So ... what does an “associate vicar” do?

Last year we appointed Stephen Webster as our first associate vicar. But what does he do? 
 
His role is very different from the role of curate. The curate’s role is focused on learning the job as an apprentice. The associate vicar is no longer an apprentice, but has particular responsibilities for whole areas of church life.
 
As vicar, Richard balances parish work in the Oundle benefice with his role as Rural Dean. It is important that, as new patterns of ministry are encouraged in the deanery, St Peter’s remains strong. A strong, vibrant, growing, active, outward-looking St Peter’s is not only good for the town of Oundle, but for the whole deanery. Two clergy are essential for maintaining focus and growth at parish, benefice and deanery levels. 
 
Stephen has a full job description, which might be a little tedious to print here (but is available from the office for those suffering from insomnia). Included within it are the following pointers:
 
The associate vicar has an equal but different role to the vicar. He exercises leadership at Oundle alongside the vicar, churchwardens and PCC, and has particular oversight of the Outreach, Nurture, Youth and Hospitality Ministries. Whereas Stephen is fully involved in every aspect of the church’s work, his main focus is on church growth. As part of this focus he agrees annual growth-related targets with the vicar and shares them with the churchwardens and PCC. So, what are the targets for 2011?
 
Cafe Nooma
- Identify, train and support a team to take on the monthly sessions.
- Establish a monthly congregation of 20 regular ‘teens to thirties’.

Bible Year in School
- Organise, with Oundle Primary School, the visit by Saltmine in the autumn to mark the 400th anniversary of the King James Bible.

Alpha Course
- Set up a schedule of courses for the next two years.
- Establish a team to take responsibility for all aspects of running Alpha.

Marriage
- Establish the Marriage Course as a natural part of the life of St Peter’s.
- Identify, train and support a team to take on the Marriage Course from Dave and Lin Harding.
- Invite wedding couples, as appropriate, to be part of the Marriage Course.
- Establish ongoing links with the Talbot Hotel Wedding Fair.

Men’s Activities
- Circulate and publicise the programme of events for 2011.
- Encourage fringe contacts to be part of this programme of events.
- Establish a group to take on men’s work at St Peter’s.
 
It is so encouraging to hear the Bishop of Peterborough speaking openly and confidently about church growth. At St Peter’s we believe that we have genuinely good news to share with our town – in word and action. We thank God for the way the church has grown over the past years and we trust him for the future. Together, whether we are clergy or not, we can enjoy every God-given opportunity for growth.
 
Please support Stephen as he makes this his main focus over the coming years.
 
 
Richard Ormston,

Vicar of the Oundle Parishes 

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The Six Nations, Lent and Easter

The Six Nations epitomises all that is positive about sport.  There’s an old saying that winning is not important – taking part is what it’s all about. Hmmm.  Maybe not.  When Italy lost to Ireland with the last kick of the game they were hugely disappointed.  They didn’t say, “We’re just happy to be here. Taking part is the important thing. We don’t mind whether we win or lose.”  Italy had shown uncharacteristic strength and discipline.  Victory was within their grasp.  It meant everything to them.

The lead up to Easter is all about strength and discipline – making sure the basics of the Christian life are in place.  It’s a time to ask big questions: How do I follow Jesus?  How do I respond to the Bible?  How do I trust and pray? How do I give?  How do I forgive?  These are the themes of the Sermon on the Mount from Matthew’s Gospel, where Jesus spells out the strengths and disciplines needed to be his disciple.  During Lent we will be looking at these themes in sermons and home groups.

Then Easter, with all of the accompanying celebrations: from strength and discipline to victory.  As Paul said to the Christians in Corinth: “Thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”  What is Paul talking about?  Life out of death. Victory from the jaws of defeat.  Jesus, alive and well and living in Oundle ... and eternal life that starts now.

Lent and Easter: strength, discipline and victory.

 Richard Ormston

What on earth are we doing for heaven’s sake?

“A very witty title,” says Adrian Plass in his Sacred Diary of Adrian Plass (Aged 37 ¾). “What on Earth are we doing for Heaven’s sake - A very witty title I feel”. Returning from the Christian bookshop armed with this snappily entitled volume the hapless Adrian reads that with faith Christians can move mountains. He decides to begin modestly by attempting to move a paper clip. Several days earnest practice, however, produces no result - only disappointment. ‘But sweetheart,’ asks his wife, ‘why would God want you to move a paperclip?’

May 13^th is Ascension Day – which takes place 40 days after the world-transforming event of Easter Day. Before that world-transforming event Jesus’ friends and followers were in despair. The Lord and teacher they loved – who reached out to the outsiders and the marginalised – who healed the broken – who taught with such authority of a God of forgiveness – who promised a coming Kingdom in which there would be no more injustice and cruelty – He had been crushed and brutally executed. Some of them had watched Him die and had seen His body sealed in a stone-cold tomb along with all their hopes. His teaching about love and forgiveness… His promise of a coming Kingdom of justice and fairness… beautiful ideas maybe – but in the end only hopeless dreams. Look what happened when you actually did forgive those who persecuted you: you got crucified. Following His death Jesus’ followers are frightened and in deep despair.

