The report of the Commission on Minister was presented to Synod this morning. It proposed by the Revd Dr Maurice Elliott (Dromore) who said there had been a number of changes of personnel over the last year.

Dr Elliott said that one of the commission’s major projects over the past year had been to begin to put in place some essential thinking concerning how the church should care for its clergy, and how the clergy should be encouraged and trained to care for themselves. “We are all aware of the pressures that can quietly build and of the difficulties that can cumulatively arise,” he said. He said that in addition to flagging up the issue, one of the most helpful things which the church might consider doing at either an institutional or a diocesan level is to become much more proactive in reaching towards clergy so that problems can be forestalled before they become deep–seated.

He said the commission was particularly interested to look in more detail at the system of Annual Ministerial Review which now functions in virtually every diocese of the Church of England and is widely recognised as a significant means whereby clergy can ‘become more open to the renewal of their spirituality and competence as servants and leaders’. Reviews, including for bishops, were carried out by trained teams of both clergy and laity and the overarching goal was one of encouragement, affirmation and constructive critique, not appraisal and the threat of sanction.

He said the commission was also prioritising pioneer ministry. He said in CITI from next year a new module would be introduced on the MTh entitled ‘Building new communities of faith’ and are looking are providing pioneer training for serving clergy.

The motion was seconded by Dean Catherine Poulton who said that the Church of Ireland was keeping the Gospel alive in the most unlikely of places in the most obscure of townlands. ‘Incumbents of what might be termed “multi beneficed parishes” face the weekly challenge of ensuring that most, if not all of the churches in their care have appropriate services, increasingly Eucharistic in nature in many areas and that parishioners feel their particular place of prayer and worship is not neglected because the parish is the bedrock of Christian life and witness in the Church of Ireland and the church building represents that to the people of the community,” she said. She said non stipendiary clergy along with lay and parish readers help keep the wheels turning.

She said she and the Archdeacon and Meath and Kildare had examined the area of rural ministry and said they were looking for a solution for the projected absense of NSMs as unintended consequences of the changes in training for ordained ministry which would leave a void in rural areas. The Dean noted that for some the mention of Ordained Local Ministry sent shivers down their spines and that they must learn from examples of others.

The report was received by Synod.

A motion on Pioneer Ministry stating ‘that this house instructions the Commission on Ministry and respectfully requests the House of Bishops;

• To identify the issue of vocation to and training for pioneer ministry as a priority in the ministry strategy of the Church;
• To appoint a working group representative of both above mentioned bodies and of the Church of Ireland Theological Institute to explore ways forward in this matter,
• To report their findings to the General Synod as soon as possible.
  The motion was passed.

A motion approving the filling of a casual vacancy by Trevor Douglas on the Commission on Ministry was approved by Synod.