Clergy Day - Deepening Spirituality
Fifty clergy of the Diocese of New Westminster attend the Clergy Day on Spirituality and the Sacrament of Reconciliation that took place in the Conference Room at the Synod Office, Thursday, March 15, 2018.
There was a full program of: presentations by distinguished guests, Q&A, small group discussions and a rousing birthday celebration for the Reverend Neil Gray, currently rector of Holy Trinity, White Rock. Having reached a milestone birthday, Rev. Gray will be retiring at the end of April 2018. Originally from England, he will continue to live in the area. Rev. Gray has been a priest of our diocese for over 30 years.
Following Lenten Morning Prayer, Executive Archdeacon of the diocese, the Venerable Douglas Fenton gave a brief overview of the day and asked for a list of questions that the plenary would like to address, the questions ranged from “how to help parishioners deepen their spiritual practice” to “Integrating spiritual practice with social justice action” to “how can we support each other in our desire to deepen spiritual life.”
The first speaker was the Right Reverend John Hannen, retired bishop of the Diocese of Caledonia. Bishop Hannen spoke about his own formation for ministry and shared an event from his younger days when as a young priest just out of seminary and visiting a church camp in the Northern Interior of BC he met an older man. He assumed that this man might be a caretaker or maintenance person connected to the camp. In their initial conversation he experienced a deep caring emanating from this stranger, the man radiated love. As it turned out, the young Reverend Hannen was meeting his bishop, the Right Reverend Eric Munn, Bishop of Caledonia 1959-1968 for the first time. As this powerful experience took place very early in his ministry it shaped his approach and fortified his belief “that when people see us, they should see something of Christ in us.”
(The full text of Bishop Hannen's presentation is attached for downloading below)
The next speaker was Brother Curtis Alquist, an Anglican monk from the Society of St. John the Evangelist (SSJE) in Cambridge, MA. The original plan was to have Br. Curtis visit the conference via Skype, however it was impossible to establish a connection likely due to the inclement weather hitting the East Coast of the United States at that time. A connection was made via Archdeacon Fenton’s cell phone and with the help of a wireless microphone, Br. Curtis was audible to the plenary. Br. Curtis spoke about the role of spiritual direction (spiritual direction being one-on-one conversations with someone wise that are meant to be helpful in terms of deepening our spiritual lives) in Deepening Spiritual Life. He encouraged an wholistic approach to spiritual direction by suggesting that when seeking a spiritual director the focus should be on finding someone whom is trustworthy, a respected source of wisdom who can facilitate a deeper relationship with God. Br. Curtis said, “Spiritual direction is concerned with exploring and answering this question: What is the invitation from God in what has happened or what is happening in our lives? What is the invitation from God in every experience, whether joyful or painful?”
After the lunch break (which included the cutting and serving of Rev. Gray’s birthday cake)the speaker was priest of the diocese and retired VST professor (among many other academic achievements) the Reverend Dr. Bill Crockett. A renowned Church historian, Dr. Crockett presented an historic overview on the sacrament of reconciliation and the different ways that the Church has practiced that sacrament (Unction {Healing, Confession, Reconciliation}) from its origins in the 3rd century through to the Reformation and up to the present day. In the 3rd century Confession first occurred as a public act of admitting to grave sins before the community, followed by excommunication and then reconciliation. In those early times this was available only once. Bishops would reconcile penitents on Maundy Thursday in time for Easter Eucharist. By the 6th century monastic practice focused on penance, Confession became a private act and the person hearing the Confession would not necessarily be a priest. Dr. Crockett pointed out that in the Book of Common Prayer, Confession was listed as one of the five sacraments in the 39 Articles of Religion. He also made substantial reference to the effect of Vatican II on the Anglican version of the practice of Confession. Vatican II moved the emphasis from penitence to reconciliation, through the act of Confession the penitent becomes reconciled to God and the Church. Sacramental Confession is a liturgical action because our actions affect God and our brothers and sisters in the Church. He concluded his presentation with an overview of the sacrament in our current time period and asked the question “what is its place in parish life today?”
(The full text of Dr. Crockett's presentation is attached for downloading below)
The final speaker was the Reverend Canon Kevin Hunt, rector of St. James’. In his engaging, occasionally humourous but direct and to-the-point presentation he offered some practical instruction on the current use of the sacrament. He encouraged the clergy present to use the practice regularly and to offer assurance and confidentiality in giving and receiving absolution, as clergy come to the sacrament as fellow sinners. He advised the group to prepare for confession by setting aside a half hour, pray for grace and amendment of life. Avoid asking too many questions but on an ad hoc basis consider that counsel and advice may be offered and also be prepared to offer penance as requested.
The fourth presentation was followed by Q&A participated in by Bishop Skelton, Dr. Crockett and Canon Hunt; a plenary discussion and some information sharing led by Bishop Skelton.
The March 15 Clergy Day was the final Clergy Day on the current roster, however there are a number of conferences and retreats scheduled for the clergy of our diocese beginning in the season of Easter and continuing through Pentecost.
IMAGES
- Small group discussions following Opening Worship
- The Reverends Vivian Seegers and Clarence Li during small group discussions
- The Reverend Neil Gray prepares to cut the birthday cake Photo Paul Richards
- The Reverend Dr. Bill Crockett
- The Reverend Canon Kevin Hunt
- Q&A with Bishop Skelton and Dr. Crockett.