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the Diocese of Ripon and LeedsNews from TogetherTogether

Inside this month’s Together:p II Bless this bridgep III Seacroft Kitchenp IV New cathedral canonp V Diocese proposalsp VI Advent newsp VIII Canon Alan Taylor

Decision time for the new Diocese of LeedsFinal scheme for West Yorkshire and the Dales guarantees Cathedrals a secure future

New report outlines possible timetable

Roadmap to change

www.riponleeds.anglican.org

december 2012

After two years of consulta-tions and more than a hundred submissions from individuals, churches, deaneries and diocesan bodies, it will be a largely unchanged scheme to create a new diocese of Leeds (known as ‘West Yorkshire and the Dales’) which will be voted on by the diocesan synods of Ripon and Leeds, Bradford and Wakefield next March, 2013.

The Diocesan Commission, which published full details of its final draft scheme at the end of October, says that noth-ing it has received has deflect-ed it from its goal of creating a single diocese to replace the existing three dioceses. And despite alternative sug-gestions, the revised scheme re- emphasises a commitment to five area bishops (Bradford, Huddersfield, Leeds, Ripon and Wakefield), the Bishop of Leeds to have overall charge of the new diocese. It confirms the retaining of the three

cathedrals on an equal basis with possible future changes in staffing at the discretion

of the diocesan bishop. It

includes scope to make Leeds a pro-cathedral, a reduction in central staffing by 10% over five years through natural wastage, and predicts annual cost savings within two years of the changes.

In a detailed report to accompa-ny the scheme, the commission(Continued on Page 2)

A new diocese could replace Ripon and Leeds, Bradford and Wakefield as soon as Jan-uary 2014 if the three diocesan synod meetings next March give the green light, according to the Dioceses Commission. It recommends that if General Synod also votes yes in July 2013, the appointment process for the new diocesan Bishop of Leeds should begin as soon as possible.

Playing a key role in the transition process are the Preparation Group and the Programme Manager, John Tuckett (pictured p2) whose post is substantially funded by the Church Commissioners. The report says that the date for the dissolving of the old (Continued on Page 2)

mondshire District Council to develop the crossing.

Claire Wright, scheme man-ager for Sustrans, said: “This project has been driven by the hard work of members of the

(Continued from Page 1)dioceses and the start of the new diocese could be as soon as Janu-ary 1, 2014. It would be after that that diocesan bodiesare gradually wound up as new structures and appoint-ments are made. Full details of can be found at www.ripon-leeds.anglican.org/ dioceses-commission.html

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Diocese of Leeds Roadmap

Blessing the bridge

(Continued from Page 1)has tried to allay fears by cost-ing out the financial effects of the changes, and setting out the case for more effective mission (see page 5). Among a small but significant number of changes, proposals for four parishes in the north of the diocese, Laithkirk, Romald-kirk, Bowes and Startforth and Rokeby with Brignall, to be transferred to Durham diocese have been dropped.

On the retaining of three Ca-thedrals, the Very Revd Keith Jukes, Dean of Ripon said he was encouraged by the report. “That all three are to be re-

tained and encouraged in their ministry and witness is very welcome news indeed. Each of them already has a ministry that reaches far and wide and I am convinced that the new Diocese will further enhance our role as ‘Mother Churches’ supporting the Bishops, clergy, people and parishes in all that God calls us to be and to do.

“The future looks very excit-ing and it will be a personal privilege to support the move towards the new arrangements and to be part of them.”

Vicar of Catterick, Revd Lindsay Southern got on her bike for an unusual blessing ceremony at Brompton on Swale last month. A new traf-fic-free route through the area includes an abandoned former railway bridge over the River Swale which was reopened as a cycle route by local MP, the Rt Hon William Hague, and blessed by Lindsay.

In an agreement with York-shire Water, whose pipes ran through the skeleton structure, green transport charity, Sus-trans, upgraded the old bridge across the River Swale to form part of its national cycle network. Sustrans worked with partners such as Rich-

local community and the par-ish council.

“The new routes will allow lo-cal people to make their local journeys easily and safely on foot or by bike.”

A special service was held last month in St Anne's Roman Catholic Cathedral in Leeds, bringing together church lead-ers and congregations from across West Yorkshire and from each of the main Chris-tian denominations. The West Yorkshire Ecumenical Council (WYEC) of church lead-ers was celebrating its 25th anniversary. Pictured is the Secretary of WYEC, Revd Clive Barrett, introducing the service of celebration, with members of WYEC standing behind.

During the service symbols representing some of the local work of Christian unity were brought up, and the congrega-tion heard from several recent ecumenical projects. Preacher the Revd Ernie Whalley, said, “I believe the trust between us has increased and there has been movement, but surely we recognise there's still quite a way to go. We need to keep listening to one another, listening at times to the pain of difference.”

