Welcome to the Enews for April 4

The latest resources, news and more.

Click on headlines or pictures for more details.  

Contact [email protected] with your news. 

The Rt Revd Tony Robinson, Bishop of Wakefield, will retire this summer after 42 years of ordained ministry. Bishop Tony, one of five Episcopal Area Bishops in the Anglican Diocese of Leeds, came to the then Diocese of Wakefield as Archdeacon of Pontefract on September 1, 1997, and so describes himself as “incomer” to Yorkshire for 27 years. Read more here

One of our priests in the Ripon area is to be the next Archdeacon of Carlisle. The Revd Ruth Newton, currently Priest at St John's Sharow, will take up the post in August. She will take responsibility for the Deaneries of Carlisle, Brampton, Penrith and Appleby. For Ruth it means a return to her home county, having been brought up in Carlisle, later working in the city and - following her ordination in 2002 - serving the parishes of Caldbeck, Castle Sowerby and Sebergham. Read more here

St. Mary's Church in Wyke were very excited to welcome the Bishop of Bradford, the Rt Revd Toby Howarth, to their newest ecumenical mission project. Together with the Moravian, URC, Methodist, catholic and free churches locally, the church has opened The Meeting Place, a coffee shop in the village centre. Read more here

Rural life in all its settings across our diocese will be celebrated at a special service to be held at Ripon Cathedral on Sunday, May 12. The Rt Revd Anna Eltringham, Bishop of Ripon and the Very Revd John Dobson Bishop Anna, with the support of the Rt Revd Nick Baines, Bishop of Leeds, are inviting people from all parts of the diocese to share in Rivers of Life – a celebration of the many facets of country living. Read more here

St Mary’s Embsay with Eastby is storming ahead with projects to help care for God’s Creation. The Gold Eco Church, the first in our diocese, recently took part in Give to Go Green, a national digital match fundraising pilot to help churches raise money for projects to work towards our goal of carbon net zero by 2030. Read more here

A roving Passion Play put Easter into the heart of Settle with a walking version of the greatest story ever told. Organised by Churches Together in Settle and District, this ‘play on the move’ first started in 2009 and has continued annually, except for 2020 due to Covid restrictions. Watched by locals, visitors and ramblers, all of the cast members gave their best performances in enacting the biblical account of the death of Jesus, remembered each year on Good Friday. Read more here

Alpha House, a charity which prepares people for mainstream society after prison and was born out of prayer has received the prestigious King’s Award for Voluntary Service. Concerned by the lack of housing and support for male prison leavers returning to Halifax and their social issues including drugs and alcohol dependency, former Probation Officer Fran Nowell decided to do something about it – with God’s help and guidance. Read more here

During the 50 days from Easter to Pentecost, you can subscribe to receive a daily devotion to help mark the 10^th Anniversary of the Diocese. Each day a reflection, written by a different member of our diocese, will be emailed to you. As we journey through the Book of Acts, every reflection will be linked to one of the areas of focus in our Rhythm of Life initiative: encourage, share, create, pray, rest, celebrate, reflect. There will also be ideas for activities and links to good news stories.

To sign up, click here. For more on the Rhythm of Life initiative, click here.

No further applications for LLM training starting in September 2024 will be accepted. The application process for LLM training starting in September 2025 will begin during the autumn of 2024. More details can be found here.

If you require any specific help or information, please 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 showcasing their new skills. Attending an ITT course is a pre-requirement for Licensed Lay Ministry training in the Diocese of Leeds. Further information about the Introduction to Theology can be found here.

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

This day is aimed particularly at leaders and worshippers in smaller local churches (typically 15-55 worshippers on a regular Sunday). Facilitated by Revd Jolyon Trickey, Ven David Picken and others, with teaching on Ephesians 1 from Bishop Mark Ashcroft, 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. For further information and to book a ticket please click here. 

You can also sign up to find out more about our ministry and upcoming events at www.resourcingrenewal.org.

