The Bishop of Coventry has appointed the Revd Anita Morgan to succeed the Revd Canon Jill Tucker as Dean of Self-Supporting Ministry.
Jill Tucker is retiring as Dean of Self-Supporting Ministry after 12 years in post, passing the baton onto Anita Morgan.
The Dean of Self-Supporting Ministry is a member of the Bishop’s Core Staff representing the community of Self-Supporting Minsters to serve the flourishing of Self-Supporting Ministry and Minsters in the Diocese for the good of the kingdom of God.
Bishop Christopher writes:
Jill Tucker has been an amazing colleague over her many years in post as Dean of SSM. With her deep parish experience and her insights into the opportunities for ministry in places of work, care and education, Jill has widened the vision of Bishop’s Core Staff and helped us to think more imaginatively about ministry in all its different forms. In the generosity of the time she has given to this important role of Dean of SSM and the deep commitment to the mission and mission of the Church she has invariably shown, Jill has embodied the commitment and gifts of our Self-Supporting Ministers across the life of the Diocese.
Anita Morgan will bring many similar to the ministry of Dean of SSM together with her own particular gifts honed through her life of discipleship, her involvement in parish ministry, lay and ordained and her professional experience as a senior NHS consultant carrying huge responsibilities for the health and well-being of many people in need of healing and hope. It will be a joy to work with Anita, drawing especially on her experience as a Minister in Secular Employment, as we seek to extend the reach of the Church’s ministry, grow the strength of our dedicated community of SSMs, and build the capacity of the Church’s mission.
Jill Tucker says:
“It has been the most wonderful privilege to serve as Dean of Self-Supporting Ministry for the last 12 years or so.
We have an extraordinarily rich diversity of skills, talents and experiences among our self-supporting ministers, and to meet them over the years and follow them on their journeys has been an absolute joy. They are priests in their workplaces, incumbents, associate ministers, curates and chaplains, and many do not know the meaning of ‘retirement’! My prayer was that each would be able to fulfil the ministry God had given them, and to be fulfilled in that ministry. To be allowed into their world as challenges arose was humbling, and from them I took far more than I ever gave.
To them all, I would say ‘thank you’, for taking the ministry of a priest into places where others cannot normally go - into operating theatres and boardrooms, council meetings and theatres, businesses and classrooms, courtrooms and lambing sheds. You are part of the daily life of the workplace, but you are there as a priest – being Christ in that place.
I am absolutely delighted that Anita has agreed to take over from me. She, and the small team she will form around her, are steeped in their daily roles, and know what it is to be a priest in both a demanding workplace and a local church. She has a vision and energy, driven by a love for the Lord and a desire to serve him in any way that she can. I know that both Bishop Christopher and Anita are very excited at the prospect of more folk seeing their ministry as being committed to both the vocation of their career, and the vocation of priesthood within that.
I shall ever be grateful, too, to my colleagues on the Bishop’s Core Staff team – for their graciousness to a newcomer all those years ago, their wisdom and support and the depth of their fellowship – and the occasional disagreement. As I bask in the glorious realisation that there will be no more 7.30 am meetings in Bishop’s House on Thursdays (every week, in the early days!), I pray for you all, and particularly for Anita as she steps into a most glorious role!”
Anita Morgan writes:
“I am excited to be invited to become Dean of Self-supporting Ministry (SSM).
Rev Canon Jill Tucker has been a great champion and advocate for the ministry of SSM within the diocese for many years. It is a privilege to pick up and build on the great work she has done. My colleagues serving as SSM and Ministers in Secular Employment (MSE) bring many valuable gifts to their ministry and to the Diocese.
As the church looks to ministry in the future, those serving as SSM offer a timely resource, bringing insight and experience of ministry within the church and beyond, in the context of employment and secular life. I look forward to working with them, Bishop Christopher and Bishop John and many others in exploring ways for those in self-supporting ministry to flourish and use their gifts in mission and ministry within our parishes and their context.”
There will be a hand over period during the rest of April to ensure a smooth transition, if you wish to contact The Dean of Self-Supporting Ministry please email: anita.morgan@btinternet.com