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Seacroft Youth Kitchen Project

Breakfast with the Bishop

WYEC celebrates 25 years

Nearly seventy treasurers from parishes across the diocese joined Bishop John last month at the Bridge Inn, Walshford, for a breakfast meeting organised by Paul Win-stanley (pictured right) the Diocesan Steward-ship Advisor. Keynote speaker was Revd Uell Kennedy – Stewardship Adviser for the Diocese of Bradford (pictured right). Not only did each

treasurer get a full English breakfast but each went home with a memory stick packed with useful parish giving re-

sources.

Around 25 stew-ardship cam-paigns take place each year and

the meeting heard about some of the most recent. “One aim of the breakfast,” said Paul, “was to say thank you to treas-urers for their hard work.”

The Seacroft Parish Youth Kitchen Project got off to a sizzling start last month thanks to volunteers from the parish church. The youth service ap-proached the church for help because they were struggling to feed the children and young people who attended the weekly Friday night club for 8 to 13’s. Seacroft parish Team Vicar, Revd Fiona Harrison-Smith , told Together, “We wanted to do more than simply provide food so we cooked up a kitch-

en project to learn cooking skills and enjoy making and eating healthy food together. The young people help pre-pare the food, set the table and

serve each other as well as eating.”

“The best”, “I liked it”, “It was nice”, “I en-joyed help-ing give the juice out”,

and “I would like to learn the skills to cook this - my mother and father would enjoy it” were some of the comments from the young people.

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New Cathedral Canon

Bishop John writesOf the Bishop and Bishops

The Revd Elizabeth Sewell is to leave her post as Rector of the Knaresborough ministry team in the new year to join the Ripon Cathedral team as a new residentiary canon. Elizabeth will have respon-sibility for both pastoral care of the Cathedral parish and for education initiatives, a role to be known as ‘Canon

Educator’. “It will be about developing the Cathedral’s ministry to schools, not just in Ripon but throughout the dio-cese,” says Elizabeth. “I will be working with children and introducing them to this amaz-ing space and through that also introducing them to God. I am so excited about bringing children here from the inner city of Leeds or the villages of the Dales, and giving them the opportunity to explore this building.” Dean Keith Jukes commented: “We greatly look forward to Elizabeth joining us in the early part of 2013.”

This issue of Together explores the proposals of the Dioceses Commission, and the mission-centred reasons for that devel-opment. I very much hope that we shall see these proposals as providing us with new opportu-nities for presenting the gospel in our area.

Among the keys to the propos-als is the role of the bishops and their task of providing encouragement and vision. There would be five bishops, the same number as in the present dioceses, but they would be differently deployed. The Bishop of Leeds would be charged with providing overall leadership, as well as with particular responsibilities for the city of Leeds. The Bishop of Ripon, who will be Bishop James, would develop ministry in the mostly rural areas of North Yorkshire. The Bishop of Bradford would deepen our mission across the communities of that city, including inter-faith work. The Bishop of Wakefield would respond to the needs of the former coal-mining areas, and the civic opportunities of the West Riding county town, and the Bishop of Huddersfield would lead mission in the Pen-nine boroughs of Calderdale and Kirklees. As a team, with an archdeacon in each area, they would work together to pray for and inspire the life of the whole diocese.

This should provide us with a more coherent ministry to the whole of West Yorkshire and the Dales. It should also mean that each area develops its own life as a part of the whole. My own move to Leeds four years ago has enhanced my relation-ship with the city of Leeds. It has also meant that those in the north of our diocese have sometimes felt themselves more distant.

The pattern of a single diocese with five episcopal areas means that we shall have the benefit of working together across the whole diocese while explor-ing the particular needs of the smaller areas. The Church of England charges its bishops with providing leadership in spiritual and numerical growth, and in serving the common good. I believe the opportunities of this scheme will enhance the ability of all of us to meet these challenges.

+John

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In its newly published revised scheme for a new Diocese of Leeds, the Dioceses Commission sets out its arguments in favour of a ‘streamlined’ single diocese, particularly in terms of the church’s mission and potential financial savings. Between now and the final Diocesan Synod votes on March 2nd 2013, the de-bate will go on, but here Together looks at some of the arguments put forward by the Commission in its scheme documents, published on October 29th (the full texts can be found at www.riponleeds.anglican.org/ dioceses-commission.html)

A single diocese: “We are clear that the division of West Yorkshire and the Dales between three main dioceses militates against the church’s mission to West Yorkshire and indeed the Leeds city region as a whole... There is a widespread view that the existence within a single compact area of three diocesan administrations is a luxury that the Church of England can no longer afford.”

