“We constantly pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of His calling…” 2 Thessalonians 1 : 1I wonder if you have ever thought you were being called to Ministry but perhaps not ordination? God may be calling you to be a Licensed Lay Minister.Today Lay Ministers serve their parishes in a variety of ways. Throughout the year we have been adapting our skills to serve both online and in person.It is my role as Diocesan Warden of the LLMs to lead, support and encourage the Lay Ministers and all parishes, and to look for new people to join us.This is a national ministry – check out our national website www.transformingministry.org.ukOn June 26 there is a very special service and Quiet Day to celebrate the Licensing of five new Lay Ministers to the Diocese. Lay people have served in this way for decades supporting their ordained colleagues and providing a strong theological preaching and teaching resource to parishes. We take funerals, serve as Chaplains, lead services, small groups, pastoral work, community service – a whole variety of things and it all begins with following our calling.Imagine a church where everyone is following their calling to serve God. A Church where vocations are recognized and valued and where the right training is given to the right people to serve the Kingdom wherever they are. That’s my passion and I look forward to making it a reality with your help. So I ask you once again – Is God calling you to serve him? If so then please do not hesitate to get in touch and we will guide you on to the right path.Jane Hiley, Warden of Licensed Lay MinistersWardenofLLMs@cofeguildford.org.uk
Click on this link to listen to the interview.https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p09l9h5t?utm_source=Daily+media+digest&utm_campaign=9945a4b524-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2019_11_27_02_01_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_296e14724b-9945a4b524-249740152&mc_cid=9945a4b524&mc_eid=1d87734465
Following the Prime Minister’s statement on coronavirus restrictions, the Bishop of London, Sarah Mullally, who chairs the Church of England’s Covid Recovery Group, said:“The confirmation tonight of a delay in the next stage of lifting Covid-19 restrictions will be a blow to many people but I understand why this decision has been taken.“I am hugely thankful for the success and speed of the vaccination programme which has undoubtedly saved many lives - but we do have to take the spread of the more transmissible Delta variant very seriously and do all we can to protect each other as Christians called to love our neighbour.“I know from those on the front line that the pressures on the NHS are extreme and understand that a delay of a few more weeks in lifting restrictions could make a big difference in helping us all to get ahead in the ‘race’ against this virus which has caused so much death and misery.“Thankfully church buildings remain open for public worship and prayer. While we look forward to restrictions on worship being lifted in the near future, I will continue to press for ongoing appraisal of choral and congregational singing.“We will also update our guidance on public worship where necessary in light of today’s announcement and I understand that the Business Committee of the General Synod will be looking at options for the planned July meeting of Synod in the next few days.“The Prime Minister’s comments about lifting the limit of 30 people attending weddings will be a relief to many. We will await the detail from the Government about what it means in practice and will update our guidance to churches accordingly.“Most of all, however, we do have hope. This pandemic has been a trial for us all but we put our trust in God and have hope that there are better times to come.”
I am honoured to be delivering my maiden speech in this debate on ‘Hungry for Change’ report. A report which covers many burning issues of poverty, social justice and education which face us today.There comes a time in the life of a nation when a great crisis challenges a thoughtful government to reimagine not only its own vision of itself as a governing body, but also its vision of the kind of nation it hopes to govern for the future.It is the opportunity for a time of radical reassessment. And this calls for courage, imagination and a readiness to set in motion practicable actions; actions which will have transformative outcomes in serving the wellbeing and flourishing of all.My Lords, the United Kingdom is not short of people who are hungry for change and with good ideas. It is short of discerning the ways of achieving sustainable change and stability. This report hints at it. Therefore, let us keep to task.In the first half of the last century the crises we faced were two world wars, a pandemic, and the Great Depression of the 1930s. The result of brave and radical reimagining were some of the blessings we enjoy today: the development of the “welfare state”, a phrase coined by Archbishop William Temple, instead of Beveridge’s “Social Insurance”; the great liberalising Education Act; and a National Health Service whose continued safety has been a key part of our Covid-19 response.In the early years of our present century, we have experienced two crises which offered similar moments for reflection, action and reform. It could be argued that the financial crisis of 2007-8 was an opportunity missed for radical reform. Austerity was the wrong medicine and it was applied for far too long.The second crisis is the Covid-19 pandemic. May we all learn the lessons and act on them. I am glad that our NHS is now the National Health Service and Social Care. A full implementation of the Dilnot Report is a must. Thankfully no-one now talks about “there is no money tree”. The furlough scheme and support for people’s livelihoods has lifted our gaze to the horizon of hope. “We’re all in this together”: in word and deed in ordering our society, our politics, our economy, with the wellbeing and human flourishing as our aim.As the late Lord Jonathan Sacks says in the introduction to his book Morality: Restoring the Common Good in Divided Times: “We need some kind of moral community for there to be a society as opposed to a state.”Even before the financial challenges of loss of livelihoods over the past year due to the various lockdown restrictions, the statistics of food banks have told their own story of poverty, hunger, income inequality and the need to change.And just as the Covid-19 pandemic is a global challenge, food poverty is truly global. Certainly poverty, and food poverty in particular, had long pre-dated the problems of the pandemic, and the House of Lords report refers to the staggering increase in foodbank use.This crisis of food hunger is real. Marcus Rashford’s campaign calls us to slay this dragon together, for the sake of our children. Well done Marcus! Research has consistently shown that children need a good diet to be able to learn effectively.When children come to school without having eaten properly, they are less likely to learn, to thrive, to progress, and their future chances will be impaired. That’s why breakfast clubs were set up, so that those who were not getting a proper diet could be given the necessary advantages to help them flourish.Her Majesty’s Government has learnt during the Covid-19 challenge that big government solutions are important for big problems. Can the lessons learnt be applied to government action for the health and wellbeing crisis?I pray that they can, and they will – and may it be soon – promising less and delivering more.
