book of common prayer,evangelical,pcc,prayer,safeguarding,tradition

Joey Hardin
Son, brother, uncle to many
e-mail: [email protected]
Proposer: Barney Frith ([email protected]), Bath
Seconder: Doreen Maitland ([email protected]), Yeovil

Thank you for taking the time to read this! Please allow me to introduce myself:
About Me
I am Joey, a 21-year-old lay person and a member of St Aldhelm’s Church in Doulting, near Shepton
Mallet. I live between Wells and Cambridge, where I study music at university, and on the side of that
am a choral scholar in St Catharine’s College choir, though it was in our own Wells Cathedral where my
love for choral music and Anglican tradition began.
I am a great backer of the choral tradition of the Church of England; I find it a wonderful way to worship
God in the beauty of holiness and how it connects worshippers back centuries to other Christians before
us. It is certainly a proud heritage that we have: to boast some of the world’s finest music, not only now
but for hundreds of years!
Though not originally from an Anglican background, I have come to love the CofE and the way of
community life therein. As a young’un I attended my parents’ independent evangelical church, stopped
going for most of my childhood, but later began to rediscover my faith in Christ while singing in the
cathedral as a school student. It was through the beautiful inheritance of the Church of England that
Jesus Christ has transformed me.
I greatly admire the beautiful old churches scattered around every recess of England, as well as our
unique tradition of the Book of Common Prayer, and our ability to have a parish vicar to whom everyone
in a village can turn for help.
I have served my parish for the last two years as a reader and occasional organist; more recently I have
also served on the PCC as the deanery synod representative. It is such a blessing that local
communities continue to be shaped by the familial fellowship of our parish churches.
Beside my walk with God, (though never separate) I am an avid hiker and a keen brewer of mead. I
have quite a diverse variety of work experience including on assembly lines, as a family tour guide, an
exam invigilator in a secondary school (wherein I underwent safeguarding training having worked
closely with children) and, perhaps more sporadically, a jazz session pianist.

The Next Synod
I seek to offer a fresh perspective to synod as a young person: though my chief priority is that love and
trust in the Lord Jesus Christ, and love for our neighbours, dominate every aspect of synod including
my own ventures. General Synod is engaging with a lot of difficult debates, and we can only come
together to reach a respectful consensus equipped with the grace of Jesus.
In an increasingly urban world it is necessary to support rural parishes, particularly by raising more
money for churches which are not listed buildings. I have witnessed first-hand how many churches need
work done on the organ, roof repairs and new books among other things. Many parishes lack both lay
and clergy support staff, and consequently their congregations have suffered. As a member of a very
small and rural parish church, I desire to amplify the voices of all such churchgoers to restore dynamic
ministry opportunities for lay people.
As a young adult myself I feel I am able to engage with safeguarding matters in synod, and having
worked in a school I am familiar with the procedures, and can offer an informed perspective on these
things. Having experienced the personal issues of people of many ages, I have come to realise just
how helpful safeguarding training is for helping restoring the trust of many in the Church, and
subsequently in Jesus Christ. I hold that more people, both lay and clergy, should have the opportunity
to become equipped with the ability to help those who have suffered as a result of overstepping
pastorship, or whose trauma is in some way related to Christianity. Given my experience and age, I
believe I am in something of a unique position to positively affect the way Christians handle this matter
in a genuine way.
Lastly I am firm believer in every parish church having an incumbent: I am fortunate to belong to a
church which has a rector, but not everyone is as lucky, and many churches often face long-term
vacancies, particularly in rural areas. At synod I would stand up for rural churches so that they are
not overlooked as the Church of England grapples with the current clergy shortage crisis. One of the
great blessings had by England is our effective parish system; the presence of Christianity in every
community leaves nobody forcibly excluded and provides opportunities for people of all backgrounds
to love and encourage one another. As someone who has benefited from this system, namely with the
opportunity to learn from people in the community much older and experienced than me, I am called to
defend the system that has benefited so many of us here, no matter our age.
I hope I am able to be an encouragement to all of us in Bath and Wells, representing the concerns of
Somerset’s people in General Synod. If you would like to discuss further the motions I have raised,
please email me at the address on the previous page. I would appreciate your fullest support through
voting for me as your first-choice candidate: please do this if you trust me that I am capable of
influencing synod on these issues. Thank you and God bless you all.