One of our Wakefield priests has written a Lent book exploring Genesis to support the work of their church.
The Revd Canon David Gerrard, Vicar of St Catherine’s Church, Belle Vue, and St Andrew’s Church, Wakefield, wrote the book to support the work of the St Catherine’s Community centre.
Revd David said: “The book was written by accident!
“St Catherine’s Church runs a very active community centre which, following the results of COVID, went through a time of financial difficulty.
“We tried a number of initiatives, one of which was that I thought I would write a short lentern devotional that I could print off on the church photocopier and sell for a few pounds.
“Long story short, it became much longer than I expected and I ended up writing a book!
“Bishop Nick was generous enough to write a forward for it.
“All profits from the book will be going directly to support the work of St Catherine’s Church Centre.
“The book invites us all to journey through Lent by exploring the book of Genesis.
“As we read about these ancient people (Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Sarah, Rebecca, Tamar), the more we discover the God who calls us both to accept our true self’s and to embark on the adventure of broadening our horizons and breaking through the chains that would hold us back.
“Each day of Lent looks at the stories, reflects on what they say to us and helps us find the freedom of owning who we are, both our failures and our gifts, and grow into the fullness of life God has for us.
“Writing the book has been a wonderful experience, exploring afresh the dramatic book of Genesis.
“Time and again I have been struck by just how relevant the stories of these ancient people are to our lives today.”
The book can be purchased here.
A video about the book can be watched here.
Revd David was born in London and grew up in Prestatyn in North Wales.
At 18, he went to university in Lancaster, training to be a teacher.
While teaching he went through the selection process and moved to Bristol where he trained for ordination at Trinity College.
Revd David was ordained in 2012, serving his Curacy at St Anne’s Church, Shevington, in Blackburn Diocese.
In 2016 he was licensed as the Priest-in-Charge of St Catherine’s Church and St Andrew’s Church in Wakefield.
He became Area Dean of Wakefield in 2019 and an Honorary Canon of Ripon Cathedral in 2023.
Revd David is married to Carole and has two wonderful daughters, Sarah and Anabel.