Mark Clavier - Author

What the Heck Are Bishops For? What They're Supposed to Do (and Why it Matters More than Ever)

With the Church in Wales about to elect a new Archbishop and, later, a new Bishop of Bangor, I've distilled my essay from our 2021 report on ordained ministry into a post to ask 'What the heck are bishops for?"
#bishops #ChurchinWales #ArchbishopofWales

markclavier.substack.com/p/what-the-h...

A Well-Tempered Ministry Occasional Sketches from My Clerical Life

30 years ago, I was ordained on a hot day—young, unsure, and trying to picture the road ahead. It turned out stranger & more grace-filled than I could’ve imagined.

A reflection on beginnings, calling & change.

#Anglican #Priesthood #spiritualreflections

markclavier.substack.com/p/a-well-tem...

A World Ruled By Law How the Christian Moral Vision Shaped Our Rules-Based World Order

In 910, a William the Pious planted a seed in Cluny planted. Over the next millennium, it blossomed into the idea of international order.

From canon law to human rights — the Christian roots of our rules-based order.

markclavier.substack.com/p/a-world-ru...

"Orthodoxy or Death" An Unintended Pilgrimage in the South Peloponnese

A booking mistake led to a convent with the motto: Orthodoxy or death.

Our accidental pilgrimage in the South Peloponnese reminded me that faith can be soft as an old woman’s smile...and sharp as stone.
#koroni #Orthodox #pilgrimage #Greece

markclavier.substack.com/p/orthodoxy-...

Walking Together 4: A Commonwealth Church in Wales Trust, Shared Power, and the Hope of Renewal

I conclude my series today on imagining the Church as a commonwealth rather than a single institution by seeing how it might play out in the Church in Wales.

Walking Together 4: A Commonwealth Church in Wales open.substack.com/pub/markclav...

Walking Together 3: Bishops in Synod Naming the Institutions of the Church and How They Might Be Renewed

In an age when trust is thin, what does it mean for the Church to hold together as a community of grace? I look at how the church's institutions can help us listen well, share responsibility, & carry each other on the road ahead.
Walking Together 3: Bishops in Synod open.substack.com/pub/markclav...

Walking Together 2: How Synodality Could Renew the Church Towards a Culture of Discernment and Co-Responsibility

Walking Together 2: How Synodality Could Renew the Church
open.substack.com/pub/markclav...

Walking Together 1: Seeing the Church as a Commonwealth Why the Church Is More Than an Institution

Is the Church more than just a spiritual NHS? In my new Well-Tempered blog series, I explore why thinking of the Church as a commonwealth—not just an institution—might be more faithful and life-giving.
#Anglicanism #CatholicSocialTeaching #synodality

open.substack.com/pub/markclav...

A Time to Reflect, A Time to Walk My upcoming sabbatical and the pilgrim’s paths ahead

A week from today, I start my 3-month sabbatical. You can read all about my plans in my latest Well-Tempered post. #pilgrimage #sabbatical #sabbath

A Time to Reflect, A Time to Walk open.substack.com/pub/markclav...

Trinity Sunday and the Furnace of Love What the Trinity Teaches Us about Being Human

Trinity Sunday and the Furnace of Love
open.substack.com/pub/markclav...

Hope for a Hurting Church Leadership, Trust, & the Future of the Church in Wales

I hesitated to write this. But after 12 years in the Church in Wales, I’ve seen patterns we can’t afford to ignore. This isn’t about blame—it’s about honesty, care, and the hope of renewal. A hard post, written with love.

open.substack.com/pub/markclav...

Why I Love the Church Year (Even Lent) A Liturgical Reflection for Ascensiontide

markclavier.substack.com/p/why-i-love...

Strangely, Rogation through Whitsunday is just about my favourite period in the church year. Neglected feasts, blossoming creation, spaghetti dinners, and lectors fumbling their way through the names in Acts 2.

Link to post in the comments.

