Our Rector for 16 years, Reverend Philip Hawthorn, retired in 2026. We had wonderful celebrations of his time with us, both at the barbeque on 13 June and at his last service on 21 June – both beautiful sunny days.
So what happens during the vacancy? Reverend Debbie Pow explains:
“In many ways we will continue to operate as usual. We are in the fortunate position of having great Church Wardens who will bear the ultimate responsibility for both St Mary’s and Stephens’ churches during the vacancy. We also, unusually, have two Associate Priests - myself and Katy Garner - who will continue to offer services in the same way as now. Katy is also full-time chaplain to Bath Spa University, so we will probably see her less often than myself. Our aim is that Katy will preach and lead once a month, and I will lead most of the rest of the services, with the support of occasional visiting priests to ease the load.
“We are likely to be without a Rector for a year at least – that is normal Church of England Practice. There is a current shortage of clergy in the Church of England which means that some parishes end up being in vacancy for longer periods of time, with few applications for the jobs going.
“The process for appointing the next Rector will be that the Bishop, Archdeacon, Area Dean and Church Patrons will meet with our PCCs probably in early autumn to discuss the process. A small group from the benefice will convene to draw up the Parish Profile – a document showing who we are and the sort of Rector we are looking for. Congregation members will be encouraged to input their views into that process. In due course the post will be advertised, applicants shortlisted and then interviewed by a panel including the aforementioned dignitaries and two reps from each parish. Great weight is placed on the parish reps’ choices, with the others contributing their advice and opinions where appropriate.
“One of the many wonderful things about our faith is that we never journey alone through our challenges. Whenever Jesus faced choices or challenges, he generally retired somewhere to pray. Prayer is always important, but especially during vacancy, and there will be opportunities to pray corporately during this process, as well as privately. There will undoubtedly be further uncertainties along the way – there always are, but there are also opportunities. I do feel that God is with us in the days and weeks ahead, just as he is with Philip in his retirement. While I’m very sad that we’re losing Philip, I am excited to see how things unfold and what God has for us next.”