Continuing Ministerial Development HandbookGuidance for lay and ordained ministers

The Diocese of Oxford is the Church of England in Oxfordshire, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Milton Keynes.

Together, we are the Church, called and sent by God as disciples of Jesus Christ and filled with the Holy Spirit. We are a living, growing network of more than a thousand congregations, chaplaincies and schools.

Together, we are called to be more Christ-like: to be the Church of the Beatitudes: contemplative, compassionate and courageous for the sake of God’s world.

Together, we work with God and with others for the common good in every place in one of the great crossroads of the world.

Together, we are called to proclaim the Christian faith afresh in this generation with joy and hope and love.

Together, we are called to dream dreams and see visions of what could be, and see those visions come to birth.

Contents

Bishop’s introduction 4

CMD is for you! 5

Resources for ministerial development 7

Courses for CMD 8

Ministry accompaniment 9

Specialised training opportunities for clergy 10

Training for transitions 11

Flourishing in ministry 13

Sabbaticals and study leave 15

Funding your CMD 16

Planning your ministerial development 19

Becoming an effective lifelong learner 20

The process of lifelong learning 22

How do I work out what I need to learn? 24

How do I learn best? 27

Training days to plan your ministerial development 31

Bishop’s introduction

Every ordinal the Church has ever developed has included the charge from Paul’s speech to the Ephesian presbyters in Acts 20:

‘Keep watch over yourselves and over all the flock, of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers’ (Acts 20.28).

Gregory the Great constructs his entire Pastoral Rule around the need first to watch over ourselves and second to watch over the Church. The great Anglican divines, George Herbert and Richard Baxter, follow exactly the same pattern in their essays on Christian ministry, ‘A priest to the Temple’ and ‘The Reformed Pastor’.

Fruitful ministry depends on watching over ourselves. A key part of watching over ourselves is structuring and planning our own learning.

So take some time over the next few weeks to think through your own

learning over the coming year. Where do you need to grow and be formed? Take time then to determine which of the many different courses and days offered here and in the brochure will best meet those needs. Book in and put them in the diary well in advance so that this coming year will be one in which your own learning and formation takes its proper place in your planning and in your diary.

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CMD is for you!

All clergy and licensed lay ministers will benefit from Continuing Ministerial Development (CMD). The purpose of CMD is to help you flourish and be fruitful in your ministry, and this handbook shows you how to make the best of CMD.

We live in an age of lifelong learning. The pace of change is now so rapid that virtually everyone in work needs to update their skills on a regular basis. As Christian ministers, we are called to live and serve in this fast-changing world, forming churches as places of exploration and discovery, capable of relating the gospel to every part of the wider community. To accomplish this, we need to nurture in ourselves the capacity to wonder, explore and grow, and the willingness to respond to new demands, even those that are challenging and unwelcome.

Lifelong learning is also a response to God’s invitation to grow in our relationship with him, including our sense of vocation; the readiness to respond to new directions and new challenges.

Today almost everyone in professional life is expected to take part in Continuing Professional Development, and Christian ministers are no exception. Because of the nature of their role, some parts of this handbook will be more relevant to clergy than to lay ministers. However, CMD is for all licensed ministers, clergy and lay alike. As ministry is more than a job, the scope of CMD is wider than professional training, embracing personal and vocational development and including the encouragement to tend to personal wellbeing.

David Heywood Deputy Director of Mission (Ministerial Formation)

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Resources for ministerial development

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Courses for CMD

CMD courses and events support clergy and lay ministers in their ministry. A new programme is published each year.

These courses are open to all licensed ministers, lay and ordained, though some may be more suitable for clergy, especially full-time clergy.

The courses typically include skills for mission and ministry, the chance to think about mission and ministry theologically and strategically, and resources for developing the church’s life and mission. There is also a series of events designed to promote clergy flourishing.

There are important fringe benefits to CMD courses and events: you can leave behind the daily demands of

parish life and broaden your horizons; be stimulated by expert input; meet

and share with others with similar interests and aspirations.

We aim to make popular and strategic training opportunities available regularly in different venues to save you from

lengthy journeys.

There is often a small charge for events to cover refreshments and administration. For those entitled to a CMD grant, it is usually possible to ask for the cost to be taken from your grant.

“ Hearing a balance of specialist input & testimonies… gave me a sense of what difference the church can make.”

