Yesterday I went to Thoresway church to say goodbye to Claire.
Claire has been in Market Rasen for eight years, first as curate and then as their vicar and has been much loved by all the Market Rasen Group of four parishes. When the Priest in Charge of the Walesby Group left three years ago he was not replaced so Claire took on a further ten parishes. She has been the only paid cleric for fourteen parishes for these last two and a half years. There are a lot of trained ministers (including me) helping her, fortunately!
She said goodbye at Market Rasen last week and The Walesby Group yesterday. (Last week we clergy took her out for lunch which all of us enjoyed!) It was an emotional service as she has been very well loved and will be sadly missed but she is going to another parish in this Diocese and will doubtless be much loved there too.
The end of the service was especially emotional and she gave us all God's blessing. What she didn't know was that E, a non-stipendiary priest in that group and M (that's me!) had planned on sending her off with God's blessing so there were tears as she knelt and we laid our hands on her head.
May her new parishe be as richly blessed through ministry as we have.
Our village Vicar moved on last month. She has been a good friend and I miss her. There is no one lined up yet to take her place, so the vicarage is up for let. I expect your "Preaching Plan B " will be in action a little more now ❤️🙏
ReplyDeleteIt's happening rather a lot over the next few weeks.
DeleteI'm sure she will be missed.
ReplyDeleteVery much so. She has wisdom beyond her years but brings the vitality of youth to her ministry.
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