RUNNING ST NICOLAS
The Church Electoral Roll is our parish church's register of electors and is the list of those qualified to attend and vote at the Annual Parochial Church Meeting. Elections for the Parochial Church Council (usually referred to simply as the 'PCC') and the parish's representatives on the Team Council and the Deanery Synod take place at this meeting, which is usually held in April.
Any person entitled to attend the Annual Parochial Church Meeting may raise any question of parochial or general church interest at the meeting. In 2007 and every 6 years thereafter the electoral roll is renewed. In a year of renewal, no names are carried over from the old roll and everyone must apply for inclusion on the new roll.
By enrolling (click here for details) you become a voting member of the Church of England and so help to ensure that all the decision-making processes of the Church represent its members as fully as possible.
Locally, the decisions about our life at St Nicolas are the responsibility of the Parochial Church Council, which meets seven or eight times a year. Some of its members belong because of the appointments they hold - the clergy, for example, together with the churchwardens and the parish's representatives on the Team Council and Deanery Synod (see below). Others are elected by members of the congregation. If you yourself would like to stand for election, or you know of someone you would like to encourage to stand, please contact the church office for the appropriate nomination form.
RUNNING THE WIDER CHURCH
St Nicolas is part of the Church of England, which is run along the lines of 'synodical government'. The word 'synod' derives from the Greek for 'together on the way' and just means 'assembly' or 'meeting'.
As mentioned above, decisions about our life at St Nicolas are the responsibility of the Parochial Church Council. Next we have the Team Council, which is responsible for the family of four churches within the Newbury Team Ministry. This consists of St Nicolas, St John's, St George's, Wash Common and St Mary's, Speen. Although the parishes within the Team operate more or less independently, there are sometimes decisions that have to be taken jointly, and there are often matters of common concern which it is good for us to be aware of and discuss. In the last few years, meetings of the Team Council have been broadened to include representatives from the parishes of St Mary's, Greenham and St Mary's, Shaw. This is known as the Newbury Cluster.
There are three further layers of synodical government.
Nationally, the Church of England has the General Synod which is its national parliament. General Synod makes decisions about church legislation and also has a high profile as a forum for discussing matters of public concern.
Next, each of the 43 dioceses in the Church has a Diocesan Synod. These usually meet three times a year to discuss diocesan business and local concerns, as well as sending forward motions for the General Synod to debate. They also debate issues passed to them by General Synod, which often wants the views of the dioceses before voting on major items of church legislation.
Further down the chain, each diocese is divided into a number of deaneries (our diocese, Oxford, has 29) each of which has a Deanery Synod. All the licensed clergy belong to this, while the lay members are elected by the lay people in the parishes. As well as discussing local and national matters, they can send motions to the diocesan synod and are often invited to consider issues passed back from diocesan synod.
Members of deanery synods are elected by the parishes every three years and elections will next come round in 2011. Members of deanery synods have an important role. They are responsible for discussing issues and making decisions at a local level, including consideration of the formula by which parishes share out the cost of ministry across the deanery. In addition they form the electoral college for the election of the Diocesan Synod (every three years) and the General Synod (every five years).
There is a great deal going on in the life of our church locally and plenty to keep us busy. But we don't exist in isolation from the rest of the Church. It's good for us to play our part in these other areas of influence and decision-making. Serving God in this way isn't for everyone, by any means! But might it be you? Or someone you know? And at the very least, all of us can perhaps be more aware of how the Church is run and pray in a more informed way for those entrusted with the responsibilities of representing and leading us.
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