Ministry accompaniment

Ministry accompaniment is one to one support tailor-made for you. Ministry accompaniers offer their expertise to help you think through the challenges you face in your role as priest or minister, all within a confidential relationship.

Such challenges could include:

vision setting

conflict resolution

small or major change

how you exercise your leadership

building and developing collaborative ministry

dependency problems

changing jobs

time management

planning your professional development

achieving a better balance in your life.

Ministry accompaniers come from a variety of backgrounds. Some are ordained and have extensive experience in parish ministry, some are freelance and lay, but they are all

trained and highly skilled in enabling people to think through individual and organisational issues and challenges.

A ministry accompanier can be particularly helpful in working with you at times of transition, for example when you take up a new role, if you become an area dean or plan for retirement. Another key opportunity would be working on the ministry priorities identified at your Ministerial Development Review.

To book

Ministry accompaniment costs no more than £35 for an hour-long session, and can be funded through your annual CMD grant. To find the accompanier who is right for you, in the first instance speak to your Parish Development Adviser or, for Oxford and Cowley, to the Parish Development Adviser for Dorchester.

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Specialised training opportunities for clergy

There’s a wealth of training opportunities available from a variety of agencies, but in some cases the cost is considerably higher than the annual CMD grant. The CMD team has arranged for funding to be available from the Bayne Benefaction for some of these courses.

They include:

• Bridgebuilder conflict mediation training

• Transforming Conversations coaching skills course (from 3D Coaching)

• Germinate rural ministry training course (from the Arthur Rank Centre)

• Leading Women

• Lead Academy

• Regional Training Partnership Renaissance consultation

• certificate or diploma in pastoral supervision from the Association for Pastoral Supervision and Education

• courses at St George’s, Windsor.

Speak to your archdeacon if you wish to apply for any of these courses; you will need their backing to obtain the funding. You are on firm ground

if the course has been identified in your annual Ministerial Development Review (MDR) as a valuable opportunity.

The Bayne Benefaction will provide up to half of the course fees, but will not fund travel. The remainder may come out of your annual CMD grant, which also excludes travel. Parishes are encouraged to recognise that CMD is a priority for all ministers and to contribute to the funding where appropriate.

Details of how to apply to the Bayne Benefaction can be found on the diocesan website.

oxford.anglican.org/grant-making-trusts

The list of training opportunities above is not exhaustive. If there are other courses you wish to explore, please speak to your archdeacon.

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Training for transitions

The diocese provides training for key transitions in ordained ministry to help you meet new challenges and to provide a supportive learning community. Some residential courses are shared with our partner dioceses in the South Central Regional Training Partnership. With the exception of the Renaissance consultation, all the training opportunities below are funded directly by the diocese.

Becoming an incumbent for the first time

All those moving from curacy to a post of first responsibility (incumbency or similar post) are invited to the Flourishing in your new role course. This usually involves two 48-hour residential modules six to eight months apart. Between the two modules there will be either one or two shorter reflection groups. The aim is to help you to identify and explore the way the change of role is affecting you, its opportunities and challenges, in a supportive, prayerful community of colleagues at a similar stage of ministry.

Those requiring training in specific skills, such as leading meetings, understanding parish finances, caring for church buildings or managing a graveyard are encouraged to join one of the Hard Skills days offered to curates or a relevant CMD day.

Moving to a new post

If you move from one post to another, for example, moving parishes, moving

from chaplaincy into parish ministry or vice versa, you will be invited to the Regional Training Partnership New posts consultation. Over a three-day period, you will identify the key features of your new situation, explore the way you are responding personally, identify the challenges and opportunities of the new post and begin making plans for development.

You will be working in small groups with expert facilitators, drawing on the experience of the members of your group. Participants regularly go away inspired and invigorated.

Becoming a training incumbent

It’s both a privilege and responsibility to help a colleague take their first steps in ordained ministry. In line with the Church nationally, the diocese views a curacy as a period of further training and not as a spare pair of hands for busy parishes. Training incumbents are selected on the basis of their potential ability as trainers rather than the needs of the parish.

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All those receiving a curate for the first time are required to attend two training days, to learn about the curates’ training programme and assessment procedures, and to practise supervision skills.

Becoming an area dean

As the Church gradually comes to terms with the call to mission in a fast-changing world it is vital that local churches work together. This makes the task of the area dean ever more complex and demanding. All new area deans are invited to join the Regional Training Partnership Area deans’ consultation for an orientation to the new role.

