Parish Magazine
Encyclopedia
A parish magazine is a periodical produced by and for an ecclesiastical parish, generally within the Anglican Church. It usually comprises a mixture of religious articles, community contributions and parish notices, including the previous month‘s christenings, marriages and funerals. Magazines are sold or are otherwise circulated amongst the parishioners of the relevant church or village. They are almost invariably produced by volunteers, usually working alongside the resident clergy. From their earliest days they have frequently been augmented by the inclusion of a nationally-produced magazine supplement or a regionally produced insert, such as a diocesan news leaflet or similar publication (and sometimes they might include both). It has been estimated that the collective readership of parish magazines exceeds that of many national newspapers . Similar magazines have also been produced by other religious denominations, including the Church of Scotland
.
s, issued to the local community by parish clergy or by the more senior clergy and found very occasionally amongst 19th century parish archives. However the first regular parish magazine is generally recognised as being started in January 1859 by Rev. John Erskine Clarke
, Vicar of St Michael's, Derby
. (Rival claims have sometimes been made for Rev. W. J. E. Bennett's Old Church Porch
, issued at Frome
in 1854.) Erskine Clarke had prepared a number of publications which were particularly aimed at children and which were designed to counteract the commercial publications then appearing. He later produced a sixteen page periodical, which bore on the page headings the literal title The Parish Magazine. It contained general interest material, often with a strong moralising edge. The idea was that this inset should be offered to parishes to include within their own localised covers, which would very often comprise no more than four printed pages.
Starting with fifty-four parishes, the circulation of the Parish Magazine was eventually extended to over two hundred churches. Whilst Clarke’s inset continued to appear until 1895, competitors soon emerged and it was eventually overtaken by other alternatives. Many publishers began to produce rival insets - over thirty such examples have been described and listed . The last two of these national examples, Home Words and The Sign finally merged in 2009. However one or two of the earlier insets had also been produced on a regional or diocesan basis . Eventually the assortment of Diocesan Magazines
which were increasingly appearing in many areas would often include a short monthly news bulletin in a design which could similarly be included as a parish magazine inset.
Many parishes nevertheless have at different times opted to issue periodicals produced entirely from within their own community and not including any of the mass-produced insets. Being largely dependent on volunteers, they have often varied their format according to local circumstances, and in some parishes they have seemingly had a rather intermittent existence. Where insets were included, these might often have originated at completely different dates from their cover magazines, or else have been merely the short-term choices of particular local editors. This makes it highly likely that most surviving collections of insets will be incomplete.
Sometimes groups of parishes - possibly based on a rural deanery - would reduce overall costs by working together to produce a corporate magazine, with contributions from each village . A few parishes eventually opted for simpler magazines or adopted newspaper-style formats, aiming to deliver these without charge to every household in the parish. With the growth of inter-church cooperation after the Second World War, other magazines became ecumenical and were jointly published in association with local Methodist, United Reformed or Roman Catholic congregations. Alternatively they might eventually be absorbed into more general community titles, and some of the latter are now further issued in an online version. . This pattern could become more widespread in years to come, since the future of traditional parish magazines clearly depends on sufficient volunteers coming forward. Obviously their survival will also be affected by the widespread decline in organised religion in the UK.
Many efforts have been made over the years to help conscientious local editors in producing better magazines. In 1949 the Church Assembly (the forerunner of the Church of England General Synod) published a book Better Parish Magazines and How to Produce Them , with the Bishop of London William Wand commenting in the foreword: One of the most encouraging signs of the times for ecclesiastical administrators is the very rapid improvement that is taking place in the quality of our parish magazines. There is, of course, plenty of opportunity for further advance. Other efforts have also been more recently made on the Church of England website to provide additional help for parish magazine editors. Another (subscription-based) website The Parish Pump issues monthly contributions of new material which may also be used or adapted.
Competitions have been held for some years under different sponsors to identify the current best parish magazines. These have included the award of a John King Trophy . The 2008 National Parish Magazine Awards were actually administered by a firm from Salisbury who stated on their website: It is our aim to give magazine editors recognition for the service they provide, which so often goes un-rewarded, and perhaps give an incentive to those who are considering joining their ranks in future .
Archbishop of Canterbury
Dr Rowan Williams
has stated: “A good parish magazine is a wonderful resource that places the local church at the heart of the community it serves" .
