Diocese of Coventry eBulletin

What is the diocese doing to help prevent climate change? We talk to Helen Groocock about what the Diocese of Coventry is doing to help reach the Church of England’s net zero target. Read more

Spring festival for Earth Day at Coventry Cathedral Let your curiosity guide you on the 22nd April, as Coventry Cathedral bring you Spring Festival! Read more

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Thy Kingdom Come 2023 Jesus taught us to pray for God’s Kingdom to Come and His will to be done; and Thy Kingdom Come is a season where the Church globally presses into this call to prayer. Here you will find a number of Thy Kingdom Come 2023 events and resources Read more

News Gifts of Orthodoxy On 13th May, Bishop John will be speaking about what we can learn from the Eastern Church including an Orthodox understanding of Spiritual Direction/Accompaniment. It will include sections on iconography, Spiritual Direction and the nature of Orthodox theology. The session is primarily for Spiritual Companions (Directors) as part of their Continuing Professional Development work, but given that it will be his last talk on orthodoxy, in this diocese, Bishop John has decided to open up the meeting to anyone who might be interested to come. His talk will take place at 10.00 a.m. until 12.30 p.m. on Saturday 13th May at All Saints’ Church, Vicarage Field, Emscote, Warwick CV34 5NJ. If you would like to attend, please let Kerry, his PA, know by 10th May. Kerry.Rumney@coventry.Anglican.org or 01926 427465 May Prayer Diary The Revd Clive Hicks, Healthy Churches Development Enabler, has produced the May Prayer Diary. Clive is interested to take your suggestions on sources, favourite quotes on prayer, as well as thoughts on the new structure/content. Click here to view the prayer diary. Get Involved with Alive 2023 Coventry DBE, in conjunction with Imagine Ministries and Feed the Hungry, is planning a massive, free Praise Party for 12,000 children from its Church of England schools. There will be music, singing, dancing, special guests and a mass picnic. We are excited by the opportunity to join our family of church schools together. The party will take place at the NAEC Stoneleigh on 15th and 16th June 2023. We would love to line the walkways and aisles with enthusiastic people who will sing and dance with the children. If you would like to volunteer please read the Volunteer information on the website. For more information about Alive and details about volunteering, please click here. Greenhouse: Learning Community This Saturday five church groups gathered from across the Diocese for our second session of Greenhouse. Despite coming from a diverse range of traditions and contexts there is one thing that unites us all: We are all exploring how we can reach those with the good news of Jesus, by establish new worshipping communities in our parishes. Greenhouse is a learning community that meet two times a year to explore how we can do this. How each worshipping community looks will invariably change depending on the context but as we explore this one thing is clear, God is calling us to dream and re-imagine how we see ‘church’. The God we worship is the creator of all things and he not only allows his church to be creative, but he desires us to be creative in our expression of church, which is so exciting! I cannot wait to see how this creativity plays out in the groups who have committed to the Greenhouse process and I know that through these new worshipping communities we will reach people who would never consider going to a church. If Greenhouse sounds like something that you feel could help your church please do get in touch and I would love to chat to you further Gareth.fitzpatrick@coventry.anglican.or or give me a call: 07365200331 Bards Ride 2023 If you’re a keen cyclist or rambler, please join the Warwickshire and Coventry Historic Churches Trust for the 3rd Bard’s Ride fundraiser on the 13th May! There are two different rides around the beautiful Warwickshire countryside available (100km or 40km), and walks for those who prefer to travel on foot. For more information and to register please visit www.riderhq.com