In addition, the diocese provides regular training on coaching skills, conflict resolution, pastoral reorganisation, deanery finances and briefings on authorised local ministry.

The ‘second half’ of ministry

With retirement age for many now approaching 70, what does it mean to be in ministry for the long haul? The Regional Training Partnership Renaissance ministry programme at Sarum College, Salisbury, is especially relevant if you have been in stipendiary parochial ministry for a number of years, and are beginning to think about how to shape your ministry for the next phase. Renaissance consists of

two 48-hour residentials a few months apart. You will look back on your ministry so far; identify those aspects of ministry that renew you and those that drain you; reflect on whether your original vocation needs reappraising in the light of experience; identify the new skills you may need to learn; and plan for sustainable lifestyle in ministry.

If you think Renaissance might be for you, arrange to speak to your archdeacon. Renaissance is funded partly through the Bayne Benefaction and partly through CMD grants, and you will need your archdeacon’s recommendation to apply for Bayne Benefaction funding.

Looking forward to retirement

Retiring from ordained ministry means a change in lifestyle and a new phase of Christian discipleship. The diocese invites all stipendiary clergy approaching retirement, and their spouses, to a three-day residential course to think about this important transition in the relaxing surroundings of Sarum College, Salisbury. The programme includes advice about health and wellbeing, finance and housing, as well as small group work on future discipleship and ministry.

Except for some special circumstances, clergy over the age of 62 are automatically invited each autumn to the following year’s course.

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Flourishing in ministry

Flourishing in Ministry was published in 2018 to support lay and ordained ministers and help you to thrive in your life and ministry. It contains advice, checklists and a comprehensive list of resources.

oxford.anglican.org/flourishing

Pages 16 to 22 give details of sources of support. Some are particularly relevant to ministerial development:

Spiritual direction

Working with a spiritual director or soul friend is immensely valuable as encouragement and guidance for your relationship with God, and helps you to make the links between that relationship and your day-to-day ministry.

Spiritual directors are listed here: oxford.anglican.org/spiritual-direction

Retreats

Taking a regular day away to rest, pray and reflect is another immensely valuable discipline. The table shows a variety of retreat centres in the diocese. The Retreat Association is also a good source of information.

retreats.org.uk

Retreat Centre ContactSociety of the Precious Blood, Burnham Abbey

burnhamabbey.org

Community of St Mary the Virgin, Wantage

csmv.org.uk

Stanton House, Stanton St John stantonhouse.org.uk

Community of St Clare, Freeland oscfreeland.wordpress.com

Charney Manor charneymanor.com

St Katharine’s, Parmoor srpf.org.uk

St Michael’s Priory, Milton Keynes stmichaelspriory.org.uk

Douai Abbey, near Thatcham douaiabbey.org.uk

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All clergy are encouraged to take a longer retreat each year. These are just a few recommended venues:

• The Society of Mary and Martha, Sheldon near Exeter cater particularly for those in ordained ministry.sheldon.uk.com

• St Beuno’s, the Jesuit Spirituality Centre in North Wales, caters for both Catholics and non-Catholics.pathwaystogod.org/org/ st-beunos

• Gladstone’s Library at Hawarden, Flintshire provides accommodation for reading and rest. gladstoneslibrary.org

• If you fancy looking further afield, try Les Olivos in southern Spain.haciendalosolivos.org

• or Taizé.taize.fr/en

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Sabbaticals and study leave

Every ten years clergy and licensed lay ministers can take a three-month sabbatical. This sustained period away from normal duties promotes professional development and personal enrichment. A sabbatical will normally consist of three elements:

Renewal: This is the element of personal and/or professional development, which will normally take the greatest part of your three months. It will involve some element of learning, probably through study and theological reflection.

Retreat: The sabbatical should include some time set aside for you and your relationship with God. For many this will mean going on an organised retreat.

Rest: A sabbatical is not intended as a holiday, but the biblical pattern of Sabbath includes rest as a vital part of life. The three months will therefore include some time for rest and refreshment.

The diocesan policy on sabbaticals and study leave can be downloaded.

oxford.anglican.org/sabbaticals

You will need the agreement of your incumbent (if applicable) or area

dean and the permission of your area bishop for a sabbatical. Application should be made to the sabbatical committee by the end of June in the year preceding the sabbatical. Full details of how to go about this are found in the policy document.

