St Neots Parish Church

A number of people have come up to me and said “So, you’re training to be a Reader? What’s a Reader?” What indeed! To help those others who are not too sure, I have culled the following information from both the national and the Ely diocese ‘Reader’ web sites:

Readers in the Church of England are lay people called by God, trained, and licensed by their Bishop. They lead worship, preach and teach about Jesus and the Christian faith, and encourage effective pastoral care and evangelistic ministry.

Readers play a vital role in the Church of England. In the millennial year 2000 there were more than 10,000 licensed Readers (including those Readers over the age of 70 who have their diocesan bishop’s permission to officiate), as well as some 1,500 in training. This is more than the numbers of paid clergy engaged in parish ministry and considerably more than the numbers of those in training for the ordained ministry. So we are talking about a major ministry resource for the Church of England alongside that of the ordained ministeis, paid and unpaid, and the other forms of local ministry that are increasingly emerging in the dioceses of the Church.

In any one year, the Readers of the Church of England will take part in many thousands of services - often running them single-handed. They will preach thousands of sermons. But vitally important as their preaching, teaching and liturgical work is, their work extends far beyond church services. Readers can be found running children’s and youth groups; visiting the elderly and the sick, leading school services, taking funerals and generally helping spread the Gospel throughout the dioceses.

Once licensed by the Bishop, Readers can:

• take morning prayer and evensong, as well as other services such as word services, Compline, etc.
• preach sermons
• officiate at funerals

In addition, because of their training, Readers are well suited to:

• lead Bible study groups~ and prayer groups
• participate in running baptism and confirmation groups
• … and generally work as an important member of the parish ministry team.

For most people it takes two and a half years of study to become a Reader. The course, supervised by the Director of Studies, is a blend of tutored study, lectures and parish work.

Working under their appointed tutor, who may be a priest or an expenenced Reader, the Reader in Training studies a wide range of topics including the Bible, Doctrine and Liturgy. On average Readers in Training will meet 20 tinies a year with their tutors to whom they submit essays and project work.

In addition there are one day conferences held during each year of training. These provide further tuition and allow Readers in Training to meet and build a fellowship.

At the same time, working with their incumbent, trainees gain practical experience in their own parish. This involves preaching and pastoral work.

Graeme Gaskell
Reader in Training