Personal Growth and Leadership is a course for clergy and lay church teams to explore how we can grow personally and in our leadership - to learn, share and put into practice some key principles around growth and leadership - encouraging ‘Confident Christians’ and building ‘Leadership Pathways’. The next six month course is starting in late September. To give you an idea of how Personal Growth and Leadership might support your church, we will be running a number of taster sessions in April at the following venues, with the additional option for participants to join via a livestream:

• Thursday, April 18, 7pm - 9pm, St Andrews Church, High Street, Starbeck HG2 7JE
• Tuesday, April 23, 7pm - 9pm, St Barnabas Church, The View, Alwoodley LS17 7NA
• Wednesday, April 24, 7pm - 9pm, Pudsey Parish Church, Church Lane, Pudsey LS28 8BE

Please email [email protected] to find out more and book onto a taster session.

There will be a service at Bradford Cathedral at 3pm on Saturday, April 20, attended by the Archbishop of York and invited guest from across the diocese. The service will also be livestreamed, with details to follow.

There will be a service celebrating ten years of rural ministry in the diocese at Ripon Cathedral at 3.30pm on Sunday, May 12. Bishop Anna and Dean John, with the support of the Bishop of Leeds, are inviting people from all parts of the diocese to share in this celebration of rural communities, parishes, businesses and organisations, not least farming and land management.

More details on other services marking the anniversary will be shared in due course.

Find out more about Leeds @ 10 here.

Come and join us in a conversation about finding and working with interns.

This is an opportunity to:

• hear about our Diocesan intern scheme which equips young adults for life, work and leadership as disciples of Christ through placements in churches and training;
• find out about the process of finding and recruiting potential interns and how we can support this, what it looks like to invest in an intern over a year and what your church would need to commit to.

Whether this is something you are considering now, have a vision for in the future, or maybe have personal experience of, we would be delighted to welcome you in the conversation as we look to grow more disciples and leaders across all parts of the Diocese through the internship scheme.

To join the conversation, please email the Internship Co-ordinator [email protected] for a Zoom link.

We very much look forward to hearing from you.

We are delighted to invite all children, young people and families workers, leaders and volunteers to attend one of our TEND events this year.

This year’s theme is Encouraging Confidence and the days will include workshops, speakers, worship, reflection and the opportunity to meet others involved in ministry with and to children, young people and families. The dates and venues are:

• Saturday, April 27 at Holy Trinity Ripon
• Saturday, June 8 at Dewsbury Minister
• Saturday, September 7 at St Matt's Leeds

Please click here for more details and to book.

We may struggle with believing ourselves, or if we do believe find it hard when others have difficult questions. Whether you are struggling with believing yourself and/or talking with others who find it hard, these three introductory talks by Canon Philip will explore some of the common problems people have with Christianity. You can come to some or all, ask questions or just listen, and you’ll be very welcome!

Three Wednesdays in May at Wakefield Cathedral

• May 8 - Darwin and Dawkins: Faith and Science
• May 15 - Disaster: Faith and Suffering
• May 22 - Da Vinci Code: Faith and History

For more information email [email protected] or call 01924 373923.

A workshop from Urban Saints considering accessibility, inclusion and belonging for all. How can parents, churches and children’s/youth workers, not only understand more about the children we are working with, but also change the way we work with them so to be more inclusive and create belonging for all? This training session works through all of these important questions and equips and enables participants to be agents of change in their own group. To book your place for this session, please email [email protected].

Find out more here.

The intention of this retreat is to respond to Jesus’ invitation: ‘Come to me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.’ There will be space to rest and to receive from God, and opportunities to be nurtured by Scripture, other spiritual resources and prayer. The retreat will spiritually nurture those who need a short break from the busyness and stresses of life. Led by Henriette Howarth. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Find out more here.

What does the Great Commission mean for us in the light of other faith traditions? As we live out our Christian lives in a multi-faith context, this is a vital question.

This session will offer opportunities to explore theological issues and practical ideas for sharing our Christian faith with those who are followers of other faiths. John Bavington grew up in Pakistan and his first experience of interfaith evangelism was when his school friends tried to convert him to Islam!