or go to www.bardsride.co.uk All profits raised will go towards grants for Places of Worship in Coventry and Warwickshire. Choral Quartet Sonare 2023/24 Tour Professional choral quartet Sonare are looking for enterprising churches with which to collaborate for their 2023/24 tour, featuring the best of British choral music. We have a particular interest in bringing our performances to rural communities, but we would be delighted to hear from any parishes who would be interested in partnering with us. We would be happy to discuss further details upon enquiry. Contact George Salmon choirsonare@gmail.com Pathway to Balance, Productivity and Joy in Life… Some Christians find life fuller of stress and frustration than the abundant ‘life in all its fullness’ Jesus died for us to have (John 10:10). Pause and refresh the vision and direction of your life in Christ through this 1-day workshop taking place at The Well Christian Healing Centre on Saturday 10th June. Explore the KingsCompass© – a unique Christian Wheel of Life. With opportunity for a short prayer appointment from the Well ministry team, you’ll leave with next steps into a more balanced, productive and Christ centred 2023 – and beyond. For more information, click here. St Mark's Academy St Mark’s Academy offers internships to 18-30 year olds who want to grow in faith and develop in leadership. We offer an outstanding teaching programme, personal formation through mentoring, and the opportunity of a hands-on ministry placement either at St. Marks or another participating church in the diocese. If you know someone who may be interested, please encourage them to sign up for our upcoming open event on 18th May at www.stmarks.academy/join-us. Alternatively, if you are a church leader and would like to know more about becoming a participating church please contact academy@stmarkscoventry.org. Leamington Spa Town Grants now open The Leamington Spa Community Grants Fund is now open for projects benefiting Leamington residents. You can apply for up to £2,000. The fund does not cover Warwick, Whitnash, Radford Semele, Cubbington or Milverton. Closing dates are: 15th May, 4th August and 10th December. Examples of previous successful projects are green space improvements, pubic art, promotional materials, websites, social media support, community events and end-of-life care. For more information, click here. Grants for events on West Midlands Mayor’s Community Weekend Coventry churches thinking of holding a community event on the weekend of 9th-10th September can apply for up to £2,000 from the West Midlands Combined Authority. Applications open on Tuesday 9th May and close on Wednesday 7th June. Events and activities must celebrate the strength and diversity of communities. For more information, click here. National Churches Trust has re-structured and re-opened their grants programme The National Churches Trust Small Grants programme (previously Cornerstone) makes grants of up to £5,000 towards urgent maintenance works and small repairs identified as high priority within a recent Quinquennial Inspection or Survey Report, as well as small investigative works and surveys. Project costs should not exceed £20,000 including VAT. For more information, click here. Their Medium grants programme offers grants of between £3,000 and £10,000 towards urgent and essential maintenance and repair projects costing between £20,000 and £80,000 and project development and investigative work up to RIBA planning stage 1 to support churches preparing for a major project, and in developing their project to the point at which they can approach a major grant funder. For more information, click here. Their Large Grants programme offers grants of up to £50,000 towards the cost of major urgent structural repair projects costed at more than £80,000 including VAT and projects that introduce kitchens and accessible toilets to enable increased community use, costed at more than £30,000 including VAT. Grants will never exceed 50% of the project cost. For more information, click here. Awards will never exceed 50% of the costs. Contact Andy Duncan for help with applications: andy.duncan@coventry.anglican.org

