Celebrate 5 is the name for five big events being held in each episcopal area this autumn to celebrate and encourage church growth.

Robin Gamble, Bishop's Adviser for Church Growth, says, “Celebrate 5 will be both a ‘coming together’ for each episcopal area and it will help build an emerging culture of growth in every church."

Each event will include traditional and contemporary worship, a sermon from the area bishop, examples of local growing churches, a prayer installation and litany for growth and a final 'take away' challenge to each PCC.

Robin adds, “We hope that every church will send along clergy and lay leaders plus two or three young people (teenagers and young adults).

"Please come and support your area, and help build a culture of growth in the diocese.”

The Celebrate 5 dates are:

17 September          7.30pm         Halifax Minster
24 September          7.30pm         Bradford Cathedral
1 October                   10am         Ripon Cathedral
8  October               4.30pm         Leeds Minster  (workshops from 2-3.30pm in different venues)
1 November            7.30pm          Wakefield Cathedral
  

Churches in the former Bradford diocese have enjoyed a link with the Lutheran Church in the City of Erfurt, former GDR, since the 1990’s. Now there are two further opportunities to take part in visits to the city – for the Kirchentag in May 2017, or on a visit with Bishop Nick Baines this coming October.

The opportunities follow a recent visit in June by Mrs Ros Beeson, Revd David Houlton and Revd Mike Cansdale. The group stayed in the cloisters of an Augustinian Abbey where Martin Luther studied as a monk.

Rev Mike Cansdale said, “This was my first visit to Erfurt. Not only is it a beautiful and historic city but it was great to see the ways in which the churches are engaging with contemporary issues. For example, we saw how they have developed language courses and advice centres for Syrian refugees and we joined one evening with a congregation who had opened their church hall for an Ifthar (Muslim breaking of the Fast during Ramadan) attended by more than a hundred people.”

Bishop Nick will be preaching at a special service when he visits at the end of October 2016, marking the start of a year of Celebration. October 31st is an important date in the Lutheran Calendar as it was on this day 1517 that Luther reputedly nailed his 95 Theses to the door of Wittenberg Schlosskirche. This act is widely regarded as the start of the Reformation and 2017 marks the 500th Anniversary.

With the EU Referendum result, it is felt that the link will be just as important, if not more so in the future.  Revd David Houlton said: “In some ways this makes our relationship with the church in Erfurt even more important as our country seeks to work out our new place in Europe but outside the EU.”

In May 2017 there will be a huge event, the Kirchentag, taking place across a number of cities including Erfurt and it is hoped to take a large group from the diocese to experience the celebration.

If you would like to find out more about the Link or would be interested in joining one of the visits, please get in touch with members of the committee.

More about the Erfurt Link on the Overseas web pages here 

October 28th to November 1st 2016 - Visit to Erfurt with Bishop Nick Baines

May 24th to May 28th 2017 – Kirchentag visit to Berlin, Erfurt and Wittenberg

Contact details:

Revd Mike Cansdale (Chair)         Email: michael.cansdale@gmail.com

Mrs Ros Beeson (Vice Chair)        Email: rosalind.beeson@btinternet.com

Recovering our scriptural nerve for today's world?  with Bishop Nick Baines. From 6.30pm on 17 November at Wakefield Cathedral

This event is the second of a series of five evenings - Follow Me 3 - to explore faith and discipleship. 

Join us for Evensong at 6.30pm (optional).  
Food will be served from 7.15pm.
Follow Me teaching sessions from 7.45pm until 9.15pm.  

RSVP to: caroline.asquith@leeds.anglican.org 

Church leaders meeting in Harrogate (July 16, 2016) have agreed a new scheme for collecting parish financial contributions  - ‘parish share’ -  which will be applied across the diocese from January 2017. 

Members of the Diocese of Leeds Synod held at St Aidan’s High School  also agreed a budget for 2017 which means that parishes will be asked to pay, on average, 2% more next year.  Green energy was on the agenda as Synod members heard that a scheme piloted in Leeds and Bradford had netted churches substantial savings and would be rolled out to other parts of the diocese. And the army was represented at the Synod meeting as it was agreed to write to churches encouraging  every parish to take practical action to support the Armed Forces Corporate Covenant.

