In the short video, Paul Williams, a Churchwarden at St Luke's, Huntington explains how the church has been able to carry on during the temporary period when they are without a vicar, a period known as interregnum.
The previous vicar moved to a different parish in Stockport two months ago. Since then the congregation at St Luke's has been waiting and praying for a new vicar to join their church, but thanks to the energy and commitment of the parishioners and the local community, the church continues to thrive.
Paul explains how being without a vicar was "scary" to begin with as he and other church memebrs worked out what it was they could continue to offer the commuity. Members of the church and the departing vicar put together a transition document that would help to keep the church on a stable footing so it could continue to be a place of worship and carry on with many of the activities that provide a place of welcome for the community.
Paul explains that whilst they haven't been able to continue with everything they used to offer, there have been many positives that have come out of the process: "It could have gone one of two ways: it could have fallen apart or everybody could have pulled together and really helped out - and that's exactly what happened... we run a community cafe with the help of our volunteers and one of the interesting things as we've moved into interegnum and communicated with our volunteers and our friends of the church is that we've actually got more volunteers to come in and help us."
Called to be a Churchwarden?
Churchwardens are vital to the health and wellbeing of our church communities - as is evident by the story above. If you are sensing God calling you to this important role within the Church of England speak to your parish priest.
Called to Serve
The next diocesan vocation day, Called to Serve, is taking place on Saturday 04 February at Foxhill. The event is an invitation to explore God’s call on your life. This is now fully booked, but you can still join the waiting list in case a space becomes available. Join the waiting list.
Foundations for Ministry
If you are want to go deeper in your exploration and understanding of the Christian faith in support of a calling inside or out of the Church, you might want to consider the Foundations for Ministry course from the Diocese of Chester. Click to find out more.