Don Humphries RIP

It was very sad to learn of Don's death this week. As I look back over the time I have been in some kind of Christian ministry (as a lay assistant, then in training, then ordained for 25 years) his influence is probably the most significant. This isn't an attempt at a comprehensive obituary - it's about the person I knew.

Don at a Holy Trinity, Cambridge Church picnic around 1986/7

The first time I heard of Don was at our church youth group. The Sunday night meetings always ended with a time of open prayer, and some of the group members earnestly prayed for him for a few weeks. It turned out that he had had pancreatitis and major surgery. In 1978 I met him for the first time, when I went as a teenager on of the CYFA holidays [aka houseparties or ventures] that he ran. Based in a boarding school in Clevedon, hired during the holiday, it was a lot of fun, games, getting to know people, as well as talks and worship. I liked it so much I kept going - at different venues during summers and new year reunions. Eventually I ended up on the leadership team, and worked for Don from 1985-7, when he was at Holy Trinity, Cambridge. Part of my job was promoting ventures and organising them.

Looking back, Don was a fascinating character. He was full of seeming contradictions, yet when you got to know him, it all made a kind of sense. He could be quite a control freak, yet was willing to trust relative novices with big responsibilities. He could be dogmatic, yet had a team who represented a broad range of views and always warned against simplistic responses to complex questions. He wasn't beyond a sexist comment, yet became an early evangelical champion for women's ministry in the church, when it wasn't commonplace to do so. He was very open to the charismatic movement, yet never one for hype or pushing people to expect or have experiences of a particular kind. He could be quite intimidating, and some people were scared of him, yet he shared his vulnerabilities and had an openness unusual in strong leaders. It created a deep sense of loyalty, and the venture team have always felt like an extended family for many of us.

Don had more than his fair share of suffering - as well as the pancreatitis, I mentioned earlier, he lost a son, Thomas, at only a few weeks old. It happened during a venture holiday, and none of us who were there could forget it. Don and Zoe even came and spoke to help us understand what was going on. Later Don developed Parkinson's disease, which for a number of years didn't seem to diminish his enthusiasm for ministry. After he offered, I invited him to speak at the church where I was based in Coventry in the mid 90s for a special Harvest weekend. He also acted as a mentor for me for the time I was there, asking good questions and offering wise advice.

Latterly we were less in touch, but I got to his marriage to Sarah, and as Steve Tilley has also recalled, he memorably cut the cake with shaking hand he said "there may be casualties" - typical humour. I kept sending him a card and news at Christmas. He didn't always manage one back, but I know all of us who had grown up with his ministry were in his thoughts and prayers.

Would I be a Christian without Don's ministry? Probably - I already was when I met him, but his encouragement was key to me seeing faith as more than attending or 'consuming' what other people produced, and seeing it as something to inform, challenge and tranform you life. Would I have had confidence to take responsibility, do things up front and eventually move into ministry? Probably not. Don inspired, challenged, critiqued and supported many of us on that journey. For some it was to ordained ministry, but to others it was to being missionaries, youth workers, and perhaps most importantly to being Christians getting stuck in at their churches and in their communities.

Don's illness meant that he didn't have the career he might have expected, but his influence on the church may well be greater than some who achieved higher office. Those of us who knew and loved him will always have a deep sense of gratitude to all he gave us.

Getting Upset About 'Rev'

After yesterday's edition of Rev, there was a flurry of tweets, expressing sadness and disappointment about it. Avoiding spoilers, suffice it to say the episode highlighted many of Adam's weaknesses, both in personal relationships and in misjudging a situation. My question is why did people (especially fans thus far) get so upset?

Rev has acquired quite a following amongst clergy, and I suspect it's because the series breaks out of the mould of depicting the type of vicar character you get in Dad's Army, or played by Derek Nimmo. Adam seems a lot closer to reality and seems to share a lot of the dilemmas modern clergy face. The series is also devastatingly well-observed in its depiction of 'types' one encounters in the ministry. One flaw I am aware of is that all the female clergy have not been very positive examples (but then no-one comes out that well!)