In his Presidential address, the Bishop of Leeds, Nick Baines (pictured above left), said that the decisions being taken by Synod were a vital part of the process to reaching January 2017 “with our structural foundation in place and with clarity about the resources at our disposal”

“This year”, he told Synod members, “ we have been starting the processes of re-shaping, building on our new governance structures and developing our vision for prioritising our mission across the diocese and episcopal areas. We are nearly there, but the debates we have today, and the decisions we make, will allow us to be clear about where we start from on 1 January 2017.”

Read the text of Bishop Nick’s full address on his blog, here

Parish Share

Speaking in his Presidential Address about the proposed Parish Share scheme, Bishop Nick had warned,“What is clear in any such proposal is that not everybody will be happy.”

Although not everybody was happy, the Parish Share Scheme proposal, modified by an amendment at Synod, was carried overwhelmingly. Parishes will hear in the Autumn what they will be asked to pay in 2017. Simon Baldwin (pictured left) of the Diocesan Share Review Group outlined the scheme which would be based on three components - the number of clergy in a parish (‘allocation of resources’),  the relative ability to pay  of a parish (calculated using the Index of Multiple Deprivation) and the size of the church based on relative regular Sunday attendance (fixed for three years so as not to stifle church growth).   

However, Mr Baldwin said that several modifications had been made including removing the IMD component from small rural parishes. Restrictions were being proposed to  soften the impact of the changes on parishes, including capping Share requests at 80%of a church’s Total Voluntary Income, and restricting increases and decreases to a church’s Share as a result of the new system – increases to  no more than 15% and decreases to no more than 8%.

Amendments were tabled both to remove the restrictions ‘softening’ the changes, and to remove the church attendance component, but both failed to gain approval.  However an amendment from the Revd Canon Paul Ayers, Vicar of Pudsey, to ask the Diocesan Board to investigate how restrictions and caps may be phased out, bringing a proposal back to Synod, was carried.

Armed Forces Covenant

Major Derek Tickner, Quartermaster of the 5th Regiment, the Royal Artillery, (pictured left with Lindsay Southern and Steve Jackson, another speaker) was welcomed to Synod and spoke during a debate on whether parishes should be encouraged to engage with current and retired members of the armed forces as part of the Armed Forces Corporate Covenant, sighned by the Archbishops of Canterbury and York. Proposing the motion, Revd Lindsay Southern of Richmond Deanery said,  “They return to your parishes and perhaps have no one around who understands what they have been through. There are increasingly complex issues faced by  veterans including  physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, moral issues, adjusting to civilian life, and financial hardships including a lack of employment…. It’s not about favouritism”, she added, “it’s about levelling the playing field.”

Opposing the motion, the Revd Nicholas Clews (pictured above right), Area Dean of Bradford North, said the Covenant was “part of a campaign over a number of years to militarise our society”. However, several speakers, including (pictured right) the Revd Canon Ian Greenhalgh, a former RAF Chaplain, now Area Dean of Bowland and Ewecross, spoke in favour and the motion was carried.

Accounts and Budget 2017

The Accounts for 2015 were presented by the Revd Martin Macdonald (pictured left) of the Diocesan Board of Finance. They showed an 88% collection rate for Parish Share. However, despite the shortfall,  the expected budget deficit of  £773k  in unrestricted funds became a n £867k surplus before investment gains were added. Factors which helped the diocese end the year in the black,  said Mr Macdonald, included changes to pension accounting and clergy vacancies.  

The 2017 proposed Budget received approval by Synod. Mr.Macdonald told members, “The 2017 budget had been rigorously put together as it is and as its going to be.”  Next year’s budget  will include an increase in Parish Share of £309,000, or 2%, but expected reductions in money from investments and from the Church Commissioners. During the debate Bishop Nick explained that a new pot of money of £200k was being earmarked for the diocese by the Church Commissioners for specific mission projects in more deprived areas.

Green Energy

Synod members heard that a Green Energy Savings Scheme, piloted in 68 parishes across Leeds and Bradford Episcopal Areas  has netted churches substantial savings of around £63,000 per annum, almost £1000 per church.  The Archdeacon of Leeds, Ven. Paul Hooper (at his last Synod before retirement), and Environment Officer, Jemima Parker, gave a presentation to Synod and said that the scheme will now  be rolled out to other parts of the diocese. “The key successes for the green journey so far” they said, “are, firstly, the significant number of churches that are now supplied with a renewable electricity tariff. This is a substantial step forwards in reducing our greenhouse emissions and will feed into the development of any future Diocesan or parish carbon reduction strategy.”

