traditional congregations and release resources to develop new ministries and expressions of church.

To be successful such a clustering approach is likely to require:

• Sufficient full- and part-time resource to allow mutual support.
• Ministers comfortable with working as part of a team with clearly defined lines of authority.
• Geographical and cultural coherence.
• Reassurance to small congregations. Can we promise them that their churches will not be shut unless they ask for it, provided they can both maintain the building and raise up a reader to lead worship when necessary?

I think it is urgent to explore the implications, pros and cons of such a clustering approach, and if it makes sense to try it out. And we should also explore other pathways. But if we do nothing, the future will surely be one of continued decline punctuated with ministry crises.

A Prayer of Bishop Jeremy Taylor

O God, whose days are without end,
and whose mercies cannot be numbered;
make us, we beseech thee, deeply sensible
of the shortness and uncertainty of human life;
and let thy Holy Spirit lead us
in holiness and righteousness all our days:
that, when we shall have served thee in our generation,
we may be gathered unto our fathers,
having the testimony of a good conscience;
in the communion of the Catholic Church;
in the confidence of a certain faith;
in the comfort of a reasonable, religious, and holy hope;
in favour with thee our God,
and in perfect charity with the world.
All which we ask through Jesus Christ our Lord.

This lovely prayer by Jeremy Taylor 1613-1667, Bishop of Down, Connor & Dromore, is included in the Book of Common Prayer of the Episcopal Church, for Visitation of the Sick. He is commemorated in the Church of Ireland on 13th August.

Autumn glory

The view down the Lime Alley to Kilteelagh gates

The leaves in the garden are falling fast now after the first frosts, but they were still glorious in yesterday's sunshine. It was dry enough to take the mower out at a high cut to gather up the fallen leaves, which have been put in piles to make leafmould. The cycle of life continues as nutrients return to the soil to give it the fertility on which all life depends. Thanks be to God!

General Thanksgiving

Giving thanks for all the good things we have received by God’s grace must be a central part of Christian worship. It is very right and proper, therefor, that the old Book of Common Prayer of 1662 included the prayer entitled the General Thanksgiving, written by Bishop Edward Reynolds of Norwich. This prayer has been included in every subsequent edition, including that for the Church of Ireland of 2004 (page 99). A modern language version was included in the Church of Ireland Alternative Prayer Book of 1984 (page 91), but sadly not in the 2004 prayer book, nor the new services of Morning and Evening Prayer for use on Sundays.

Traditional language prayers will probably be forgotten in the course of time as we use traditional language less and less in worship. What a pity it would be to lose this beautiful and much loved prayer.

We have imported the American Halloween but not Thanksgiving, which is also a pity. The American Thanksgiving is a lovely festival. It is a time for families and friends to gather together, to feast and to celebrate all that was good in the previous year, with traditional foods like turkey with cranberry sauce, sweet corn, squash and green bean casserole, and sweet pies – a bit like Christmas for us. Although now a secular festival, celebrated by people of all faiths and none, its origin lies in Christian communities giving thanks to God for all his blessings. Even today it is a tradition in many American families to begin the Thanksgiving dinner with a grace, and for each person at the table to tell one special reason they give thanks to God this year. In the United States Thanksgiving is a national holiday, observed on the 4th Thursday in November – the 28th November in 2019 - while in Canada it is observed on the 2nd Monday of October.

Bees & the Gardener

"If bees could talk, and we came across them busy in a flower garden and enquired what they were doing, their reply might be: ‘Gathering nectar to make honey.’  But if we asked the gardener, he would most certainly answer: ‘They are cross pollinating my flowers.’  In carrying out their manifest function to make food, the bees were performing a latent function of fertilizing flowers.  The mutual dependence of bees and flowers is an analogue of churches and society."

Bruce D Reed, quoted in a lecture : 'Redeeming Evangelism: Authentic Mission in the Church of England', by Very Rev Prof Martyn Percy, Dean of Christ Church, Oxford, at Salisbury Cathedral on Saturday 13 July 2019 - very well worth reading!