Despite his mistakes, I think a lot of people developed a lot of empathy for Adam, and to some extent placed their hopes in him to convey a more positive and contemporary image of the ministry. This has clearly extended well beyond clergy who share Adam's style or churchmanship. I can only presume, therefore,  that the sadness and disappointment that came through from some on social networks was because people felt let down. Adam had failed them, or maybe the series had betrayed them. The empathy was strong enough for people to feel got at, threatened, or let down because of Adam.

I think we need a bit of a reality check:

1. Rev is a TV comedy. By its nature, comedy exaggerates and accentuates foibles, flaws and idiosyncrasies of the people it depicts. Miranda isn't a 'real' shopkeeper, many Home Guard were much more conscientious, capable and competent than Dad's Army, and so on. Just because the comic versions mess things up doesn't necessarily mean that 'real' ones do or did. It's comedy and it's fiction, but it draws on reality and stretches and distorts it to bring out the humour.
2. The show isn't a piece of Church of England PR; it's a TV show on the BBC. We can't expect the BBC to do our publicity for us - if we're worried people might get the 'wrong idea' of clergy from Rev, we need to get on with living out our vocations as well as we can.
3. A sitcom isn't a theology essay. I've seen people discussing Adam's prayers and the lack of references to God in the ecclesiastical conversations. As I have said, it's a comedy, so why should it be accurate. Of course there is an implied theology in the writing, but to be fair all too many 'real' meetings that I have been to about church policy, strategy and finance have made little or no reference to God, so that seemed quite realistic
4. The reality for clergy is that we will let people down. We can't do everything, or meet all of the expectations people have of us. Adam does this in what are sometimes spectacular and larger-than-life ways, but the experience is real enough. It's not always easy to watch, but we know the feeling, albeit on a smaller scale (usually).
5. Having said all of this, I suspect that Rev has made one TV clerge more accessible and easier to relate to than many fictional versions. Part of the reaction last night resulted from the fact that it's closer to reality than many, to the point that emotionally people felt it as real, even if rationally they knew it wasn't.

Masonic Bishops

There has been a bit of a fuss over the last few days about the announcement of a new Bishop who was known to be an "active and senior [free]mason". The Bishop in question is Rev Jonathan Baker, named as the new Bishop of Ebbsfleet. This is one of the posts for traditionalist Bishops who are available to parishes who seek oversight from a Bishop of that tradition.

There have long been concerns about the compatibility of Christianity and freemasonry. The Roman Catholic Church has strong prohibitions. However, only a few decades ago, many Anglican clergy and bishops would have been members. In the Church of England, a debate followed the publication of GS 784A in 1987, which endorsed the report and expressed a number of concerns. Among these were questions about the religious (and some would even suggest occult) nature of some of the language and rituals, the secrecy of the organisation and the oaths which demand primary loyalty. (A further criticism of freemasonry has been the male-only nature of lodges, but the Church has hardly got a clean record on gender equality!)

In this context, it was rather surprising that a known senior mason would be approved for appointment as a bishop. Since the fuss hit the press, Rev Baker has said that he will resign from his masonic commitments. Perhaps what is more surprising is that a clergyman, who is very committed to a traditionalist catholic position within Anglicanism, should be a member of an organisation that Catholicism prohibits. Presumably he doesn't see it as big an obstacle for eventual unity as ordaining a woman as priest.

Related articles

• Archbishop allows freemason to be bishop (telegraph.co.uk)

On the map

Since the beginning of November I have been Area Dean of Lancaster (more work, same pay!) This means I have a role in liaising between our Diocese and the clergy and parishes of our Deanery. The Church of England is broken up into Dioceses, which are often approximately the size of a county. They come under a Diocesan Bishop, who is often assisted by one or more other Bishops. Dioceses are then made up from smaller areas called Deaneries, and a clerge is designated Area Dean, to offer support and care to the clergy, feed back concerns to the centre and pass on information and other stuff from the centre to the parishes. We also have an involvement in recruiting and interviewing prospective new vicars.