Clergy Housing and Refugees

Other debates during Synod included a motion from Huddersfield Deanery Synod calling on the Board of Finance to allow short term letting of vacant parsonages to refugees and other in crisis. But after extensive debate and an amendment, Synod agreed to adjourn the debate until its next meeting to allow time for further investigation of the possibilities. 

Radio Times asked Bishop Nick to express his view on the growing fashion for people to take their clothes off on tv. Here's his article in this week's edition:

Get yer kit on!  Why is TV full of people stripping off?

Well, would you Adam and Eve it? Recently 3000 people took their clothes off, painted themselves blue and lay around the not-so-tropical city of Hull in varieties of heaps. All, of course, in the name of art.

Actually, I thought it was quite funny. I saw it on my phone while enjoying two days at the General Synod talking about sex. So, it seemed both timely and amusing.

What is it with nakedness at the moment? You can hardly turn the telly on without finding someone wanting to take their clothes off. I thought Big Brother was embarrassing, but clearly that was just the appetiser for Love Island, Life Stripped Bare and new series Naked Attraction. At least the new paradise-building Eden (Channel 4) has the islanders keep their clothes on - probably wise given the climate.

We'll come back to that in a minute. First, though, it might be worth knocking on the head one or two misapprehensions about religion, bodies and nakedness. The story in the Old Testament book of Genesis has Adam and Eve (man and woman) doing a naughty and then realising that they were naked. So, they run away and hide in the bushes in the garden. Which is reasonable.

But, the point of this is not that they were naked - that is, clothes-free; it is that they realised they were transparent... or, as we might put it, they knew they could be seen through. And this transparency was felt to be threatening rather than promising. So, they hid. And, funnily enough, it is God who comes looking for them (not the other way around) in order to find them and make sure they were OK for the future despite the mess they had got themselves into.

What is odd these days, however, is that some people seem to jump at any opportunity to get their kit off. Especially if there is a camera nearby. What is it that drives people to want to have not only their body, but also their character, habits and personality laid bare for an audience of voyeurs to criticise? What curious motivation lies deep within them that makes exhibitionism seem an attractive option?

I guess what lies behind these questions is the blurring of the lines between what used to be called the private and the public. Whereas society has developed conventions about what should be legitimately exposed and what should be kept private, it seems that contemporary society has binned these and invited the beautiful people to bare more than their souls in the name of the great god Entertainment.

And now it's not just the glitzy, model types. The telly is full of programmes about all sorts of people trying to cover up dodgy tattoos, operations that went wrong, weird people trying to make themselves attractive. And all in full public gaze. Why?

Maybe the ubiquity of social media has something to do with it? If breakfast used to be a matter of private interest, now the whole of Twitter needs to know what I eat. Obviously. The barriers are down, everything is open, nothing is hidden. Politicians and others in public life have their lives shredded by a prurient and ruthless media monster, insatiable in its appetite for flesh.

I am not sure this is entirely healthy. If the Internet has given our kids open access to all sorts of distorted views of what it is to be human - that beautiful and idealised bodies are to be valued above all else - then perhaps we shouldn't be too surprised at some of the identity and self-esteem problems faced by them as they grow through adolescence towards adulthood.

In which case, Naked Attraction lies at one extreme of exhibitionist fantasy, whereas at least the Hull nudists were just ordinary people with ordinary bodies in ordinary shapes and sizes.

Still, there must be some places where it still is right to shout, "Get yer kit on!".

This week, Bishop Nick presented the Archbishop of York’s Young Leaders Awards to pupils at Low Moor CE Primary School in Bradford.

Assistant Headteacher, Sarah Marsden, says, “The Archbishop’s Young Leaders Award challenges pupils to 'be the change they want to see', so throughout the year that’s just what our Year 4 pupils have been doing. They’ve completed tasks which have helped them gain an awareness of their community and it has motivated them to take responsibility for their local, national and global communities.

"Pupils now understand that if you want a change in society to occur you need to lead by example and to take action by doing something about it. It’s a fantastic mindset to be applied to their present and future lives”.

Bishop Nick says, “The children have worked hard, putting their leadership skills into action to make a difference in their local community. I was very glad to present them with such well-earned awards.”

Sarah Marsden outlined some of the things the Year 4 pupils have done:

• When the school raised money for the local Food Bank in Wyke, the pupils wanted to create a bigger change, so they held an assembly, got the school to donate food as well as money, wrote letters, and collected the donations and passed them on the Food Bank.
   
