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Appendix 6Reports from CollegesThe Queen’s Foundation for Ecumenical Theological Education1.1 The Queen’s Foundation, comprising the Queen’s College, The West Midlands Ministerial Training Course and the Research Centre, continues to operate a unified centre for theological education and ministerial training. As a Foundation we are dedicated to excellence in theological education and formation for ministry in partnership with our sponsoring churches – the Church of England, the Methodist Church and the United Reformed Church. We believe that our ecumenical and theological diversity, together with our setting within the multi-ethnic and multi-faith city of Birmingham, and our relationship with the University of Birmingham, provides a rich and challenging resource for students to explore the distinctiveness of their own tradition and identity, as well as fostering lively dialogue and deep respect for the traditions of others. 1.2 The staff and student body have been working hard to develop the unitary and integrated life of the Foundation. There is no doubt that the bringing together of full and part-time study, College and Course mode of delivery, permeated with a research culture, provides for all in the Foundation a rich and stimulating environment. Given the historic separation of these elements in the Churches’ training institutions the Foundation has not only blazed a significant trail, but also it has had much to do and learn to make this work well. We believe the fruits are now in evidence and we are looking forward to developing the Foundation further. In particular we are learning how to make best use of our experience of forming and re-forming community as diverse and fluid communities gather and disperse. This feels to be close to the task of most ministers as they seek to build community in their locality and congregation among fluid and mobile communities, and therefore feels highly pertinent in the context of ministerial formation. 2. Students
2.1 This year we have approximately 145 students studying at the Foundation. The proportion of students with each of the three ‘departments’ is now roughly equal, which represents a considerable development in the life of the Foundation. Of these students, 10 are members of the United Reformed Church, with 5 sponsored for training for ordained ministry, and 5 who are serving ministers undertaking in-service studies and research programmes. 2.2 As in previous years our Foundation life has been enriched by student exchange visits and by the presence of a number of research students from overseas. Our links with the Tamil Nadu Theological Seminary remain close, with exchanges operating between students and visiting scholars. We are developing new relationships with churches in Port Elizabeth in South Africa and are building on our long established links with the faculty at Leipzig, with whom we enjoy an annual student exchange. 3. Staff
David Hewlett took up his position as Principal of the Foundation at the end of April 2003. David brings experience of both full and part-time modes of training and welcomes the opportunity to develop both of these in the framework of the Foundation. We have also been glad to welcome Tony McClelland, formely on the staff of the Northern Ordination Course, as Senior Methodist Tutor and Dean of the West Midlands MTC, and Knut Heim as tutor in Biblical Studies. We are sad that Christine Worsley, currently Dean of College, but for a long time a member of the West Midlands Ministry Training Course staff, will be leaving at the end of this academic year. She has given generously to the Foundation of her time, energy and gifts, and she will be much missed. We also said farewell to Rod Burton who returned to Circuit ministry in South Africa. 4. Research
The Research Centre flourishes with nearly 50 students, registered with the University of Birmingham in association with the Foundation, studying for a range of postgraduate degrees from MA to PhD. We are hoping to launch a new MA in Ministry, which has been specifically designed to facilitate the learning and experience of the Internship year for United Reformed Church candidates, but we trust will also be valuable for post-ordination and post-stationing training in the other churches. Staff research also continues in the course of the busy life of the Foundation. Nicola Slee has published “Faith and Feminism”, and “Women ‘s Faith Development: Patterns and Processes”; Alistair Ross has published “Counselling Skills for Church and Faith Community Workers”; Adam Hood has published “Baillie, Oman and Macmurray: Experience and Religious Belief”. Other staff plan further publications for later this year, including a teaching resource for learning New Testament Greek. 5. Worship and Spirituality
Visiting president and preachers at Foundation services, in their sharing of our journey, enhance our spirituality and deepen and challenge our faith. Worship, together as a Foundation, and separately as College and Course communities, lies at the heart of our life. In an ecumenical context we welcome the challenge of drawing deeply on the traditions and best practices of each participating Church, attending to places of convergence and difference which are often not located on denominational lines, and working hard to explore new patterns of worship that serve churches committed to working and worshipping ecumenically. We have been privileged to receive a wide range of visiting preachers and speakers, including Dr Rachel Muers, from the University of Exeter, who gave our annual Foundation address on the theme “A Time to be Silent”, and Professor Kim Yong-Bock from the Asia Pacific Graduate School. 6. Future directions
