Dave to be a vicar!!!
Your eyes do not deceive you. We received confirmation today that Dave has been recommended for training as a minister in the Church of England. We know that this will be completely new information to some people, while others of you may have been waiting to hear for a little while so it probably needs some back-tracking and explanation!
For approximately two years, Dave has been exploring whether he wanted to put his name forward for training as a minister. It’s been a long process and a rigorous one (which is just how the CofE do things) and one that has involved a lot of thinking, a lot of talking, a lot of praying. In early April, Dave went to his “Selection Conference” where he was put through his paces alongside other candidates and today we have received confirmation that he is through.
For those of you that didn’t know – we’re sorry not to have been able to tell you but the way in which the CofE work things, they ask you not to tell lots of people while you are exploring a possible vocation as a minister. Partly it is about keeping the pressure off us and partly it is about making life easier in our own church, if for some reason we had been turned down.
We have told a few people who have been really helpful in supporting us, praying with us etc but it has been a bit of a secret. Although at times, it has felt like the worse kept secret in the world!
There is obviously a lot to organise now. Dave will start at theological college in September (quite where we are not sure yet) and between now and then, we have to organise what we do with our house, decide on a college, prepare to move and obviously do it all while the baby in Kerry’s tummy slowly gets bigger and bigger. Dave will train for a couple of years and then into a parish after that.
We don’t think it has really sunk in yet but we’re excited about what the future may hold for us and relieved to finally know for sure whether Dave was going to be accepted or not.
May 7th, 2006 at 8:09 pm
Hiya Dave,
Karen and I are off to Ripon, Oxford to begin my training for the Ordained ministry in September. I have no doubt we are both having similar nightmares at the moment trying to sort everything out before we go!!!
Drop us a line and we’ll chew the fat.
Kev
December 20th, 2006 at 5:07 pm
[...] The thing that has dominated the whole year for us has been Dave being accepted to train as a vicar. The process has been going on for a couple of years with interviews and all sorts. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to say much publicly at the time but it finally reached a climax around Easter time this year when Dave was sent on a three day ’selection conference’ and then we heard on Good Friday that he’d been recommended for training. [...]