• On a visit to Raw Nook in Low Moor, pupils were horrified by the amount of litter and wanted to improve this area of local beauty for future generations to enjoy. They picked up litter and made bird boxes which were placed in the trees to encourage birds to nest in the area, which they hope will attract other wildlife.
   
• During a topic on trade, after learning how  Fair Trade makes a difference to producers of coffee, pupils wanted to share this information with friends and family, so they invited them to a coffee afternoon where they explained the benefits of purchasing Fair Trade items.
   
• They explored a range of leaders who have made a positive impact on the world through their faith and leadership . They were especially impressed by the impact Sir Titus Salt had on working conditions in the wool factories by building the village of Saltaire in Bradford.

On his Radio 2 show today (Friday 22 July) Chris Evans expressed his approval for the diocese opting to use the name 'Diocese of Leeds'.

Bishop Nick regularly presents Pause for Thought on the programme, and having two names for the diocese ('Leeds' and 'West Yorkshire & the Dales') has been very confusing.

After his Pause for Thought this morning, Bishop Nick explained that we are now just called the Diocese of Leeds (and no longer 'West Yorkshire & the Dales'), and Chris said, "Thank them from me".

You can hear Bishop Nick's Pause for Thought here (at 2:48.54)

Our six bishops, in conjunction with Muslim leaders in West Yorkshire, have issued a statement condemning the recent violence in France and Germany, and sending particular sympathy to Roman Catholic brothers and sisters on the day a priest was murdered in France.

Statement from faith leaders in West Yorkshire

"As Faith Leaders in West Yorkshire we are appalled by the tragic events which have taken place in France and Germany in recent days.

"We reject absolutely the use of violence against innocent people for so-called religious ends, and condemn in the strongest terms the murder of a Roman Catholic priest in Rouen.

"Such an attack on a man of God is an attack on all people of faith and on all humanity.

"We stand together in our commitment to working for peace, justice and tolerance among people of all faiths and none, and our prayers are with the victims of violence everywhere".

Rt Revd Nick Baines, Bishop of Leeds
Rt Revd Jonathan Gibbs, Bishop of Huddersfield
Rt Revd Tony Robinson, Bishop of Wakefield
Rt Revd Toby Howarth, Bishop of Bradford
Rt Revd  Paul Slater, Bishop of Richmond
Rt Revd James Bell, Bishop of Ripon

And the Directors of the Peace Insitute (an organisation that strives to show the peaceful nature of Islam):-
Mufti Mohammed Amin Pandor
Shaikh Hashim Sacha                                                         
Shaikh Irfan Soni                                

Ahead of a  Celebration of Sport and Faith at York Minster next Friday August 26,  Bishop Nick Baines, one of the speakers, has written about the importance of sport in this weekend's Yorkshire Post newspaper.

In his article, the Bishop of Leeds says that sport shows the inherant need for human beings for order in order to be creative: "..we need order, common constraints, the creative opportunities that these parameters enable, and the commonly respected commitments that creating such a life acknowledges."

It took me a while to work out just why my GP advised me to give up playing squash at the age of 42. I thought he was concerned about the impact of the sport on my heart; I actually think it was because I was beating him too often.

Nothing has ever taken the place of football or squash. One a team sport (in which my dreams outran my abilities); the other a singles competition (in which I just ran about a lot). I have tried running, but get bored. I went to the gym for several years, but got bored. I bought a rowing machine, but damaged my shoulder and couldn't use it. And I am saying nothing about Body Pump…

This is probably not the right time to be exercising the ghosts of fitness past – while at the time of writing the football season is kicking off and the Olympics are racing on. Visions of athletic perfection have me reaching for another beer while urging them on to ever greater physical and mental achievement. When I met Mo Farah in a BBC Radio 2 studio in July I had to resist asking him if he needed a good meal.

There was a time when I would have thought about sport simply in terms of individual prowess – of individual training, personal discipline and physical endurance. Contrary to many popular views of what it is to be a human being, we are actually a trinity of body, mind and spirit – all held in an inextricable unity.

Despite the deeply ingrained assumption in Greek thinking that body, mind and spirit can operate independently of each other, they all actually belong in a single unity. This is why it is such a nonsense to think that the great favourite watchword of postmodern individualism, 'spirituality', leads to the uncritical conclusion that religion or spiritual life should be shoved into a corner marked 'private' and kept in the dark (where it can't impinge on public life or threaten any disturbance to the social, economic or political status quo).

Which brings us back to sport.

