The Bishop of Gloucester

Lay Leadership of Worship on Sundays and Principal Holy Days

Introduction

There are varieties of gifts but the same Spirit… In each of us the Spirit is seen to be at work for some useful purpose. (I Corinthians 12:4,7)

1. The people of God have been given great gifts, different gifts that should be used and celebrated. Yet, as St Paul explained, all these various gifts must be fitted together, in the service of one Lord. Individual Christians are equipped for ministry, but each ministry is ‘for building up the body of Christ’ (Ephesians 4:12). So, in church we learn to be real individuals, living in a real community, making one choir by tuning our different voices in a great chorus of praise.

2. What that means, in practice, is that we have to talk about variety and unity at the same time. We have things to say about the gifts of the Spirit, shared ministry and local ministry, and other things to say about a Church that is called to be one, holy, catholic and apostolic. We are truly eager to see all the people of God actively involved in worship and in ministry. Our Eucharists should be occasions when we celebrate together (see “Ministries” Note on page 158 of Common Worship):

Holy Communion is celebrated by the whole people of God gathered for worship. The ministry of the members of the congregation is expressed through their active participation together in the words and actions of the service…

3. And, as the Book of Common Prayer explains, our worship also must be an occasion when we can be confident that we celebrate not just in the spirit, but also in truth.

The visible Church of Christ is a congregation… in which the pure Word of God is preached and the Sacraments be duly ministered (Article XIX, Book of Common Prayer). 4. All of us are called into holiness. It is the particular responsibility of our Priests, Deacons, Readers and Licensed Lay Workers to help us to worship as one church, confessing the apostolic faith, and sharing together in the catholic life of a community that embraces all ages and all places.

5. These beliefs shape the way we approach appointing ministers to lead worship and to preach. We need to be confident that they have the ability to promote unity and to tell us the truth. But we live in an era where lay people are being invited to take on liturgical roles that go beyond our familiar provisions. This partly reflects some fresh thinking about ministry. It also reflects a shortage of authorised ministries, especially in rural benefices, though, where this is the case, there is the possibility of a more imaginative deployment of authorised ministers, especially Readers.

6. Our aim must be to hold in balance the requirements of order, doctrine and liturgical competence, backed by canon law, which remain important, and yet neither to constrain unnecessarily, nor to discourage the emergence of gifts the Spirit is giving to the Church.

Reading and Leading Prayers

7. There is no in canon law over who may read and lead prayers during services. Decisions should be made locally. The incumbent has a responsibility to train or seek training for those who engaged in these ministries. Formal authorisation or permission is inappropriate; these ministries simply express membership of the Body through baptism. However the diocese, through the Bishop’s Worship, Prayer and Spirituality Group, has a responsibility to see that training is available for those who seek it.

Preaching

8. Formal preaching ought normally to be restricted to clergy and Readers who have been trained in theology and in preaching. However, the Common Worship note on “The Sermon” needs to be noted (Common Worship, p 332):

The sermon may on occasion include less formal exposition of Scripture, the use of drama, interviews, discussion and audio- visual aids.

9. There are, therefore, many ways of exploring the scripture readings when there is no authorised preacher present. Beyond the possibilities in the Common Worship note, there is, of course, the canonical provision to read “homilies” and no shortage of material available.

10. However none of these entirely meets the demand for some “freeing-up” of the rules on who may preach. The following four provisions are intended to meet that need.

11. There will be occasions when the incumbent wants to invite a person with particular knowledge or experience of a subject to speak on a single occasion. This may happen without the Bishop’s permission.

12. There will be occasions when clergy who, believing they are discerning a gift in a person, will want to invite them to preach on a number of occasions to test the calling or gift. The Bishop is happy for the incumbent to do this, though of course he/she should always be present to monitor the preaching. This is permitted, without the need to consult the Bishop, but it must be for an agreed period of up to six months, after which there must be a decision to go for training or to cease.

13. There will be occasions when the sermon takes the form of an informal “talk”, for instance, at an all age worship service. Where a lay person has the necessary communications skills and sufficient theological understanding, the Bishop is content that they be invited to speak without further training or permission, providing that these talks are not the regular weekly norm for the presentation of the faith, but part of an overall approach where the majority of “sermons” are preached by those with proper authority to do so.

