FREE AM DDIM TEULU ASAPH Esgobaeth Llanelwy Diocese of St Asaph Chwefror/Mawrth February/March 2017 Opportunities for growth Cyfleoedd i dyfu Inside Tu mewn Giving up or Taking up? Rhoi’r Gorau iddi Ynteu Dechrau arni? 14 years as Archbishop 14 mlynedd yn Archesgob From the Editor Welcome to the first edition of And – on the back cover – seeds have Teulu Asaph for 2017. The theme become flowers marking twenty years for this issue reflects the push since the first women became priests across the diocese this year for in the Church in Wales. growth. This theme is explored in different ways: growth in your In this edition as well we say a fond personal spiritual journey, growth farewell to Archbishop Barry. He me – please keep your contributions in service to your community, and retires at the end of January, and coming! I hope that you enjoy this growth and change in the ways that in an interview starting on page 8 edition of your magazine, and on we worship and involve people in he reflects on the changes he has behalf of the Teulu Asaph team I’d like the life of our churches. seen over four decades. For two to wish you a very happy 2017. years he was Rector of Wrexham, When you are thinking about growth and in recalling her memories of his locally, don’t forget that the diocesan time there, a former member of his Transformation Fund can provide congregation gives a very human money needed to help you achieve view of our former Archbishop. your aims. There are more details karenmaurice@churchinwales. about this money, what it can be used Thank you for all the news, photos, org.uk / 07918 133420 for, and how to apply for it on page 5. and suggestions that you’ve sent In this Issue 3 Bishop’s Word / Gair gan yr Esgob 4 4 Seeds of Growth: Hope and a Future 5 Stories for Growth: The Hearth Project in Bala / Hanesion Tyfu: Prosiect Storiau o’r Galon yn y Bala 8 6 News / Newyddion 7 Pause for Thought / Munud i Feddwl 8 Speaking Out....... the Archbishop reflects on four decades of service 10 Spiritual Direction…. an opportunity for growth 11 I want to be a…. Pastor / Lay Chaplain 12 Your Mission Area Questions Answered 13 13 Engaging in the Changing Scene of Religious Education 14 Schools / Ysgolion 16 14 Resources / Adnoddau 15 Your News / Eich Newyddion Chi 16 Celebrating and Giving Thanks © Diocese of St Asaph 2017. Teulu Asaph is edited by Karen Maurice, designed by Jeff Lewis (Space on White Ltd) and printed by PWS Print Limited. The deadline for the April/May edition is 3 March. Please send copy and high quality images to karenmaurice@ churchinwales.org.uk for inclusion. While we welcome all contributions, unfortunately we are not able to print everything we are sent. 2 | Teulu Asaph Bishop’s Word / Gair gan yr Esgob “… everyone who believes “…er mwyn i bob un sy’n in him may have eternal credu gael bywyd tragwyddol life.” (John 3.15) ynddo ef.” (Ioan 3.15) The Church is all about eternal life. Life beyond Hanfod yr Eglwys yw ymwneud â’r bywyd death. Fullness of life. Fellowship with God tragwyddol. Bywyd y tu hwnt i farwolaeth. allows us to transcend boundaries. The life we Bywyd yn ei Gyflawnder. Mae cymdeithas gyda lead here is not all that there is, but through Duw yn ein galluogi i drosgynnu ffiniau. Nid which we may walk with Jesus beyond death y bywyd rydym yn ei fyw yma yw’r cyfan sy’n into a new life. But eternal life is in this life as bod, dim ond rhoi modd i ni gerdded gydag well, as we are invited to Iesu y tu hwnt i farwolaeth know a fullness of life, i fywyd newydd. Ond gifted by God with grace, mae bywyd tragwyddol joy and wholeness. yn y bywyd hwn hefyd, yn ogystal, gan ein bod Christian faith then is about yn cael ein gwahodd i finding eternal life as disciples wybod am fywyd yn ei of Christ. We enter into our relationship with Christ by gyflawnder, yn rhodd gan repentance and faith, a turning Dduw drwy ras, llawenydd of our lives to open our hearts a chyfanrwydd. to the redeeming presence of Christ. Faith is a lifelong journey, Gan hynny, mae’r ffydd in which we’re invited to grow, Gristnogol yn ymwneud â dod and in which God nourishes us o hyd i fywyd tragwyddol fel through the Church in Word and disgyblion Crist. Rydym yn Sacrament. mynd i mewn i’n perthynas â Christ drwy edifeirwch a ffydd, This is why I bother with the Church. I find, we find, yn troi ein bywydau i agor ein calonnau i bresenoldeb everybody can find, eternal life through