Shorter periods of study leave

You might need a short period of study leave to concentrate on a course of study, write up a thesis or dissertation or complete a book. It might also be used for the completion of coursework on a taught degree that includes regular short periods of study.

For stipendiary clergy, permission for study leave is granted by the area bishop. No specific funding is available, but the grant-making bodies listed on the website may be able to help.

oxford.anglican.org/ cmd-grants/

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Funding your CMD

The diocese provides CMD grants for all licensed ministers, lay and ordained. The grant is currently £250 per calendar year.

• The grant does not roll over from year to year.

• It covers the cost of one day events, residential courses, conferences, retreats, or ministry accompaniment.

• It funds courses provided by the diocese and other agencies.

• It does not cover travel costs.

• It cannot be used for events which are already highly subsidised, such as the Licensed lay ministers conference.

Ministers who are employed by other agencies, such as hospital or prison chaplains, should apply to their employer in the first instance, but they may be considered for a CMD grant in special circumstances.

Applying for a CMD grant

There is no standard application form. To apply for a CMD grant, email cmdgrants@oxford.anglican.org You will need to:

explain what the grant is for

provide proof of payment (e.g. an invoice or receipt).

If you are uncertain whether a particular event qualifies for a grant, contact David Heywood: david.heywood@oxford.anglican.org

Applications are considered towards the end of each month, and the decision communicated as soon as possible afterwards.

Other grant-making bodies

Grants are also available from a variety of organisations for particular purposes or for particular groups of people. Details of some of these can be found on the diocesan website.

oxford.anglican.org/grant-making-trusts/

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Funding organisation What does it fund? ContactSons and Friends of the Clergy Corporation

Supports clergy households experiencing real hardship

sonsandfriends.org.uk/grants/grant-information/

The Bayne Benefaction (administered through Christ Church)

Provides grants up to 50% of the cost of courses to clergy within the Diocese of Oxford

oxford.anglican.org/grant-making-trusts/

The Women’s Continuing Ministerial Education Trust (WCMET)

Women in the Church of England and Scottish Episcopal Church taking courses or doing projects that relate to professional ministerial development

ministrydevelopment.org.uk/wcmet

Culham St Gabriel’s Trust

Excellence in religious education

cstg.org.uk/how-we-help/grants

St George’s Trust Grants up to £350 for clergy sabbaticals

fsje.org.uk/sgeorges.php

St Boniface Trust Small grants to enable clergy study

stbonifacetrust.org.uk/grants.html

American Memorial Chapel Travel Grant

Sabbatical visits to the USA

See Appendix C of the Sabbatical Policy on the diocesan website.

The Ecclesiastical Ministry Bursary Awards

Extended study leave See Appendix C of the Sabbatical Policy on the diocesan website.

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Planning your ministerial development

Becoming an effective lifelong learner

Becoming an effective lifelong learner will help to keep your ministry exciting, fulfilling and fruitful. So how do you make the most of CMD?

Many learning programmes, including those many of us experienced in preparation for ordination or licensing, assume that people know how to learn. In fact, most of us could become much more effective at recognising where we need to learn and how to go about it.

What are the obstacles to effective learning?

The first step in becoming a more effective learner is to recognise what holds you back. We all experience obstacles to learning, which we sometimes fail to recognise, and which prevent us from developing as we might. Some of the obstacles to good CMD are external, such as lack of opportunity, long distances to travel, or poor quality presentation. But some are internal. They are in our own heads, in the form of beliefs that we may not even recognise and rarely challenge. Here are a few of the most common:

I don’t have time.

In his book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, Stephen Covey tells the story of a man working feverishly cutting down a tree. After five hours he

is exhausted, when a passer-by stops and suggests he take a break and sharpen his saw. ‘But I don’t have time to sharpen the saw,’ he protests. Many of us are like that man, so beset by urgent calls on our time that we think we could never take the time out for learning.

Because CMD rarely comes with a deadline attached, it is easy to relegate it to the bottom of the pile, to think of it as something that ‘would be nice if I had a bit more time’. But Covey also suggests that the more time we give to the ‘important non-urgent’ elements of our calling, the more effective we are likely to be. His seventh habit is ‘Sharpening the saw’: regularly taking time for stimulating learning activities that keep us fresh and equip us for the task.

