“I’ve needed people alongside God to get me to this point. And now, I hope to be that support for others.”
This Saturday, Canon Karen Czapiewski will be licensed as a Reader in a special service celebrating Readers and lay ministry. The service will admit two new Readers, including Karen, and license a third Reader along with several Lay Funeral Ministers.
“To be licensed as a Reader on Saturday is an incredible privilege. I’m still not entirely convinced it’s going to happen”, Karen said. “As a Reader, I will get to guide and help other people in their faith journey. I will be teaching people about God in church, and being true to the Gospels. For me to get to this point, other people have worked really hard and been very supportive, and I am so grateful.”
Karen has dedicated years of service to the church. Starting as a Sunday school teacher at 15 years old in Essex, she has always had a natural and long-standing faith: “My family were not regular churchgoers, I was the one in my family that engaged with church,” Karen recalled.
After moving to Gloucestershire with her husband for work, she was encouraged to consider ordination, but she felt that wasn’t her calling. She became involved in lay ministry, becoming a churchwarden, deanery secretary, deanery lay chair, and canon of the Cathedral.
She had a calling to Readership and lay ministry during her time as a lay chair, when she encountered an early draft of Setting God’s People Free: “The draft was a Church of England initiative aimed at empowering lay people in their faith, and it just spoke to me. I thought that this is what God has been wanting me to do all along. I was being called to lay ministry,” Karen reflected.
She started incorporating the ‘One Degree Shift’ materials from the London Institute of Contemporary Christianity into her daily life, making it a goal to mention her faith at least once a day: “I made a rule, from ‘One Degree Shift’, that I would mention Jesus, God, the church, or my faith at least once in conversation every day at work,” she explained. “It reached a stage where I would mention these at least three times a day, I gave myself a little checklist. I suddenly found that I was making connections with others about my faith, and people would approach me to talk. I loved it, and when I become licensed, I know this will happen even more.”
As a Reader, Karen is based in the Thames Head Benefice, which includes nine churches across six parishes.
“I’m excited about the future and the ways in which my role as a Reader will influence my other roles in the church, for example being a Bishop’s Advisor for those exploring ordination. I think it will give me new insights that will help me to listen and guide others more effectively.”
The licensing service at Gloucester Cathedral is open to everyone, to support those in Reader and licensed lay ministry whilst celebrating the Church and the diocese. All the licensed Readers and the clergy with whom they serve in ministry are invited to be present. It starts at 3pm at Gloucester Cathedral.
If you are interested to find out more about Reader ministry, contact Nick Partridge on ku.gr1745427561o.coi1745427561dsolg1745427561@egdi1745427561rtrap1745427561n1745427561.
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