Catrin Hubbard: ordained deacon in September 2020 - ordained priest in June 2021

I have the sense of my future ministry involving shepherding God’s rainbow sheep

My name is Catrin Hubbard and I’ve been licensed as a Lay Worker (pending ordination, God, the Bishop and Covid willing) to the Parish of Buxton with Burbage and King Sterndale.

I grew up in Liverpool and Ynys Môn, I’m baptised Church in Wales and confirmed Church of England, it’s an interesting mix of world views to have grown up with.

I went to Sunday school and confirmation classes as I grew up, both of which nurtured and deepened my faith but after confirmation I found grown up church boring so drifted away over the years.

I came back to faith in my early twenties after finishing university.

My degree was in Counselling and Therapeutic Studies so of course I ended up as a youth worker, both for the local authority and for my local church.

Not long after I came to faith, people started talking to me about ordination (specifically my mentor, a beautiful man called Geoff, and my great aunt).

I found the idea of God calling someone like me to such a position laughable and told them so.

After a few years as a youth worker, I felt that my theological learning was lacking so I joined the Light Project in Chester studying part time for a Foundation Degree in Community Evangelism and working part time as a Youth and Children’s Worker for a lovely local parish.

I stayed on at the church part time after completing my studies and worked as a schools worker part time too.

More recently I spent six years in Sutton, Surrey, working as a secondary schools worker for a small Christian charity, leading assemblies, lessons, lunch clubs and the like.

Over the years my mentor had kept up his pestering about ordination and other people joined in too.

I finally gave in, asking God if ordination was the plan for me, I cried through fear and relief (as if I’d been carrying a weight that I could now put down) when the answer came back “Yes”.

I trained at Cranmer Hall in Durham and loved it there. The people are amazing, so humble, honest and funny, accepting and supporting me through the bumpy road of learning to accept myself as God created me to be, often rupturing what I thought I knew, as well as learning about things I didn’t know had names let alone what those names where (who knew the swinging incense thingy was called a thurible!) 

I have the sense of my future ministry involving shepherding God’s rainbow sheep, people on the margins and people who have previously been hurt by the church, showing them God’s love, inclusion and belonging. I have no idea what that will look like but I know God does, so that’s ok for now.

Favourite Bible passages: Psalm 73:23 and Micah 6:8 “What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” (NRSV)

Favourite hymn: “Guide Me O Thou Great Redeemer” (I am Welsh!) and my favourite worship song is “Reckless Love” which talks about the overwhelming, never-ending, reckless love of God.