CAPTION: The eleven new deacons pictured with the Acting Bishop of Exeter and the Bishop of Plymouth after their ordination service
Devon’s Newest Clergy Cheered and Clapped After Ordination at Exeter Cathedral
Eleven new deacons have been ordained at Exeter Cathedral in a service which ended with spontaneous applause and cheers for Devon’s newest members of clergy.
They were ordained by the Rt. Rev’d Jackie Searle, the Acting Bishop of Exeter. In 2020 she became the first female bishop to ordain deacons at Exeter Cathedral in its 900-year history, when she carried out some of the ordinations under Covid restrictions.
Bishop Jackie told the deacons: “You are to be agents of God’s purposes of love, reaching into the forgotten corners of this world. A calling that, at this time, is needed more than ever.”
The new reverends include a former cross-channel swimmer, a gaming and sci-fi fan, a psychotherapist and a former criminal justice solicitor.
Rev’d Carys Puleston will be serving as a curate at St Thomas church in Exeter
They have spent the last few years doing ordination training at theological colleges include St Mellitus SW in Plymouth, and the South West Ministry Training Course (SWMTC), based in Devon and Cornwall.
During the service they are asked to make ordination vows and kneel before the Cathedral altar. The moment of ordination involves the bishop placing their hands on the head of each ordinand in turn and praying for the Holy Spirit to descend upon them.
Speaking afterwards, Rev’d Carys Puleston, a mother-of-five, commented: “It’s wonderful, this is the end of a long discernment process and it’s a great day. The moment when Bishop Jackie laid her hands on my head was the most significant for me.”
Carys will now be working as a curate at St Thomas church in Exeter.
Rev’d Kate Jackson, who will be based at St Matt’s church, in Exeter, said “I’m feeling excited and pleased. My calling [to ministry] has been nudging me for longer than I have lived in Devon, and my ordination is a glorious fulfilment of a rather rocky journey during those years. Now I’m going to be working as a curate at St Matt’s, which is a wonderful place, and I’m looking forward to getting stuck in.”
Rev’d Shaun Tipton, who worked for 30 years as a solicitor in the criminal justice system, said after the service, “I’m relieved and elated and feeling great. The most stand-out moment for me was after we had been ordained and we could go and exchange the peace with family and friends. It means everything to have had them here.
Shaun and his fellow new deacons will be starting work in their new parishes next week.
One more deacon, Alex Honey, will be ordained by the Bishop of Oswestry at Heavitree parish church on Sunday 30 June.
You can read the full list of new deacons and their parishes here.