Saturday 26th June was a big day for the diocese of Monmouth. 14 people were ordained – four of them to become clergy for the first time and the other ten to become priests who are able to take all the services of the church. (Newly-ordained deacons are restricted in what they can do.)
They range from grandmother and retired teacher, Pam Griffiths, who has been working as a deacon in Ebbw Vale and now becomes a priest, to Gareth Coombes, a police community support officer with a wife and young son, who will be learning the clerical ropes in Bedwas in his ‘off-duty’ time.
With so many ordinands, the Bishop of Monmouth, Rt Revd Dominic Walker OGS, decided to have two services on the same day so that all the families and supporters could be accommodated in Newport Cathedral. Even so, entry to the services had to be restricted to those with a ticket – about 400 for each service.
The Bishop says, “‘Bishops always enjoy ordaining new deacons and priests and it is good to be ordaining so many to serve the people and communities in Gwent.”
Only 3 of the 14 ordinands are to be in stipendiary – ie paid – ministry, and this reflects the trend within the church which is feeling financial pressures as much as anyone. But although the number of paid ministers has to be reduced, the number who offer to serve without payment is increasing and they play a vital part in maintaining ministry throughout the diocese.
Some of these unpaid clergy are retired or at home with families, and their ministry in the community serves the wider church family. Those who are also in paid employment often find their ministry extends to workmates who otherwise might not have contact with the church. The first job the Revd Nick Taylor was asked to do after his ordination as deacon last year was to take a funeral for a colleague. “It was a big responsibility,” he remembers, “but a huge privilege to be trusted in this way.” Nick becomes a priest this year and continues to serve as curate in Griffithstown.
And while Gareth Coombes was training at St Michael’s College, Llandaff, he did a parish placement in Ystrad Mynach where he works. “It gave me a different perspective on the community I serve as a police support officer,” he says.
While the numbers of stipends has to be reduced, an anticipated wave of retirements over the next few years means that the church could be short of clergy to fill the posts that are available. Earlier this year, the Church in Wales launched a Vocations Strategy to encourage younger people to consider the church as a career option.
Canon Ambrose Mason who has special responsibility for overseeing the selection and training of clergy says, “The Diocese and its leadership are strengthened by the breadth of experience which our new ordinands bring to us. The vocations initiative will contribute to the future health and vitality of the church as more people are given the opportunity to consider whether God is calling them to ordained life.”
It remains to be seen whether there will an ordination service in Newport Cathedral next year. The Cathedral is facing a £2m restoration project and, if the money is not soon found to restore the roof, then the cathedral may have to close for safety.
Whatever happens, the fourteen enthusiastic new ministers, will be out and about, serving communities from Ebbw Vale to Caldicot, from Bedwas to Blaenavon.
