Eastern Region Ministry Course

It is the final weekend of the ERMC residential for this year. More photos may follow, but for now here are the stoles and reader scarves looking fabulous.

Congratulations to two of our MA students, Gill Shaw and Helen Bryant, who read papers at the Cambridge Theological Federation Research Day on Monday.

This was a great day, enabling research students and staff to share their research with each other. It concluded with a celebration (with cake) of staff publications (our own Charles Read having three in recent months!) and Federation Worship at Fisher House led by the Margaret Beaufort Institute.

ERMC is a great place to train if you want to do an MA as part of your training - full or part time.

Book your place – Cambridge Theological Federation Annual Research Day 2026 – Ridley Hall, Cambridge Cambridge Theological Federation Annual Research Day 2026 – Ridley Hall, Cambridge, Mon 11 May 2026 - Join us for a day of engaging research presentations, stimulating discussion, and community celebration at the Cambridge Theological Federation Annual Research Day 2026 with the theme Giving Voi...

Justine Allain Chapman, our director of Pastoral Studies and Vice-Principal, regularly contributes to Pause for Thought on BBC Radio 2. Here is her latest broadcast: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p0njq7t4?fbclid=IwY2xjawRp1lJleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETEwYmV4aTVqRXd5MHFoY1pvc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHjNYNuUsQ1X2J6EaXoNMuOPP1DlCa4a9mXAE76hsU1j_pY_UzPmWWZJU4x00_aem_v_QcXbnTGjGshaQM-tDhKQ

BBC Radio 2 - Pause For Thought, Justine Allain-Chapman: "Follow the yellow brick road" Justine Allain-Chapman on this week's theme 'Movie Lines To Live By'.

Our Director of Liturgy and Worship, Charles Read, has written a chapter in this newly published book from Oxford University Press. He has contributed a chapter on Gender Inclusive Language in Anglican Worship and joins a long list of international Anglican scholars contributing to the book. Charles comments: "This chapter is based on my PhD research on gender inclusive language in Church of England worship but writing it allowed me to look across the Anglican communion as a whole. The Church of England comes out of this survey quite well! There is a renewed interest in this area in the Church of England too. I've written a more popular level Grove Booklet that askes what local churches can do but the chapter in the Oxford Handbook gives a peer-reviewed academic survey to underpin the practical task.".

Illuminating Women in Theology: December Spotlight

This month, we celebrate Dr Rebecca S. Watson—Director of Studies at the Eastern Region Ministry Course and an Associate Supervisor at Westcott House She is a distinguished biblical scholar whose work brings Scripture into conversation with ecology, psychology, and the life of the Church.

Dr Watson has just completed a 10-year term on the Council of the Archbishop’s Education Trust, which oversees the Lambeth Research Degrees in Theology. She is an active member of the Sheffield Centre for Interdisciplinary Biblical Studies the John Ray Initiative, and several learned societies, including SOTS and the International Association for the Psychology of Religion (IAPR).

Her current projects include co-editing a three-volume handbook on the Bible and Animals and editing a journal special issue on interdisciplinary approaches to climate change in theology and biblical studies. She also continues collaborative work with experts in psychology and oceanography to bring their insights into dialogue with biblical studies, and serves on the editorial boards of the SOTS Monograph Series and the Journal for the Study of the Old Testament (JSOT).

Alongside her academic and church commitments, Dr Watson treasures her family life: two semi-adult children, two dogs, two cats, and a husband who serves as vicar of seven rural parishes in Northamptonshire.

We celebrate her inspired teaching, her scholarship, and the flourishing she nurtures across our community.
discover her publications here: Cambridge.academia.edu/RebeccaWatson

A moment of joy from the ERMC Summer School R***e. The talent of our students continually amazes me, we had comedy, musicals, sea shanties, pop songs, boomwhackers, original songs & poetry, the staff play and our first bit of ERMC ballet.

Today at Summer School after our quiet morning we had Science Experiments including making slime, bath bombs, ea bag rockets and fire hands. The fire hands were so amazing I forgot to take a photo so here's a teabag rocket about to take off

A big Thank-You to Lesley.

Our brand new Director of Pastoral Studies, Justine Allain Chapman, has been on the radio again! Her latest Pause for Thought on BBC Radio 2 was yesterday (during summer school) and you can hear it here:

Pause For Thought - Justine Allain Chapman - BBC Sounds Justine Allain Chapman on this week's theme 'The Joy of Animals'.

Preparations for Summer School are in full swing.
Tutors are finalising teaching materials, communion whites are on the line (1st load), The Blacknose Sheep is preparing to reopen, about to arrange coach and lunch for Tuesdays trip for the Mission and Evangelism module....
Looking forward to seeing this year's community starting to form (it will grow again in September when more students will join us).

Listen to our new Director of Pastoral Studies, Justine Allain Chapman, on BBC Radio 2 doing her latest Pause for Thought.

BBC Radio 2 - Pause For Thought, Justine Allain-Chapman: "Change the course of history" Justine Allain-Chapman on this week's theme 'Speaking Up For Others'.