Having had that role for one month, I am now (wait for it) Area Dean of Lancaster & Morecambe. We thought that our area ought to include the other major town in its title, and as I live there it seemed a good idea. It won't change the world, but it seemed the right thing to do. Good job I didn't get any headed notepaper made!

Time, talents and twitter

I have had a number of interesting conversations recently about what clergy should and shouldn't prioritise in their work. In all previous posts in churches (clergy and lay) regular operation of the duplicator ended up being a major feature, so it's quite a relief not to have that weekly expectation. However, on the relatively rare occasions I do run something off, I actually find it quite satisfying. I also enjoy creating document masters, powerpoints, websites and, of course, blogs and social networking.

So I have been reflecting on that. Being interested in methods of communication seems entirely appropriate for anyone who is seeking to communicate something of the Christian faith, or to raise awareness for a cause. The relationship between ministry and communication is obvious. In an era of new media and social networking, preaching the Gospel includes the use of blogs, facebook, Twitter and whatever comes next. That doesn't replace or supersede 'real' contact - far from it, but it can extend the reach and impact of a message or cause.

Having first worked with computers 30 years ago, and having stayed with them ever since, I am enjoying drawing on that experience. Computers are becoming ubiquitous, easier to use and a lot more fun.

There's also something else. I suspect quite a lot of clergy like to do certain kinds of tasks every so often which have a clear and well defined beginning, end, and (if possible) a 'product'. So much of what we do is intangible and difficult to quantify, and goes on indefinitely. You might take a service or make a visit, but you know the next one is round the corner. At one level a sermon is a 'product', but there's always another to write - the "tyranny of the sermon" as Abp Donald Coggan put it. Sometimes you just want a beginning, middle and an end.

So cutting some bushes or setting out some tables and chairs can be surprisingly refreshing and rewarding in a life full of ill-defined boundaries. Even writing a blog post can help you feel you have achieved something specific at the end of a day which feels full of activity but not achievement - it was one factor in me taking up blogging whilst a Chaplain.

Just wish it would stop raining long enough for me to hack some bushes or dig some earth.
 

Related articles

• How Facebook and Twitter Are Replacing Blogging (blogs.forbes.com)

A Blogger catch-up

Taking a week's holiday seems to have taken me out of the pattern of blogging at all. As I'm taking a few minutes out, it seemed a good moment to catch up a bit.

Not wanting to bore you with too much holiday stuff, but we spent a week in the middle of Lincolnshire doing very little except being looked after at our favourite guest house. One brilliant experience was watching the (surprisingly good) Toy Story 3 at the Kinema in the Woods at Woodhall Spa. In the middle of the picture, there was an intermission, and out of the floor came the Compton Organ. Not an original fitting, apparently, but enhance the sense of being in an historic building (it's been a cinema since 1922). However, we had to miss Woodhall's worm-charming festival, which was probably just as well.

I have also missed out on blogging about Rev when it was still current. It was, at last, a series which took comedy about clergy and the church into new and edgy territory. Dibley and Derek Nimmo were never like this as Rev captured something much more authentic. They got so much right - the vicarage itself, complete with 1980s kitchen cupboards and left-over washing-up, the topical issues, the ecclesiastical terminology, and even the 'types' in congregation bore a striking resemblance to some people I have known.

It also managed to capture experiences using situations that would never quite happen, but which carried the same feelings. The Archdeacon with his black cab was a brilliant way of picturing of what has been a very real experience for some people I have known. What was remarkable was how respectful it was of Adam's prayers and how painfully it depicted his breakdown. And most churches have a Colin. Good reviews on Bishop Alan's blog and also Steve Tilley's.

Meanwhile now I'm back this month seems busier than almost any other - weddings, baptisms and holiday club are filling up the space pretty thoroughly, along with not a few other concerns. And in the midst of all this, tragedies of landslides and flooding remind us of the consequences of climate change, and the urgency to address it. Why not visit the Disasters Emergency Committee website if you haven't already donated.

OK, that's everything bubbling at the top of my brain at the moment. Hopefully I'll be a slightly more regular visitor to my own blog in the coming days!

