New Deacon ordained in Elmley Castle

Elaine Simpson was ordained Deacon on Sunday 25 October by the Bishop of Dudley, Martin Gorick in a special service at St Mary’s Church in Elmley Castle,  

Elaine has trained for ordination in the Diocese of Gloucester but is moving into our diocese to become a ‘Distinctive Deacon’ in the Bredon Hill Group of Parishes, which includes the churches of Eckington, Defford cum Besford and Bredon with Bredon’s Norton. A Deacon’s ministry is focussed on service and is the foundation stone for all ministry.

An ordination in a parish church is always a special occasion. Bishop Martin preached on what it means to be a Deacon during the service. He said:

“What a great day this is, for Elaine and all her family and friends who are supporting her. The word Deacon, Diakonos, means servant. A Deacon in the church is a Servant of God first and foremost, in worship and in the world. Seeking out the lost, the forgotten, the abandoned, and bringing them to life in Christ. Serving others is hard work, but God doesn’t leave us to do it on our own. Letting God love us, is part of our calling too. So Elaine, let your God love you, and then go out to love and serve others in his name.”

Reflecting on her journey to ordination, Elaine said:

“I first trained as a pastoral assistant about 20 years ago and gradually took on more responsibility in church. However, I longed to be among the people, perhaps helping to reassure those who didn’t feel quite comfortable coming into church, speaking to people after the service, or helping with the washing up! And outside church, making Christianity accessible to those who were interested. Eventually I found that my calling is as a deacon, which is modelled on Jesus’ caring ministry among other people. I’m grateful for all the prayer and support I’ve received along my journey. I feel I’ve been guided back to the Bredon Hill Group of Churches and am looking forward to working with the team here.”

See all the photos on our Flickr album

More background from Elaine

“During my ordination training, we were asked to summarise our Christian story into three words! Mine were anxious, prayer, peace. Anxiety can be paralysing or worse. One of the most common commands in the Bible is ‘do not fear’. I have pondered this, and on top of feeling anxious, at first I felt guilty about feeling anxious too!

I began to pray as an anxious child when there didn’t seem to be anything else I could do! And I have experienced God being with me through the love of others: family, friends, fellow Christians and other people’s help. Over time, I found that I felt more peaceful, even in some really difficult circumstances.

Even though I was very shy, I trained to become a pastoral assistant about twenty years ago, and gradually took on more responsibility behind the scenes as a church member. I never felt called to roles at the front of church, but I wasn’t sure if that was just a lack of confidence. As part of my discernment journey, I had the opportunity to put on the robes and assist a vicar on placement in a rural setting. In this role, I was particularly touched that people seemed to want to share their stories and seek advice about their own challenges or calling. Yet I felt trapped spending the majority of my time at the front of church and longed to be among the people, perhaps helping to reassure those who didn’t feel quite comfortable coming into church, speaking to people after the service or helping with the washing up! And outside church, making Christianity accessible to those who were interested. Eventually I found that my calling is as a deacon which is modelled on Jesus’ caring ministry as he spent the majority of his time being out in the community with people and helping others to do what they want to do. While He was doing this, Jesus said the kingdom of God has come near.

After prayerfully keeping an open mind and looking at houses all over the country with my husband Toby, I genuinely believe we’ve been guided back to the Bredon Hill Group of churches in Worcestershire. And I have been affirmed in my calling here by the diocese’s calling to be Kingdom People. Thank you for the prayer and support you have given, I am delighted to be working with you all.”