Stories from 2008
Scroll through the year
Investing in Mission
At three venues across the Diocese, a new resource pack was launched in October 2007 to support the Year of Stewardship 2008. 'Investing in Mission' has been developed by Tracey White, Funding and Parish Support Officer, building on the work of Canon Barry Gauge. Clergy and lay people met to hear how the resources can be used to encourage stewardship in our parishes. More...
St Peter's Holywell
THE BISHOP struck the doors of a new church in Holywell on Palm Sunday, 16 March, to gain entry for the first time. The Rt Revd John S Davies, Bishop of St Asaph, consecrated the new St Peter’s building at a special service attended by over 200 people.
The children of St Peter's welcome their new church
In his address, the Bishop spoke of how the vision to build the church had been taken forward by the Vicar, the Revd John Lomas, and the congregation of the parish church of St James. Now, he said, was the time to look forward, “This is the actual. Now, what’s the potential?” He spoke of the “potential for growth” represented by the new building and said, “Congratulations to you all on this magnificent achievement. It’s a fine building.”
The move from St James to the new building at the top of Coleshill Street, Holywell, was symbolised in a Palm Sunday procession from the old parish church, which stands above St Winefride’s well, up to St Peter’s. Then, as light filled the new building, the congregation witnessed the blessing of the church by the Bishop and shared in Holy Communion.
The new St Peter’s stands on the site of an old building, which was demolished in the 1960s. It has community rooms, as well as a multi-purpose hall which is used for worship on a Sunday but is available for other activities during the week.
Bishop John to retire
A letter from Bishop John
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
I wish to inform you that I shall be retiring as bishop of St Asaph in December of this year and will cease public duties at the end of November. By this time I shall be in my tenth year as diocesan bishop and a few months short of my 66th birthday.
As you might imagine, this has been a hard decision for me to make but having delayed the decision once I am now able to give the diocese and province of the Church in Wales six months’ notice.
This is not a farewell letter and I am not going yet, but I would at this stage like to express my deep appreciation of the support you have given me over the years and of the generous hospitality I have received everywhere I have visited. It has been a privilege and a joy to serve the diocese and I thank God for the devotion, commitment and sacrificial living and service of so many people in our parishes. The last ten years has seen many changes and placed many challenges before us. Change is the nature of anything that lives and this must remain true especially of the church. As today’s Gospel from St Matthew ch.7 reminds us, our survival depends upon lives built upon the rock and able to withstand the storms of this life as opposed to lives built on shifting sand. More challenges inevitably lie ahead of us, but it would be a failure of faith if we did not look to the future with courage and a good hope in the Lord.
I continue to hold you all in my prayers and I ask you to pray for Joan and for me as we prepare for our eventual move.
The appointment of a successor will be in the hands of the Electoral College and while preparations for the College will begin before I leave, the meeting to elect a new bishop is likely to take place in January.
Yours in the love of the risen, ascended and glorified Lord.
+ John
A great honour for Llanrwst Church
His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales visited the medieval church in Llanrwst on Friday 25 April as part of a visit to the Conwy Valley. He arrived in the town after a visit to Bodnant Gardens. His Royal Highness had particularly requested that the church, dedicated to the sixth century Welsh Saint Grwst, should be included in his itinerary.
The Rector of Llanrwst, the Revd Lynette Norman said, “It was a great honour to be able to welcome the Prince of Wales to St Grwst’s Church. He was genuinely interested in our history and spent quite a long time in the Gwydir chapel viewing the sarcophagus of his ancestor, Llywelyn ab Iorwerth.” Both of The Prince’s grandparents, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, are descended from Llywelyn.
The Prince of Wales was presented to local councillors and church officers before being introduced to some of the founder members of the St Grwst’s Mothers' Union, inside the church, where he also listened to a choir of children from Llanddoged Voluntary Controlled School.
Mr Les Williams from Pageant Wood Products, Llanrwst, presented The Prince with gifts from the church council.
Diocesan Conference 2008
The Diocesan Conference on Sunday 22 June began with Bishop John noting that this would be his last conference, following the announcement of his forthcoming retirement; but he resisted the temptation to look back and encouraged the conference to look ahead, with hope.
He described the "hard evidence of what is being achieved" in the various youth projects across the Diocese, and Tim Feak, Under 25s Officer, introduced a lively presentation about this work. He spoke of the challenge of today's youth culture and of the shift towards professional youth work within the church. The Diocese is developing partnerships with training and para-church organisations to develop this work. Dot Gosling (pictured) from Chester University explained how Christian Youth Work students can be linked with parishes through placements. Revd Canon Dr Tudor Griffiths, from Hawarden, said how successful their link with the Light Project in Chester had been and asked, "What does it mean for us to be changed by our involvement with young people?"
Amongst those others speaking were representatives of the Church Army, Youth for Christ and Hope37. Hillary Murray from Bala brought a different dimension, speaking from a more rural context where volunteers are taking forward youth work, using the Rock Solid materials from Youth for Christ.