Secretaries of Creation's Praise Toward an Ecumenical Feast of Creation

As it's Rogationtide, I thought I'd reflect further on the Assisi conference and the move towards an ecumenical Feast of Creation. So, here's how I went from being a sceptic to a supporter.
open.substack.com/pub/markclav...
#creation #laudatosi #Anglicanism #GeorgeHerbert

A Commonwealth of Grace Reimagining the Church's Common Life

How might a greater commitment to synodality and subsidiarity breathe new life into the Church in Wales. My reflections on my first time as a delegate to Governing Body.
open.substack.com/pub/markclav...

From Assisi to St Peter's Square Notes from an Accidental Pilgrimage

I went to Assisi and Rome for work, not a pilgrimage—but grace had other plans. Climbing mountains, sharing prayer, standing in St Peter's Square…it became a week of grace. Read the story of an unexpected journey.
#PopeLeoXIV #Assisi #StFrancis #LaudatoSi

markclavier.substack.com/p/from-assis...

What a day!

How wonderful that it remained opened so long. I thought they'd all closed years ago. But sad that it too has now closed.

Reviving Theology Recovering the Lost Language of the Church

Reviving Theology
open.substack.com/pub/markclav...

The "Ragged" Glory of Welsh Anglicanism An Affectionate Reflection

The "Ragged" Glory of Welsh Anglicanism
open.substack.com/pub/markclav...

Giving Reform Its Proper Language A follow-up to 'Beyond the Scaffolding'

Giving Reform Its Proper Language
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Beyond the Scaffolding What the Church in Wales's Harries Report Missed and Why It Still Matters

Here is my attempt to engaging constructively but theologically with the Harries Report, which gave rise to Ministry Areas in the Church in Wales. This will be of interest to other churches wrestling with structural reform.
open.substack.com/pub/markclav...

Christ the Gardener of Life On Lancelot Andrewes's Easter Sermon, 16 April 1620

A very happy and blessed Easter to everyone who kindly follows me and reads my various scribblings. On this happy morning, I offer a brief reflection on one of my favourite Easter's sermons, preached in 1620 by Lancelot Andrewes, Bishop of Winchester.

markclavier.substack.com/p/christ-the...

The World’s Last Night A Good Friday Meditation on Donne's Sonnet XIII

A little Donne for your Good Friday reflections:

"The World’s Last Night": A Good Friday Reflection on Sonnet 13
open.substack.com/pub/markclav...

Between the Triumph and the Table On the Forgotten Days of Holy Week

I assume there'll be lots of reflections on Palm Sunday and the days that conclude Holy Week. But what about the days in between? My reflections on the first part of Holy Week.

Between the Triumph and the Table open.substack.com/pub/markclav...

More Than a Bouncy Castle Reclaiming the Church as a Moral Community

The Church was never meant to be a venue with coffee and candles. It was meant to be a people—a moral community. In a culture drowning in choice but starving for meaning, what if the Church’s call isn’t to be more appealing... but to be more different?

markclavier.substack.com/p/more-than-...

Can Something Good Emerge from the Crisis of Clergy Burnout? Rediscovering what it means to be the Body of Christ

Stunned by the response to my piece on clergy burnout, I’ve written a follow-up. The crisis is real—morale has never been lower. Urgent change is needed. Hope this adds to the pressure.

#clergy #churchofengland #churchinwales

open.substack.com/pub/markclav...

Clergy Burnout and the Cure of Souls Overworked, Under-supported, and Close to Collapse

Clergy burnout isn’t just personal — it’s structural. Priests are stretched thin, juggling multiple parishes, endless admin, & the quiet heartbreak of long-term decline. The Church talks a lot about resilience, but at what cost?
#ClergyBurnout #ChurchLife

markclavier.substack.com/p/clergy-bur...

Faith Among the Fractures (IV) From Progress to Pessimism

The final instalment of my series on what it might mean to bear faithful witness in our increasingly anxious and fearful world.

Faith Among the Fractures (IV) open.substack.com/pub/markclav...

Who would ever have guessed that 'Mirror, Mirror' would turn out to be the most prophetic episode of Star Trek: TOS! 😂 #StarTrek