The Living Church

Talking about the Holy Spirit at Pentecost:

Killodiernan Churchyard - 23rd May

Here are some photos of Killodiernan Churchyard taken toward the end of May, with a few old friends and some new.

Killodiernan Church nestles in its churchyard, with the flowering meadow edged by a tightly mown border separating it from the gravel path.

A Common Blue butterfly (Polyommatus icarus) rests on a flower of Ribwort Plantain (Plantago lanceolata). 

Its food plant, Birdsfoot Trefoil (Lotus pedunculatus), grows nearby.

Early Purple Orchids (Orchis mascula) continue to flower - they have chosen a spot close to the gravel path, so the mower has to take special care to allow them to flower and seed.

Wild Strawberry (Fragaria vesca) joins Bugle (Ajuga reptans) in a shady spot, promising a delicious treat in a few weeks.

Germander Speedwell (Veronica chamaedrys) has put in an appearance.

Dozens of Twayblade orchids (Neottia ovata) have begun to show their green spikes, with individual flowers looking like tiny green men.

Common Milkwort (Polygala vulgaris) starting to show.

A late Primrose (Primula vulgaris) still hanging on.

Lady's Smock or Cuckoo Flower (Cardamine pratensis) in a damper spot, among leaves of Meadowsweet (Filipendula ulmaria) which likes the same conditions

To my delight flowering stems of Common Quaking Grass (Briza media) were just beginning to appear, but unfortunately my photos were out of focus - we'll see more during June!

Killodiernan churchyard - 3rd May 2019

Some of the last unimproved grasslands in North Tipperary are in churchyards. Killodiernan Church of Ireland churchyard, Puckane, is a beautiful example of unimproved, species-rich meadow on glacial till over limestone. The church wardens tend it lovingly, mowing edges but making sure the rest is left to flower, displaying native wild flowers through the seasons, until a final mowing late in the year. I plan to document it month by month during 2019

Here are some photos taken on 3rd May 2019:

Early Purple orchid (Orchis mascula)

Cowslips (Primula veris) and its hybrid with Primrose (Primula x polyantha) top left

Bugle (Ajuga reptans - growing in a short sward 

and more lushly in a damper spot), 

Pignut (Conopodium majus)

Bluebells (Hyacinthoides non-scripta) 

- though possibly there are some Spanish genes in them, as some are pink

Fairy Foxglove (Erinus alpinus) growing on a lime-mortar wall with Bugle.

Carney Commons - 1st May

On May Day, I visited Carney Commons, North Tipperary to look for signs of orchids. It's an interesting site, a calcareous fen that floods in winter, where I regularly find Fly orchid, several dactylorhizos, Marsh Helleborine, Fragrant orchid - no sign of any so far. I shall try to document it regularly through the seasons this year.

However, at one end of the site is a small area of limestone pavement overlaid with limestone rocks (probably cleared from nearby fields and dumped) raised a few feet above the winter flood level. There I found numerous Early Purple orchids (Orchis mascula), including a pure white form.

Also pictured, an anthill - much favoured by Lady's Bedstraw (Galium verum) and thyme (Thymus serpyllum). I'm fascinated by how different the flora of an anthill is from its surroundings.

Measuring sinfulness

The editorial in the May 2019 issue of Newslink, the diocesan magazine for Limerick and Killaloe.

Greta Thunberg at the European Parliament

Is it possible to measure sins on an ascending scale of sinfulness? Roman Catholics distinguish between mortal sins – causing a complete separation from God, and resulting in eternal damnation if unrepented - and venial sins – less grave offences that injure relationship with God, but do not break it, peccadilloes we should try our best to avoid.