The Foundation is very aware that all our sponsoring churches are undergoing major reviews in terms of their training needs and resources. We are confident that the Foundation is well placed to serve the churches and to respond to new challenges and opportunities. We look forward to the next 12 months as a time of significant development as we enter regional and wider partnerships which we believe will not only greatly enrich our work, but to which we have much to contribute. We value highly the integral place of the United Reformed Church in the Foundation and welcome new opportunities to develop this relationship further. Mansfield College
1.1 After the numerous and often difficult changes of the past few years, the Mansfield College Ministerial Training Course has had time to bed down and consolidate in its new partnership with Regent’s Park College. There has been no change in the staff for the last couple of years. The Revd. Dr Walter Houston teaches Old Testament studies as well as being course Director. The Revd. Julian Templeton has been reappointed for a further four years after the end of his contract this year as Assistant Director (half-time), in charge of placements and internships and worship teaching. New Testament teaching is given by the Revd Dr John Muddiman and Ms Lynda Patterson, and Ms Peggy Morgan continues to teach world religions. Most other courses are taught by Regent’s Park staff, and a particularly important role in the partnership is played by the Revd Dr Robert Ellis, Director of Pastoral Studies there. However, at the end of this year we shall say farewell to Lynda Patterson, who has come to the end of her time as a College Lecturer in Theology. She has been a brilliant teacher, and we shall be sorry to see her go. The College remains an active member of the Oxford Partnership for Theological Education and Training (OPTET). 1.2 On the supervisory side, there have been some changes to our Ministerial Education and Training Committee. John Proctor has ceased to be one of the United Reformed Church representatives, but his fairness and attention to detail in the chair have persuaded us to co-opt him in that role. We shall also have a regular co-optation from the Wessex Synod from now on. 1.3 The work which we have put in over the past few years into rebuilding the course, developing the partnership with Regent’s Park, and mending fences with the College, was all tested in the ecumenical inspection which the joint Mansfield-Regent’s Park course underwent, along with all the other OPTET institutions, in November. Our team of inspectors included two United Reformed Church representatives, one Baptist, and one very experienced Anglican. The inspection report was received a few days before the writing of this report, and though it is a confidential document it is right that I should let Assembly know that the tone and tendency of the report was strongly favourable; the general conclusion was that the course was a well-designed and effective course for the training of ministers. Though the inspectors found points that needed attention, we feel, both staff and students in our two Colleges, that our hard work has received the recognition that it deserves. 1.4 That has given us the courage to build on our success by developing into the field of continuing ministerial education. We already have a number of students for the Oxford Master of Theology in Applied Theology, an excellent course for theological reflection on pastoral practice, but too few of them are from the United Reformed Church. In co-operation with OPTET we hope to develop other courses, and to encourage applications for part-time research among ministers and others. We would also like to repeat that staff are available and willing to speak to ministers’ summer schools and conferences out of term time. The strength of our staff is mainly in biblical studies. 1.5 The one major concern that remains with us is the low level of recruitment for initial ministerial training. We had just two new students joining the course in 2003, one of them part-time; and Sarah Hall rejoined us for her final year after successfully completing her doctorate in Edinburgh. Three students completed the course last year, and three more will do so this year. During this academic year our numbers have been in single figures. There may be a slight upturn this year. At the time of writing we know of two entries for 2004, and there may yet be more. 1.6 Please pray for Mansfield and its staff and students. Northern College (United Reformed and Congregational)1. Farewell to David Peel
On 22 September 2003 in the Members’ Lounge at Lancashire County Cricket Club, Old Trafford we said farewell to Revd Dr David R Peel who had served 14 years on the staff of the College, 10 of these as Principal. During that time David had helped many current ministers of the United Reformed, Congregational, Moravian and other churches to understand more about their faith, especially in Systematic Theology. During his time at Northern College David has written several books and articles which have been of great help and challenge the Church, including Reformed Theology and Ministry for Mission. We wish him well in his new joint post as tutor at the North Eastern Oecumenical Course and with Northern Synod. 2. New Principal
