Tag: deacons

In the name of Christ we gather

Today’s hymn from Sing Praise is ‘In the name of Christ we gather’ by Shirley Murray. It’s a niche hymn intended for an ordination service. In Anglican (and probably Catholic) tradition these usually happen at Petertide, i.e. St Peter’s Day – 29th June, or in practice the nearest weekend.  Many cathedrals will have hosted such services today, when people are ordained as deacons or priests, or their ministry ‘upgraded’ from one to the other.

The first verse acknowledges that the ordination is ‘in the name of Christ’.  The new deacon or priest is expected in many ways to represent Christ to their community, both the regular congregation and wider parish.  That’s what makes it such a high calling, and different from an ordinary form of employment. 

The second verse expands this by referring to some of the particular priestly functions: teaching and caring (though those are increasingly shared with lay people), and to administer the sacraments of communion and baptism (‘in bread and wine and water’), to which we could add weddings and funerals. 

The third verse recognises that the priestly life is not always easy, needing God’s word to make the ‘preaching, praying and caring’ effective, and that there will be ‘doubts and challenge, days of pain and darkness’.  The last verse turns back to God, as ‘Word of joy, enlivening Spirit’, calling him to ‘grow within your chosen servants life of God that has no end’.

Let us pray for all those setting out on this new life today, that they will live up to their calling and stay faithful to it even in the difficult times.

The Bible in a Year – 9 December

If this is your first viewing, please see my Introduction before reading this.

9 December. 1 Timothy chapters 1-6

The letters to Timothy are called “pastoral” because they are clearly addressed to one person, rather than a local church or Christians as a whole. Having served as Paul’s assistant, he seems to have been appointed as a church leader.  The letter refers to “overseers” and “deacons” in the church – titles that have varied down the centuries from one part of the Church to another, but the basic idea remains that each congregation, or group of congregations in an area, should have one identifiable leader, and others who serve as part of a leadership team.  So we might have a bishop and priests, or a pastor and elders, or a minister and deacons.  Then there are specialist ministries that were not known by name in Paul’s time – youth leaders, readers, pastoral assistants and so on.

The overall intention of Paul’s letters to Timothy sees to have been threefold – to remind him to stick to teaching the Christian doctrines that Paul has passed on, and not be swayed by other forms of religion that he may encounter; to keep order in the church, seeing that the other leaders are suitably experienced and not bringing the church into disrepute by their way of life; and to maintain his own spiritual integrity.

As a Reader in the church myself (probably close to Paul’s concept of a deacon) I need to pay particular attention to how he says they should live – “serious, not double-tongued, not indulging in much wine, not greedy for money; they must hold fast to the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience, and … blameless” (3:8-9).  Later in the letter, he gives further instructions to Timothy that seem to apply to all deacons or other assistants in church leadership: “set the believers an example in speech and conduct, in love, in faith, in purity. Give attention to the public reading of scripture, to exhorting, to teaching” (4:12-13).  If any of my friends and church colleagues are reading this, do remember to hold me to account!