Alan Cossey has been appointed to the role of Bishop’s Adviser for Licensed Lay Ministry.
In the Diocese of Norwich, a Licensed Lay Minister is a voluntary minister authorised by the bishop to teach and preach, conduct worship and assist with the pastoral ministry of a church.
Alan is a Churchwarden and is currently a Licenced Lay Minister for the Mattishall and Tudd Valley benefice. On his appointment, Alan said:
“I am really pleased to have been appointed as Bishop’s Adviser for Licensed Lay Ministers. As an LLM myself it is easier to understand the viewpoint of other LLMs (and correspondingly takes more effort to see things from a clergy viewpoint – something I will try hard to do). There are currently just under 100 LLMs (and 50+ with permission to officiate) in our diocese and they play a very important part in bringing the gospel to those around us, both in the church and outside in the community. LLM ministry is not just a sort of “clergy-lite”, but a distinctive calling. I will do my best to help my fellow LLMs respond to that effectively and lovingly.”
The Bishop of Thetford, the Rt Revd Ian Bishop said:
“I am delighted that Alan Cossey has accepted the invitation to become Bishop’s Advisor for Licensed Lay Ministry. Alan brings great personal experience of being an LLM, a passion for the Gospel and is known and trusted by the LLM’s in the Diocese. I know he shares, with me, the belief that we need to do more to recognise the vocational call that is LLM ministry. We would love to see more coming forward to explore whether this might be God’s call to them.”
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- Find out more: Licensed Lay Ministers – Diocese of Norwich
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- Explore your calling through: Shared Vocation Space – Diocese of Norwich
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- Contact Alan Cossey, Bishop’s Adviser for Licensed Lay Ministry: alan.cossey@dioceseofnorwich.org / 07909 446 847