Save The Parish - Cornwall

Diocesan Communications Officer Kelly Rowe has requested both a printed and online correction to the article that appeared in yesterday's Falmouth Packet, which misleadingly said a third full-time stipendiary priest had been recruited in Kerrier Deanery. The article took local PCCs (Parochial Church Councils) by surprise.  Contacted by Save The Parish Cornwall about the apparent change in clergy provision, Kelly Rowe said in an email that a priest had not, in fact, been appointed: "I think this story might have got ahead of itself. As far as we are aware, we have agreed the appointment of a third stipendiary priest but have not yet advertised the post. I am guessing that the person would not be in post until the end of the year, more likely early next year. The deanery is currently in the throes of radical  and controversial pastoral reorganisation - with a giant benefice of 23 churches proposed under just one rural dean.  Kelly Rowe  went on to confirm th...

After a casual enquiry, Save The Parish Cornwall discovered that the important Minutes of Diocesan Synods in the early years of On The Way are not in fact up on the Diocese of Truro website.  We have therefore sought them out: we will add to these documents as more emerge. Only recent Diocesan Synod reports are accessible via the Diocese of Truro website . Asked why important Minutes of earlier significant Synods were not available, Communications Officer Kelly Rowe - surprisingly, in view of the infinite nature of the internet - said: "We don’t keep everything on the website due to its size."  As deanery plans now reach a crucial stage, we have tracked down these documents - essential reading for anyone interested in the genesis of On The Way.  2019 Presidential Address to Synod November 2019 by the Rt Rev Philip Mounstephen, Bishop of Truro "Just this last week Cornwall Council agreed to invest no less that £612,000 in the Truro Lifehouse project based at All Saint...

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...

Locked out Merrymeet villagers sing carols in rain... Bishop delivers his Christmas message from his armchair Villagers in Merrymeet, east Cornwall, braved rain and freezing temperatures to hold carols on a local drive this weekend after Truro's Bishops closed their church this autumn and changed the locks. As they sang in the cold and wet, the Bishop of Truro recorded an upbeat Christmas message from the comfort of his front room. Under a hastily-built shelter, villagers gathered around a sound system in a garage for their Christmas celebration - yards from the church which was closed in mid October and the locks changed despite strong local opposition. Last year, due to Covid, they sang carols outside the church. This year, they had hoped to be inside. This was not to be. "Even though the weather was far from ideal our carol service still went ahead and was well attended," said Residents' Association chairman Peter Luck. "Approximately 30 turned up to sing an...

Bishop of Truro, Presidential Address at Diocesan Synod, May 2022 It is sometimes hard to keep up with the twists and turns in the Bishops' narrative around 'On The Way' - their major restructuring plan in Cornwall.  Back at the May 2022 Diocesan Synod the Bishop of Truro, the Rt Rev Philip Mounstephen, said press reports suggesting that  'I am setting up some kind of central unit in Church House under the leadership of the Director of Change and Renewal'  were ' fanciful '. However - despite the Bishop's statement - a central unit has indeed been set up.  Following the appointment of Ruth Marriott, the Director of Change and Renewal, yet another post is being advertised for this unit. As a recent email (dated 18 November 2022) from head of Church House operations Kate Cortez confirms: We are now advertising for a Communications and Influence Officer. This role is managed by Ruth M but works across the Change & Renewal and Comms teams and will be sup...