Related articles by Zemanta

• Worm charming festival fails to catch a single specimen (telegraph.co.uk)
• Rev: The vicars' verdict (guardian.co.uk)
• Rev 'rather good' says Archbishop of Canterbury (guardian.co.uk)
• Rev - some observations (stevetilley.blogspot.com)

Anti-spam humour

If you are regular and active internet user, you'll know that a lot of blogs and similar sites have a system to avoid being inundated by automatic advertising or spam messages. You usually have to type in letters or digits that you can see in a graphic. Sometimes the combination of words can be quite amusing, and I wonder how they are derived. Posting my friend, Steve Tilley's, latest blog entry on facebook meant I had to type ordained as one of the words. Have they noticed he's a clerge, then? Also, is it possible to get an obscene word by mistake? How random is this?

Steve's post raises some interesting questions about why we have certain rules, and how they get changed. An example he refers to is the fact that the C of E General Synod recently threw out introducing some flexibility into whether the clergy should robe or not at ever service they take. The current position is that they should at all public worship. Many don't, especially those who are officiating at more informal gatherings, or with congregations who meet in less formal circumstances, such as church plants in schools or other community buildings. I have no idea why common sense didn't prevail and bring in some degree of flexibility. I guess for some people it would represent the thin end of a very long wedge, inevitably leading to vicars turning up in Hawaiian shirts and Bermuda shorts.

Lent Blog 16: Cassocks or cossacks?

Image via Wikipedia

As a PS to the previous post, I've just found out about the dress code for the next Archdeacon's Visitation. This is the annual service when Church Wardens are officially inducted into their role. (In fact this year we get the Bishop) I haven't had to attend one in this Diocese as a Chaplain, so this will be my first up here.

Long ago in Southwell Diocese I remember clergy had to wear cassocks at Visitations. As a curate I was once greeted at one by a vicar with "get your cassock on me boy". I was carrying it, as I didn't want to wear one walking though the middle of Mansfield, which seemed a reasonable precaution, especially as I usually trip over robes if the floor's uneven. In Coventry wearing cassocks for these meetings had been abolished by 1994 when I arrived, so the problem disappeared. But in Blackburn, it is as I suspected: it's back to black (it's all a bit more traditional up here)

Meanwhile I took a funeral yesterday close to school run time, so I left the car on the road, as I usually get blocked in by parents collecting kids from the primary school. So I walked down the road to the car in my... cassock. Pity the Secondary School were just coming out - I did feel a bit conspicuous!

Lent Blog 15: Perceptions

Over the last few days I seem to have had several conversations about what to wear. No, not a fashion conversation - these were about clerical garb. Anglican clergy vary greatly in their preferences, and we get away with a lot more inconsistency with our choices than most staff in organisations with dress codes. The problem with this is that it isn't always obvious what we should wear.

I remember debating with other chaplains whether we should wear dog collars regularly on campus or not. Some felt it was a barrier, although wearing 'plain clothes' then means you have to have some way of being identified as a chaplain. Others (and I was one) felt that being seen in the canteen / bar / corridors / staff room with a collar on was a way of indicating you were around and available, and hopefully accessible. In the end I varied it, as once I was recognised on campus it was sometimes helpful to be less formally dressed. I always wore a collar to other campuses in Cumbria, as it saved explanations.

You'd think it would be simpler when we are 'on duty' in church. The rules of the C of E state that all clergy should be robed when officiating at public worship in "surplice or alb with scarf or stole" (Canon B8) and "other customary vestments may be added". In practise, the choices made about robes generally say something about the theological views of the parish (or at least its ministers) I don't have any particular personal preferences and tend to fit in with whatever people are used to. Dressing up is never something I get excited about, whether in church or out, so I generally do whatever fits in. It's the uniform for the job.

It made me remember my first service at St Martin's College Chapel. As a parish priest I wore an alb (white tunic) and the one I have happens to have a hood, which is never used, but keeps my stole (coloured scarf) tidy. It's what I had always worn, so I wore it in chapel. At the end of the service, a number of students seemed puzzled and asked me what significance it had. None, I reassured them - I wasn't a monk! Then up came Pete - who was quite a comic - with a line he had obviously been developing during the worship. "Nice service, but what's with the KKK [Ku Klux Klan] outfit?"

