1. Tell us a bit about yourself.
I am married to Janine and we have three grown up children. We have travelled as a family and enjoyed living in Hungary and Switzerland. Janine and I are now happily settled back in Kent and enjoying being ‘home’. I worked for a long time as a lawyer but felt in recent years that I was being called in a different direction by God and am enjoying discerning what God might now be calling me to.
2. What first drew you to study at St Mellitus College?
I have been on a journey with God for the last few years and I felt a real sense of heading in the right direction when my DDO suggest that the Caleb Stream (now the Elizabeth Pathway) might be the best way forward for me. I was completing a Certificate in Theology and felt that the purpose and design of the Elizabeth Pathway was a great next step and way forward for someone at my stage of life. I came to an Open Day at St Mellitus on my birthday and felt very welcome. When I was then offered a place at St Mellitus later that year, it was a very emotional moment as I felt that I was being led and affirmed by the Holy Spirit. Until that moment, I had not realised how much this journey meant to me.
3.Can you share a moment or experience that was particularly meaningful or transformative for you?
Spending time with my fellow students on the Elizabeth Pathway at our first residential weekend at the start of October was a deeply meaningful experience. There is a unique type of vulnerability which you experience as you seek to respond to God’s calling at this stage of life, and to be able to meet with others who are ‘in the same boat’ and to realise that you share the same hopes and fears as you submit to God’s will, and that there is a role for you, was a beautiful moment.
4. Theology at St Mellitus is academically demanding. Can you share a moment when you were stretched intellectually—and how that challenge shaped you?
The Old Testament module with Mark Scarlatta opened up a deeper understanding for me of the salvation story for God’s people which runs as a thread through the Old Testament. I was blessed to have the opportunity to spend such a significant amount of time working my way through the Old Testament and challenging some of the misconceptions about the God of the Old Testament which I had held for many years.
5. Can you tell us about the formation side of studying at St Mellitus College?
I love the fact that worship and prayer are at the heart of everything we do at St Mellitus and that we start and finish the day with a time of worship with Jesus at the centre of our community. The formation times in the afternoon have been a time of rich learning for me and encouraged me to deepen my understanding of different aspects of ministry ranging, for example, from enhancing my prayer life through how to address disability in a church environment. We are blessed by the tremendous quality of ministry experience of those who lead those sessions. The opportunity then to reflect and learn in formation groups with other members of the Elizabeth Pathway has provided an encouraging and safe space to help me understand how to reflect Jesus’ example in my life.
6. Why does theological study matter beyond the walls of a college or church, and how has your time here shaped the way you engage with the world?
My studies have encouraged me to broaden my perspective and to be open to exploring different aspects of the Christian faith and practice that I had either been unaware of before or had not spent time investigating. For example, my studies of spirituality have helped me to have a much greater understanding of embodied spirituality and the ways in which our faith involves physically responding to God. This could be through taking the bread and wine at the Eucharist or praising God through singing or playing an instrument. It can also be seen by taking the time to observe what is around us and what God may be saying to us through nature or those we encounter in our daily lives (however unexpected!).
7. What tips or advice would you give to someone thinking of studying theology or joining St Mellitus College?
The discernment process and studying theology are challenging and coming to them later in life brings its own challenges. My advice would be to approach the course with humility and to be open to the advice and encouragement you will receive from your Elizabeth Pathway tutor (Jonathan) and your fellow students – their combined wisdom and experience is invaluable and a real blessing from God.