To book a place and receive the Zoom link, please email [email protected]. Find out more here.

A talk on the history and significance of plainchant with an opportunity to learn the chant and sing it in worship. Led by chant expert Fr Peter Allan CR, Community of the Resurrection, Mirfield. Free and all are most welcome.

A six-week lecture series introducing the study of Church Music is taking place at St Peter’s Church, Horbury (WF4 6AS), from Thursday, April 18. Accessible to anyone who is interested, and offering valuable teaching and stimulating ideas for singers, organists, musicians, ordinands, and clergy, the course runs from 7pm to 8pm and will be delivered by Director of Music, Prof Leonard Sanderman, who is Associate Professor at Leeds Conservatoire, Visiting Lecturer at the University of York, and Organ Adviser to the Diocese of Leeds in the Church of England.

• 18th April: How do we think about church music?
• 25th April: Must we sing in church?
• 2nd May: Is all sacred music liturgical?
• 16th May: Why do we sing what we sing?
• 23rd May: Who thought organs were a good idea?
• 30th May: Towards a catholic philosophy of church music

All welcome. For more information please contact the Vicar, Fr Christopher Johnson, [email protected] or via our website.

The Eco Group from Wakefield Cathedral are taking part in an Earth Day event at the Hepworth gallery on the weekend of the 20/21 April. We are hoping to publicise how the church as a whole is working towards the 2030 Net Zero challenge, many through the A Rocha scheme.

To this end we would like to invite churches in the diocese to contribute photos and an explanation of any work done which might be of interest to the general public. We will display the materials in the cathedral for the following week as the Earth Day theme is the focus of a Family Fun Day in the cathedral on Saturday, April 27.

Please contact on [email protected] FAO Eco Group if you can send over some photos and text.

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].

All are welcome to discover more about the August pilgrimage being led by the Rt Revd Smitha Prasadam, Bishop of Huddersfield, with prayers and songs from Taize.

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

A performance of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Find out more here

Firm Roots Cancer Support is a small Christian organisation in the UK, offering prayer and spiritual support to people affected by cancer. Firm Roots was started by Helen Jones in 2012, following her cancer diagnosis. Helen has worked in NHS cancer services for ten years and is now an ordained minister in the Church of England. Firm Roots runs a network of Cancer Prayer Support Groups and Christian Retreat Days for anyone affected by cancer, either as a patient or supporting someone through it. Several face-to-face cancer prayer support groups exist around the country and an online monthly cancer prayer support group started in January 2024, so that people can join from anywhere in the UK. A Firm Roots Retreat Day is also planned for Saturday, May 18 in Leeds. Find out more at www.firmroots.org.uk or book onto a retreat day here.

A conference to encourage, equip and empower women to become all that they were born to be.

With guest speakers, live music, refreshments and a buffet lunch included in the ticket price of £20.

Find out more here

Happy Easter! Hear from Bishop Nick with the first of our series of 50 Daily Devotions.

During the 50 days from Easter to Pentecost, people in the diocese and beyond can subscribe to receive a daily email with stories, reflections, prayers and more.

Watch the video here.

We are looking for a new 3 day a week, 18 month fixed term Fundraising Officer to join the passionate, vibrant and friendly team in the Diocese of Leeds. We cover a wide geographical area in Northern England including Leeds, Bradford, Huddersfield, Wakefield and the Yorkshire Dales. In line with the Church of England’s Routemap to Net Zero Carbon, the Diocese of Leeds has an ambition to achieve net zero carbon (NZC) by 2030 across our diocesan estate. To deliver this ambition, a detailed net zero carbon programme has been developed is being implemented to decarbonise the 587 churches, 57 school and 451 domestic properties for clergy within the diocese. To support this extensive programme of work we are seeking an experienced Fundraising Officer to work alongside a growing vibrant and committed diocesan team of NZC officers. The diocese has gained national Church of England funding to support this role for 18 months. 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 April 18. Area news stories to [email protected]