Thinking today about sport has pushed me in a slightly broader direction. Biblical writers encourage Christians to be as disciplined in their discipleship of Jesus as athletes are in their singleminded training regimes – keeping their eye fixed on the ultimate goal and not the immediate pain or privations. But, the Christian vision also goes deeper. If you can't divide the body from the mind or spirit, then you can't separate the essence or importance of sport from the fabric of the rest of social life.

Society demands order. To put a long argument very briefly, social order needs white lines on a pitch in the same way as a game of tennis cannot be played on a moor. The particular rules might vary from game to game. The shape and nature of a pitch might look different depending on the nature of the sport being played: a football pitch looks different from a 110 metre hurdles track. But, what both require is parameters within which a game can be played and in which creativity can be deployed in the playing of it. What you can't have is a measurable game played by individuals who make up their own rules as they go or decide when and where they wish the white lines to be placed.

I realise this sounds obvious. But, we live in a culture where it is often assumed that any opinion is valid, any individual choice is equally apt, any personal preference is acceptable – regardless of the impact of these on the wider social order (or what is often called the common good). The point here is to assert that the white lines on the pitch are not constraints imposed in order to limit freedoms, but precisely the means of enabling a creative game to be played in the first place. If you don't believe me, ask Andy Murray to play a Wimbledon final in the middle of Roundhay Park or above the rocks on Ilkley Moor.

This is what I mean when I suggest that the power and fascination of sport transcends mere competition or competitiveness. It certainly transcends the power of celebrity from which it currently seems to take its financial fuel. The shaping and dynamics of sport – both individual and team – reflect deeply the fabric of human being and human society: we need order, common constraints, the creative opportunities that these parameters enable, and the commonly respected commitments that creating such a life acknowledges.

I see a Christian vision for society being reflected in the phenomenon of sport, in which mutual competitiveness aims at pushing the limits of both spectacle and potential whilst illustrating the necessary effectiveness of working with each other and for each other for a common goal. Both require the development of character and virtue as the end to which the training is merely the means. This is why drug abuse should be inherently shameful – shame not simply being an effect of having been found out.

Clearly, more can be said. But, as we sit in front of the telly, reaching for the beer and crisps, 'encouraging' the athletes to “run faster”, we might just consider what sport tells us not only about ourselves, but about our common life as a society – and what it is ultimately for.

Bishop Nick will be speaking at a Celebration of Sport and Faith at York Minster on August 26 at 7.30pm. Admission is free. The event is part of the first Global Congress on Sports and Christianity which is being held at York St John next week.

Clergy Conference 2016

Tuesday 6 - Thursday 8 September 2016 at Liverpool Hope University

Next week, around 400 clergy will spend two days at Liverpool Hope University for their first residential conference in the Diocese of Leeds.

One of the programme’s highlights is a dialogue between two eminent scientists: Professor Brian Cox (left) and Professor David Wilkinson (right).

Bishop Nick says, “Brian Cox is an atheist who refuses to be put in a New Atheist box; David Wilkinson is both a scientist and theologian. I have invited them to present a paper each on ‘science, the cosmos and human meaning’ before engaging in discussion. This must be one of the most urgent and important discussions for all clergy who live in today’s media-driven world, finding a way through the ideological, philosophical and ethical debates that rage (sometimes everywhere but in the Church). We will all learn not only about the vital theme, but also about how to have such debates intelligently.”

Other speakers include the Dean of Salisbury, the Very Revd June Osborne, and Bible studies will be led by the Bishop of Liverpool, the Rt Revd Paul Bayes, and the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Liverpool, the Most Revd Malcolm McMahon.

Entertainment will be provided by comedian Andy Kind, and the after dinner speaker is Catherine Fox – novelist and lecturer in creative writing at Manchester Metropolitan University.

Bishop Nick adds, “It’s appropriate that we shall be meeting at a university called Hope. Clergy are called to be agents and articulators of hope in a world where despair and fear too often command our attention. I look forward to a wonderful time in Liverpool”.

The conference takes places from 6-8 September. Watch the website for daily updates and links to bloggers.

Brian McLaren “The Great Spiritual Migration:
Re-imagining a Faith that will save us”

Tickets from 

http://www.pcnbritain.org.uk/shop/product/brian_mclaren_tour_october_2016

We need to be restless people, we need to grow restless disciples who are not afraid, and not driven by fear, but have that curious sense of adventure, knowing that we are thrown together with one another into being that people of hope; that people of faith.  Bishop Nick Baines, Clergy Conference opening speech: Liverpool Hope University 2016

Bishop Nick opened the first clergy conference for the Diocese of Leeds by telling the gathered clergy that hope should underpin all their ministry and their theology.