; Southwark Cathedral
; St Barnabas, Dulwich
; Immanuel Church, Streatham
; Church Brampton (Northants.); All Saints, Margaret Street
; St. Stephen's, Westminster; Holy Trinity, Brompton; Chesterfield Parish Church; Morden
(Surrey); St. James’s, Milton, Portsmouth
, and St Mark's Church, Kennington
. Clearly this list was in no sense official, and the author was seemingly most familiar with examples from London and the south-east. Incidentally, the same list concluded by making especially favourable reference to The Anvil, not a parish magazine but reaching an increasing number of readers all over the country. This latter periodical was the creation of the Rev. Marcus Morris of Birkdale
, near Liverpool, who subsequently established The Eagle (comic)
and other weekly titles for children. .
was Prime Minister as a basis for a section in the satirical magazine Private Eye
entitled St Albion Parish News
. In this the Rev A R P Blair was presented as the Vicar of St Albion.
or diocesan record office
– indeed the preservation of archive copies is explicitly required under the current guidance for the Parochial Registers and Records Measure 1978 Sometimes a conscientious editor may also have donated copies to a local library. However comparatively few parishes have managed to preserve long runs on a very systematic basis. Whilst some examples doubtless remain in private collections there are also likely to be thousands of magazines for which only a few surviving copies can still be traced.
During the 19th and early 20th centuries quite a few individual parishes or subscribers had their annual sets of magazines bound up each year (with or without the national insets) and this has undoubtedly assisted in their survival. A number of examples may be traced via the online catalogues of individual county record offices, or via the Access to Archives website .
Church of Scotland
The Church of Scotland, known informally by its Scots language name, the Kirk, is a Presbyterian church, decisively shaped by the Scottish Reformation....
.
Early History
Parish magazines were arguably foreshadowed by the sporadic printed notices or pastoral letterPastoral letter
A Pastoral letter, often called simply a pastoral, is an open letter addressed by a bishop to the clergy or laity of his diocese, or to both, containing either general admonition, instruction or consolation, or directions for behaviour in particular circumstances...
s, issued to the local community by parish clergy or by the more senior clergy and found very occasionally amongst 19th century parish archives. However the first regular parish magazine is generally recognised as being started in January 1859 by Rev. John Erskine Clarke
John Erskine Clarke
John Erskine Clarke was a British clergyman who issued the first parish magazine. He established several other religious publications and was responsible for founding churches schools and hospitals in Battersea. He also competed at Henley Royal Regatta.Clarke was born at Cossepor, Bengal, India...
, Vicar of St Michael's, Derby
Derby
Derby , is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands region of England. It lies upon the banks of the River Derwent and is located in the south of the ceremonial county of Derbyshire. In the 2001 census, the population of the city was 233,700, whilst that of the Derby Urban Area was 229,407...
. (Rival claims have sometimes been made for Rev. W. J. E. Bennett's Old Church Porch
, issued at Frome
Frome
Frome is a town and civil parish in northeast Somerset, England. Located at the eastern end of the Mendip Hills, the town is built on uneven high ground, and centres around the River Frome. The town is approximately south of Bath, east of the county town, Taunton and west of London. In the 2001...
in 1854.) Erskine Clarke had prepared a number of publications which were particularly aimed at children and which were designed to counteract the commercial publications then appearing. He later produced a sixteen page periodical, which bore on the page headings the literal title The Parish Magazine. It contained general interest material, often with a strong moralising edge. The idea was that this inset should be offered to parishes to include within their own localised covers, which would very often comprise no more than four printed pages.
Starting with fifty-four parishes, the circulation of the Parish Magazine was eventually extended to over two hundred churches. Whilst Clarke’s inset continued to appear until 1895, competitors soon emerged and it was eventually overtaken by other alternatives. Many publishers began to produce rival insets - over thirty such examples have been described and listed . The last two of these national examples, Home Words and The Sign finally merged in 2009. However one or two of the earlier insets had also been produced on a regional or diocesan basis . Eventually the assortment of Diocesan Magazines
Diocesan Magazines
From the 1860s onwards a steadily increasing number of British dioceses, especially in the Church of England, began issuing publications containing a variety of news, comment and educational articles relating to their work...
which were increasingly appearing in many areas would often include a short monthly news bulletin in a design which could similarly be included as a parish magazine inset.
