New deacons ready to serve at parishes
Fourteen new deacons were ordained by the Bishop of Chichester in his Cathedral Church on Saturday. Family, friends and parish supporters came in great numbers to support the new deacons who will now go on to serve in parishes across East and West Sussex and Brighton and Hove. In his sermon, Bishop Martin preached about the deacons being ‘gifted by God.’ He said: “They are now handing themselves over to Christ to serve the people of God in making Christ known and offering in worship praise and thanksgiving to God the Father.” Referring to the transformation of Francis of Assisi, Bishop Martin offered a prayer for the deacons . He said: “My prayer is, not only that you will spend your lives seeking the vision of God that transformed Francis; my prayer is that this vision will so captivate your life and ministry that you will also be instrumental in transforming the Church, as Francis did, into a household wherein the poor find a home, the lost are welcomed, the hungry satisfied with good things, and all things in creation are honoured as the means by which God is both revealed and praised.” The candidates and the parishes in which they serve are as follows: • Dominik Chmielewski to serve in the parish of St Nicholas, Arundel • Mike Milmine to serve in the parish of St Pancras, Chichester • Sally Mitchell to serve in the parish of West Grinstead • Torhild Fikseaunet to serve in the parish of Heathfield • Emma Ham-riche to serve in the parish of East Preston • Alex Wheeler to serve in the parish of St John the Divine, Copthorne • Thomas Fink-jensen to serve in the parish of St Michael’s & All Angels, Lancing • Sandi Wickens to serve in the parish of Rotherfield • Shirley Tupper to serve in the parish of Beeding & Bramber, Botolphs • Lizzie Green to serve in the parish of St Alban’s, Gossops Green & Bewbush • Neill Stannard to serve in the parish of St Matthew’s, Worthing • Ali Marshall to serve in the parish of St Peter’s, Brighton • Thomas Crowley to serve in the parish of St Saviour’s, Eastbourne • Elizabeth Jinks, parish of St Mark’s, Holbrook