I finished my training when I left college.

For over a hundred years, the Church of England has included as much as possible in initial training and had a strategy of ‘just in case’ – rather than providing training when people need it. Now the Church is beginning to recognise that this was a mistake. We need to learn continually to meet

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new challenges. Effective learning also needs to happen at the right time.

The training I experienced in the past didn’t help me much.

Most clergy have had the experience of thinking, ‘They never told me about this in theological training!’ It’s also true that some theological training tends to fade from memory before being applied. The reasons for this are many: perhaps the training was much more academic than practical; perhaps it focused over-much on theology, the knowledge of God, and failed to include much about the knowledge of people; perhaps a ‘just in case’ strategy meant that a lot of things were included in the curriculum years before they were needed. The reality is that the complexities of the task of ministry, and the need for emotional resilience, only become apparent once you are in post. It is now, in the course of your ministry, that you need more training.

Learning is difficult and challenging.

Yes, it is! Learning makes us vulnerable. It asks us to admit that there may be things we don’t know, areas of ministry we may not be particularly good at. It asks us to risk having our ignorance exposed, to experience bewilderment and uncertainty. If we are used to the idea that everything depends on us, and

that we can’t afford to show weakness, it can be even more difficult. We may even think that developing certain skills is beyond us. But in fact, being willing to become vulnerable and admitting areas of weakness can set you free to grow in a way you could never have imagined.

I don’t know what I need to learn.

This can be a particular problem for clergy because we craft our own roles and organise our own time. Moreover, many of us work on our own and rarely receive good quality feedback, so it is difficult to get a sense of where we need to improve.

How do I work out what I need to learn?

See page 24.

I’m not sure how to begin.

We learn in different ways. For some of us, reading a book is a really good way to learn. For others, books are little help and learning is about trying things out. Some people need time to think and ponder, some want to discuss the topic with others. Knowing how you learn best can be liberating, and this is one of the aims of the Planning your ministry development training days, which will address this question in far greater depth.

How do I learn best?

See page 27.

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The process of lifelong learning

Allen Tough was a pioneering scholar in adult learning. As a result of research carried out in the 1970s, he suggested that everyone engages in at least two and sometimes as many as 15 ‘learning projects’ in any one year. The scale of these projects varies considerably. Some might be as simple as learning a new computer program or getting used to a new gadget. Others might affect every part of our lives, intellectual, spiritual and emotional. An example would be learning to cope with bereavement.

Since Tough’s research, the increasing pace of social and cultural change makes it likely that the amount of learning the average person undertakes has considerably increased. We are all learning, all the time, and in a variety of different ways.

It is not difficult to identify the kind of learning projects that might be undertaken by the typical minister, lay or ordained. Some might be relatively straightforward, such as learning how to obtain a faculty for changes to a church building. Others, such as becoming a school governor, might involve a variety of skills. Still others, such as learning to cope with conflict, challenge us at every level, intellectually, emotionally, socially and spiritually.

Further research suggests that there are three types of learning involved in a typical learning project:

• 10% consists of intentional formal learning and includes going on a

training course, keeping up with theological reading or reading an instruction manual (it even includes reading this part of the CMD handbook!).

• 20% consists of ‘learning with others’. For example, the work you do with a spiritual director, working with a ministry accompanier on a particular area of ministry, engaging in discussion with colleagues, making a phone call to an archdeacon to ask her advice, or emailing someone at Church House.

• A massive 70% of learning arises from reflection on experience, often alone, sometimes with others. It might include wondering why a particular sermon didn’t go as well as you had hoped; planning how to approach an issue at a PCC meeting and then reflecting on how it went afterwards; watching a colleague take a funeral and deciding on points to emulate;

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doing the examen at the end the day; and engaging in theological reflection using a structured process. This kind of reflection on practice is often stimulated by the ‘learning with others’ element in development. Working with a ministry accompanier, for example, may open up a range of possible areas for further reflection.

To take some examples: one learning project, arising from the desire to enhance the church’s mission by installing a kitchen and toilet, might be learning how to obtain a faculty. Formal learning might include reading instructions on the diocesan website. Learning with others might include telephoning for advice to check your understanding, or inviting members of the Diocesan Advisory Committee to visit. Then there is working with the PCC to decide how to take the project

forward. Learning through practice arrives when forms have to be filled in and the process followed through. At the end of the project, you are likely to want to think through how the whole process might have been easier if you had approached it differently!