Many parishes nevertheless have at different times opted to issue periodicals produced entirely from within their own community and not including any of the mass-produced insets. Being largely dependent on volunteers, they have often varied their format according to local circumstances, and in some parishes they have seemingly had a rather intermittent existence. Where insets were included, these might often have originated at completely different dates from their cover magazines, or else have been merely the short-term choices of particular local editors. This makes it highly likely that most surviving collections of insets will be incomplete.
Later Format and Content
Where parishes opted to go it alone they clearly had to rely on locally-written material of variable quality. In fact throughout the years a significant variety of different formats will be found. A great many magazines have been redesigned, renamed or relaunched to reflect changing circumstances, or else they have been revived after an apparent hiatus. The earliest magazines had to be printed using expensive movable type methods. However from the 1900s onwards the invention of the stencil duplicator or mimeograph - frequently known as the Gestetner machine or Roneo machine - offered cheaper alternatives, which many editors were soon to adopt.Sometimes groups of parishes - possibly based on a rural deanery - would reduce overall costs by working together to produce a corporate magazine, with contributions from each village . A few parishes eventually opted for simpler magazines or adopted newspaper-style formats, aiming to deliver these without charge to every household in the parish. With the growth of inter-church cooperation after the Second World War, other magazines became ecumenical and were jointly published in association with local Methodist, United Reformed or Roman Catholic congregations. Alternatively they might eventually be absorbed into more general community titles, and some of the latter are now further issued in an online version. . This pattern could become more widespread in years to come, since the future of traditional parish magazines clearly depends on sufficient volunteers coming forward. Obviously their survival will also be affected by the widespread decline in organised religion in the UK.
Quality
Parish magazines, being frequently produced by largely untrained volunteers with often variable talents, have always been likely to be uneven in quality. Hence they have sometimes had to face derogatory criticism from certain quarters .Many efforts have been made over the years to help conscientious local editors in producing better magazines. In 1949 the Church Assembly (the forerunner of the Church of England General Synod) published a book Better Parish Magazines and How to Produce Them , with the Bishop of London William Wand commenting in the foreword: One of the most encouraging signs of the times for ecclesiastical administrators is the very rapid improvement that is taking place in the quality of our parish magazines. There is, of course, plenty of opportunity for further advance. Other efforts have also been more recently made on the Church of England website to provide additional help for parish magazine editors. Another (subscription-based) website The Parish Pump issues monthly contributions of new material which may also be used or adapted.
Competitions have been held for some years under different sponsors to identify the current best parish magazines. These have included the award of a John King Trophy . The 2008 National Parish Magazine Awards were actually administered by a firm from Salisbury who stated on their website: It is our aim to give magazine editors recognition for the service they provide, which so often goes un-rewarded, and perhaps give an incentive to those who are considering joining their ranks in future .
Archbishop of Canterbury
Archbishop of Canterbury
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...
Dr Rowan Williams
Rowan Williams
Rowan Douglas Williams FRSL, FBA, FLSW is an Anglican bishop, poet and theologian. He is the 104th and current Archbishop of Canterbury, Metropolitan of the Province of Canterbury and Primate of All England, offices he has held since early 2003.Williams was previously Bishop of Monmouth and...
has stated: “A good parish magazine is a wonderful resource that places the local church at the heart of the community it serves" .
Some outstanding parish magazines, 1949
The book Better Parish Magazines . (mentioned above) also offered brief details of a few “outstanding parish magazines”, including those from St Martin-in-the-FieldsSt Martin-in-the-Fields
St Martin-in-the-Fields is an Anglican church at the north-east corner of Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, London. Its patron is Saint Martin of Tours.-Roman era:Excavations at the site in 2006 led to the discovery of a grave dated about 410...
; Southwark Cathedral
Southwark Cathedral
Southwark Cathedral or The Cathedral and Collegiate Church of St Saviour and St Mary Overie, Southwark, London, lies on the south bank of the River Thames close to London Bridge....
; St Barnabas, Dulwich
Dulwich
Dulwich is an area of South London, England. The settlement is mostly in the London Borough of Southwark with parts in the London Borough of Lambeth...
; Immanuel Church, Streatham
Streatham
Streatham is a district in Surrey, England, located in the London Borough of Lambeth. It is situated south of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.-History:...
; Church Brampton (Northants.); All Saints, Margaret Street
All Saints, Margaret Street
All Saints, Margaret Street is an Anglican church in London built in the High Victorian Gothic style by the architect William Butterfield and completed in 1859....
