The Diocese and the Wider Church
The Parish of Droitwich Spa, like all Anglican parishes, does not simply exist on its own. It is bound in communion with the wider Anglican church, both structurally and in the patterns of its life, prayer and mission. Moving outwards, as it were, from the smaller to the larger unit, these are the main structures through which we belong to something larger.
Part of the Diocese of Worcester
The Diocese of Worcester is one of 44 dioceses that together make up the Church of England. It covers Worcestershire, the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley, and a few parishes in both Sandwell and the north of Gloucestershire. The diocese, as a geographical entity, presided over by a bishop, with clergy and other advisers working together
with him, is the fundamental unit of the church. Parishes represent subdivisions of a diocese, and larger groupings like provinces represent ways in which dioceses work together.
The Bishop of Worcester is Rt Rev'd Dr John Inge. He shares his episcopal ministry with the Bishop of Dudley, Rt Rev'd David Walker. Within his diocese there are 190 parishes, and 281 churches. The diocese covers rural and urban parishes of great variety.
The chief church of the Diocese is Worcester Cathedral — more technically the Cathedral Church of Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary. This sits in the centre of Worcester City. Cathedrals are so called because they are the place where the bishop has his main seat (Latin = cathedra) which symbolises his role as a teacher for the diocese.
Part of the Church of England
Technically, we've skipped a level here. Worcester is first part of the Province of Canterbury, the group of dioceses presided over by the Archbishop of Canterbury, and the Church of England is made up of the two provinces of Canterbury and York working together. They work so closely together in practice though, that the separate structures of the provinces rarely come into play.
The Church of England is the traditional and historical expression in England of the faith that was brought to these shores by St Augustine of Canterbury, the church that was founded by Jesus Christ on the rock of Peter. The church was renewed in its commitment to the Bible by the movement known as the Reformation, but still continued to maintain the symbolic links of continuity with the church of the first centuries by maintaining the historic ministry of bishops, priests and deacons.
Today the church continues to value the ancient Tradition of the church, particularly the scriptures as the foremost expression and record of God's self-revelation through Jesus Christ. But at the same time, believing that church always goes on being reformed and renewed, continues to work at ways of reformulating and re-expressing traditional belief faithfully and appropriately for the contemporary world.
Part of the Anglican Communion
The Church of England is also the original church of the Anglican Communion. This was originally simply far flung parts of the Church of England, as clergy travelled out with colonists to America, Canada and later Australia as chaplains and vicars to the settlers. To it was added missionary churches founded mainly as part of the expansion of the British Empire, and often as part of what was seen as its work of “civilizing the natives”. However, many missionaries were equally likely to be seen as a threat to the business interests driving colonization, and often their churches were critical of the powers that be, and not simply an extension of them.
From these beginnings grew a family of churches that shared a likeness, particularly rooted in use of the Book of Common Prayer, and in a sense of being related to the mother Church of England, and particularly to the Archbishop of Canterbury. The Archbishop came to be seen as a focal point for the emerging family: regarded as “first among equals” (primus inter pares) he had influence and affection, but no power or jurisdiction.
Today the Anglican Communion still shares certain habits and patterns of prayer, and more formal structures of belonging: the Lambeth conference, the Anglican Consultative Council, and the Primates Meeting (a meeting of the senior bishops of the worldwide Communion). It has, however, grown much more diverse, and often fractious and turbulent. Nonetheless, it continues as a now worldwide family, distinctive from both the Roman Catholic Church, and the various Protestant bodies.
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