April 2023: A Time for Everything
Each month, the Church of Scotland's ‘Talking Ministry' series will share a personal story from those serving in Christian ministry, along with resources filled with questions, prayers and reflections to help encourage reflection on how God might be calling you at this time.
For April, Rev Anikó Schütz Bradwell speaks about her role as minister of the combined parishes of Humbie and Yester, Bolton and Saltoun and the spiritual journey has taken her from eastern Germany to East Lothian, via Iona and the Holy Land.
My ministry: Rev Anikó Schütz Bradwell
Rev Anikó Schütz Bradwell was ordained and inducted into Humbie and Yester, Bolton and Saltoun in 2015. She has served as an Assembly Trustee of the Church of Scotland and as a member of the Ecumenical Relations Committee and the World Mission Council. She has also represented the Church of Scotland at the General Assembly of the World Council of Reformed Churches and on a working group of the Community of Protestant Churches in Europe. She was recently appointed convenor of the ecumenical Iona Community.
Originally from Germany, she is married to David and the couple have a five-year old son, Finn.
When did you first get involved with the church?
I have been involved with the church since I was a teenager, helping with children's groups and other things and was part of a gospel choir started by our minister. Through that, I met people who had grown up in the church more than I had and heard more about personal faith and what it could mean for your life. It wasn't a case of a sudden conversion, but it made sense to me.
I studied religion at university, where I got involved in student church and visited the Taizé Community in France for the first time. It is a big ecumenical community with young people from all different nationalities and denominations. I was fascinated by what was happening there, so I applied to become a long-term volunteer.
It was brilliant. I was part of an international group and we had a lot of responsibility in leading meetings. I have friends all around the world through being a part of Taizé.
What brought you to Scotland?
Someone at Taizé told me about something similar, but smaller in scale, on an island in Scotland. I was finishing my studies so I applied to become a volunteer on Iona.
I went up for six weeks and this is me still in Scotland 17 years later!
There is much more of a sense of social justice on Iona, and very engaging and creative worship. I liked it so much, I applied for a permanent position and came back for two-and-a-half years.
As my time there came to an end, I got to talking with one of the members of the community, Ewan Aitken, who was secretary of the Church of Scotland's Church and Society Council, and he suggested I do an internship with the Church in Edinburgh. So I did and worked there for a number of years, where I met my husband, David.
What led you to a ministry career?
In Edinburgh I was very involved with the congregation at Morningside United and became an elder. The minister, Rev John Smith, inspired about eight or nine people from his congregation to enter the ministry and was brilliant at nurturing and challenging us to be fully involved in the life of the congregation.
The feeling that I should explore ministry became quite strong and in August 2011, I started training for ministry at New College in Edinburgh. It was very intensive. There were no days off because on Sunday you were at services, but I was part of a really supportive group and made great friendships.
My placements were all very different. My first year was in Colinton Parish Church with Rev Rolf Biles, another German. Then in my second placement I went to Richmond Craigmillar, which was a completely different kind of ministry. We used to have our supervisor meetings over peeling potatoes in the café – much more hands on and a very different kind of congregation.
I did my summer full-time placement in Jerusalem and that was really interesting because I spent a lot of time on the West Bank. Some things I saw there, you would not think possible – people still living in refugee camps 50 years on or living in poverty because they can't work or are prevented from working, but at the same time you saw community groups working together like Sindyanna, which brings together Israeli, Palestinian, Jewish, Muslim, Christian women, all getting to know each other on a human level rather than as somebody from "the other side".
I did my probation in Corstorphine Old with the brilliant Rev Moira McDonald and I learnt so much from her about how to be a very pastoral minister. Then after probation I moved down here and have been here seven-and-a-half years.
What is your parish like?
It's a very rural area. Lots of farming, but also lots of people who commute to Edinburgh, but there is a great community feel here. During Covid, we had lots of support groups. People went shopping for their neighbours, we did weekly soup runs to elderly folks on their own which are still carrying on, and we still have a weekly community lunch and warm bank. People really look out for each other.
We have started a new children's group on a Friday afternoon with a number of regular families who wouldn't necessarily come on a Sunday because Sunday mornings are when children's sports happen, but we also have monthly Sunday school, which works well because people know when it is on.
Last year, we held a Forest Church and we are planning more as a different way of engaging with the world and with creation. Last time, we had a good number of our regular congregation, but also some people who wouldn't necessarily come to church.
Are social issues an important part of your ministry?
