New Catholic DEO for Norfolk and Waveney

Pam Smith has been chosen by Bishop Peter Collins to serve as the new Denominational Ecumenical Officer (DEO) for Norfolk and Waveney. As an introduction, Dr Ian Watson interviews her with a few questions.

Italics Dr Ian Watson
Plain text Pam Smith

Congratulations on your appointment as the new Catholic DEO for Norfolk and Waveney, can you say something about yourself and your background?

Hello! My name is Pam Smith, I’m a parishioner at the Catholic Cathedral Church of St John the Baptist, Norwich. I was Baptised in December 1966 into the Church of England, Beccles Parish. I wasn’t a regular church goer. In my early 30’s a friend asked if I believed in God. “Yes” was my answer, “but I feel I need to make it a commitment, and I think I should be Catholic.” That seems to have been God, the Holy Spirit, preparing the ground as later that year I would meet my future husband, a Roman Catholic. 

On Easter Sunday 2000 I went to Mass at the Cathedral for the first time. I was received into the Church in Feb 2001 before departing England to work in North America as an IT contractor in Ontario, California, Ohio and eventually in Arizona. Married in 2002, our faith has always been important. Working & travelling abroad going to Mass every week gave us a great experience of the diverse community of the Church & it’s Charismatic Prayer Groups.

The openness to the gifts of the Holy Spirit has been integral to my Catholic Formation, along with guidance from clergy and members of the Charismatic Renewal. In recent years I’ve been blessed to have been encouraged by Fr Alan Hodgson (the Dean of SJB Cathedral) to learn about the Patristics of the Church and their faith. It’s such a gift to walk with those Early Fathers, it’s an eye opener, or maybe for me, a heart opener. Reading the Bible, the beautiful repetition of Morning Prayer, reading the Word at Holy Mass. I’m blown away by how the Holy Spirit opens-up the Word to us, how it speaks into our lives today. There is so much to learn, so much to be revealed, to those who seek the Lord. 

I know that you are very active in the catholic charismatic renewal diocesan initiative, can you say what this is?

In 2024 I was elected, then appointed by Bishop Peter Collins, as the Coordinator of the Charismatic Diocesan Service of Communion for East Anglia – I know, it’s a mouthful of a title! Essentially, it is a role of service, to facilitate communion between the diverse Charismatic Ministries, Prayer Groups and expressions within our Diocese, encouraging and supporting the building up of the Church and communion of the Charismatic with the Magisterium, our Bishop, and the wider hierarchy of the Catholic Church.   

Can you say something of how Roman Catholics approach the call for Christian unity?  

In 2019, Pope Francis, gave his vision for the Charismatic Renewal (CHARIS) within the Catholic Church: to serve, to share and to unify. He observed: “If we really believe in the abundantly free working of the Holy Spirit, we can learn so much from one another! It is not just about being better informed about others, but rather about reaping what the Spirit has sown in them, which is also meant to be a gift for us” (The Joy of the Gospel, 246). This view is very much related to the ecumenical movement.  

Before that, Pope John Paul II wrote extensively on Christian unity. He described it as both relational and missionary. In other words, it is an opportunity for all traditions to come together for: “practical cooperation at all levels: pastoral, cultural and social, as well as that of witnessing to the Gospel message” (Pope John Pail II, On Commitment to Ecumenism, 40). 

More recently, in this the 1700^th anniversary of the First Council of Nicaea, on the eve of Pentecost, Pope Leo XIV observed that: “unity for which Christians long will not be primarily the fruit of our own efforts, nor will it be realised through any preconceived model or blueprint.” Rather, he said, Christian unity will be: “a gift received as Christ wills and by the means that He wills, by the working of the Holy Spirit.”

I think all these views are representative of how the Catholic church approaches Christian unity.  

That is really interesting and, as a Catholic myself, I see these views as consistent with the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC), which speaks profoundly about Christian unity and the Church’s commitment to it. For example, when reflecting on Jesus’ prayer for the unity of His disciples in John 17:21, it says that unity among Christians is willed by Christ Himself (CCC 820). Also, the Church is described as a sacrament of unity, both as a sign and an instrument of reconciliation among all people (CCC 775). In other words, the Church works toward the full visible unity of all Christians as part of her mission. Importantly, and this is certainly the case since Vatican II, in terms of ongoing dialogue with other traditions, the Catechism acknowledges that many elements of sanctification and truth are found outside the visible structure of the Roman Catholic Church. Do you agree?

Yes, I think these teachings encourage all Catholics to actively participate in efforts toward greater unity, praying for, and working towards, the reconciliation of all Christians in the body of Christ. 

The triune God to whom we profess our Faith, is a God of love, and through the gifts of the Holy Spirit, we too can love each other, our hearts can see in each other what God sees. Each of us is a beloved child of God, running in the ‘race’ of faith. It’s the call to witness to and encourage all in that race that makes ecumenism so vital to me. We can’t run the race alone, we are made for community, for communion, for maturity in our faith, to run the race for the Glory of God. 

I’m no Theologian, my religious education background extends as far as winning a prize for achievement in Religious Education in 1984 for getting a grade “B” A level! However, we all must start somewhere, and I pray that wherever we are on this journey of Faith, we will fix our eyes on Jesus Christ and run the race in unity of spirit.

Well said Pam, although please do not do yourself down, getting a B at A level was more than I ever achieved at school – I was a late developer! Seriously, thank you very much for being so open and introducing yourself today. Finally, how do people get in touch with you should they wish to discuss any ecumenical matter?

Not at all it is a pleasure. I’m excited to become a part of Norfolk and Waveney Churches Together and to work alongside the other denominational DEOs – what unites us is the call to serve, to encourage and to love. I’m contactable by email at: pam.smith@rcdea.org.uk and would be delighted to hear from people. 

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