Welcome to the Enews for January 25

The latest resources, news and more.

Click on headlines or pictures for more details.  

Contact [email protected] with your news. 

Emergency advice on coping with storm damage to church buildings has been collated by the Diocesan Advisory Committee, which is ready to help those affected across our region. The impact of sustained heavy winds and torrential rain means many will face repair and clear-up operations in the coming days and below is a straightforward guide on best practice. Read more here

The diocese is looking forward to welcoming the Archbishop of York, the Rt Revd Stephen Cottrell, to Wakefield this week. Archbishop Stephen is coming for a day of exploration and learning on Thursday, January 25, ending with him leading a ‘Follow Me’ session at Wakefield Cathedral in the evening. Read more here

Bubble Church, an exciting new Jesus-centred service packed with puppets and designed for babies, toddlers and young families has kicked off successfully at one of our Bradford churches. Based on the idea of a safe social "bubble", families gather on a circular carpet and puppets are used as fun props to engage children in the telling of Christian stories and messages. Read more here

The importance of our farmers and the work they do to feed us and protect the countryside was celebrated at a Plough Sunday service at Ripon Cathedral on Sunday, January 14. Traditionally celebrated on the first Sunday after Epiphany, historically the village plough was brought into church for a blessing before ploughing began on Plough Monday, the first working day after the 12 days of Christmas. Read more here

St Oswald’s Methley has recently won an award from the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust for their work creating a wildlife-friendly Quiet Garden and churchyard. The church applied to the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust in 2023 for their Wildlife Gardening Award, sharing the story of their garden and the work on the churchyard. Read more here

A cohort of 21 new Headteachers took the reins at our schools this academic year and 14 of them met recently at Church House, Leeds, for a special induction meeting. It was a chance for the new leaders to share their thoughts and learn about the help and advice offered by our diocesan Education Team. Read more here

A special memorial service to honour the memory and celebrate the life of West Yorkshire Police Constable Ian Broadhurst, twenty years after he was murdered in the line of duty, has been held at Leeds Minster. The event was attended by some 300 people and was held on the anniversary of Ian’s funeral, which took place at the same church on January 16, 2004, after he was shot and killed on Boxing Day, 2003. Read more here

Seedbed - online training delivered by key practitioners for lay people exploring church planting or resourcing mission.

Church Planting Track - for starting new Christian communities. Delivered weekly on Thursday evenings online. Starts at the end of January 2024, costs £85 for 24 sessions.

Resourcing Mission Track - for leading mission in the church. Delivered monthly on Saturday mornings online. Starts at the beginning of February 2024, costs £70 for 9 sessions. 

Our vision is to equip a thousand leaders to play their part in church planting and resourcing mission. Is God calling you? 

For more information or to register for this online course, find out more here.

What does it look like to invest in an intern over a year? What would the church need to commit to? How do we find interns? Come and find out about the Diocesan Internship programme, how we can support you with finding and recruiting potential interns and hear stories

of different interns' journeys. To join the conversation and for a Zoom link, please email [email protected].

Eligibility criteria, discernment information and an initial enquiry form have been sent to all incumbents, chaplaincy team leaders, PCC Secretaries and Churchwardens in September 2023. The deadline for initial enquiry forms is 1 March 2024. Once an initial enquiry form has been received an application pack will be sent out.

More details and the Application Timeline can be found here.

If you require any specific help or information, please do contact the School of Ministry administrator at [email protected].

A 12 session journey looking at the Christian faith, your own faith journey and developing theological skills. All students will be encouraged to create a portfolio of your new skills. Potential LLM candidates need to submit their portfolio for review. This course is a pre-requirement for LLM training. 

Further information on dates and booking links can be found here: Spring 24 and Summer 24. Portfolio submission deadlines for both courses are compatible with the 2024 application timeline for LLM applicants.

If you require any specific help or information, please do contact the School of Ministry administrator at [email protected].

This retreat is especially for those who live with or care for loved ones who struggle with physical or mental health challenges. There will be space to rest and time to receive from God, and opportunities to learn from Scripture and other spiritual resources about compassion and love for those who care deeply for others. Led by Henriette Howarth. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Find out more here.

Holocaust Memorial Day is held every year on the 27th January, and on the nearest Sunday we are holding a service of music and prayers to mark the occasion. All are welcome to join us for Choral Evensong, a choral setting of Evening Prayer from the Book of Common Prayer (1662), sung by the Cathedral Choir during term time. This is a meditative service in which the congregation participate through their presence and prayerful engagement with the spoken and sung texts. Choral Evensong on a Sunday also includes a brief sermon. Find out more here

This day is aimed particularly at leaders and worshippers in smaller local churches (typically 15-55 worshippers on a regular Sunday). With input from Revd Jolyon Trickey & others from ReSource, we will encounter God afresh, renewing our confidence in the inextinguishable power of biblical hope. We will also have time to worship, to reflect, and to wrestle together with the practicalities of living hopefully in our own little local and ‘ordinary’ churches. Find out more here

You are invited to the launch ofthe Leeds Lent Prayer Diary at Roscoe Methodist church on Tuesday February 6 from 6pm - 9pm. It will include a soup dinner, space to engage with the organisations in this year's diary and a time of prayer around the theme of compassion leading to action in Leeds.