The Diocesan Offering for 2008 will support the work of Cruse Bereavement Care and this was introduced by Mr Richard Storer. Tracey White updated the Conference on Investing in Mission and Peter Mackriell invited parishes to take up the Parish Website scheme. Revd Canon Bill Rowell gave the conference further details of the pre-Lambeth hospitality programme for overseas Bishops visiting the Diocese.
The next Diocesan Conference will be on Sunday 21st June 2009
St Asaph Ordinations 2008
Welcoming new priests into the Diocese of St Asaph
A Zimbabwean priest was welcomed into ministry in the Church in Wales in St Asaph Cathedral on Saturday 28 June, and two men and one woman were ordained priest by the Bishop of St Asaph, the Rt Revd John S. Davies.
The Bishop welcomed the Revd Godfrey Chigumira into the Diocese, where he will serve as curate in the Rectorial Benefice of Hawarden. Godfrey (34) was ordained as a Roman Catholic priest in Zimbabwe. He came to Wales to pursue further studies at the University of Lampeter and felt called by God to ministry in the Anglican church. He is continuing his doctoral studies, looking at the Church’s attitude to AIDS.
The Revd Richard Carter (33) works with the Revd Huw Butler in the parishes of Llangynhafal, Llanbedr Dyffryn Clwyd, Llanychan and Llanarmon yn Ial. A geophysicist by training, his journey to ordination took him from seismic surveying in Oman to work in Cairo Cathedral, before training for the priesthood.
The Revd Stuart Elliott (33) is curate in the parish of Holywell, working with the Revd John Lomas, where the new church of St Peter’s has recently opened. Before training for ministry at St Michael’s College, Llandaff, Stuart worked at the Chaplaincy at Bangor University for a total of six years and undertook research into Chaplaincy provision across the U.K.
The Revd Dr Trish Owens (53) continues to teach in Liverpool University’s medical department as well as serving as curate in the parish of Buckley, alongside the Revd Alan Tiltman.
Pre-Lambeth hospitality
Our visiting bishops, on their way to the Lambeth Conference, were treated to an afternoon at the International Eisteddfod in Llangollen on Saturday 12th July. They met Terry Waite, the festival’s president – and Bishop Doug Stevens from Riverina, Australia, got to sit in his chair, upholstered in a very Episcopal purple!
Bishop Dean Wolfe in conversation with Terry Waite
Later, the Bishops travelled to Llanrhaeadr yng Nghinmeirch where Evensong was led by the Dean and sung by the Cathedral Choir.
On Monday 14th July the bishops met at St Giles', Wrexham, where they heard a presentation by TCC before a coach tour took them to Bala and Holywell, returning to Wrexham for tea at St Joseph's High School. They met members of the Mothers' Union there, before representatives from across the Diocese came to hear the bishops talk about the life and work of their own dioceses.
Bishop Sebastiao Gamaleira Soares of Recife, Brazil, spoke movingly of the problems in his Diocese, after a recent split. Bishop Devaraj Bangera of Karnataka South, India spoke of the challenge to serve the poorest of the poor. His diocesan priorities are to empower women and to give leadership to young people. Bishop John Simalenga, of South-West Tanganyika, Tanzania, talked about the church’s response to the AIDS pandemic and said, of the link with St Asaph Diocese, “When we have formalised our link, you are most welcome to Tanzania.”
Bishop John Simalenga (standing)
with Bishop
Sebastiao Gamaleira Soares and his wife, Maria Madalena Fonseca Soares, and Bishop Doug Stevens
Bishop Salalah Okumu’s fifty-five priests in Mumias, Kenya, face their challenges with faith and hope. Kenya have been hit hard by AIDS and whilst investment is made in the cities, rural areas are left in peril. Resources are short to support the local church - priests don't even have a bicycle. Bishop Salalah has attended the GAFCON conference in Jerusalem. “We can't deny the controversy in the church,” he said, “The issue is how we present ourselves to God.”
Bishop Salalah in conversation.
Bishop Doug explained the difficulty of identity in his diocese – one third bigger than the UK it has a population of 120,000 people, divided between twenty-five parishes staffed by sixteen clergy. Five Archdeacons have been commissioned to support the mission of the church. Riverina is an inland, rural diocese which shows signs of being deeply affected by climate change.
Bishop Dean Wolfe of Kansas, U.S.A., said of current debates, “People are predicting the disintegration of the Anglican communion, and that mighty quick. But I don't see that as the most likely outcome, from where I view the Anglican communion.” But, he said, “We are going to have to reconfigure the way we do church, if we are going to make Christ known to the next generation.” Asked about women bishops he gave the most succinct response - “Try it, you'll like it.”
Super Lambeth Banana?
The highest 'Super Lamb Banana’ was installed on Moel Famau, between Ruthin and Mold, on Saturday 16 August – after being blessed by the Bishop of St Asaph, the Rt Revd John S Davies.
Bishop John in the Denbighshire County Council tent at the Internationaol Eisteddfod - with friend!