A second example would be deciding to improve your skill in taking school assemblies. You might start with a training day or by reading a book. Sooner or later you will need to try out the new ideas you have encountered in practice and see how they go. Feedback from the headteacher might be helpful, and informal feedback from the children will certainly help you reflect on how it went. The next time you take an assembly, you will make some changes in your approach as a result. Formal learning, learning with others and learning through reflection on practice go hand in hand.

70-20-10 approach20% learning with others, such as peer-to-peer learning, coaching, using mentors or consultants

70% experience and reflection – intentional actions, observing others in practice, working with teams, networking, inviting feedback, trying and testing ideas

10% formal education through reading, courses or training events

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How do I work out what I need to learn?

Three questions might help you here. The first is by far the most difficult and uncomfortable, but it is one you need to be aware of and asking on a regular basis.

What areas of ministry am I aware of where I don’t do as well as I would like?

In learning we travel through a spectrum.

• The first stage is known as unconscious incompetence: not being aware of when we are underperforming.

• From this we move to conscious incompetence: awareness that we need to improve.

• At the stage of conscious competence we are able to plan and perform to our own and others’ satisfaction.

• Finally, unconscious competence is the ability to perform without having to think about what we are doing, adapting when necessary without breaking stride.

When it comes to using liturgy to lead worship, for example, the person who is unconsciously incompetent may fail to use their voice correctly, not set the right pace, pause in the wrong places, all without being aware that it could

be done to a much higher standard. Conscious incompetence comes with the feeling that ‘it could all have gone much better’ but without being sure what to do to attain this. The consciously competent person has learnt the basic rules about how liturgy is structured, knows how to project the voice and can guide the congregation and help them to remain engaged. With practice and hard work, they begin to do all this unconsciously, and become able to respond creatively and lovingly to the interruptions of a crying child and other unforeseen problems without losing the atmosphere of worship.

Of all the stages, conscious incompetence is the most difficult to cope with. Being aware that you are not very good at administration, or preaching, or leading groups can lead to a variety of responses, not all of which are helpful. It may mean that you ignore the situation as far as possible and carry on regardless. Or you may avoid the situation, let administration pile up, skimp on sermon preparation or never arrange group meetings except where it is unavoidable.

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But conscious incompetence – recognising the things you could be doing better – is a crucial stage for learning. If you are prepared to live with the discomfort it is possible to start making plans for how to begin learning in that area. Thankfully, Christianity is a religion of grace. No one can be good at everything, and God understands this and is always there to help us face the things we find difficult. If we reflect on the New Testament, we find that Jesus left his original band of followers in a state of conscious incompetence, knowing that they didn’t have what was needed to proclaim the gospel to all nations. He supplied the Holy Spirit and continued to guide them as they encountered all the unforeseen complications of building the Church.

In many ways, conscious incompetence is the best place to be. Knowing that God accepts us despite our failings means that conscious incompetence can become the springboard we need from which to grow and learn. Instead of ignoring our failings and trying to cover them up, we begin to ask where we can find help to develop in our areas of weakness. Or it may be more appropriate to learn to delegate in areas where others’ strengths complement our weaknesses.

What challenges for ministry and mission have I identified?

We saw some examples of this in the previous section. You have embarked on a building project and now need to find out how to obtain faculty permission for the changes you want to make. Or you have moved to a parish where the school is welcoming you to take assemblies and you need to develop your skills in this area.

Some of the challenges are obvious:

• You take on a new role, perhaps as chair of governors for your local school.

• You are faced with a mission challenge, such as an area of new housing.

• A challenge may arise through the church’s Mission Action Plan.

It wasn’t effortless when he first got on a bike

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• A glance through the CMD brochure may remind you of an area where you could benefit from greater knowledge or expertise, such as ministering to people affected by mental health issues or making your outreach to couples coming to be married more effective.

Each of these might call for some formal learning, will probably benefit from sharing and learning along with others, and will certainly call for time to reflect on experience. The nature of parish ministry means that there will always be more possibilities than you can possibly respond to, so pray for discernment to discover where you need to put your energy.

What ministerial roles am I being called to develop?

Alongside the areas in which you are conscious that you need to raise your game and the specific challenges for ministry and mission that you have identified, do you also sense a calling to develop a particular ministerial role?