Diocesan Vacancies Vicar, St John the Divine, Willenhall, Coventry St John the Divine is at the heart of Willenhall with the people of Willenhall engraved on their heart. The many projects developed though St John’s seek to meet real need, are creative, generous and have resulted in a relationship of trust between community and the church. We are a supportive church family with a heart for the community, ready to greet with warmth and welcome any who cross the threshold. We seek a vicar who will live among us and help us to grow as a church and as individuals. Someone who is prepared to meet people where they are and encourage them to come to know the love of Christ in their lives. Person specification: – Have a strong visible Christian faith rooted in prayer and be a passionate sharer of The Gospel. – Be a good communicator with the ability to engage all age groups. A gifted listener who will love without prejudice and lead inclusively. – Be collaborative and enable, empower and encourage others on their faith journey. – Provide pastoral care in different settings in our local care homes, community hubs and with those who come seeking care and compassion as they encounter problems in daily life. – Be an enabler of mission and teach discipleship that can be applied to the life of the church through small group teaching, lay leadership and outreach to the wider community. – Be committed to working with local schools, food bank, local businesses and other churches close to us. – Be organised – it is a busy parish with lots of occasional offices and involvement in community functions. – Be someone who has a sense of humour, a love for people and who eats cake. Closing Date for Applications: Noon Friday 28th April. For more information, click here. Vicar, St Mark's Church, New Milverton, Leamington Spa Is God calling you to lead a church with a difference? St Mark’s is an inclusive, evangelical church in a popular residential area of Royal Leamington Spa. We prayerfully seek someone who is: – Inclusive: A leader who values diversity and encourages everyone to take a full part in the life of the church, including celebrating life events. – Evangelical: A leader who is prayerful, Spirit-filled, holds a deep commitment to the Bible and seeks to spread the transformative message of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ to others. – A skilled communicator: A leader who teaches, manages and inspires people with skill, tact, warmth and patience. – Servant-hearted: A leader who is committed to nurturing others and helping them grow. – Compassionate: A leader who brings healing, empathy and care, especially to those damaged by previous experiences of church and those at different stages of their faith journey. – Visionary: A leader who inspires and guides outreach and mission into the community and beyond. – Emotionally intelligent: A leader who can hold difference together with kindness, courage and grace. – Discerning: A leader who can identify and develop leaders and ensure that gifts are being used and supported effectively. Closing date for applications: 9th May. For more information, click here. Associate Minister, South Warwickshire Seven Benefice The South Warwickshire Seven (SW7) is a benefice made up of seven small parishes in rural South Warwickshire. We wish to appoint an Associate Minister to grow our Gospel work among young families, as well as to support the recently appointed Rector. A smaller part of the role will include working with the St Paul’s Leamington Mission hub to resource wider mission work in the local area. We are looking for someone who: – Loves and knows the living Lord Jesus as revealed in the Gospels. – Empowered by God seeks to live up to the qualifications for church leadership as set out in the pastoral epistles (1 Timothy 3, Titus 1). – Has a deep passion for the scriptures and a proven track record of communicating them faithfully and engagingly at different levels of ministry. – Is willing to try new things for the sake of the Gospel, trusting that God will bring fruit in his own time and way. The post will be fully funded for 5 years at incumbency stipend level and comes with a house in the benefice. Closing Date for Applications: 11th May. For more information, click here Vicar, St Mary's Warwick (Team Rector designate Warwick Team) Our hope is for our new Vicar to embolden us to sing a new song to the Lord and spread the good news of God’s love to the world. We’re praying for someone: – Caring, visibly welcoming and inclusive and with a good sense of humour. – Encouraging and nurturing to the congregation enabling them to develop their gifts in all aspects of church life. – With the ability to make strong relationships with young and old, through a willingness to listen and communicate. – Imaginative and forward thinking who is prepared to try new ways for the future. – With skills and determination to develop links to the town of Warwick and The Warwick team. – Who will show strong spiritual leadership. – With skills which are needed to oversee the day to day running of the church, its finances and legal obligation through support of the employed staff. – To develop the worship and liturgy so that there are a variety of opportunities to reach out to all generations, especially to young families. Closing Date for Applications: Noon Friday 19th May. For more information, click here. Associate Minister House for Duty, Hillmorton We are seeking a priest who will help us to grow missionally, discipling and nurturing those in our midst; someone who is prepared to meet people where they are at, bringing the light and love of Christ into new lives. The role is to: – Be fully engaged with the life of both churches and wider communities. – Be fully committed to growth, taking the roots that have already been set and using them to further disciple and nurture others, so that we may be an active visible presence in our communities and within our congregations. – Be actively involved in the vision we have for the future of our churches in Hillmorton and Houlton. – Help us to disciple more families, children and young people in our worshipping communities. – Be involved in all areas of ministry with specific leadership responsibility for some areas of church life – Conduct occasional offices – Lead worship and preach across all our services. The post will be based on 3 days a week & is offered on a non-stipendiary, House for Duty basis. For more information, click here. Rector, Beaudesert, Henley-in-Arden and Ullenhall We look to bring Jesus Christ into the hearts and minds of each and every household and organisation in our Parish through our way of life, our worship of God, our love for the community and by the grace and fellowship of the Holy Spirit. We are looking for someone who: – will encourage and inspire all church members in the life of the church and in their personal spiritual journey. – is able to identify, train, encourage and empower church leaders including our lay readers. – is approachable, welcoming and inclusive, able to communicate the Christian faith in a way that is contemporary, appealing and inspirational. – is eager for growth, bringing innovation and ideas for mission and ministry. – is open to leading a variety of styles of worship, whilst respecting the tradition, identity and existing worship in each church. – is a good listener, with a keen pastoral care focus and a deep desire to serve. Closing Date for Applications: Noon Friday 23 June. For more information, click here.

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