Exploring Your Vocation Contents Page 1. Introduction 2 2. The Team 3 3. The discernment process 6 4. Confidentiality 8 5. What does the Church of England believe about ordination? 9 6. Selection criteria 12 7. What type of ministry? 15 8. Ordained ministry: what are the expectations? 17 9. Training 19 10. Some questions to consider 20 11. The discernment process: your marital status 21 12. What happens now? 22 13. Forms 25 Vocations 2 1. Introduction Thank you for taking the time to consider this pack. In it you will find out more about the people involved in the discernment process, discover what is involved in helping you find the right path on this important journey and resources to help you find out more for yourself. We are all praying for you as you take your journey further. The Vocations Team Father, I abandon myself into your hands. Do with me whatever you will. Whatever you may do I thank you. I am ready for all, I accept all. Let only your will be done in me and all your creatures. I wish no more than this, O Lord. Into your hands I commend my soul. I offer it to you with all the love of my heart. For I love you Lord and so need to give myself, surrender myself into your hands without reserve and with boundless confidence for you are my Father. Amen Foucauld (1858–1916) Diocesan Vision Statement: The Diocese of Sheffield is called to grow a sustainable network of Christ-like, lively and diverse Christian communities in every place which are effective in making disciples and in seeking to transform our society and God’s world. Vocations 3 2. The Team Diocesan Director of Ordinands (DDO) The Diocesan Director of Ordinands is the Revd Stephen Hunter. He, under the Bishop, has oversight of the selection and training of ordination candidates. His role is to work with men and women who sense that God may be calling them to or- dained ministry. Stephen works with a team of Assistant Diocesan Directors of Ordinands (ADDOs): The Revd Canon Lydia Wells is a retired vicar but continues to work with those exploring ordained ministry. She is a vocations advisor and a Bishops’ pastoral advisor at local and national selection panels. The Revd Canon Jane Bolton is the Priest-in-Charge of the three parishes in the Braithwell team, Rotherham and is also the Self- supporting Ministry Officer for the Diocese. The Revd Harry Steele is Priest-in -charge of St Peter’s in Greenhill, Sheffield and the ADDO with particular responsibility for Pioneer Ministry. His role is to help candidates discern if they are called to Pioneer Ministry; this may be ordained or lay. Harry also acts as an external supervisor for Pioneer placements in the Diocese. Vocations 4 2. The Team (continued) The Revd Karen Cribb and the Revd Dr Richard Walton are the Bishop’s Advisors for Self-Supporting Ministry and provide support for existing Self-Supporting Ministers, those exploring and in training. They work in particular to encourage the growth of Self-Supporting ministry throughout the Diocese. Karen is the part-time SSM Associate Vicar of St Mary’s Church Bramall Lane in Sheffield. Richard is SSM Priest-in-Charge of the Parishes of Burghwallis and Campsall in Doncaster and is also Director of the regional STEM programmes at Sheffield Hallam University. In addition, Richard is a Bishop’s adviser at local and national selection panels. Candidates may also meet for a number of sessions with one of the team of Vocations Advisors to explore their calling and discern the right path. When the time is right, the DDO or one of the ADDOs will work with candidates towards an interview with a Local Selection Panel before meeting with the Bishop to discuss sponsorship for a Bishop’s Advisory Panel (BAP). Vocations 5 Vocations Advisers Here is a list of Vocations Advisers in the Sheffield Diocese. Your Director of Ordinands may ask you to contact one of them for some conversations about the vocations process. Revd Margaret Caunt Revd Canon Richard Parker Vicar of St James’ Anston Vicar of Hoyland Revd Dr Jeremy Clines Revd Gary Schofield Chaplain to the University of Sheffield Vicar of St. John the Baptist, Wales Revd John Hutchison Revd Eleanor Robertshaw Formerly Chaplain of Sheffield Children’s Rector, The Great Snaith Team Hospital Revd Canon Julian Sullivan Revd Canon Peter Ingram Vicar of St Mary’s, Bramall Lane Vicar of Holy Trinity Millhouses Revd Ann Walton Revd Hilary Jowett Rector of Adwick-le-Street Team Rector of Gleadless Revd Anesia Nascimento Cook Associate Vicar, Rotherham Minster The following people act on behalf of the Bishop at a Local Selection Panel and also at national BAPs for non-Sheffield candidates. Mrs Janet Atkinson