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Introduction
We hope that what you see and read on these pages will give you some idea of Mirfield
and all that we are seeking to be and do here. With our unique setting we believe
that we are able to make a distinctive contribution to the overall provision of
theological education and ministerial formation within the Church of England.
You will see that we are seeking to maintain the distinctive character and ethos
of the College while being committed to a common endeavour, working closely with
our partners, especially the Northern Ordination Course and the Theology and Religious
Studies Department in the University of Leeds.
The College itself is set in the attractive and extensive grounds of the Community
of the Resurrection, but our geographical location makes us ideally situated to
engage with the challenges and opportunities of ministry and mission in a post-industrial
society.
Our primary task is the formation of those who are responding to a vocation to the
priesthood, and increasingly this happens in the wider context of our seeking to
be a resource for the whole people of God in this locality.
As a residential community we are a comparatively small college, and this is deliberate,
in order that we might seek to be a true community. In reality we are a more mixed
community than most people might think! Here we are seeking to foster a common life,
a life of prayer, work and study together, so that we might each grow in a sense
of mutual responsibility, and together may manifest what it is to be a part of the
Body of Christ.
The quarry in the grounds of the Community, where Keir Hardy once addressed a huge
gathering of local people from what was then a rugged industrial area, stands as
a reminder to us of our need to dig deeply, to recover for our own times and circumstances
the sources and resources for being Church, in and for God’s world.
In writing this I realise that any description of the place, any intimation of its
history, its present engagement, or even our confidence for the future, is no real
substitute for actually coming and seeing the vitality of our life, and experiencing
for yourself the gravitas of the worship in the great Community Church, for above
all else, here is a life that is being lived, a life which is continually being
judged, directed, and compelled by the Gospel of the Risen Christ.