The legal people at the Diocese are putting things together at the moment and will present to the DMPC (East) sub-committee on the 10th of December (Diocesan Mission & Pastoral Committee, in case you were wondering!) All being well, it will return to this committee in early March and then we should be able to start our life together as the United Benefice of Framfield, East Hoathly and Chiddingly, and I will be inducted as the first Rector of this new benefice. Please note that we will still be three distinct parishes under this arrangement, with three PCCs etc. just as we are now.
THE WEALD WAY CHURCHES: We have paused the process at the moment, and we will discuss this more fully at our three PCC meetings this week. Framfield Church hall 7pm on Tuesday the 22nd, Chiddingly Church at 2pm on Wednesday the 23rd and East Hoathiy Church at 6.45pm also on Wednesday the 23rd.
The Wealdway Benefice
We have been talking about this potential new way of working together for a while now, and after a successful meeting with the Archdeacon in July I think we are gradually beginning to understand what this might look like in practice. We have just formed a working group, made up of representatives from all three parishes, to thrash out the details, and this group will keep our three PCCs informed of progress as it is made.
I shared a very productive working lunch in August with a colleague in West Sussex who has recently successfully achieved what we hope to achieve.
On the 1st of January 2021 the parishes of St James Selham, St Peter Lodswoth and St Mary Easebourne became one new benefice (the Priory Benefice) containing three parish churches.
Their inspired ‘strap line’ is: One church - Three buildings.
I truly hope and pray that this may become a reality for our three parishes, as we seek to become one Weald Way Benefice containing the three parish churches of Chiddingly, East Hoathly and St. Thomas à Becket Framfield. One church - Three buildings.
Practically this will mean that all three churches, will come together under the banner of one PCC with one Annual Parochial Church meeting, one main Treasurer and one Safeguarding Officer. The remit of the One PCC, will be to jointly run our three churches; promoting the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to the doctrines and practices of the Church of England. The PCC will co-operate with the incumbent, in promoting in the ecclesiastical parish, the whole mission of the Church; pastoral, evangelistic, social and ecumenical.
Following the excellent example of the Priory Benefice, each church will I think have a local committee consisting of:
The local committee will meet as many times a year as they decide appropriate. They will appoint someone to bank monies and run a simple form of accounts which will be passed to the main PCC treasurer.
The standing committee will deal with the day-to-day business of each church community, making sure that larger issues are dealt with by the main PCC.I appreciate that this sounds somewhat clumsy and legalistic, but we need to get this right, and hopefully our newly formed working party, can start to form my disparate ideas into a cogent whole!
In the meantime, please continue to pray for our church family and our wider communities.
One church – Three Buildings!
Yours in Christ
Revd. James
September 2024