the gift of Jesus achubol Crist. Mae ffydd yn daith gydol oes, lle’r ydym Christ. This is why I also want to see the Church grow: yn cael ein gwahodd i dyfu, a lle mae Duw’n ein meithrin I want it to grow in the sense of disciples growing into drwy’r Eglwys mewn Gair a Sacrament. fullness of life, but I want to see it grow in numbers as well because I believe that eternal life is worth sharing. Dyma pam rwy’n trafferthu gyda’r Eglwys. Rwy’n darganfod, rydym ni’n darganfod, gall pawb ddarganfod As a diocese, we need to move beyond organising bywyd tragwyddol drwy’r rhodd sydd wedi ei rhoi i ni yn ourselves. We need to be growing; becoming a Iesu Grist. Dyma pam rwyf hefyd eisiau gweld yr Eglwys yn community which is life-giving for members both old and tyfu: rwyf eisiau iddi dyfu yn yr ystyr bod disgyblion yn tyfu new. I hope it’s a mission that will be at the centre of our i fywyd yn ei gyflawnder, ond rwyf eisiau ei gweld yn tyfu lives in 2017, because this is, in the end, the heart of the mewn niferoedd yn ogystal, oherwydd credaf fod bywyd Gospel Christ has given to us. tragwyddol yn werth ei rannu. Fel esgobaeth, mae angen i ni symud y tu hwnt i drefnu ein hunain. Mae angen i ni fod yn tyfu; dod yn gymuned The image above is a stone angel from the sy’n rhoi bywyd i aelodau hen a newydd. Rwy’n gobeithio church yard outside St Marcella’s Church, ei bod yn genhadaeth a fydd wrth wraidd ein bywydau yn Denbigh. 2017, oherwydd hyn, yn y pen draw, yw calon yr Efengyl y mae Crist wedi ei rhoi i ni. www.stasaph.churchinwales.org.uk Teulu Asaph | 3 Seeds of Growth: Hope and a Future…. Making connections at a Hope and a Future course 2020 Vision, the Church in • Celebrate and identify all local Using Hope and a Future Wales’ transformation to resources available to a church better serve communities in and community The Alyn Mission Area, near the 21st Century, has largely • See the role of the church as Wrexham, was one of the first meeting the needs of the most focused on the creation of Mission Areas to run Hope and vulnerable and marginalised in a Future. One of its Readers, Mission Areas so far. Having the community established the process to Alan Cronin, has now trained as a • Equip the church with the facilitator and reflects here on its form them the focus now basic skills for planning and wider benefits. is shifting to running a simple growth – how and appropriate Since my first introduction to Hope and can churches community a Future, I have taken every opportunity inspire and initiative or to develop my knowledge and project. encourage understanding of it and how it will help us all to work with our communities. It congregations To encourage once again. is a fabulous and timely addition to our churches and tool kit as we step out in mission with Where are the groups to explore A space for reflection at a Hope and a the goal of building God’s church. opportunities Future course growth through for growth? the Hope and a For me, the most wonderful and The diocesan engagement Future course, we’re developing a important part is that it requires us officer, Sarah Wheat looks series of taster courses, just two to look prayerfully at issues and hours long to simulate discussion. at how Hope and a Future challenges we meet in our secular The first is Developing your Mission communities through the lens of courses can unlock the Area Vision. potential for growth in our Scripture. churches. If you’d like your church to receive a We can also use the same techniques taster of Hope and a Future, contact to examine and resolve some of the Hope and a Future is a set of three me and together we can plant the vexing issues that appear to beset workshops launched in Mission seeds of hope and a future in your some of our churches as we transition Areas (MAs) across the Diocese two community. to fully fledged Mission Areas. Where years ago. Since then, the course there are difficulties within individual has run in three MAs and we have churches or groups of churches, I held two facilitator training courses For more information about would recommend seeking out a allowing us to train 17 people to Hope and a Future contact Hope and a Future facilitator. He or continue the training. There is a sarahwheat@churchinwales. she could work with them to resolve trained facilitator in every MA or org.uk issues holding the church back from neighbouring MA, so make use of delivering mission.