Visitors to Liverpool during this European Capital of Culture year will be familiar with the Super Lamb Banana; based on a sculpture created for the city by Japanese artist Taro Cheese in 1998, there are now over a hundred replicas on display across the city, in a variety of colours and on different themes. A Super Lamb Banana decorated by local children has now been placed on the highest peak in the Clwydian Range, at the summit of Moel Famau. The first 500 people to reach the summit on Saturday 16 August received a banana courtesy of the The Co-operative.
Bishop John visited the Denbighshire County Council tent at the International Eisteddfod, Llangollen, with the visiting bishops hosted by the diocese before the Lambeth Conference. While they were there, he was asked to bless the sculpture and prayed, giving thanks for “the historic links between Liverpool and North Wales.” Inevitably, the sculpture was re-named the ‘Super Lambeth Banana’ by the visitors!
Church School Teaching Assistant Wins Award
Mrs Andrea Davies of Ysgol y Llan, Whitford, Holywell, has won the TDA Award for Teaching Assistant of the Year in Wales 2008.
Nursery nurse Andrea Davies is such a star with her colleagues that they recently gave her a surprise birthday party with all her favourite things - a John Wayne cut-out and packets of Hobnobs. It was their way of saying thank you for the millions of things that she does for everyone at her small, rural primary school in north Wales.
Head Kath Royles says her only worry is to get Andrea to slow down - she does so much.
Andrea's main job in school is to support the early years teacher at the school when the nursery children attend in the afternoon. But she also runs small groups of children with special needs, looks after the youngest children in school, raises money for the school, helps run the gardening club, is responsible for first aid, masterminds the recycling, coordinates the charity work and makes costumes for school productions.
Colleagues say she is warm, kind and sensitive, and always makes children feel confident and good about their abilities. She often spends hours making games for individual children to help them with their learning Parents are full of praise for her work. "I could write a novel about her," says one. "Mrs Davies is probably one of the most genuine, kind hearted, approachable woman I have ever met, or ever likely to meet. Her care of the children and school is beyond duty, and beyond anyone's expectations."
Pupils remember her many little acts of kindness. "She made a step so I could wash my hands," says one.
In her spare time Andrea recently gained a foundation degree in early childhood studies which, with a further year's study, will allow her to become a teacher - although she is not planning this at the moment.
From Wrexham to Brecon
The Very Revd Geoffrey Marshall was collated and installed as Dean of Brecon Cathedral on Saturday 13th September.
He moved to Brecon from Wrexham, where he had been Rector since 2002. He was also a Cursal Canon of St Asaph Cathedral. Dean Geoffrey was ordained in 1973; he served at Waltham Cross, Digswell and Belper before spending seven years as Vicar of Spondon near Derby. In that diocese he served as Rural Dean and Diocesan Director of Ordinands before becoming Canon Residentiary and Sub Dean of Derby Cathedral.
During the service Dean Geoffrey told the congregation of 500 that he hoped that the Cathedral would be a place where visitors became pilgrims and pilgrims became disciples. He paid tribute to his predecessor – now Bishop of Swansea & Brecon - under whose direction the Cathedral had been renovated, so that its condition was better now than it had been for many, many decades. Dean Geoffrey said part of his job would be to untidy it!
The new Dean is pictured after the service with Hannah Owen, daughter of the Revd Gary Owen, Team Vicar in Wrexham. More pictures...
Revd Stephen Cawley
The death has been announced of the Revd Stephen Cawley. Until his retirement in 2007, Stephen was Vicar of Gorsedd, Brynford, Ysgeifiog and Whitford.
Trained at St Deiniol's, Hawarden, he was ordained in 1984 and served as curate of Tranmere in Chester Diocese, before becoming Team Vicar in the Rectorial Benefice of Hawarden. He was then Vicar of Gwernaffield and Llanferres from 1993 to 2002, before his move to Gorsedd.
The Bishop of St Asaph said, “Stephen was a committed parish priest who devoted himself to the care of the people of his parishes. He was an accomplished musician and a bold preacher of the word. His retirement was all too short and included the sad loss of his wife, Marjorie; he will be greatly missed in the Diocese.”
The Requiem for the Revd Stephen Cawley will be in St Bridget’s Dyserth on Monday 6 October at 9.30 a.m.
Photo courtesy of the Flintshire Chronicle.
Farewell to Bishop John
People gathered to bid farewell to the Bishop of St Asaph, the Rt Revd John Stewart Davies, on Friday 21st November. On a stormy night, people travelled from across the Diocese of St Asaph and beyond to mark his retirement with a service of Evensong and with a presentation.
Mr James Turner, Chair of the Diocesan Board of Finance, paid tribute to “a considerate leader, a wonderful listener, a thoughtful and determined decision-maker. He has shown wisdom, understanding and compassion,” Mr Turner said. “He is a teacher and a man of prayer.”
In a full Cathedral, Bishop John responds and makes his own farewells
Preparing for Christmas
Across the diocese, final plans are being made for Christmas services. Many parishes have adopted the tradition of Christingle - the custom from the Moravian church that uses an orange, a red ribbon, a candle, and fruit or sweets to tell the gospel story.
Here, parishioners of St Mary's, Ruabon, prepare three hundred Christingles for their service in early December. Services are held at any time through Advent and Christmas to Candlemas.
More information about Christingle.