If people would like a copy of the diary they can order it here. Diaries can be picked up from the LCI office or at the launch event. There is a sign up link on Eventbrite here.

The historic churchyard will have a wonderful natural display of snowdrops for people to enjoy, as well as stalls and refreshments.

Whose Line is it Anyway meets Coronation Street in a ridiculous night of comedy improvisation. Join Yorkshire’s own Fool(ish) as they take your suggestions and cobble together a sensationally shambolic show inspired by you - our audience. Fool(ish) are Yorkshire based improvisers trained by some of Chicago’s best teachers. They will be coming to Bradford to bring a flavour of American long-form comedy with a uniquely Yorkshire twist. So, help us handcraft some joyful nonsense by offering your ideas... Let's see what we can create together. Tickets from here or the church (£5).

Please bring your own lunch. Everyone is welcome. Please bring your own robes. New members will be most welcome. Please let us know if you wish to be admitted at any of these services. If you need any further information, please contact Secretary Sue Middleditch on 0113 2643946 or 07976 209127, or [email protected].

Cost £10.00, which includes hot drinks, please bring a packed lunch. To book your place please email: [email protected]

Mobile: 07776 963653

Lunch will be provided. Everyone is welcome. Please bring your own robes. New members will be most welcome. Please let us know if you wish to be admitted at any of these services. If you need any further information, please contact Secretary Sue Middleditch on 0113 2643946 or 07976 209127, or [email protected].

When Jesus calls us to follow him, he is inviting us into a lifelong journey of transformation and renewal. How are we living that out as disciples of Christ? On Fire Mission is inviting you to come as you are and join us at OFM onsite 2024 for a time away to recharge, to discover fresh perspectives and insights, and to become part of a Spirit-filled, creative, sacramental community; equipping Christians to become agents of renewal in their local context. We will be joined by a host of great contributors, from across the OFM network and beyond, offering great teaching, inspiring workshops, dynamic worship and much more. Find out more here

As we talk about Parish Share in 2024, hear a message from Bishop Nick giving a big thank you to all those who give their money generously, individually and through their parishes, which pays the Parish Share.

Watch the video here.

We are looking for a gifted, experienced and skilled coordinator to take an operational and administrative lead on the new project Every Good Work: Reaching Children, Youth and Young Adults in Wakefield. The project coordinator will be based at St Catherine’s Belle Vue and will work across all three churches and with a variety of other stakeholders including local schools. The post is critical to enable the growth of the project and facilitate the delivery of its vision to develop young disciples in the city of Wakefield. The post holder will be expected to provide creative and strategic insight, problem solving skills and information tracking for the project. Find out more about this role here

We are looking for someone to join our Safeguarding team to be our Assistant Diocesan Safeguarding Advisor. The Assistant Diocesan Safeguarding Advisor will be an integral part of the Safeguarding team and as part of the team, you will share in the responsibility to keep children and vulnerable adults safe. The Assistant Diocesan Safeguarding Adviser will support the work of the Diocesan Safeguarding Team; be responsible for safeguarding work across a range of situations including assessment and triage of safeguarding cases, providing advice and guidance on safeguarding matters to parishes and to senior staff in the diocese; support and promote the development and embedding of policy and good practice across the diocese; and support the development and delivery of safeguarding learning in line with the National Safeguarding Learning & Development framework. Find out more about this role here

The Safeguarding Administrator will be an integral part of the Safeguarding team and as part of the team, you will share in the responsibility to keep children and vulnerable adults safe. Supporting the Safeguarding Team by leading the administration of the department’s work, including the administration of policies and procedures, the maintenance of casework documentation, content management for the safeguarding webpages and providing administrative support to the Diocesan Safeguarding Team. Find out more about this role here

The Diocese of Leeds is seeking to appoint a perceptive and collaborative lay person or priest, with aptitude for guiding and enabling formation/development of lay and ordained ministers. Working as part of the Ministerial Formation and Development Team, you will have responsibility for pastoral and formational oversight of candidates training to be Licensed Lay Ministers (LLMs) with particular emphasis on aspects of formation which complement formal academic study. This will include hosting study days, hands-on training, overseeing mentors and supporting training incumbents. You will also contribute to continuing ministerial development for clergy and LLMs. Find out more about this role here

Please contact the Communications Team with your news for future editions. The Enews is published twice a month. The next edition will be sent out on February 8. Area news stories to [email protected]