We are delighted that Revd Dr John Campbell, who has been minister of South Aston United Reformed Church for 14 years, has been appointed as Principal of Northern College and that he will be joining us on 1 July 2004. Members of the United Reformed Church General Assembly will remember the bible study that he provided for Assembly and may like to look out for his books, “Springs of Living Water – Five Bible Studies” and “Being Biblical – How can we use the Bible in constructing ethics today?” published by the United Reformed Church. 3. Partnership for Theological Education
John Campbell’s arrival is eagerly awaited, not only by the staff and students of Northern College, but also by everyone at the Partnership for Theological Education since Northern College and the other colleges that make up the Partnership (Hartley Victoria Methodist College, Northern Baptist College, Unitarian College Manchester and the Northern Ordination Course) are all a part. Northern College together with the first three colleges share teaching on the “Faith in Living Course”, and we couldn’t manage without each other. The building in which we live, Luther King House, which once was owned by Northern Baptist College, is now jointly owned. The house has changed considerably over the last few years, making it more comfortable for those who are its students, those who attend conferences and those who use it as an hotel – all of which helps us to survive, and enriches the student body. 4. Comings and Goings
This year we said farewell also to other Partnership members of staff, who will be known by many students. Rachel Jenkins , Northern Baptist College tutor, retired at the end of March 2004, fit and well following her return to work after cancer treatment. Sister Margaret Walsh, Director of the Manchester Ecumenical College (and the weekend courses) left in February 2004. We welcomed Mark Brummitt as Fellow/Tutor in Old Testament Studies in September 2003. His acting ability and challenging presentation of Hebrew Scriptures have enthused many students. 5. BA and MA in Contextual Theology
We continue to be very proud of the way in which our students wrestle with relating their academic theology with their practical experience which makes them well-rounded ministers and lay people. Most spend about 18-20 hours each week in their placement churches and then come into college on two days a week or six weekends a year to relate their experience to their studies. Currently, the Partnership has 59 students on the midweek BA Contextual Theology course (23 of whom are from Northern College). Thirty-three from the Partnership (4 from Northern College) are studying for the MA, but a number of United Reformed Church ministers as part of their Continuing Ministerial Education, are also studying on the MA course. There are 65 Partnership students studying on the weekend course, 9 of which are from Northern College, and six of whom are studying on the Community Development Work Course 6. Settlement of Students
All last year’s leavers received calls to churches as follows: Neil R Eldridge (SM) St Mary’s, Banbury (Wessex Synod) Kate Gartside (SM) Rhos on Sea, Old Colwyn (Wales Synod) Kate V Gray (SM) St Mark’s Wythenshawe (North Western Synod) Dennis Neville (CRCW) Bloomsbury Mission Project, Birmingham(West Midlands Synod) Brian Norris (SM) South Derbyshire Team Ministry (East Midlands Synod) David Y Poulton (SM) Partnership of North Warwickshire Churches (West Midlands Synod) Helen Stephenson (CRCW) Grindon URC, Sunderland (Northern Synod) Robert W Sheard (SM) North Cumbria Group (Northern Synod) Chris J Tolley (SM) Over URC, Winsford and Northwich (Mersey Synod) Mike A Walsh (SM) Heald Green URC (North Western Synod) Robert Weston (SM) Park URC, Reading (Wessex Synod) 7. Church Related Community Work Course
This year, we have had five Church Related Community Work students in training, joined by David Jonathan (Johny), a CWM/URC missionary from India, who is working at Grassroots in Luton. We are in the process of developing level 3 (BA community courses with the University of Manchester, and overseas courses. Alison Dalton, a third year Church Related Community Work student, is planning a three week visit to community work projects in the Czech Republic in October 2004. 8. Research
In total, the Partnership has 21 studying for research degrees. The Revd Graham Adams (Congregational Federation), and the Revd Doug Gay (United Reformed Church) are continuing with their PhD research part funded by Mona Powell Fellowship bursaries. The college also contributes towards three social context research projects: the Revd Chris Vermeulen, working in urban theology based at The Woodlands, Altrincham; the Revd John Fielding, working on inner city theology in Liverpool; and the Revd David Herbert, who is working on rural theology in Northumberland. 9. The World Church