He told them: “If hope is to be anything in our theology, it has to be that thing that opens up the possibility of God, that opens up the extraordinary right here in the ordinary.”

And he quoted Jurgen Moltmann: God is our happiness, God is our torment, God is the wide space of our hope.

It is the first time all the clergy of the new diocese of Leeds has come together in one place –over 400 delegates arrived at Liverpool’s appropriately named Hope University for the first clergy conference. (Ironically Hope University started life as two training colleges – one Roman Catholic on one side of the road and the other Anglican on the other and was brought together with some reluctance and some sacrifice!)

Bishop Nick explained that Penny Lane (of The Beatles fame ) was not far from where they were all gathered and said: “Penny Lane is a metaphor for what we are about – how does the ordinary take on the extraordinary.

He quoted Bishop David Jenkins, the former Bishop of Durham who died at the weekend: God is God is as he is in Jesus. So there is hope and then posed the question: "Why do Christians try to narrow down the scope of hope and grace?

"God is our happiness, god is our torment God is the wide space of our hope. Jurgen Moltmann

“In our ministry and our language and our own theologising, we must not be driven by fear but we must hold open in the wide space of our hope, the possibility of resurrection.

“In this diocese at the heart of what we are and who we are we need a theology of hope.

The theology of hope needs to take us from the cosmos to curiousity explained Bishop Nick who continued said that the unique conversation planned in the conference between Professor Brian Cox and the Revd Prof David Williamson on science, the cosmos and human meaning would challenge how we open ourselves up to wonder, and create a theology of hope fired by curiousity.

He told the clergy we needed a hopeful ecclesiology; one that created the space in which people could find that they had been found by God.

Said Bishop Nick: “We either look like Jesus of the Gospels and sound like him, or we are not the church – that is our remit – we are the body of Christ.”

The fist day of the conference will hear from the Dean of Salisbury, the Very Revd June Osborne and there is a choice of entertainment from comedian Andy Kind or Scargill House who will mix contemporary songs and worship with testimony.

We need to be restless people, we need to grow restless disciples who are not afraid and not driven by fear but have that curious sense of adventure knowing that we are thrown together with one another into being that people of hope; that people of faith.  Bishop Nick Baines, Clergy Conference opening speech: Liverpool Hope University 2016

More from Hope16 here

Two leading scientists with very different views on faith have taken part in a debate over Science, the cosmos and human meaning. At the first Diocese of Leeds clergy conference  Prof Brian Cox and Prof David Wilkinson have debated  their views of the cosmos to an audience of  400 clergy as well as taking questions from the floor.

Brian Cox talked about current cutting-edge theories to do with multiple or infinite numbers of universes (the multiverse), the horizon problem and inflationary cosmology.

He said he was delighted to address the conference (and wished it could have gone on longer) because such encounters enrich society: "l'm really concerned about the polarisation of debate in this country, the lack of ability to accept there are other points of view. I think difference of opinion is to be celebrated - it's indicative of a free society We can find ways of accommodation and of celebrating our mutual love of nature."

He recognised that faith and science don't have to be in opposition, quoting the famous Belgian priest and Professor of Physics, George Lemaitre, who said, "There are two paths to truth; and I decided to follow both of them".

Brian Cox also decried fundamentalism in either faith or science. He said, "The fundamental principle of science starts from a point of ignorance. I tell first year university students that they should delight in being shown to be wrong because then they've learned something. It's learning that matters, not being right."

David Wilkinson said, "The Christian Church has to recognise our part where there has been a conflict between science and faith. We have sometimes played into the conflict and not taken science seriously or got to grips with what it is really saying.

"The good thing about this conference is the endeavour to build confidence among clergy and show that science isn't necessarily a threat to faith. Science is a gift from God.

"Rather than being defensive, we need to allow space in our churches for faith to be both challenged and enriched by opening up these discussions. And even if as clergy it's not your thing, there will be people in your congregations for whom it is their thing - and from whom we could learn."

Bishop Nick Baines, who chaired the debate, underlined the similarities between faith and science: "We are exploring from the same human impulse of wonder and imagination".

Afterwards he said, "He added it was a model of excellent dialogue and argument, engaging with big questions in an accessible way. It was inspiring, educative - and sometimes boggling."

