New archdeacon 'found faith after loss of parents'

A new archdeacon says her difficult childhood and losing both parents by the time she had finished university led her to finding her purpose in religion.

The Venerable Samantha Brazier-Gibbs took over as Archdeacon of Ipswich in July after being a parish priest in Essex for more than 20 years.

She grew up in London and described her early childhood as full of "chaos and sport".

Brazier-Gibbs said: "God saved me - and the church gave me a family and purpose. It sounds like a cliché but it's true."

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She described her sadness over her father's death six months after he was diagnosed with cancer, which happened when she was 13 years old.

As a teenager, a friend took her to a church youth group, where she became a "covert undercover Christian".

At university, Brazier-Gibbs then suffered the loss of her mother, who took her own life and died before her daughter could reach the hospital.

The grief led to a bleak period for the student, before she tuned in to a Christian radio station one day.

In a moment of serendipity, she ended up listening to a caller who appeared to have a tailor-made message for her about finding a plan and purpose in faith.

Soon after, she was invited by a friend to a church in Harrow, in north-west London.

"My heart exploded and I knew I was home and I was safe," said Brazier-Gibbs.

It was a calling that led the her to become a Christian youth worker.

She then studied theology at Ridley Hall in Cambridge before being ordained and taking a post in Newhall, Harlow, and later in Chipping Ongar, both in Essex.

The former canon went on to lead the ministry for 17 churches across that county, before wanting to use her skills "more strategically".

Brazier-Gibbs applied for the archdeacon role in Suffolk, spurred on by her memories of annual childhood seaside holidays in Kessingland, near Lowestoft.

"I have always loved Suffolk, there's something about the big skies, the coast and the countryside," she said.

Her new role will mean she will not be in charge of her own church, or group of churches, but will have a role supporting the county's bishops and parishes.

The archdeacon said she initially feared losing close ties with her "flock" when moving from Essex, but she had felt warmly welcomed by the Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich congregations.

"Actually one of the great privileges is that the ministers of the archdeaconry and the people of Ipswich became my flock," she said.

"I also get the privilege of sitting at top table discussions about vision, mission, strategy and about how the church in this diocese is shaped, what we do to lift Jesus high and how we love the people charged to our care."

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