A CLERGY HUSBAND'S SURVIVAL GUIDE by MATTHEW CAMINER
OR as Mr T's vicar re-titled it .....
BACK COVER BLURB: Women now comprise almost half the priests serving in the Church of England. As a result, there are many male Clergy spouses who have had to come to terms with the seismic shift that occurs in family life when a wife embarks on the journey from exploration of vocation - through selection, training and formation - to ordination and a life of ministry.
The author had his own busy career when he suddenly found himself playing second fiddle rather than being the 'doer' in the household. Not only did this subtly affect his marriage, but as friends and acquaintances became 'parishioners', he was required to respect boundaries, to be discreet and often to carry the burden of unsought confidentiality.
Drawing on these experiences and those of many fellow clergy spouses, this volume is a practical, informative and engaging guide to the joys and challenges of being married to a vicar. Part one deals with the process from initial call to ordination and beyond. Part two helps clergy husbands work through what their new role might involve. Part three looks at lifestyle and family issues, while Part four offers support and sensible advice if things go wrong.
FIRST SENTENCE {INTRODUCTION}: One Sunday afternoon a few weeks after Miriam's ordination, the doorbell rang.
MEMORABLE MOMENT: Please accept my apologies but for various reasons I won't be including my Memorable Moment.
SOURCE: A gift from Mr T's vicar. Depending on when I get around to posting this, on whether or not it is before or after the 24th of June, Mr T will either (A) be about to be ordained or (B) will have been ordained.
READ FOR: Not applicable.
MY THOUGHTS: A book that though largely aimed at the clergy husband many sections equally apply to the clergy wife as well. Indeed I'd even go as far as to say many will apply to the vicar him/herself.
Readable (I liked the fact there was no deep theology), humorous yet informative and practical (I particularly liked the chapters dealing with the issues surrounding the identity of being a clergy husband ... or indeed wife) BUT it has to be said some of the content did leave me worrying about things I hadn't thought to worry about before ... and believe me when it came to worrying I thought I had just about every eventuality covered. Then there was the fact that, obviously a Christian himself, the book didn't delve into what happens when your spouse is of a different/no faith or indeed of the same sex ... but then that really is a whole other story.