What seems normal to us might seem very weird to other people.

A Last Bit on Roman offers

It's been interesting reading a number of responses to the Vatican's offer of a home for Anglicans who wish to be in communion with Rome, but retain something of their Anglican identity. They range from seeing it as a generous response to an inquiry, via 'papal poaching' to 'good riddance'. As I have said earlier, I think it probably makes easier a move which was possible before, but is now given more rationale and recognition by the receiving church.

It boils down to how we understand what Anglicanism is, and the basis of authority. For those tempted by the Pope's offer, their understanding would be that the destiny of the C of E was re-acceptance into communion with Rome. Therefore all decisions made by the C of E should be ones which are compatible with, or moving towards that destiny - hence the ordination of women as priests (and eventually bishops) becomes a huge obstacle.

For others what the Church of England formulated as its theological and ecclesiastical identity, following its initial break with Rome, is a precious heritage which would have to be discarded in such a re-admission / merger. Ironically those traditions then become similarly authoritative for some, once the C of E starts looking at structural merger with other churches, such as the Methodist Church.

It has to be questioned whether structural merger (whether in an RC or Methodist direction) should actually be an aspiration at all. If we could let go of the idea that being 'one' = one institutional structure, then all Christians might find themselves freer to have more fruitful relationships with each other.

Where it all goes from here, I don't know.

The Road to Rome

The recent statement by the Vatican, offering "personal ordinariates for Anglicans entering the [Roman] Catholic church" has clearly been exercising minds since the news broke the other day. On the one hand, it appears that the Archbishop of Canterbury had relatively little notice of this development, and neither did the traditionalist catholic tradition grouping within the Church of England. Its timing was certainly interesting - just before the Forward in Faith national assembly. It also coincides with the news that at the committee stage, additional safeguards for traditionalists appear to have been introduced which could be seen as going against the General Synod vote on women bishops. Though not enough to satisfy FiF, they will doubtless cause concern for those who favoured a simple process.

Going back to the Pope's initiative, it was interesting to see what was new in it. Since the C of E voted to ordain women priests back in 1992, married Anglican priests have moved over to the Roman Catholic Church. They cannot become bishops, and they have to be ordained again, as Anglican clergy are lay people in the official view of the Roman Catholic Church. This new initiative doesn't concede anything on that issue, but does say that clergy will be able to retain some Anglican identity

According to Cardinal Levada: "It is the hope of the Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, that the Anglican clergy and faithful who desire union with the Catholic Church will find in this canonical structure the opportunity to preserve those Anglican traditions precious to them and consistent with the Catholic faith"

It would seem, for example, that some Anglican liturgy may be permitted within these ordinariates. Presumably 1662 holy communion would be out of the question, but evensong may be permitted. We must wait for the detail on that. Ironically, many of the clergy to whom this offer may seem attractive tend to use the Roman Missal instead of the authorised Church of England communion services anyway!

Personally, I think it may be good for some clergy. I've come across a number of clergy who would be more truly themselves in a Roman Catholic context that could provide some acknowledgement of their spiritual and personal journey and heritage. The Church of England has Provincial Episcopal Visitors or 'flying bishops' (Ebbsfleet & Beverley) who, along with some suffragan bishops, look after the traditionalist clergy and parishes who do not accept women priests. They have have welcomed this move, and see it as a response to their appeal to the Pope. My only reservation is that it was a surprise initiative, rather than something which emerged in the context of dialogue. As such, it feels more like a takeover bid for part of the C of E, than an offer of help to people.

On the other side of the issue, it will be interesting to see how Roman Catholic people view this development in England. Many of those I know are much more 'liberal' on issues relating to women, sexuality, etc and are hoping for the Catholic church to move on these questions in due course. They may not welcome an influx of people who are more conservative, and will doubtless be much more loyal to the Papal line on many issues than some who were 'born and bred' Catholic. Maybe that was part of the Pope's thinking!

Whatever the truth of the matter, we're living in interesting times.