Annwyl Gyfeillion

It would appear that Andrew, from the Gospel accounts, is the first evangelist, in the sense that having discovered in Jesus the one who is Saviour, Lord and Messiah, he goes immediately and tells his brother, bringing him to meet Jesus for himself. The story is told in the Gospel according to John (Chapter 1.40-42).  Just how good are we at following Andrew’s example?

If we are to grow the Church, we need to be encouraging others to become disciples of Jesus. This means being confident about our own faith, and ready to speak to others about it. This is the business of ministry, ordained and lay, and yet, like many in our congregations, we may be shy of actually asking those we encounter whether they have faith in Jesus Christ, let alone leading them into faith by inviting commitment and praying with someone to receive Jesus as their Saviour and to be reconciled to God.

So what does it mean to be an evangelist in our own ministries? At the very least, I hope that it means that in your preaching you are proclaiming Jesus as Lord and Saviour, and inviting those who hear your preaching explicitly to deepen their faith and commitment. And, of course, there are other channels by which we invite others into faith – the faithful celebration of the Sacraments, the sensitive leading of worship, the running of small study groups, where the deepening of faith is the focus of discussion, and leading of our congregations in active service to the community based on Kingdom values.

The business of being evangelists is part of our core business – it is, of course, the Holy spirit, that leads people to faith – but we must put ourselves in the path of the Holy Spirit, and be ready to follow the Spirit’s bidding – for, as Augustine said, “Without God, we cannot. Without us, he will not.”

Cathedral Chapter and Greater Chapter

Having consulted the Dean, I am pleased to announce the following appointments to the Cathedral Chapter and Greater Chapter:

• Mike Haslam is to become Canon Chancellor, and a member of Chapter. The post of Chancellor in St Asaph is usually held by a priest holding a diocesan ministry of education – Mike as our Director of Transforming Ministry obviously fulfills that brief, and has made his home among us.
• Martin Batchelor is to become Canon Missioner and a member of Chapter. Martin is one of our most experienced priests, and has successfully led our Mission Hub Church in Mold.
• Paul Whittaker is to become Canon Treasurer and a member of Chapter. Paul is a significant lay leader in the diocese, and his financial expertise will be of enormous value in the governance of the Cathedral.
• Paul Mealor is to become Canon for the Arts and Culture and a member of Chapter. Paul is a former chorister of St Asaph, and has moved back into the city, taking on the role of Artistic Director of the North Wales International Music Festival which is based at the Cathedral. Paul is also an internationally renowned composer, who is making a significant contribution to Church Music.

I am inviting Rex Matthias to take up the Cursal Canonry of Galfridi Ruthin, as he lays down his ministry as Canon Precentor to take up the role of Mission Area Leader of Offa in the spring.

I have invited Richard Hainsworth to take up the Cursal Canonry of Randulph de Birkened in recognition of his long service to this diocese, and his distinguished ministry in Flint.

I have invited Andrea Russell to take up the Cursal Canonry of Adam Beckinsell in recognition of her work as Warden of Gladstone’s Library, and the contribution she is making to diocesan life.

I am offering Honorary Canonries to Sally Harper and to Paul Wright. It has been my practice to have at least one NSM priest in the Cathedral Body, and Sally fulfils that criterion with distinction. Sally has been leading the work of the Diocesan Spirituality Group over recent years, and has accepted office for another term as Director of Spirituality in assisting the diocese and the clergy to grow in their interior life, as well as contributing ministry to the Denbigh Mission Area. The constitution of the cathedral also allows me to nominate distinguished clerics from this diocese to take up honorary canonries. Canon Paul Wright is Sub-Dean of the Chapel Royal, but is originally from the Mold area. After a notable career in the Armed Forces, it is good to be able to acknowledge his fruitful ministry by strengthening the bond with his native locality.

The Service of Collation and Installation of new Canons will take place on Sunday, 25^th January, 2026, the Feast Day of the Conversion of St Paul, at 1530hr in the Cathedral in the context of Evensong. Everyone is invited to come and support our new canons at this event.