Twelve years ago, a Church Army evangelist started a new church, 'Sorted', with a small group of Bradford skateboarders. Since then, this 'church for young people, run by young people' has grown and grown, and now Captain Andy Milne has written a book about the experience - The DNA of Pioneering Ministry - to be launched in Leeds on 8 November.

Andy says, "I wanted to show that anyone can get involved in pioneer ministry. And I wanted to help people learn lessons from our story so that they might be inspired to get together with others and have a go.

"Over the years we've seen some amazing young people come to Sorted. They are sometimes quite rough and ready when they arrive, not knowing where their life is going and being quite tough nuts. And then they start to trust us, and then open up to Jesus where they have a life-changing experience. That's been the best thing."

Sorted is now three separate youth churches with a focus on teenagers and young adults from non-church backgrounds. It's also received a Bishop's Mission Order which has given it official Anglican recognition.

The Bishop of Leeds, the Rt Revd Nick Baines says, “The DNA of Pioneer Ministry is an excellent book which draws on long and earthed experience. Andy Milne writes with immense practical application from remarkable leadership of Sorted in Bradford. This book demonstrates how vision is useless without strategic adaptability, personal resilience, creative energy and Christ-filled commitment to young people where they are. I strongly commend it.”

At the launch you can meet young people and adults who feature in the stories. Everyone is welcome – those passionate about mission, those exploring new ways to do church and  those who simply want to know more.

Andy will be available to sign copies of the book at Holy Trinity, Boar Lane, Leeds LS1 6HW (5 min walk from Leeds train station) on Tuesday 8 November. (6pm for refreshments, 7pm start.)

More here.

Bishop Nick has been in Berlin at the International Panel of Parliamentarians for Freedom of Religion or Belief (IPPFoRB ) - a global network of parliamentarians/legislators committed to combating religious persecution and advancing freedom of religion or belief*.  

The conference concluded today (Wednesday) with a conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, in which she congratulated IPPFoRB for becoming "one of the most important players in defending this inalienable right."

Writing in his blog, Bishop Nick says that one of the themes the conference has highlighted is, “the discrepancy in many countries between what is written in law and how that law is either implemented/applied or ignored . . .  It is the implementation of that law that counts, and it is the discourse surrounding debate about that implementation that demands intellectual as well as moral integrity.

“What emerged from several parts of the world is the pressure under which freedom of religion and religious expression is coming. Attempts to exclude God/religious world views from the public square are not unique to the secular West, but the spurious assumptions behind them seem to have one thing in common: that secular humanism (for want of a better term) is neutral and occupies the neutral place in the public discourse. It is self-evidently true and is purely 'scientific'– that is to say, needs not to make its case for credibility because that case is obvious.

"The outcome – put briefly – is that liberalising societies demand the right for 'tolerance' unless asked to tolerate views that are inconvenient to its assumptions of what is tolerable. One delegate explained how attempts are being made in his country to shout down any expression of traditional family values or articulation of a conservative view of ethics that derives from religious commitment.

“That is not – as the speaker emphasised – to argue the case for the rightness of his views, but, rather, to insist that these views must be allowable if his society is to be truly tolerant.

Read more on Bishop Nick’s bloghere.

* As defined by Article 18 of the UN Universal Declaration for Human Rights which declares, “Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance.”

The Diocese of Leeds has appointed Chris Tate as its first Director of Communications.

Chris, who is currently a Chief Reporter at the Bradford Telegraph & Argus, will work in this new role with the communications team.

He has a broad journalistic background‎, having worked for national Sunday newspapers as a senior reporter covering the North of England and as a newsdesk executive based in Canary Wharf, London.

The Bishop of Leeds, the Rt Revd Nick Baines, says, “As this relatively new diocese moves beyond its transitional phase, we are now in a position to reshape our communications, so I’m delighted that our communications team will be led by Chris Tate.

“Chris has been known to us for several years from the Bradford Telegraph & Argus. He will bring to our communications operation a new perspective and a bank of journalistic experience which will help us focus well beyond the Church.”

Chris says, "I have worked extensively across the diocesan area for 20 years and know its charms and identities.

“I am joining a keen team at the start of something special for everyone.  Together we’ll be working on strong, confident communication across the board.

“I’ll be based in the new diocesan offices in Leeds and hope to foster engagement with clergy and congregations across the diocese by every means of communication - modern and traditional.  We must talk together and above all - we must tell."

Chris  lives near Skipton, attends church locally and his hobbies include ‘gentle motorbiking’ around the Dales.