We have seen heinous acts of evil in recent days. The New IRA and Saoradh instigated riots in Derry, culminating in reckless shots which killed the young journalist Lyra McKee. On Easter Sunday, suicide bombers claiming allegiance to Islamic State attacked churches and tourist hotels across Sri Lanka, leaving at least 359 dead and more than 500 injured. These were grave sins, but can we - should we – rate one of them as worse than the other?

If sins can be rated, then surely our communal failure to respond as we ought to climate change must be a greater sin than these. We now know that greedy human abuse of the earth’s resources is destroying God’s good creation. Scientists have been telling us for years what to expect, and we now see it with our own eyes: more frequent storms, floods and droughts; rising sea levels; collapse of wild life populations and species extinction. While individuals can take small steps, we need global action by governments to save our planet from catastrophe.

16-year-old Greta Thunberg has inspired the global ‘Climate Strike’ movement by school students -including many in Limerick City – calling for urgent action on behalf of future generations. The ‘Extinction Rebellion’ movement has brought tens of thousands of people onto the streets in acts of non-violent civil disobedience, calling for the emergency action required to protect our planet. They are asking the rest of us to stand up and demand action from governments. We owe them all a debt of gratitude for alerting us to our complicity in the sin of damaging God’s good creation.

I have my doubts about the reality of a hierarchy of sin. But it is surely true that the graver the sin the harder it is for the sinner to repent – that is, to make the fundamental change in thinking and behaviour which is a prerequisite for God’s forgiveness. Let us pray for the strength we need.

God bless,
Joc Sanders, Editor

Celebrating St Thomas on Low Sunday - doubting or believing?

St Thomas is one of my heroes.

Fishing for people

In my mind's eye I see Jesus with Simon Peter, James and John on the banks of Lough Derg...

Brexit

The Editorial in the February 2019 issue of Newslink, the diocesan magazine for Limerick & Killaloe.

I confess to following Brexit news compulsively, rubbernecking a slow motion wreck. The UK is split down the middle between leavers and remainers. The political class is having a nervous breakdown with no majority in the London Parliament for anything. Just weeks from Brexit day no one knows whether ‘no deal’, a more or less ‘soft deal’, or staying in the EU will prevail, but ‘no deal’ looks ever more likely.  Governments and major companies are triggering their plans for the UK crashing out. Whatever happens, the UK will never be the same again, and I fear it will become a poorer and more bitter place to live.

Brexit drives a knife through my heart and my family. I am an Irish citizen and a proud European, but
also a British citizen by right. My children and all but one of my seven grandsons were born in Britain and are British citizens. With Brexit they lose their current right to move freely to study, work and live throughout the EU27, unless they apply for Irish citizenship through me.

A ‘no deal’ Brexit would affect all of us on this island profoundly, making us poorer at least in the short term – perhaps a bit like the Economic War of the 1930s. Tariffs and new regulatory checks would disrupt supply chains and increase costs. Farmers and agri-business would likely suffer most, though I expect the EU would assist those in the Republic.

WHAT OF OUR ALL-ISLAND CHURCH OF IRELAND?
I expect the RCB, Standing Committee and Bishops have been making their own contingency plans. I hope they receive good financial advice to preserve the Church’s capital reserves so far as possible. Cross-border dioceses will no doubt suffer significant inconvenience. Clergy will be concerned how their pensions may be affected. For General Synod 2019 in Derry in May, will southern members need to show identity papers, and will members who are citizens of other EU countries need visas? It is time the Bishops and central church outline their Brexit contingency plans.

In the meantime, let us pray for reconciliation amid Brexit turmoil – see the prayer below.

God bless,
Joc Sanders, Editor

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A Prayer for reconciliation amid Brexit turmoil

God of our reconciling hope,

as you guided your people in the past

guide us through the

turmoil of the present time

and bring us to that place of flourishing

where our unity can be restored,

the common good served

and all shall be made well.

In the name of Jesus we pray. Amen.

(by the Dean of Southwark, the Very Revd Andrew Nunn)

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