Category: Wellbeing
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Reaching for the rescue ring
By The Rev’d Canon Dr Marian Free: In the distant past when I was at theological college, I remember being told that most clergy are introverts – one of God’s little jokes. This means that our feelings can be buried deep and difficult for us to articulate, let alone understand or untangle. When we experience…
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Myth busting clergy mental health
By The Rev’d Canon Sarah Plowman: Being a clergy person often puts you in the ‘public eye’ – or at least living much of your life in the midst and in front of your congregation and faith community. This can add additional stress to what is already an intense ministry life. The desire to appear…
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Are you an altruistic perfectionist?
By Bishop Jeremy Greaves: Tidying the bookshelves in my home study recently, I came across some of the journals I kept as a teenager. Amongst the typically adolescent angst-ridden pages about girlfriends and torturous poetry about relationships and school and family, there are pages exploring some much darker themes as I wrestled with all sorts…
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Clergy are called to care for their people, but who cares when the carer needs care?
By Marilyn Redlich and Dr Stephen Harrison: Since March this year, COVID-19 has substantially impacted the psychological and emotional wellbeing of our communities. Unsurprisingly, this has had flow-on effects for those in caring careers or vocations. Over the last seven months, our clergy have not only had to contend with the pressures of everyday life…
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Learning to recalibrate
By Bishop John Roundhill: The work we as clergy do can be tough. Very often the post-Sunday-service joke, ‘What do you do on all the other days of the week?’ rings hollow. Clergy work six days a week and we are notorious for not taking our day off. When I lived in Hong Kong from…
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Today is ‘International Buy a Priest a Beer Day’
By Stephen Harrison: Today is unofficially ‘International Buy a Priest a Beer Day’. On 9 September annually, people are encouraged to take their priests out for a beer and express their appreciation for all that their priests do for them and their broader communities. While this annual ‘day’ isn’t a formally commemorated day for any…
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Clergy wellbeing and self-care: questions and discussion points
By Stephen Harrison: Last year the Church of England committed to the landmark ‘Covenant for Clergy Care and Well-Being’ (p.5) as an Act of Synod, agreeing to “undertake to work together to coordinate and improve our approach to clergy care and wellbeing so that the whole Church may flourish in the service of the mission…
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The clergy call to prayer and compassion
By The Ven. Keith Dean-Jones: A priest is entrusted with four main responsibilities – to gather the people of God, to proclaim the Good News of salvation, to offer the Eucharist, and to send people into the world empowered as ministers of God’s healing and reconciliation. The four responsibilities are founded on Christ’s authority to…
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Clergy aged 65+ wellbeing and contribution survey
Earlier this year a survey was sent to 305 clergy over the age of 65 in our Diocese seeking to understand issues relating to their wellbeing. The survey was developed through the Clergy Wellbeing Development Group under the auspices of the Parishes and other Mission Agencies Commission (PMC) and in consultation with clergy in this…
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Advice to clergy: pace your workload for Christmas
Advice to clergy: pace your workload for Christmas With the Christmas season approaching, clergy will be even busier than usual with Advent preparations, Christmas services and events, increased community engagement and media opportunities, and the ordination weekend, as well as the hectic, but fun, end-of-year family activities. Finding balance during this period can be challenging…