Ecclesiastical Insurance Group has announced its latest round of grants to our diocese and cathedrals through its charity, Allchurches Trust: the diocese will receive £167,723 and each of the cathedrals will receive £11,032.

It’s part of Ecclesiastical’s commitment to give £50million to charity (through Allchurches) between 2014-2016. In 2015, because of the insurance group’s record receipts, it increased its donations by 20%. Their grants to dioceses and cathedrals alone in 2015 totalled £7,192, 892.

Bishop Nick says, “I am hugely grateful for the work Allchurches does and for the magnificent achievements of Ecclesiastical Insurance in recent years. I never take any of this for granted and am hugely thankful for their generosity and vision."

Ecclesiastical Insurance say, “As we are owned by charity Allchurches Trust, we do not have to pay large dividends to corporate shareholders, so we can maintain competitive premiums for our customers and donate our profits to back to churches and the community.

“The £50m donation is unprecedented in the company’s 129-year history, even though we have long been donating our surplus profits to charity. The causes supported include church community projects, homeless charities, youth organisations, grants to clergy, and school projects.

"Having reached our target of giving £50m, we now aim to give a further £100m to charitable causes by 2020.”

For more information on what Allchurches support, and how you can apply for a grant, go to their website here.

In a major logistical exercise, the diocese has moved into new headquarters in Leeds city centre, and closed its former offices at Wakefield, Bradford, Leeds St Mary’s Street and Harrogate.

Diocesan administration has been brought under one roof at Church House, 17-19 York Place, a four story Georgian building near the railway station which has been redeveloped to provide office space for nearly 100 staff.  (Reception phone number 0113 200 0540)

On Monday (September 26), the staff began unpacking and settling in – all helped by tea and cakes in the ground floor Cielo* café which is also open to the public.

The new offices are open-plan and include flexible ground floor meeting rooms and ‘break-out’ areas.

Staff received a welcome pack (including chocolate, memory stick, map, and a prayer card), and the Dean of Ripon, the Very Revd John Dobson (who is Chair of the project team for the new office) thanked staff for their forbearance and flexibility in making the move. And in a welcome message to each of the staff, Bishop Nick said, “I hope these new offices will help enhance and inspire our work together as we continue to support the work of the church in this region.”

Joint Diocesan Secretary, Ashley Ellis, who with Debbie Child, welcomed staff, said, “It is great to finally have most diocesan staff working together in one office. I am sure it will enable us to work consistently and more closely together to the benefit of the whole diocese.”

Email addresses remain the same, and the reception phone number is 0113 200 0540. The postal address is Church House, 17-19 York Place, Leeds, LS1 2EX.

See how staff were enjoying the new offices on a short video - here or click on picture right 

* CIELO COFFEE HOUSE
Cielo is a social enterprise which ploughs its profits back into the community - and in Church House, York Place they'll be sharing their profits with the diocese. Cielo now has several coffee houses in Leeds, as well as its own coffee roastery in Garforth.

Managing Director, Nick Castle, says, “We offer speciality grade coffee, to-die-for snacks, and, as well as giving away our profits, our aim is to build better community cohesion and reduce loneliness.

"We're delighted to now be in the bustling business district of Leeds  -  we hope we can help build community and cultivate new networks." More here and here

As diocesan staff moved into the new offices in Leeds this week, they received a welcome pack printed with the words ‘Loving, Living, Learning’.

Bishop Nick explains, “This emerges from our work to provide a simple lens through which people - both inside and beyond the church - can see who we are and what we are about as a church and diocese.

"We launched the diocese with a vision statement: 'to equip confident clergy to enable confident Christians to live and tell the good news of Jesus Christ in the Diocese of Leeds'. That remains true, but we also need a statement that allows those in our communities to catch a glimpse of who we are and what drives our mission.

"So, ‘Loving, Living, Learning’ are also three words that any parish can use to help explain what we are about and to help prioritise our work - keeping it simple:

‘Loving’  - because our experience of God’s love compels us to love God, the world and our neighbour, showing compassion to all and building outward-looking communities.

‘Living’  - because we celebrate the abundance of life and promote human flourishing, engaging with the world and working for its transformation, challenging injustice, respecting and protecting the environment for this and future generations.

‘Learning’  - because we’re confident in God and the good news of Jesus Christ ... but we’re always listening - to God, the world and each other, and we’re always learning - alert to Jesus Christ’s challenge to live differently.