Save The Parish - Cornwall

As the Bishops of Truro and St Germans prepare for St Austell, the latest stop in their On The Way 'consultation' road show , Save The Parish has published a new paper on the potentially catastrophic effects of proposed 'mega parishes' and pastoral reorganisation. ‘Problems with Megaparishes” was written by two ordained academics, and exposes some fresh angles. Click here to read. Huge benefices are being proposed under the Bishops' On The Way plans in Cornwall: in Kerrier, for example, 23 parishes are being brought together under one rural dean. The Rt Rev Philip Mounstephen and the Rt Rev Hugh Nelson will be meeting churchgoers in St Austell from 4-6pm this afternoon - just as most of the nation will be warming up TVs to watch England's rugby match against Ireland in the Six Nations Championship at Murrayfield. The Bishops' tour of Cornish deaneries in this supposed consultation exercise has curiously been timed on Saturday afternoons during the Six Nati...

  The |Bishops of Truro and St Germans faced further challenges last night at the latest stop of their slickly choreographed On The Way roadshow. The Bishops, visiting deaneries split by divisive On The Way plans, are proposing an end to priests in parishes in the Diocese of Truro. At St James's Church, Torpoint, in East Wivelshire deanery, both Bishops were presented with concerns voiced at previous On The Way deanery visits. However  - as at their previous roadshow stops - the Rt Rev Philip Mounstephen and the Rt Rev Hugh Nelson carefully manipulated proceedings to evade dissent - ensuring the evening was weighted towards their contributions - and minimal time given to questions. There were 80-90 people at St James's last night, but many others were unable to attend. The meeting was poorly advertised and puzzlingly held from 5-7pm on a Saturday afternoon during the Six Nations rugby tournament - an impossible time for sports fans, young families and others with weekend comm...

A visit by Cornwall's Bishops to Illogan Church to discuss Carnmarth North deanery's On The Way plans elicited several questions about the proposals that will change the nature of church life in Cornwall forever.  The subsequent report by Communications officer Kelly Rowe however ignores the challenges and fails to report dissension: click here to read   'Positivity and Hospitality in Carnmarth North' . To hear the questions challenging the Bishops, read on. A churchgoer from Crowan asks the Bishop of Truro, the Rt Rev Philip Mounstephen, whether he had consulted adequately on these potentially devastating changes.  Click here to listen and click here to read a transcript.   The Bishop said adequate consultation had taken place and abruptly dismissed suggestions that people unhappy about the proposals should contact him. "I have no reason to believe that proper consultation has not taken place," he said. "On The Way does not require consultation as it...

  A bleak night in Portreath, Cornwall, saw Carnmarth North deanery plan voted  through after two delays. Initially Rural Dean Caspar Bush and his team failed to submit it in time for Episcopal College approval before the June synod meeting. Then following the death of the Queen, the 9 September 2022 synod  was postponed. On Tuesday 18 October, Rev Bush finally saw the On The Way plan approved which will see him as Rural Dean Tsar head up a new 'On The Way' unit swallowing up Transforming Mission Camborne. His former curate Rev Graham Adamson becomes a 'peripatetic' vicar across Carnmarth North's 18 churches. As one clergyman from Camborne bravely said at the Synod, a fair amount of the Church Commissioners' Lowest Income Community funding - which will finance this new roaming position - will be spent on his petrol costs. Rev Adamson will also in an odd twist be overseeing the work of his former boss Rev Rosheen Browning, priest in charge at Camborne, who has st...

 The Carnmarth North deanery synod to approve its On The Way  cost-cutting plan has failed to meet Episcopal College approval - for reasons that remain unclear. Last month a shambolic synod approved the plan - despite an admitted lack of consultation with congregations previously.   Click here to read the original plan. Rural Dean Caspar Bush circulated an email yesterday saying the original plan had been rejected by the Episcopal College over the MMF (Mission and Ministry Fund) budget deficit it envisaged. This despite the fact that the Bishop of St Germans, the Rt Rev Hugh Nelson. micro-managed the development of the plan from the start. A deanery synod to approve the revised version is scheduled for 8 September 2022. Rev Bush's email reads: To: Carnmarth North Deanery Synod reps and other interested parties This email is to update you on On the Way, and to set a new date for our next Synod. We apologise that once again it has been necessary to postpone this Synod...