9.1 We continue to feel very much part of the World Church. Several students have spent time abroad, mostly in Third World countries. Most visits were from one to three months in Zimbabwe, Jamaica and India. This has resulted in some very creative theological writing and, we hope, continuing interest in links with the world church. 9.2 Also, we benefit considerably from the presence of Revd Li Hau-Tiong from the Presbyterian Church of Taiwan and his wife, Sue Fen who is studying on the MA programme. Hau-Tiong is with us for two years completing doctoral studies. We are also pleased to have the RevdAlisi Tira of the Kiribati Protestant Church as a Council for World Mission scholarship holder engaged in MA studies. 10. Staff
10.1 Jan Berry, who teaches Pastoral Theology and Liturgy, is continuing with her PhD studies at Glasgow University into women’s liturgies and rituals of transition. John Parry, who teaches World Mission and Other Faiths studies, has just completed four years on the United Reformed Church Training Committee and is now convener of the Interfaith Committee and has been chaplain of FURY. He is currently on sabbatical giving a series of lectures in Taiwan and visiting other parts of the world church. 10.2 Lesley Husselbee, who is the Director of the Community Development programme, and placements and who is the link person with local churches, has also been acting as Principal from August 2003 until 1 July 2004. She has also contributed to ‘Roots’. Westminster College1. The Cambridge Theological Federation
1.1 We reported last year that the Federation had asked Westminster’s John Proctor to carry out a thorough review of our curriculum and its objectives, with a view to keeping it addressed towards the changing needs of churches and students. As a result of his report a Teaching and Learning Development Group for the Federation, convened by Stephen Orchard, has been established to implement its findings. The first step has been for the Federation to apply to become part of the Regional University of the Anglia Polytechnic University. A new award, with a new flexibility in the way it can be delivered, is being planned, with an eye to those students who cannot meet the residential requirements for graduate courses at Cambridge University, those for whom such courses are not appropriate and those who have no church sponsorship. At the same time the Church of England, in consultation with the Methodist Church and the United Reformed Church, is setting up regional training partnerships. The new award is one of the resources the Cambridge Theological Federation has to offer in any new regional arrangement. However, Westminster has at the same time to keep an eye on its role as one of the national providers of education within the United Reformed Church. 1.2 The Federation, spurred on by an Inspection, is also considering what it means to offer an ecumenical theological education. Although we have the components of such a course amongst us we wonder how to make the best use of them. Our largest single grouping is of Anglicans, but all the main Christian denominations are represented within the Federation and we also have a significant number of international visitors. Although this provides informal opportunities for ecumenical learning we are not sure that we are fulfilling our potential as a place of ecumenical education within the formal curriculum. Part of our answer has been to plan an international conference on ecumenical theological education for 2005, which we hope will gather a properly representative group where we may learn together what are the conditions in which such education takes place. 2. The wider Church
It is always a delight for us to provide hospitality for Continuing Ministerial Education. Ministers come to us for a short period to draw on the teaching and library resources of the college. This learning is for their own purposes but as a community we all benefit from the experience. We also have at least one minister on sabbatical leave each term, often with his or her spouse. The sabbatical programme extends to international visitors and Westminster is held in high esteem around the world, especially in the growing number of those who come to us from the United States and New Zealand. Last year we received a ministerial student from the Waldensian Church on a year’s study programme and a German Protestant student for a term as well as our Columbia University exchange student. Our own students once more took advantage of the programmes and scholarships on offer to see the Church at work in the United States and Fiji. 3. The buildings
3.1 The requirements of the new disability legislation directed us once more to examine our buildings. Remarkably for a Victorian building Westminster can be made very accessible at the ground floor level. The problems come in introducing disabled staff and students to the upper floors of the college. We can find no way consistent with our finances or our listed building status to bring people into the Library if they cannot manage stairs. For the moment we have worked on ways of bringing the Library to them. It may be that a future extension to the Library will enable us to incorporate a lift. Another problem our disability audit revealed was the poor levels of lighting provided by our listed electrical fittings. We were able to reassure our insurers that wiring was up to modern standards by carrying out remedial work on a few sections that were twenty years old. Nothing can be