Appointment of a New Priest in Charge at St Mary Magdalene 

From the PCC

Following The Revd Emma's annoucement of her new appointment at St Andrew's Church, read more about that here. Your PCC have been hard at work with the diocese to find the right individual to lead the ministry of the Church with the same passion and commitment that we have always recieved from our previous preists. We are delighted to announce that The Reverend Dr Ryan Gilfeather has been offered and accepted the post and a licensing ceremony will take place at St Mary Magdalene on Wed 8th October 2025. Below is information from Archdeacon Janet, please take the time to read and if you have any questions please reach out to Godfrey or Cathy.

From Archdeacon Janet

The Churchwardens and PCC have been working with Bishop Jane, myself as Archdeacon and Revd Susannah Underwood as Assistant Rural Dean to take forward the appointment of your new Priest in Charge with a minimum amount of delay.

Following due process, a candidate was interviewed this week. They were offered the post and have accepted. I am therefore delighted to be able to announce that The Reverend Dr Ryan Gilfeather, currently Self Supporting Assistant Curate in Training in the Welwyn Team, has been appointed as Priest in Charge of the Parish of Hatfield Hyde, St Mary Magdalene subject to the completion of the usual legal formalities. The Licensing Service will take place in Church on Wednesday 8th October 2025 at 7.30pm and more details will follow.  Meanwhile please remember Ryan and Christie in your prayers at this time of change.

Following due process, a candidate was interviewed this week. They were offered the post and have accepted. I am therefore delighted to be able to announce that The Reverend Dr Ryan Gilfeather, currently Self Supporting Assistant Curate in Training in the Welwyn Team, has been appointed as Priest in Charge of the Parish of Hatfield Hyde, St Mary Magdalene subject to the completion of the usual legal formalities. The Licensing Service will take place in Church on Wednesday 8th October 2025 at 7.30pm and more details will follow.  Meanwhile please remember Ryan and Christie in your prayers at this time of change.

We also need to share with you that Ryan is married to another member of the clergy. His wife (the Rev’d Dr Christie Gilfeather) has been the vicar of Codicote since Summer 2024. When she was licensed to that post they moved into the vicarage in Codicote. In discussion with the Bishop of Hertford, the current plan is that during parish hours Ryan will reside in the parish of St Mary Magdalene, Hatfield Hyde, but the family home will continue to be in Codicote. Ryan has produced a document about how this will work and describes how he will ensure that he is very accessible and available to parishioners as well as well embedded in, known by and connected to the wider parish. Ryan writes “The headline is that I will seek to be as present in the parish and as much a part of the community as I would be if I lived in the vicarage. I will commit to working very hard to achieve this goal.”

Please do take time to read the document and then take up any questions with Godfrey and Cathy, your Parish Representatives.

With prayers and good wishes,

Archdeacon Janet

Document Reference

The document referenced above can be accessed here