Ilkley St Margaret's Church set to welcome new curate (From Ilkley Gazette)

Ilkley St Margaret's Church set to welcome new curate

11:00am Tuesday 5th February 2013 in Local news

The arrival of a new curate at an Ilkley church coincided with the 46th birthday of the church’s vicar.

Christopher Phillips, 30, who will be ordained deacon on June 30 and take up his duties immediately afterwards, has been appointed by the Bishop of Bradford as curate at St Margaret’s Church, Queens Road.

The father-of-three is expected to move to the area with his wife Hannah and children Peter, 11, Aidan, eight, and Catherine, four, shortly before his ordination.

Northumberland-born Mr Phillips, whose work experience includes a couple of years helping Durham University students to find living accommodation, is in the final year of his pre-ordination training at Ripon College, Cuddesdon, Oxford.

Vicar of St Margaret’s Father Philip Gray, who has just celebrated his birthday, believes it is the first time in living memory that St Margaret’s has had a curate, He said: “We look forward to welcoming Christopher and his family in the summer. He will come among us primarily to continue his formation and training to be a priest.”

While his parishioners look forward to welcoming a young man at the start of his Christian ministry, his new boss, Fr Philip, is this week enjoying the immediate fillip the birthday news has brought to another busy week which is the lot of a modern vicar.

“It will be lovely to work with Christopher, who I’m sure will be a hit with the parishioners and a big help to me in what is a very busy parish,” he said.