Dear friends,
Dr Lisa Curtice, who has trained with the Scottish Episcopal Institute for the past three years is to be ordained to the diaconate in our Diocese of Glasgow and Galloway at Michaelmas 2021. She will be curate in the Renfrewshire Region. This will involve her working with all the charges and clergy within the region including the Dean.
Lisa brings to ordained ministry a wealth of experience having worked mainly with voluntary organizations in the past.
Born in Lancashire, Lisa was brought up in Brighton on the south coast of England and has missed living by the sea ever since. She became a lover of the Anglican tradition while still at school, attending Evensong though her parents were from different Christian traditions and became confirmed on her marriage some 40 years ago. Strong ecumenical relations have been very important to her throughout her life and since moving to Scotland in 1989 and becoming a member of the Scottish Episcopal Church, she has worked regularly with members of the Church of Scotland and the Roman Catholic Church. At St Mary’s Cathedral in Glasgow, where she has worshipped for some 25 years, Lisa developed a great love for SEC liturgy and now, in her placement at St John’s, Johnstone and St Margaret’s, Renfrew, she is learning how to support people to worship online and by telephone, as well as in person.
In her working life, Lisa has had two abiding passions, social justice and supporting people in marginalised communities to make their voices heard. As a university researcher, she mentored community groups to do their own research and she continued to advocate for human rights and co-operation between sectors as the first CEO of what is now the Scottish Commission for Learning Disabilities and as programme director for ‘People Powered Health and Wellbeing’ at the Health and Social Care Alliance Scotland. Lisa is a pastoral supervisor and, as the current Director of the Craighead Institute for Life and Faith, seeks to continue its Ignatian tradition of enabling people to live out their discipleship by integrating their faith with their calling to be faithful citizens. Married to the political scientist Prof Sir John Curtice, she has seen many a long election night and is looking forward to getting back to seeing her daughter Ruth and son-in-law, Rob in London, and borrowing grandchildren Arthur and Eve for days of fun and cuddles.
We pray for Lisa and the Regional Clergy: the Rev Deborah Davison, the Rev Wilhelmina Nesbitt, and the Very Rev Reuben Preston as they plan for the arrival of Lisa next year as the Regional Curate at a time of exploring exciting new ways to help train and embed our new clergy into the life of our diocese.
+ Kevin
Glasgow and Galloway
11 December 2020