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Chapter 1. Not just another Sunday morning

It’s another Sunday morning, much like any other as you set off for church. Most of the regulars are there although a few familiar faces are absent. The service goes well and then at the end of the service the vicar makes an announcement:

‘I have been invited to become the vicar of a new parish and I shall be leaving in about two to three months. Now is not the time for farewells, but I want to say how much I have valued your friendship and support during my ministry here.’

The situation will differ, the words of the announcement will vary, but somewhere each Sunday this type of scene will take place.

Imagine this is your church. If you are a regular member of the congregation, but not deeply involved in church life, how do you feel?

Is it a case of vicars come, vicars go but life goes on, or was this one somewhat different – a bit special or a dead loss? Are you thinking “Thank goodness, we won’t have to suffer those long-winded sermons for much longer” or is it ‘We’ll never get anyone who is as good with young people’? Are you already wondering how long the parish will be without a vicar? You may have heard it said that an interregnum is one of the best things that can happen to a parish and wonder whether that can be true. All kinds of thoughts will be going through your mind, some of which you might want to talk to others about, others that you would rather keep to yourself.

If you are a member of the Parochial Church Council (PCC), how do you feel?

You may share some of the thoughts that any regular church member feels. However, there is an added dimension. You have worked with the vicar on the decision-making body of the church. Are you wondering how the PCC is going to function without the vicar or are you already beginning to see it as an opportunity to get things done? You might also be wondering what to say when the PCC is asked about the type of vicar wanted next.

If you are a churchwarden, you might have known for a few hours, a few days or a few weeks that the vicar is about to leave. How do you feel now that it is public knowledge?

Are you thinking how others must be feeling and wanting to talk to as many people as possible, or are you thinking of the work you have to take on during an interregnum and wanting people to recognise this and offer words of encouragement?

If you are the vicar, you will have known for some time that you are on the move.

In most cases, there will have been delicate, often secret discussions over the new parish. You will have had to work through some difficult decisions. Is this move right for me (and, if you have a family, is it right for them)? Do I really want to leave this parish and these people? Is this really God’s will for me? How do you feel now that you have announced that you are leaving?

For some of you the interregnum may be a present reality. For others it is about to begin. For others it may be some time in the future.

Every parish and parishioner will experience something of the pain, joy, challenge, loss and gain that comes with an interregnum. We have highlighted the most common ending to a vicar’s ministry in a parish, namely moving to another parish. There are other endings – death, retirement, leaving the ministry – that will bring out different emotions and feelings.

In one sense nothing will be the same again as the parish moves on to a new phase of ministry. However, God is there, ahead of us, inviting us into the future – in faith.

Not just another Sunday morning