Dear Friends,
I am delighted to announce the following people will be ordained at 10.30 am, Saturday 25 November 2023 in the Transitional Cathedral:
- The Reverend Dr Andrew Butcher to be ordained priest, and to continue ministry in the Parish of Fendalton
- Mr Matt Maslin, currently ordinands in St John’s College, Auckland, to be ordained deacon (with curacy placement to be announced soon)
- Mrs Jo Cotton, to be ordained deacon, and to continue her current ministry in the Parish of Fendalton
- Ms Sammy Mould, to be ordained deacon, and to continue her current ministry as Diocesan Youth and Young Adults Ministry Developer.
Please pray for Andrew, Matt, Jo and Sammy as they prepare for ordination.
There will be further ordinations to the diaconate and to the priesthood in early 2024.
Recently a SOMA mission visit to the Diocese of Kondoa in Tanzania took place. Elsewhere in this week’s e-Life, the Reverend Peter Akester from the Parish of Rangiora reports on this visit. It happens that as you read this e-Life, Teresa and I are en route to visit a different diocese – the Diocese of Western Tanganyika as guests of Bishop Emmanuel Bwatta. We will be present in the Diocese for ten days and have a busy itinerary including me delivering nine sermons at confirmation and other services! Your prayers for safe travel and fruitful ministry would be appreciated.
We return to Christchurch the day before Leading Your Church into Growth, 12-14 October 2023 begins. Registrations close soon. Every ministry unit is invited and encouraged to bring a team. This conference will enhance our capacity to engage with our communities and be ever more welcoming to newcomers.
The Cathedral Reinstatement Project passed the end of the Stabilisation Phase some months ago, but it is lovely to note a recent award in relation to that phase. Naylor Love won a Gold Award from the Association of Consulting Engineers (NZ) for their work on this phase: Aotearoa New Zealand’s best consultants revealed at 2023 ACE Awards – ACE New Zealand (acenz.org.nz) .
This Sunday, 1 October 2023, is Ordinary 26. The Epistle reading is Philippians 2:1-13. Whole books have been written about the “hymn to Christ” in verses 6-11, and songs and hymns have been composed on the basis of this beautiful acclamation of Christ. But the point of the passage as a whole is a challenge to us the readers, will we have the “same mind” as Christ Jesus had, so that the body of Christ will be harmonious and filled with love for one another?
Arohanui,
+Peter