The Bishop as leader in mission: “The modern media look for a comment from an individual, not a statement from a committee... The regional mission of the diocese led personally by the diocesan bishop should be recognised, valued and well resourced ...

English dioceses have, for the most part been configured to the secular communities they have been intended to serve.”

Episcopal areas: “Decen-tralisation is an equally

important aspect of what we are proposing. There is a need for coherent missional areas within the whole area led by area bishops... this should result in mis-sion and episcopal leadership that are more locally focused and closer to parishes, clergy and people...”

Supporting parish mission: “Pooling the resources of the three existing dioceses will make it possible to ensure that the services provided by the diocese to its parishes are of the highest quality, are more resilient and can be delivered more economically... parish clergy will benefit from a much greater range of skills, expertise and resources ...”

Cathedrals (pictured): “The retention of three ca-thedrals within one diocese, each with distinctive missional strategies is essential to honouring both

past history and future holistic mission... the scheme leaves open the possibility of Leeds Par-ish Church developing into a pro-cathedral of the diocese...”

Financial: “The new diocese will have an income and reserves that can provide a much greater level of financial security and stability than hitherto has been or could be possible... the po-tential for further significant financial savings is considerable as more efficient working practices are developed ...”

Conclusions: “Combining the best of the inti-macy of the local church with the advantages of scale... The five Episcopal areas will enable more local participation in shaping mission. The larger size will give a sufficient critical mass of ex-pertise in specialist fields such as ministry and education, and scope for more strategic Episcopal oversight that would come from being part of a single diocese.”

It’s all about mission The Commission sets out the case for a new Diocese of West Yorkshire and the Dales

Only 80 Miles to Christmas!

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Advent News... Christmas News... Advent News...

Bedale’s advent sheep trail

Christingle help for children in crisis

Riding Lights Thea-tre Company is coming to Leeds this month to perform its brand new Christmas show, Only 80 Miles to Christmas.

Nigel Forde’s retelling of the traditional nativity story is the latest in a line of popu-lar, warm-hearted Christmas shows the company have taken around Yorkshire in recent years and uses using puppetry skills, humour and story-telling.

Only 80 Miles to Christmas will be performed on Tuesday 18 December at Leeds Minster at 7pm. All tickets cost £5. To book, contact the boxoffice on (01904) 613000. The performance lastsapproximately one hour and is suitable for the whole family.

More than eighty-five Christingle services for the Children’s Society were held in Ripon and Leeds last year, raising over £19,000 to help disadvantaged children. This year the Society is hoping churches across the diocese will continue their support and

have produced a series of re-sources for churches, available online at www.christingle.org.

“A family can be in crisis for different reasons and the impact on children can be devastating,” says the Society. “They can find themselves running away from home and facing increasingly dangerous situations.”

The Right Revd Trevor Will-mott, Bishop of Dover, said, “Christingle services are an opportunity for us all to sup-port the work of the Children’s Society as they reach out to the most vulnerable children and young people.”

A flock of knitted sheep have been scattered round the North Yorkshire market town of Bedale as part of the church’s imaginative advent activities this December.

Members of St Gregory’s, Bedale with the chamber of trade are linking up to integrate church and commu-nity. Knitting has been taking place throughout the town and the resulting ‘lost sheep’

will be appearing in shop windows from December 1st and the town’s Christmas Fair

and Market. Vicar, Revd Ian Robinson, says, “Each shop is being invited to name its own sheep and a trail leaflet has been produced.” On Christmas Eve

the flock will be gathered for the crib service at St Grego-ry’s with the community and church celebrating together.

y Diary Dates Your guide to events

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Decemberin the Diocese of Ripon & Leeds

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Cambridge Chamber Consort – concert of seasonal choral music, Ripon Cathedral, 7.30pm (£12)

Transcendence – Ancient Future Worship, Leeds Minster, 7pm – 9pm

Saying ‘Yes’ to God. A day of reflection, fun and activity for people with learning disabili-ties and their friends. 10am to 4pm at Christ Church, Upper Armley, Armley Ridge Road, Leeds LS12 3LE Cost per person £4 (including carers – payable on the day). Contact Mavis West on (0113) 268 3302

Advent Meditation – service of hymns read-ings and carols, 5.30pm, Ripon Cathedral

Advent Carol Service, Leeds Minster, 6.30pm

Reading and Speaking in Church, 7.30pm, St James, Church Street, Wetherby, LS22 6LP Cost: £5 per person, or £10 per parish … Contact gail.matthewman@riponleeds-diocese.org.uk or call (0113) 200 0558

Yorkshire Evening Post Carol Service, Leeds Minster, 7.00pm

Inspiring Churches. Practical resources for developing church projects. 10am – 4pm, St George’s Centre, Leeds.

