Dear Friends,
It is a privilege to write to all parishes on the launch of the 2025 Clergy Training Fund appeal. In this appeal we are calling upon your generosity in prayer and financial support for those training for Priesthood and Permanent Diaconate in Hexham & Newcastle Diocese. The appeal begins on the 30th Sunday of the Year, and will run until the 23rd November.
In the life of the Church, in our parishes and partnerships, all baptised men and women rely upon the service of one another to build up the Kingdom of God. It is through prayer and the joy of serving others that we each find our calling in Christ. That joy can be ours when we discern and respond generously to God’s call.
Among the various ways God calls his people Jesus established in the Sacrament of Holy Orders, the threefold ministry of bishops, priests and deacons. In those men called to Holy Orders Jesus Christ continues to minister to His people today. Through the laying on of hands, priests and deacons share in a particular way the ministry of Jesus, who came not to be served but to serve.
In the weekend’s gospel parable the tax-collector acknowledges in prayer that he is unworthy. This parable reaches to the core of our relationship with God. God chooses us, and though we are unworthy, he works through us. St. Paul understood this relationship well and writes in today’s passage from his Letter to Timothy, “the Lord stood by me and strengthened me, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed.”
Priests are given the grace to walk alongside people both in the joyful and the more challenging moments of life. They celebrate the Sacraments for us, particularly the Holy Eucharist. Priests preach the Gospel and are a reminder to us of the love of Jesus. Permanent Deacons participate in the local bishop’s ministry. They assist the priest or bishop at Mass, preach the word of God and are ordained to celebrate particular sacramental services.
Currently, Hexham and Newcastle diocese has three men in formation for the priesthood. David Pinder is in his fifth year of study at St. Mary’s College, Oscott. Emmet O’Leary is in his third year of study at Allen Hall Seminary in London. Last month Dominic Nnadi began his preliminary year of formation at the Royal English College, Valladolid in Spain.
In our diocese there are a number of strategies to encourage and support men who are discerning a call to ordained ministry. Enquirers are invited to one-to-one meetings and also monthly discernment meetings at St. Mary’s Cathedral with me and Vocations Promoters Fr Luke Wilkinson and Fr Paul Kilduff. We also have seven candidates who are currently being formed to serve as permanent deacons and five enquirers. This summer Jeremy Wynne was ordained to the Permanent Diaconate for our diocese.
Praying for Vocations is vital and fundamental, and it is something in which all the faithful can play a part. A Rosary for Vocations and Holy Hour prayers will soon be available to parishes and each deanery in our diocese will be encouraged to celebrate a Mass for Vocations.
Priests and deacons are called to live simple lives, but high-quality training comes at a price. Yet, following ordination a priest may give back more than 40- or 50-years’ service, so the investment brings a considerable return.
The Clergy Training Fund is the sole means of supporting the formation of our seminarians and prospective deacons, we receive no funding from the state. The Clergy Training Fund also supports the ongoing formation of all our clergy. As in every vocation, training and learning needs to be continuous – helping those in active working ministry to continue growing and responding to the challenges of a rapidly changing world.
Your kindness, through this annual collection, legacies and bequests, is more vital than ever and is very much appreciated by those preparing for ministry. It is thanks to parishioners, like you, past and present, that we can support the priests and deacons of tomorrow and ensure the flourishing of our Church.
With every good wish in the Lord,
Father John Bagnall
Diocesan Director of Priestly Vocations and Ongoing Formation.