done to improve the light levels delivered by a system which once seemed bright compared with its rival – gaslight. We are considering other approaches to this problem. What was fascinating was the enormous enthusiasm our disability auditor displayed for our buildings. Our inability to make major alterations over the last hundred years means that we have a wonderful specimen of the work of Henry Hare, a leading architect of his day. 3.2 One piece of brightening we have achieved in the college is the re-painting of the Dining Hall ceiling. We know this has not been attempted for at least thirty years and we suspect longer. The work required the use of oil-based distemper to match the original and great care in cleaning and painting the elaborate plaster work, which incorporates symbols representative of all the Presbyterian churches in the world in 1899. Less obvious to the visitor is the long programme of remedial work in the cellars, where the beams bearing the floors above were deteriorating. The floors are now good for another hundred years. For the future we are exploring the possibility of creating archive storage in the large attics of the residential wing. The continuing work on the United Reformed Church History Society collections has now made it clear what needs to be kept. The work of cataloguing that collection and college books in the Carrie Room is also giving us hard information on what storage we need for historic books and enabling us to project future requirements. In all this we are aware of our responsibilities to the United Reformed Church at large and our sister churches around the world. The collections now at Westminster are a unique resource for the study of our tradition. This is more than antiquarianism. The lessons of Reformed history are significant in shaping our vision of the future of our own denomination but they also have a significance for the whole Church catholic. 4. Celebration
4.1 At our Commemoration of Benefactors in 2003 our preacher was Professor Morna Hooker and the lecture was given by Dr Jolyon Mitchell of New College, Edinburgh. We gave thanks also for the gifts of our leavers, who were: 4.2 Peter Clark (North Kent Group), Richard Eastman (South Leicestershire Group), Stella Hayton (Bingley and Shipley), John Mackerness (Spen and Calder Enterprise), Susan McKenzie (Wood Street and Chesterfield Road, Barnet), Jay Phelps (Anstey), and Janet Sutton (Alkrington and Providence). 4.3 Suzanne McDonald & Romilly Micklem completed their courses and are continuing their academic studies in St Andrew’s and London respectively. 4.4 Finally, we give thanks for the life of John O’Neill, whose teaching inspired a generation of Westminster students between 1964 and 1985 before he moved to Edinburgh. John loved the New Testament and helped others to love it too. Scottish United Reformed and Congregational College1. The College as a college
Still “new(ish) kids on the block” within the United Reformed Church, perhaps we need a little more than most to explain to folk who we are – so a quick bullet point introduction for those not familiar with us.
2. The student body
2.1 In a sense, the most difficult question to answer is “How many students do you have?”. At its simplest, we have one ordinand and one student transferring from the ordained pastorate, but then we have lay education students and others following adult education and spirituality programmes. 2.2 In ordinand terms, we welcomed Craig Jesson BA, a graduate in human resources development for a three-year programme of ordination training. He is concurrently matriculated for an undergraduate MA in religious studies with the University of Glasgow. He brings valuable experience, not only with his prior degree, but also from his work in social work management. We are glad that, as it is our “turn”, Craig is now the student representative on the General Assembly Training committee. We have with us also Pastor Jack Muir, who was ordained to the pastorate within the Congregational Union of Scotland, and who ministers in the Peedie Kirk, Kirkwall, Orkney. Jack is the last of those who were on the active list of pastors and who have undertaken further training with us for additional recognition in their ministry. The very character of our student body requires us to be a highly flexible “institution” and to work to find ways of not only ensuring that good learning takes place, but that there is built a sense of community. 2.3 We said farewell to two ordinands who had been with us on 15 month learning programmes: Dr Deborah Anderson who has been called to pastorates in West Midlands synod and Dr Irene John. We are glad that one of Scotland’s contributions to the pool of ministers is people of high academic quality. 3. The research network
The network is an open one. We welcome anyone who is undertaking study at a postgraduate or advanced level, primarily in theological or Biblical studies but not exclusively so. (The Principal is still undertaking a PhD in Education and the synod Moderator an MA in literature!) It is an opportunity for researchers to interact with a learned but not necessarily specialist community and to review their research work from a wider perspective. With regret, we had to say farewell Dr Sarah Hall who had been studying for her PhD at Edinburgh, but we have been compensated well by the arrival of Ms Suzanne MacDonald, a PhD student at St Andrews. Suzanne has already contributed in such ways as being a speaker at the URC Synod of Scotland Ministers’ conference. The network meets each academic term but members interact also in less formal ways. It is one of the ways in which we endeavour to be college as a community of lifelong learners. 4. The annual retreat