Handel’s Messiah – Ripon Choral Society, 7.30pm Ripon Cathedral (£19/£17)

Evensong and Britten’s ‘Ceremony of Car-ols’, Ripon Cathedral, 5.30pm

Carols for a Choral Future, Christmas Cho-ral Concert, 7pm Leeds Minster

Radio Leeds Music and Readings for Christ-mas, Leeds Minster, 7pm

Amici Singers present the Annual Christmas Concert at St Stephen’s, Kirkstall with the St Matthews Handbell Choir and carols for all. 7.30pm, £6 on the door inc refreshments (0113) 267 7775

Light up a Life, St Michael’s Hospice service at Ripon Cathedral, 3pm

Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols, Leeds Minster, 3pm

Carol Singing in Leeds Market, 12 noon – organised by Leeds Minster Only 80 miles to Christmas, by Riding Lights Theatre Company 7.00pm - Leeds Minster (0113) 2452036 (see page 6 for more details)

Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols (first service), Ripon Cathedral at 5.30pm. Also 24th at 5.30pm

Leeds Minster services: 12noon Childrens’ Crib Service; 4pm Choral Evensong with Blessing of Crib; 11.30pm Midnight Mass of the Nativity

Christmas Day

Boxing Day Eucharist and Pilgrimage from Ripon Cathedral to Fountains Abbey, led by Bishop John Packer. 9.30am Eucharist and 10.15 (approx) walk sets off from Cathedral

Watchnight Service and Torchlight Proces-sion, 11.15pm, Ripon Cathedral followed by procession to the Market Square

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Moves and Appointments

Alan Taylor, Leeds’ longest serving vicar, retires

David Brighton Editor(0113) 2000540, email:Together @riponleeds-diocese.org.uk

John Carter Managing Editor(01423) 530369, email: jhgcarter@aol.com

Cost and delivery enquiries:Julie Milbourne, Ripon & Leeds Diocesan Office, (0113) 2000540

After forty three years of ordained ministry, twenty eight of them as Vicar of St Aidan’s Harehills, Leeds, the Revd Canon Alan Taylor retires at the end of December. Alan, 69, has not only been Area Dean and the longest serving vicar of one parish but also a city councillor and the city’s first ever Lord Mayor to be a serving vicar. Together met a remarkable priest and politician.

It was not by accident that Canon Alan Taylor has ended up holding the record for the longest serving vicar of a parish in the diocese, let alone the country. Alan, who will retire, aged 69, at the end of the year, says that when he came to Leeds in 1984, he decided to devote himself to Harehills “for as long as I could”. He had worked previ-ously in Toxteth, Liverpool and saw, he says ,“too many people

raise hopes and expectations and then leave the inner city within a couple of years” hav-ing “ticked the boxes”.

Alan’s com-mitment to the

area was made even clearer in 1999 when he became a Lib-Dem Councillor for Gipton and Harehills. “As a councillor I tried to make sure that there was a lot of investment thrown into the area.”

Alan was born in Leeds in 1943 and went to Hunslet Carr School, working for a time at Yorkshire Imperial Metals. He was ordained deacon at

Liverpool Cathedral in 1969. Forty three years later, as he looks forward to retirement to a cottage in Lincolnshire, Alan says he will miss the diversity of Harehills and the welcoming nature of this part of the city. The church he leaves, St. Aidan’s, is in good heart. “I hope we are a focal point for the people of God in order to serve the community. It’s a constantly changing congregation which is one of its joys , but also makes enormous demands. Ten years ago I never thought we’d have Pafras here (Positive Action for Refugees and Asylum Seekers which is based at St Aidans) , or we’d be supporting the local community through teaching people English – it keeps us on our toes!”

Revd Elizabeth Sewell, Rector of Knaresborough; to be Residen-tiary Canon of Ripon Cathedral.

Revd Jonathan Oldfield, Associ-ate Minister of Crakehall, Hornby and Patrick Brompton with Hun-ton; to be also Associate Minister of Spennithorne with Finghall and Hauxwell.

Revd Amos Kasibante, Priest in Charge St Cyprian’s Harehills and St Stephen and St Agnes’ Burmantofts; to be also Racial

Justice Officer.

Revd Canon Alan Taylor, Team Rector of Leeds All Souls and St Aidan’s and Area Dean of Allerton; to retire.

Revd Ikuko Williams, Trust Chaplain for the Leeds Teach-ing Hospitals NHS Trust in this Diocese, has resigned.

Revd Allan Sirman, who had the Bishop’s Permission to Officiate in this diocese, has died.

Readers will also be saddened to hear of the death of Katherine Carr, for many years on Diocesan Synod and General Synod, a reader and member of St Mary’s Church Richmond.