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Bishop Jackie Celebrates Licensed Lay Ministry at Appledore Service
Over 40 Licensed Lay Ministers (Readers) from North Devon have been relicensed for a further five years at a special service in Appledore. The Bishop of Crediton, the Rt Revd Jackie Searle, the Bishop of Crediton led the service for Barnstaple Archdeaconry, and thanked each LLM for their commitment to serving the people of Devon with joy. The service was hosted by the newly appointed vicar of Appledore the Revd Julies Hayes, who even arranged…
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Devon Churches Embracing Digital Giving
Digital giving has become increasingly common in churches as cards have become the preferred form of payment in our society. The Church of England’s National Giving Team has funded a new project called the Digital Giving Rollout to help thousands of churches get started with digital giving. The project is working on a Diocese-by-Diocese basis, and from June churches in Devon will be able to apply for one of 70 contactless giving devices which will…
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Exeter Cathedral Service Celebrates 60 Years of Self-Supporting Ministry
A service to celebrate 60 years of Self-Supporting Ministers (SSMs) took place at Exeter Cathedral on Sunday 11 June at 4pm. Self-Supporting Ministers are ordained clergy who carry out their ministry, for example as a parish priest, alongside their existing work. They do not receive a stipend (salary) but do receive expenses and sometimes accommodation. The first SSMs were ordained at Southwark Cathedral in 1962. There are now over 60 SSMs based in parishes across…
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Torquay Church Marks 80th Anniversary of Tragic World War Two Sunday School Bombing
A Torquay church and its community have commemorated the 80th anniversary of a devastating World War Two bomb attack which struck the building while children were attending a Sunday School class there. 21 children and three teachers were killed when St Mary-the-Virgin church was hit on Sunday 30 May 1943. In all, 45 people were killed in the raid, which destroyed 50 buildings in St Marychurch and the surrounding area. The bomb which hit the…
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How Energy Audits Are Helping Devon’s Churches Work Towards Net Carbon Zero Goals
Sophie Philips is the Diocese of Exeter’s Net Carbon Zero Officer. She works with churches in Devon to help them work towards their net carbon zero goals. She says one of the ways of doing this is by having a subsidised energy audit: “Should we install solar PV?” “Is our church suitable for a heat pump?” “Our heating has broken down – what do we do?” “How do we make the church warmer and more…
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Hospitality and Holy Encounters in Bahrain
The Bishop of Plymouth has just returned from a visit to Bahrain, part of the Anglican diocese of Cyprus and the Gulf. The Rt. Rev’d James Grier said “Whilst in Bahrain we experienced an exceptional welcome and hospitality. “Amongst other things we looked at interfaith relationships with visits to different places of worship and an event hosted by the King Hamad Centre for Peaceful Co-existence. The king of Bahrain is committed to the mutual flourishing…
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