Many thanks to Save The Parish Cornwall's Peter Bellenes for highlighting this very useful link on the national Save The Parish website - Resisting wrong arguments for PCC mergers. PCC (Parochial Church Council) mergers are frequently suggested in the Bishop of Truro's current On The Way consultation - a cost-cutting programme resulting in losses of clergy jobs and  - almost inevitably - church closures. Most people on the ground feel that PCC mergers are almost always a bad thing, as they take away local agency and voice - though they might ease the burden for vicars covering multiple parishes. Hopefully this background information will help those grappling with these issues. PCC mergers are mentioned in the Carnmarth North Deanery plan - and also in East Wivelshire , where there is a significant pushback against it. "It has been suggested that the loose and inconsistent wording within the East Wivelshire Deanery Plan is such that a vote to support the plan could be in...

The Archbishop of Canterbury started a three-day visit to Cornwall this week amidst unprecedented turmoil in the Church of England in the county. He arrives amidst a wave of controversy about the Bishop of Truro’s brutal cost-cutting project On The Way , which threatens to cut vicars, destroy ancient parishes, and close historic churches. But the Archbishop will be distracted from that by visits to the parallel Transforming Mission programme which is spending millions in the county on highly contentious ‘mission churches’. The campaign group Save The Parish Cornwall, fighting to save clergy jobs and preserve the county’s centuries-old way of church life, pen an open letter to the Archbishop, begging him to recognise - and stop - the damage   Dear Archbishop Cornwall welcomes you this weekend.  This is, of course, the land that tourists see – beautiful beaches, breath-taking countryside, cream teas and pasties. You might even have previously glimpsed something of th...

Senior clergy in Carnmarth North Deanery steam-rolled through their On The Way plan on Wednesday (15/6/22) despite Rural Dean Caspar Bush admitting that the 67-page document had only been distributed to parishioners at the last minute and there was no time for proper consultation. Rev Bush only sent the document out to Deanery Representatives on Sunday morning (12/6/22) due to a ‘technical glitch’ with the Diocese. This meant that in the best-case scenario – if the plan had been then immediately been distributed to congregations by the Deanery representatives, who were not instructed to do so – congregations had just over three days to digest proposals which will change church life forever. In fact some present at the meeting at St Mary's Church, Portreath, said that their Parochial Church Councils were unaware that the Deanery Synod was taking place. “We can’t pretend that’s been done as well as it should have been done,” Rev Bush said. “I put my hand up on that. I give my ...

The powers that be at the Diocese of Truro appear anxious to keep details of their   'On The Way' cost cutting p lans top secret before they can railroad them through with little or no scrutiny at deanery synods.  As always, we ask - why the secrecy, Bishops? To be helpful - here at Save The Parish Cornwall we'll be publishing details of On The Way plans - draft and actual - as soon as we get them. If you have knowledge of one, and believe that people have a right to know what is planned for their parish, please get in touch. We will, of course, keep all contact details confidential.  A big date for next week:  Carnmarth North Deanery Synod is on Wednesday 15 June 2022 at St Mary's Portreath at 7pm. The deanery's On The Way plan will be presented and there will be a vote on whether or not to accept it (see agenda below). In response to a recent email from a parishioner about the possibility of submitting questions to this meeting, Rural Dean Caspar Bush, ...

Several important Deanery Synod meetings are coming up - when plans for the Diocese's draconian cost-cutting exercise On The Way will be discussed. These meetings are open to the public, and people are encouraged to ask questions. Both the Bishops of Truro and St Germans have said they are keen to hear the views of everyone - not just the 'leadership teams' involved. We will publish further dates and details about these meetings as we learn more. Please do get in touch via the Contact Form on the left to let us know of any other important meetings. Key dates Carnmarth North (including Camborne Cluster) On The Way consultation and plan 16/6 Deanery Plan to Deanery Synod Carnmarth South (including Mabe, Ponsanooth – and Falmouth) On The Way consultation and plan 17/5 ‘Leadership team’ meeting and plan goes to Episcopal College 14/6 Leadership team meets to discuss Bishops’ response 17/6 Final draft to Deanery Synod 20/6 and 1/7 CCs to take indicative votes 21/7 Deanery Synod...