Volunteers at SMR

Chris Whitwell, Volunteer Co-Ordinator, writes:

One of the greatest privileges of a role like mine is having the opportunity to spend time listening to and talking with people. I’m sadly not able to do that with as many people as I would like, but I am incredibly thankful for every person who makes the choice to give their valuable time, freely, for the ongoing thriving of the church and its wider mission.

In a place like St Mary Redcliffe (SMR), this choice can be framed in a number of different ways. For some, it is volunteering, for others, it might be serving, discipleship or the outward expression of faith, and there are so many reasons why people make this choice to give their time.

Regardless of how we frame it, ‘volunteering’ is a powerful choice and even in those times where our motivation might be to benefit self, our freely given time is almost always to the benefit of others. I see so many examples of how others benefit from the volunteering of this community every week. Once again, thank you.

Last week, I attended a workshop with one of our Hub volunteers at Bristol University all about engaging young adults in volunteering. They surveyed their students back in 2022 and asked them about what their motivations were for volunteering. Two of the top 3 motivations for volunteering were, ‘helping others’ and ‘making a difference’.

I imagine these motivations chime with many of you too and without wanting to shamelessly start pitching for more volunteers too much, please know that there are lots of opportunities at SMR to both help others and make a difference. Please let me know if you would like to chat more about that!

I understand the pressures of time, how valuable it is and how out of control of it we can feel at times. The impact of volunteering at SMR is significant and it spans right across the day-to-day life of the church and community. No matter the role you play or the amount of time that you give, you are a part of that significant impact and finally, because you can never say it enough, THANK YOU!

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Sermon on Sunday,10th August 2025

By matthew.buckmaster • August 10, 2025

Preached by the Revd Laura Verrall-Kelly, Associate Vicar

Interregnum Information

By Laura.Verrall-Kelly • August 7, 2025

Keeping You Updated During the Interregnum As I prepare to go on maternity leave at the end of August, I want to share some important updates regarding our Sunday Services and communication during the Interregnum period. We’ve taken time to consider what is sustainable and meaningful in this season of transition, and while some of the changes have been difficult, they are intended to ensure we can continue to worship together well. Service Changes 8am BCP Eucharist We’ve made the difficult decision to pause this service during the vacancy, following a PCC vote (with 3 votes against). This is due to the limited availability of clergy to cover two Eucharist services on a Sunday. We’re grateful that this decision has allowed us to secure strong cover for the other services. If you’re looking for an early service, the Cathedral offers Morning Prayer at 7.40am and BCP Eucharist at 8am. This change to the 8am will happen from the beginning of October. Mattins & Evensong These will continue with support from a growing team of Lay Leaders. If you're interested in helping lead, please speak to Simon Goodman. Please note: bespoke online orders of service will no longer be produced weekly. Instead, we will use a standard booklet and hymn book in church. Online viewers will receive a standard order of service plus a document with Bible readings and hymns. 10.30am Sung Eucharist Some small changes are being made to simplify things for visiting clergy: Notices will be read by a Church Warden, Duty Warden or Church Representative Communion distribution will return to queue formation A Gradual Hymn will replace the Responsorial Psalm - there is simply not the resource to produce a weekly or termly Psalm hand out in church. We’ll use a standard “Eucharist during the Vacancy” order of service (in booklet form), with hymn books provided in church. As with other services, online resources will mirror this setup. These changes to the 10.30am will happen from the 17th August. Christingle Service Due to the scale of this service and the planning it requires, we’ve made the difficult decision to pause it this year. Without full-time clergy to oversee preparations and lead the service, we don’t believe we can deliver it safely or well. We know this will be disappointing, but this service will be back. Ongoing Communication Thanks to Chris Duncan and Sam Love, we will continue to send out a weekly email during the Interregnum. I’m very grateful to both of them for stepping up to support in this way. We know some of these decisions may not affect everyone, while others may feel them more deeply. We don’t expect universal agreement, and that’s okay — your questions and thoughts are welcome and valued. All we ask is that feedback is offered with kindness and respect for those who have worked hard to make these plans in a short space of time. Thank you for being part of this community and for your ongoing support as we navigate this together.