We have a social gospel and we are called to do everything we can to make the world better, more peaceful and kinder. If that means challenging injustice and speaking truth to power, then that is something we need to do. In parish ministry, so much of what we do is pastoral, and there is a big social element to it where we see people who are isolated and in need of practical support.
What would you say to someone contemplating ministry?
There are so many different ways of serving in ministry. Over the last 18 months, I have been doing a bit of podcasting and I interviewed a couple of folk who trained with me. One of them is a chaplain in a prison, another is a chaplain in a children's hospice. We all trained together and we are doing very different ministries and I think that's brilliant.
There are so many different ways in which you can serve, so I would definitely say explore it and don't be put off by the negativity we sometimes find.
We are going through a difficult time, but we are talking about a Church that has been around for 2000 years and in those 2000 years, the Church has had so many different shapes and forms.
There are loads of people who have a personal faith, but might not necessarily feel welcome or comfortable engaging with church as it is. We really need to get away from the attitude that we open the church doors on a Sunday and hope people come in. We need to get out and meet people where they are and need to serve our community.
The Church will continue, although maybe not in a way that we know it.
We don't know where we are going, but God is with us and will continue to be there.
April Discernment Resources: A Time for Everything
For everything there is a season,
a time for every activity under heaven.
A time to be born and a time to die.
A time to plant and a time to harvest.
A time to kill and a time to heal.
A time to tear down and a time to build up.
A time to cry and a time to laugh.
A time to grieve and a time to dance.
A time to scatter stones and a time to gather stones.
A time to embrace and a time to turn away.
A time to search and a time to quit searching.
A time to keep and a time to throw away.
A time to tear and a time to mend.
A time to be quiet and a time to speak.
A time to love and a time to hate.
A time for war and a time for peace.Ecclesiastes 3:1-8
These well-known words from the third chapter of Ecclesiastes are often recited during funeral services or at moments of changes and transition. We may have heard them over and over, and they can be loved for both their familiarity and their timelessness.
But a note of caution needs to be sounded. If we tell ourselves that there's time for everything then we can very easily persuade ourselves that no present action is required; there will be time for that later. Aren't we all procrastinators at heart? There is a time for everything, but perhaps there isn't time for everything. Therefore, some things need doing now.
There are so many things that we could be doing with our lives and so much of that which would, undoubtedly, be worthwhile. But the result often is that it can be difficult to home in on that which we really should be doing, as being of highest importance and eternal significance.
How might I serve God is surely the question of all questions and it might just be that you need to consider it now. Yes, there's a time for everything but in the words of the Moloko classic song, ‘The Time is Now.'
Have you glimpsed something of the glory of God? Are you discovering more of who God is and, therefore, who you are? Are you on the journey of falling deeper in love with God? Has following in the footsteps of Jesus become what you're about?
Might God be calling you to serve - to give your life? Is it time?
Prayer
Loving Lord, it is so difficult to filter out the many voices that compete for my attention. I want, above all, to hear you but it's not easy. Noise and clamour and distractions are ever present.
My prayer is that you would seek me out in moments of stillness, brief as they might be - and there, that you would speak. I long to serve you, Lord, and to serve according to your will.
Is this the time? Is this my time?
Speak, Lord, your servant is listening.
In Jesus' name, AMEN.
Song Words for Reflection (Mark Altrogge)
© 1982 People of Destiny International
I want to serve the purpose of God In my generation
I want to serve the purpose of God While I am alive
I want to give my life For something that will last forever
Oh, l delight, I delight to do Your will
I want to build with silver and gold In my generation
I want to build with silver and gold While I am alive
I want to give my life For something that will last forever
Oh, l delight, I delight to do Your will
What is on Your heart? Show me what to do
Let me know Your will And I will follow You
What is on Your heart? Show me what to do
Let me know Your will And I will follow You
I want to see the kingdom of God In my generation
I want to see the kingdom of God While I am alive
I want to live my life For something that will last forever
Oh, I delight, I delight to do Your will
I want to see the Lord come again In my generation
I want to see the Lord come again While I am alive
I want to give my life For something that will last forever
Oh l delight, I delight to do Your will
More information
If you would like to consider how God might be calling you to serve at this time, you may want to discuss further with your minister or be in touch with your Presbytery to explore local opportunities.
If you are interested in exploring a call to the recognised ministries of the Church, you can find more information on our vocations page and can contact ministry@churchofscotland.org.uk for a Discernment Conversation with one of the Recruitment Team.