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St. Barnabas' Anglican Church
Lay Ministry

Lay Leadership is a very important part of St. Barnabas' life.
Interesting in getting involved? Contact us!

Deanery of Essex - Lay Leadership Workshop February 2012
Report of Proceedings

On Saturday, February 11th the Deanery of Essex convened the first in a series of “Lay
Leadership Development” workshops intended to serve as a forum for discussion and
planning on the theme of developing of Lay Leadership as an important aspect of
revitalization of the Church. Three additional workshops are scheduled to be held in
different districts of the Diocese over the coming several months.

The Essex Deanery workshop was held at All Saints Windsor, and was co-convened by
Ven. Richard Salt (Director of Mission and Ministry, Diocese of Huron) and Bill Crosby
(Lay Co-Chair, Essex Deanery). The workshop was supported by an independent
rapporteur – Ms. Carol Caverzan – who recorded the discussion arising. St. Barnabas’
Parish was represented by 4 delegates (R. Biggs, J. Crosby, E. Griffith and H. Oades)
who participated fully in the day-long discussion and proceedings.

Carol Caverzan’s report summarizing the main themes and recommendations arising
from the workshop are attached for your information and review. In addition, your
delegates to the workshop would be happy to discuss any matters arising or to answer
any questions you may have.

Click here to open the full report (pdf file)

What is Lay Ministry?
(taken directly from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anglican_ministry#Lay_ministers)

Licensed lay ministers

Certain laypeople may receive specific commission or authorisation from a bishop (often on recommendation of a parish or its clergy) to perform certain
aspects of ministry. The rationale for licensing is that the ministry is considered too specialised or otherwise extraordinary to be carried out in the absence
of individual evaluation and recommendation. There is variation across jurisdictions, but there are four common areas.

Deaconesses

Although derived from the same name as deacons, deaconesses have often been considered lay ministers in the church (probably at least from the time
of the First Council of Nicaea, which agreed with this view). Deaconesses disappeared completely from the Western Church by the eleventh century. In
1836, Theodor and Friederike Fliedner founded the first deaconess house in Kaiserswerth on the Rhine. In 1862, the Bishop of London, Archibald
Campbell Tait, restored the 'ancient order of deaconesses' with Elizabeth Ferard by the laying on of hands. Women were ordained deaconesses by the
Bishop of Alabama (in 1885) and the Bishop of New York (1887), and gradually, more dioceses began to make deaconesses, but there was no clear
consensus: some intended that deaconesses be in holy orders, and others did not. In churches that now ordain women, the order of deaconess has
largely died out.

Readers

Licensed Lay Readers, whose prominence varies widely among dioceses and national churches, are licensed by their bishop. They are authorised to lead
worship services, apart from the celebration of the Eucharist. Their responsibilities and privileges can include:
Conducting Mattins, Evensong, and Compline
Reciting the Litany
Publishing banns of marriage
Preaching, teaching, and assisting in pastoral care
Conducting funerals
Distributing (but not celebrating) Holy Communion

Lay administrators

Licensed lay administrators may be authorised by a bishop to assist in the distribution of Holy Communion. Normally the parish priest submits to the bishop
at regular intervals a list of names of persons to be so licensed. In some dioceses or parishes, lay administration is limited to the chalice, and lay
administrators may also be permitted to take the consecrated elements from the church to the sick or shut-in to be administered there.

Catechists

In many parts of the Anglican Communion, day to day parish ministry is carried out by catechists. A catechist in most parts of the Anglican Communion is
someone who is licensed by the bishop on recommendation of the priest and local church council. A century ago, a catechist was a teacher paid by the
Church, today a village catechist is primarily a pastor in the village. In most parts of the Anglican Communion, the priest comes for Holy Communion only
when it is possible. The Catechist organises and conducts worship services on Sundays when there is no priest, and throughout the week, the catechist
rings the bell that calls people to Morning and Evening Prayer. In most villages, the catechist also works with youth, educates parents and godparents for
the Baptism of their children, rehearses those to be confirmed, and many other duties.

Some dioceses have training centres for catechists, in some dioceses catechists are trained by priests or by more experienced catechists.

Most catechists also assist in the distribution of Holy Communion when the priest comes to a village for celebration. In some parishes, a catechist also
distributes Holy Communion with elements previously consecrated by the priest.

Other lay ministers

Lay people assist in the execution of the liturgy of divine services in numerous ways, as musicians, readers of the lections (not to be confused with "lay
readers," above), intercessory leaders, and ushers (often called sidesmen or sidespeople).

For many years some parts of the church have relaxed the official rules about lay ministry. Clergy often see their role as officiant and teach that the
congregation are the ministers both in worship and through their daily work. In some churches lay people commonly take on the role of lay-reader as
above, and as well perform some of the other functions listed below without necessarily being identified as such by either title or vestments.

Assistants to the sacred ministers may form a distinct category of altar servers, often organised into a guild. Their liturgical responsibilities include some or
all of the following:
carrying the processional cross, candles, thurible, gospel book or bible, and/or other items in processions to and from the altar, and, in certain cases, at
the altar;
assistance in receiving the offertory gifts of bread, wine, money, etc.;
assistance in the preparation of the altar and of the sacred ministers for the Eucharist;
holding the missal or other books or items for the clergy;
ringing the sanctus bell and/or swinging the thurible at appropriate times in the liturgy

A distinct kind of assistant at the altar in services of the Eucharist (although he or she may be coincidentally ordained), especially in Anglo-Catholic
worship, is the subdeacon. The subdeacon is one of the three sacred ministers of the liturgy (the other two being the presider - a priest or bishop - and
the deacon). He or she is responsible for reading the Epistle (or other non-Gospel New Testament passage, normally the "second reading"), and assisting
in specific ways in the setting up of the altar and other aspects of the liturgy. Unlike the other laypeople serving in the chancel, who will usually be attired in
an alb or cassock, the subdeacon wears a tunicle, a vestment distinct to the office, over the alb, sometimes with a maniple.

Laypeople perform a variety of ministries outside the context of worship - indeed, it is an article of Anglican belief that the Christian initiatory rite of baptism
enables each believer to fulfill ministries specific to their skills and talents. Such ministry may include administration, teaching, finances, hospitality,
childcare and visiting the sick. The essential ministry of personal or lifestyle evangelism is a role carried out by many Anglicans among their family,
neighbours, friends and associates, demonstrating in practical ways the healing nature of the Lord God.