Farewell to Brian

The end of April brought the news that our vicar, Brian Hurst, will be moving on to a new post (though in pastures old) in the Northumberland hills. His final Sunday at St George’s & St Hilda’s will be Sunday 18th June; he will preside and preach at the 8.00am Eucharist (St G’s), 9.30am Parish Eucharist (St G’s), 11.00am Eucharist (St H’s), and he will officiate the 6.00pm Choral Evensong (St G’s).

Brian’s inauguration at St George’s was on March 27th 2017, meaning he will have served the benefice for over 6 years. We are grateful for all that he and Mo, his wife, have given to St George’s and St Hilda’s and we wish them all the best with their move.

Below you can read the tributes from the June edition of the Lance (click each image to enlarge it).

Tributes to Brian:<br />
The relationship between a curate and training incumbent is a really important aspect of a newly ordained person’s title post. I can say without hesitation that I have been truly fortunate to have been able to learn from Brian over the year and a half I have been at St George’s and St Hilda’s. I did not know Brian before I was asked to speak to him about continuing my curacy here, and at first, I was hesitant about the possibility of returning to Jesmond, having been part of the congregation at St George's as a student. However, I knew from my first meeting with Brian that he was someone who’s experience of ministry and priestly wisdom I should not miss the opportunity to learn from. In many ways, through the incumbent-curate relationship, I have had the opportunity to see sides of Brian that others may see less of, especially his excellent sense of humour, his knowledge of the church and his theological rigour. As a training incumbent Brian has been someone who has guided, gently challenged but most of all encouraged - not least the ideas I have had, such as the pilgrimage to Lindisfarne, the Four Last Things Advent Series and the Lent lectures. As Brian heads for the hills, I will miss his calm and steady presence; our conversations and discussions about life in ministry, theology and liturgy; and his companionship in the saying of the daily offices. Rev. Ollie Dempsey. I will miss Brian and Mo very much and they will be in my prayers as they return to deepest, darkest Northumberland. May God bless them in their life and ministry in the Cheviots. (cont.)

(cont.) Edinburgh, Prince Philip’s mantra…… ‘Just get on with it’, and doing that without any trumpet blowing. Several Christmas’s ago, not long after Brian had become our incumbent, a beautiful Christmas tree covered in bright fairy lights appeared on the Green, to the surprise and delight of the people of St. George’s as well as the people of Jesmond. It happened, for the first time as far as I can remember, because Brian ‘just got on with it’ organising it with Mr. Watson, a near neighbour, and seeing it through to completion, without any trumpets being blown. Similarly, the signing choir from the Percy Hedley School became regular contributors to the Christmas Tree service held each year when the lights would be switched on…… because Brian ‘just got on with it’ without a single trumpet blast. Brian……. what can I say? Hidden thespian……… very probably. It has been fun to have Brian as my Panto partner for the last few years. How would Brian be in the spotlight on stage? Quite remarkable as it happens. Brian was always pretty tight lipped about how he would play his character or what his costume would be. This was only fully revealed on the first night!! What we got was someone who had given considerable thought to how he would present himself on stage……. And he was brilliant each time !! I have loved working alongside him because, apart from anything else I got the opportunity as his Queen to tell him ‘not to be so soppy!’ and as Fairy Joan taking a wandering Cleric under her wing was able to share with the audience, ‘but I’m a little unsure as to his denomination!!’ It was great fun!! Brian…… what can I say? ‘When I needed a neighbour, were you there?’…… absolutely. That is true for me, as I know it has been true for others in their time of need. Thank you Brian, for everything. Joan Grenfell.

(cont.) Edinburgh, Prince Philip’s mantra…… ‘Just get on with it’, and doing that without any<br />
trumpet blowing.<br />
Several Christmas’s ago, not long after Brian had become our incumbent, a beautiful Christmas tree covered in bright fairy lights appeared on the Green, to the surprise and delight of the people of St. George’s as well as the people of Jesmond. It happened, for the first time as far as I can remember, because Brian ‘just got on with it’<br />
organising it with Mr. Watson, a near neighbour, and seeing it through to completion, without any trumpets being blown. Similarly, the signing choir from the Percy Hedley School became regular contributors to the Christmas Tree service held each year when the lights would be switched on…… because Brian ‘just got on with it’ without a single trumpet blast.<br />
Brian……. what can I say? Hidden thespian……… very probably. It has been fun to have Brian as my Panto partner for<br />
the last few years. How would Brian be in the spotlight<br />
on stage? Quite remarkable as it happens. Brian was<br />
always pretty tight lipped about how he would play his<br />
character or what his costume would be. This was only<br />
fully revealed on the first night!! What we got was someone who had given considerable thought to how he would present himself on stage……. And he was brilliant each time !! I have loved working alongside him<br />
because, apart from anything else I got the opportunity as his Queen to tell him ‘not<br />
to be so soppy!’ and as Fairy Joan taking a wandering Cleric under her wing was<br />
able to share with the audience, ‘but I’m a little unsure as to his denomination!!’ It<br />
was great fun!!<br />
Brian…… what can I say? ‘When I needed a neighbour, were you there?’…… absolutely. That is true for me, as I know it has been true for others in their time of need. Thank you Brian, for everything.<br />
Joan Grenfell.

Brian is sitting at my kitchen table, gently singing hymns to me. In front of him is a mug of coffee, cooling with neglect, while he writes notes for the funeral of my<br />
husband, John. The funeral was meticulously planned, including the most appropriate music, hence the kitchen concert. While I was keen to help with the memorial service, I<br />
refused to consider the committal at the crematorium. I have always found it the most depressing place and simply wanted to be in and out as fast as possible. When it came to the committal, Brian made the service a truly prayerful event. In fact, it was the best part of the funeral and I will always be grateful to him for the care he took to create a religious atmosphere in such a bland environment.<br />
The pandemic brought changes to patterns of worship. While the church was closed, Brian appeared on zoom celebrating communion in the vicarage garden. We take streaming for granted today but at that time it was revolutionary. There he was, alone in front of the camera, with one or two supporters out of shot. An altar had<br />
been set up with a pleasing backdrop of the garden. Just as Brian came to raise the host, his dog escaped from the house and ran to greet him. It nosed affectionately round him for the rest of the service, while Brian kept his cool as if nothing surprising<br />
was happening.<br />
Thank you for your work at St George’s, Brian. To borrow a phrase in the execrable English of my youngest son, you done good.<br />
Sue King.</p>
<p>As Brian leaves St George’s to go to pastures new I have been reflecting on his ministry with us and what I personally will miss with his departure. I will miss his empathy and great kindness to me; I will miss getting sound answers<br />
to my liturgical questioning (I have learnt such a lot from him on that score); I will miss his preaching, which is always thorough and thought provoking; I will miss his thoughtfulness and his trust; and I will miss his wonderfully dry sense of humour. (cont.)

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