Canon Dr George Lings Bishop’s Lay Pastoral Adviser Director of The Church Army Sheffield Revd Neil Bowler Revd Andrew Mauchan Vicar of St John’s Ranmoor Bishop’s Pastoral Adviser Revd Canon Keith Farrow Revd Canon Julie Upton Canon Missioner at Sheffield Cathedral Team Rector of Sheffield Manor Revd Canon Geoffrey Harbord Revd Dr Richard Walton Chaplain to the Bishop of Sheffield Reader at Sheffield Hallam University Revd Canon Liz Turner-Loisel Revd Canon Lydia Wells Priest in Charge of Hatfield St Retired vicar of St Oswald’s Abbeydale Lawrence and Area Dean of Snaith and St Peter’s Millhouses and Hatfield Mrs Lynne Quinney Dr Linda Kirk Bishop’s Lay Pastoral Advisor Formerly Senior Lecturer in History, University of Sheffield Vocations 6 3. The Discernment Process I think God may be calling me to be ordained. What do I do? God calls us all as his children and we all have vocations or callings to different areas of life: to be a doctor, a lawyer, to work in business or as an aid-worker. Some people are called by God to minister in his Church. There are numerous different callings: to be ordained as a priest or distinctive deacon, to minister as a Reader, to take vows as a monk or nun, or to work as a Church Army Evangelist. Mainly this pack is aimed at people considering the call to ordained ministry, but there is information that you may find useful if you feel a calling to another type of ministry within the Anglican Church. The first step is to speak to your parish priest, who will be very pleased to talk this through with you. You may be surprised to find that he or she may have been waiting for you to come and see them about vocation for some time! It may also be good to share your feelings with some close Christian friends, who will talk and pray this through with you. If your parish priest feels that you do have a potential vocation to ordained ministry to be explored, he or she will refer you to the Diocesan Director of Ordinands (DDO), who is Revd Stephen Hunter for the Sheffield Diocese. You will meet with him and he will outline the discernment and selection process to you and check if there are any matters that you need to address before entering the formal process. Once he is satisfied that you are a potential ordinand, he will refer you on to a Vocations Adviser or an Assistant DDO, for several months of reflection, study, and prayer. Later, you may undertake a placement, do a course of theological study, and then prepare for a Diocesan Local Panel. This part of the selection is based on the Bishops’ Criteria for Selection for Minis- try. The DDO or Assistant DDO will then arrange for you to meet with the Bishop who, if he is satisfied with the report from the DDO, will make the decision as to whether you should attend a Bishops' Advisory Panel (BAP), organised by the Ministry Division. This is a three-day residential conference, held in a retreat house. At the end of the conference, the Advisors will write a report to the Bishop, advising whether they recom- mend that you should enter training for ordained ministry. Once the Bishop has confirmed the Panel’s recommendation, he will sponsor you for training. The type of training will depend on you and the ministry you are to exercise within the Church. The DDO will discuss the different options and generally training will be for either two or three years. The decision as to whether you will be ordained will be made by the Bishop, having tak- en advice from the Principal of your training college or course during your final year of training. It normally takes between twelve and eighteen months between a candidate seeing the DDO and entering training, but can take longer. Vocations 7 8 4. Confidentiality People exploring ordination are advised that whatever emerges as part of the process of discernment is liable to be shared with those who are part of the decision-making process within the Diocese, and with the Advisors should the candidate be sponsored for a Selec- tion Conference. Confidentiality is to be maintained within the process but not between its separate parts. If the person considering ordination wishes to discuss matters in confidence this should be done with their spiritual director or other such companion. Vocations 9 5. What does the Church of England believe about ordination? The following is taken from the liturgy for ordination and will give you an idea of what you would be signing up for: Deacons The bishop introduces the service God calls his people to follow Christ, and forms us into a royal priesthood, a holy nation, to declare the wonderful deeds of him who has called us out of darkness into his marvellous light.