A colleague of mine took a course in psychotherapeutic counselling, including the many hours he was required to undergo counselling himself and counsel others, because he sensed that this was an area he was called to. If you sense a call to teach, you may want to explore the skills of adult education. Or you may find opportunities opening up for chaplaincy ministry in a variety of areas – in schools, sports venues or in the local town centre, and sense a call to develop this area of ministry. You may want to enrol on the diocesan spiritual direction training course, or develop skills of coaching.

Again, the list of possibilities may be long, and discernment is needed. Where do you see yourself in five or ten years’ time? How can you begin to prepare for the direction in which you think God may be calling you?

Once you have worked out your answers to the above questions you will be ready to identify your ministry development objectives.

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How do I learn best?

We all have different personalities, and these affect the ways in which we prefer to learn. Consider the different ways people approach learning to use a new gadget. Some will be very cautious until they have read the handbook; others start pressing buttons straight away to see what happens.

Some people learn very effectively from reading; others much less so. Some want to put things into practice as soon as possible, learning as they go; others want to be able to make sense of what they are learning before trying it out. Some enjoy sharing ideas with others and learning through discussion; others prefer to think by themselves. In fact, effective learning involves all of these things, but we all have preferences. The more you understand what helps you and makes learning enjoyable, the better your plan for learning will be.

The following exercise will probably take up to half an hour. It will also form part of the Planning your ministry development training days, which will take place from 2019.

Exercise: Discover your learning style

First, try to recall as far as possible the learning projects you have engaged in over the past year or two. These may not all be ministry-related, although it is likely that several will have been. They may be relatively small-scale and/or technical, like learning to use PowerPoint; or they may be much more extensive, less easy to define and perhaps involve a change in attitude, such as learning to value the ministry of others, or disciplining yourself to take a day off.

Now choose one of these learning experiences that has been significant for you (if it is difficult to identify one from the past year, go back further). The examples in the box overleaf show the range of things you might have learned.

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What did you learn?

new information e.g. I learned the rules covering monuments in a graveyard

a new skill e.g. I learned to use PowerPoint

a new understanding or perspective

e.g. I learned about the experience of working for one of the major employers in my parish

a new sensibility e.g. I learned to appreciate the role of art in the liturgy

a new attitude e.g. I learned to value the ministry of children and young people

a new inter-personal skill e.g. I learned to ‘listen to the base-line’ in pastoral visiting

a new insight into yourself, your relationships with other people or with God

e.g. I learned how I tend to dominate in certain situations

Use the following questions to help you to explore what you learned and how you learned.

1. What did you learn? Can you describe it in one sentence?

2. What were the circumstances in which you learned? How far was it a planned educational event (e.g. a course or training day)? Or did it happen in the course of everyday life?

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3. To what extent were the circumstances important in helping you to learn, or were they an obstacle?

4. What part did other people play in your learning? Did they consciously set out to teach you or was their part unplanned?

5. To what extent were your relationships with other people important in helping you to learn, or were they an obstacle?

6. What part did you play in your learning? Did it require much effort or practice? Was it painful to learn a new insight?

7. What was it that motivated you to learn? What kept you going when it was difficult or painful?

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Reflect on your answers to questions 1 to 7. Then answer the following further questions:

1. Which aspects of the learning experience were most congenial and energising for you?

Why do you think that was?

2. Which aspects were the most uncomfortable? Why do you think that was?

3. What were your principal reasons for wanting to learn, and for keeping going when learning was difficult?

4. What personal values do your answers point to?

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Training days to plan your ministerial development

To make the most of your CMD, book one of the Planning your ministry development training days. Like all training days, these are open to lay and ordained ministers. They start in 2019, and will help you to answer these questions:

• What are my goals? What am I hoping to achieve in the long and short term? What do I sense about the direction of God’s call in the future?

• What kind of learner am I? Do I learn well from reading and reflection?/ from engaging with others?/ from trying things out and reflecting on the results?

• Who are my learning partners? Who is there who could share this learning? Who do I trust to give honest feedback on my ministry?

• How do I find resources to help me?

We look forward to meeting you!

Published by the Diocese of Oxford, Church House, Langford Locks, Kidlington OX5 1GF

© Oxford Diocese 2018 Photographs: ©ShutterstockUK registered charity number 247954

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oxford.anglican.org/CMD