; St. Stephen's, Westminster; Holy Trinity, Brompton; Chesterfield Parish Church; Morden
Morden
Morden is a district in the London Borough of Merton. It is located approximately South-southwest of central London between Merton Park , Mitcham , Sutton and Worcester Park .- Origin of name :...
(Surrey); St. James’s, Milton, Portsmouth
Milton, Portsmouth
Milton is a primarily residential area of the city of Portsmouth, a unitary authority formerly in the English county of Hampshire. The area is located on the south eastern side of Portsea Island and is bordered on the east by Langstone Harbour...
, and St Mark's Church, Kennington
St Mark's Church, Kennington
St Mark's Church, Kennington is an Anglican church in Kennington, London, United Kingdom. The church is a Commissioners' church, receiving a grant from the Church Building Commission towards its cost.-External links:*...
. Clearly this list was in no sense official, and the author was seemingly most familiar with examples from London and the south-east. Incidentally, the same list concluded by making especially favourable reference to The Anvil, not a parish magazine but reaching an increasing number of readers all over the country. This latter periodical was the creation of the Rev. Marcus Morris of Birkdale
Birkdale
Birkdale is a village and district in the southern part of the conurbation of the town of Southport, within the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside, though historically in Lancashire, in the north-west of England. The village is located on the Irish Sea coast, approximately a mile away from...
, near Liverpool, who subsequently established The Eagle (comic)
Eagle (comic)
Eagle was a seminal British children's comic, first published from 1950 to 1969, and then in a relaunched format from 1982 to 1994. It was founded by Marcus Morris, an Anglican vicar from Lancashire. Morris edited a parish magazine called The Anvil, but felt that the church was not communicating...
and other weekly titles for children. .
Satirical usage
The format of the parish magazine was used while Tony BlairTony Blair
Anthony Charles Lynton Blair is a former British Labour Party politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to 27 June 2007. He was the Member of Parliament for Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007...
was Prime Minister as a basis for a section in the satirical magazine Private Eye
Private Eye
Private Eye is a fortnightly British satirical and current affairs magazine, edited by Ian Hislop.Since its first publication in 1961, Private Eye has been a prominent critic and lampooner of public figures and entities that it deemed guilty of any of the sins of incompetence, inefficiency,...
entitled St Albion Parish News
St Albion Parish News
St Albion Parish News was a regular feature in the British satirical magazine Private Eye during the premiership of Tony Blair. It was in the Private Eye tradition of featuring a fortnightly column lampooning the Prime Minister of the day and their close associates, seemingly written in a gossipy...
. In this the Rev A R P Blair was presented as the Vicar of St Albion.
Survival and location of earlier parish magazines
Surviving examples of early parish magazines are usually included within the archives of the parish in the appropriate county record officeCounty record office
In the United Kingdom the term county record office usually refers to a local authority repository, also called a County Archives. Such repositories employ specialist staff to administer and conserve the historic and the semi-current records of the parent body...
or diocesan record office
Diocesan record office
Originally within the United Kingdom the title of Diocesan Record Office would frequently have referred to a church-owned diocesan registry or chancery...
– indeed the preservation of archive copies is explicitly required under the current guidance for the Parochial Registers and Records Measure 1978 Sometimes a conscientious editor may also have donated copies to a local library. However comparatively few parishes have managed to preserve long runs on a very systematic basis. Whilst some examples doubtless remain in private collections there are also likely to be thousands of magazines for which only a few surviving copies can still be traced.
During the 19th and early 20th centuries quite a few individual parishes or subscribers had their annual sets of magazines bound up each year (with or without the national insets) and this has undoubtedly assisted in their survival. A number of examples may be traced via the online catalogues of individual county record offices, or via the Access to Archives website .
External links
- A2A/Access to Archives An incomplete series of catalogues for selected categories of archives drawn from record repositories throughout England & Wales (now linked to National Archives databases. In many instances this website can be used to obtain a limited indication of their holdings of parish magazines, although the position varies from county to county.
- / ARCHON The ARCHON Directory includes contact details for many record offices and other archive repositories within the United Kingdom. Some of these have further online catalogues (albeit generally incomplete). These are usually linked to the repository’s individual website, which can then be used to trace further numbers of parish magazines.
- http://www.anglicancommunion.org/acns/digest/index.cfm/2009/1/14/Celebrating-150-years-of-the-parish-magazine--unless-you-know-better Church of England website page celebrating parish magazines over the years.
- http://www.churcheditors.org/page105.html The Association of Church Editors: exists to provide practical help and advice to those concerned with producing church-based communications.