But then Easter Day! There He was standing in front of them eating fish as surely alive as once He’d been surely dead. And the whole world changed. Despair turned to hope. He had defeated death. And that meant that that Kingdom He had promised was no hopeless dream. If death couldn’t hold Him back what else could? Surely now was the time when He would establish His Kingdom.

‘Lord,’ the disciples ask in Acts 1:7, ‘are You at this time going to restore the Kingdom?’

‘It’s not for you to know,’ replies Jesus, ‘but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and Samaria and to the ends of the earth.’

And with that – just as everything was going so well – Jesus is taken from them. ‘After He said this,’ writes Luke, ‘He was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid Him from their sight.’ Jesus returns to His Father’s presence in heaven. And the disciples are left literally staring into space. Why did He have to go at this moment? Why not stick around at least to establish His Kingdom? What on earth were they supposed to do now?

Then in the coming days the truth slowly dawns on them. ‘You will receive power,’ He’d said, ‘the Holy Spirit will come upon you.’ ‘You will be My witnesses to the ends of the earth.’ He is trusting them with the task! Reaching out to the broken and the marginalised; proclaiming forgiveness and new beginnings for those who turn to God; proclaiming His coming Kingdom – that was their job now! And with the help of God’s Holy Spirit they do it. Through them Jesus’ message sweeps through the first century world. In place after place little communities of Jesus’ followers grow up, committed to being witnesses to the values of His Kingdom.

And what was their job is our job too. The disciples were given a promise that first Ascension Day. ‘This same Jesus who has been taken from you,’ they are told, ‘He will come back.’ We look forward to a day when He will come finally and for all time to establish His Kingdom. But we don’t just wait around. He wants to use us to be His witnesses – through our words and our actions – to the people we live amongst.

Ascension Day falls in Christian Aid week: a good time for us to witness His values through our words and actions. A good time to ask: ‘what on earth are we doing for heaven’s sake?’

Stephen Webster May 2010

The tower of Babel story in Genesis chapter 11 gives us a biblical explanation for the way mankind spread throughout the world and the variety of languages that have emerged. It presupposes that, beforehand, people spoke just one language – most likely, scholars think, a form of Hebrew. After the flood God intended mankind to form several tribes and to set off in different directions. Thinking they were wiser than God, mankind was loath to disperse and decided that more was merrier.

So, they gathered in Babel to build a city and, rather presumptuously, a tower that would reach to heaven. On the face of it this cooperative venture seems to be a good thing and in keeping with our current predilection for team work and harmony. But the activity clearly angered God. Why? There seems to be three reasons:

1. It says in verse 4 that the tower would reach close to heaven. This was an affront to God. It suggests a defiance or rivalry to his supreme position. They thought that by working together they could become as supreme and powerful as God.

2. Verse 4 also tells us that they hoped to make a name for themselves and to be recognised throughout the world for their selfish pride and ambition. These attributes are not in God’s design for human behaviour.

3. They thought the tower would prevent their dispersion. Probably the powerful and ambitious Nimrod was at work here. He was aiming for universal monarchy and keeping everything under his control. He failed to recognise that universal dominion of all creation is God’s prerogative and to attempt to be all powerful was bound to be offensive to God.

Verse 6 outlines God’s concern that abuse of co-operative purpose in this way would lead to all manner of trouble. So he put a stop to it by, as we are told in verse 7, confusing the language so that they could not understand each other. This led to the dispersal.

The story has many verifiable aspects but the key interest for us today is the message it brings to our own lives. I briefly suggest three and tentatively offer a rounding off for us to ponder on. The tower of Babel story teaches us:

1. The quest for supreme power and control is unacceptable to God. This message is as relevant for us today, faced with continuing attempts at dictatorship and megalomania, as it was to the builders of Babel. This applies just as much to small group behaviour as it does on the grand scale of nations.

2. Pride and blind ambition running contrary to the will of God is offensive and unacceptable. We need to check that our activity is in line with God’s will and purpose and not a function of our headstrong self will.

3. The tower was never finished. Once God confused the issue the work stopped and their spirits were dampened. We need to see the wisdom of not proceeding with activity uncondoned by God.

The rounding off to this story is found in chapter two of the Acts of the Apostles which deliberately presents the Day of Pentecost as the antithesis of Babel. The arrival of the Holy Spirit led folk to ask how it was that they could, once again, hear and understand each other in their own language. It was Peter who replied and what he said is well worth reading.