This is a key opportunity for an otherwise dispersed community to meet physically and to learn together. It brought together people from the northern isles to the Scottish borders, College students, officers, staff and friends. Our theme this year was Holy Fools. We learned something of the place of Christian clowning, not least its radical age, and even practised some of the simpler techniques. We did Bible study on Wisdom and Folly in the Bible and heard of the Fools for Christ in Russian Orthodoxy and beyond. Our retreat book was Holy Fools, the novel of Joanne Harris. 5. Continuing Ministerial Education
The College firmly recognises that, as a provider of ministerial training, it has to be as concerned with continuing education as initial training. We have endeavoured this year to offer some opportunities on an ecumenical basis, but have experienced some difficulty with recruiting from a wider market. We believe that we have particular expertise around educational practice, in ministering to older people, in management and organisational development and in the use of storytelling. We are interested too in exploring how our capacity might be utilised in consultancy style work. 6. Life after Scottish Churches’ Open College
We have reported earlier on the sad closure of SCOC. Its loss impacts on the educational and ecumenical scenes in a number of ways. Directly, we have lost an important mechanism for providing liberal, contextual theological learning for a wide range of learners on an ecumenical basis. For the time being, only the counselling course provision continues. We have yet to discern how the churches might collaborate together in the planning and delivery of adult learning opportunities. 7. The “Hind” report
7.1 The long title of the Church of England’s reform proposals is one that well accords with our own understanding of our role and contribution. We are concerned for ministerial formation in its widest sense and in the context of helping the church to develop as learning community. We are conscious how far this will be a significant ecumenical development for most of the synods of the United Reformed Church and therefore for all the colleges and courses it recognises… but we are aware that formally the territory is England and that the other two nations/synods lie outside its remit. 7.2 It would be naïve, however, to imagine that this major influence upon training provision will not leak into the wider policy planning of the Training committee and across the national borders to some extent. We, therefore, are glad that the Training committee is encouraging Scotland and Wales to be well-informed about and engaged in the “English” process while at the same time taking responsibility for sharing in the ecumenical development of theological learning in their own specific contexts. 8. The Training review
The College welcomes the approach of the Training committee to carrying out a review that is positive and developmental. We echo its commitment to lifelong learning, to developing work across the ministries of the whole people of God, to ecumenical collaboration and to affirming the distinctive characteristics of the national synods. 9. The Library
The dissolution of Scottish Churches’ Open College withdrew a significant reader population from the user groups of the united library belonging to this College together with the Scottish Episcopal Church and the Board of Parish Education of the Church of Scotland. Since then, the Board of Parish Education has resolved also to withdraw from the library partnership as part of its review of how it delivers and supports lay training within the Church of Scotland. In the interim, the College and the Scottish Episcopal Church will form a library together but on a reduced service basis. Consideration is being given by the library committee and the library partners as to the longer term viability and developmental potential of the library. In narrower terms, the College is not exclusively dependent upon the united library as members of staff and student bodies have also membership of university libraries but we are conscious that the united library stock represents a distinctive stock which is of considerable value to learners. 10. Friends of the College
We have formed or perhaps re-formed a friends organisation so that supporters may contribute to the work of the College, be kept in touch with its life and have a real sense of belonging to the College community. 11. Contribution to the Synod and wider United Reformed Church
Under a reciprocal agreement, the College makes a significant contribution to the educational life of the synod of Scotland with the Principal acting as its Education Secretary. Currently, the Principal serves also as Convener of the Training committee’s Continuing Ministerial Education sub-committee and in the past year has worked on the training review for West Midlands synod and as leader of a Refresher course.
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