Ministerial Development Review

We are restoring the complete cycle of Ministerial Development Review (MDR) in the diocese in 2026. It is intended that all those in ordained ministry and those in licensed ministry will have a review every year. For clergy, one year the review will be conducted by their Archdeacon, and the next year, it will be with a priest or lay person of their choice from a group of people who have been trained to conduct the MDR process. There will also be six monthly check-ins with Archdeacons, with a particular focus on Section 3 of the Review paperwork, Goals and Objectives. We hope and pray that MDR will be prayerful, supportive and enabling. If you have any questions about MDR and its launch, please contact your Archdeacon or Mike Haslam, Director of Transforming Ministry on mikehaslam@cinw.org.uk, and further details will be forthcoming in the new year.

Diary and Events     

Please read the diary carefully. The diary is updated every month to include all those fixed dates for events that clergy are required to attend as part of their professional commitment, together with those opportunities to build up our common life by supporting significant moments for our colleagues.

I am also including the dates we have for 2026. It is very important that each of you makes a note of these dates. Please ensure that the dates which are a professional requirement are in your diary, even where the exact format may be open to change. Where a clash with your own plans comes to your attention, please raise it with Esgobty at the earliest opportunity. I am still occasionally getting excuses late in the day from clergy who don’t seem to have planned ahead, or even to have read this monthly diary, and I am much more amenable when approached early to discuss any potential clashes.

Dates in December

4^th Decr               MAL Training Day (a change from the previously arranged date of 20^th November)

7^th Decr               The Licensing of Nicholas Bee as Priest-in-Charge in Caereinion MA, at St Mary,                                       Llanfair Caereinion, at 1530hr.

10^th Decr             Advent Confirmation, Cathedral, 1900hr

Dates in 2026

25^th Jan               Collation and Installation of Canons, 1530hr in the Cathedral.

12^th Febr             IME Book Day for those in their first three years of ordained ministry (details to follow)

26^th Febr             Spring Clergy Synod 1000hr – 1600hr, (St David’s Hotel, Ewloe)

2^nd April             Chrism Eucharist, Cathedral

16^th May             LLM Day, Cathedral

27^th June             Ordination of Priests, 1000hr in the Cathedral

28^th June             Ordination of Deacons, pm in the Cathedral

17^th Sept             Autumn Clergy Synod 1000hr – 1600hr (St David’s Hotel, Ewloe)

8^th Octr                Diocesan Conference (online business meeting)

10^th Octr             Diocesan Conference, in person

Notes and Queries

The Advent Confirmation

The Advent Confirmation will be held on Wednesday evening, 10^th December. We currently have ten candidates. If you have been preparing candidates for confirmation, and would like to present them at this service, then please do contact Siân at Esgobty to register their names.

Ember Day leaflet

Please pray for those who are starting their vocational training this Advent. Their names are listed in the Ember Day leaflet in Welsh and English. The Ember Days are 17^th, 19^th and 20^th December, but please add appropriate intercessions at your Sunday worship as well. It would be good to remember all those in training by name in our prayers.

Esgobty Christmas Closure

The office at Esgobty will be closing at the end of the office day on Friday 19 December and will reopen at 0900hr on 5 January next year. During the Christmas closure any matters of emergency should be directed to the archdeacons, although emails to Esgobty will be monitored.

Hwyl a Helo

Jeremy Dussek has indicated to me that he has accepted a new parish in the Church of England. Jeremy will be moving at the beginning of March, and we wish him well for this new role. We are sorry to be saying goodbye, and thank Jeremy for his ministry with us and contribution to diocesan life over the the three years he will have been part of the Teulu Asaph.

Lent Prayer Cards

Orders are now invited from each mission area for the Lent 2026 Prayer Card which features a prayer composed to reflect the third element of our diocesan mission “Demonstrating Love”.  Michael at Esgobty looks forward to receiving one collated order per mission area no later than Friday 9 January.

I wish you all a very fruitful and renewing Advent. I have always found the season of Advent to be laden with hope, and a useful time to reset my own discipleship of Jesus. I pray that it will be the same for you, and that your celebration of Christmas, when it arrives, will be joyful and uplifting.