14. Exceptionally the Bishop will give permission for someone, who does not have the calling to be an ordained minister or Reader, or the time to do reader training, to preach. The conditions for “Bishop’s permission to preach” in this diocese are that

o The proposal has the support of both the incumbent and the PCC, expressed through a minute sent to the Bishop; o A discernment by the Bishop, or someone nominated by him, has taken place to establish that it was inappropriate or impossible for the person to undertake Reader training; o The candidate should have some basic qualification in theology or biblical studies; o The permission is understood to be permission to preach, not to lead worship; o There should be careful on-going monitoring by the incumbent; o The person would not wear distinctive robes when preaching; o The permission would be for three-years, with renewal only after interview and assessment. 15. This exceptional provision is made under Canon B 18.2.

Eucharistic Ministers

16. Permission to assist with the distribution of Holy Communion (which includes its distribution to the sick and housebound, but does not include permission to preside at a service of Extended Communion [see below]), must be sought from the Bishop, but is readily given. Once every three years the parish needs to submit a fresh list to the Bishop for approval. The procedures are set out in Bishop’s Occasional Paper 001.

Communion by Extension

17. A Service of the Word with Holy Communion by Extension is not intended to be a normal feature of parish life over a long period of time. There are clear rules about its use and these are set out in the House of Bishops’ Guidelines and, within this diocese, in Bishop’s Occasional Paper 002, which needs to be consulted and followed by any parish considering this form of service. Before giving authorisation, the Bishop needs to satisfy himself about a number of issues and he may then give authority to certain named persons to preside over such a service. These will normally be Deacons or Readers, though, in the absence of these in a benefice, the Bishop may authorise other suitably trained persons. Authorisation to assist with the distribution of Holy Communion does not include this leadership ministry.

Leading non-sacramental Services

18. Especially where there is a Local Ministry Team, there is, quite rightly, an encouragement for people to share in the leadership of worship. This is to be welcomed, and most of the training for it can be given within the parish (and the team), but sharing in leadership is different from being the anchor-person, the “leader” or, to use the term Common Worship uses at the Eucharist, the “president”. In common parlance it is the one who “takes the service”. The Bishop recognises the need to make provision for a layperson, who is not a Reader, who may or may not be a member of a Local Ministry Team, to lead a Service of the Word (whether “all age” worship or not) or Morning and Evening Prayer.

19. There is, of course, a provision for churchwardens, in emergency, to read Morning or Evening Prayer, but it is a provision for them to do it themselves, not to invite others to do so. It is, in any case, designed for an emergency, not for the regular on-going life of the parish.

20. Those who are to exercise this ministry on a regular basis must first obtain the Bishop’s Certificate in the Leadership of Worship. It involves a simple course of eight evenings, designed to promote an understanding of the breadth of Anglican worship, which is offered centrally by the diocese, but is also deliverable more locally by tutors with appropriate skills. The eight weeks focus on these subjects: (1) Understanding Worship, (2) Understanding the Christian Year, (3) Services of the Word/Devising a Service, (4) Morning and Evening Prayer, (5) Leading Prayer, (6) Children and Worship, (7) Choosing Music and (8) Resources.

21. Where an incumbent believes a person is suited to lead worship, there should first be a short period when the incumbent and the candidate plan and lead worship together. Providing that short period confirms the gifting of the candidate, the incumbent then nominates him/her for the course.

22. At the completion of the course candidates will be interviewed by a person nominated by the Bishop and, providing they are satisfied, a certificate will be given. This is not an authorisation to lead worship in a particular place. Authorisation is a matter for the incumbent and the PCC and should be for a specified (renewable) period of time. The certificate does not give any authority to preach.

23. The Bishop expects clergy to restrict new invitations to lead worship to those who have obtained this certificate. In relation to those already leading worship, he expects the clergy to encourage them to obtain this certificate unless they have already undergone training covering much the same ground.

24. These provisions are not intended to put any restriction on who may lead informal weekday times of worship or the leadership of Morning and Evening Prayer on weekdays. They are intended for the major gatherings of the people of God on Sundays and principal Holy Days.

Short cut to a Ministry of Leading and Preaching?

25. Anyone (other than a Licensed Lay Worker) wishing to have a lay ministry involving both regular leading worship and regular preaching continues to need to be admitted and licensed as a Reader, though whether they always need to undertake the full Readers’ course depends on their previous qualifications and experience. The combination of the Bishop’s permission to preach and the Bishop’s Certificate in the Leadership of Worship is not acceptable as an alternative to Reader Ministry.

+Michael Gloucestr:

October 2007