Journeys of Faith: Clare Werrett
We love hearing ordinary stories of faith from across the Diocese. This week we hear from our Head of Education, Clare Werrett...
‘Count your blessings, name them one by one, and it will surprise you what the Lord has done.’
My mother used to sing this song to me and I can honestly say that throughout my journey so far, the Lord has always surprised me! I was brought
up a Methodist and attended Carmel Chapel in Port Talbot. My mother attended two or three times on a Sunday and still managed to get the Sunday dinner sorted for all of us! It was a very traditional chapel upbringing. with happy memories of Sunday school trips and other events. My experiences then have truly shaped how I have grown. Even now, I can’t let go of my chapel roots and have happily started conducting some ‘Gymanfa Ganu’ celebrations across the Diocese. As a teenager I started to attend St. Agnes Church with one of my sisters, basically because she became the organist there and didn’t want to attend on her own! I was taken along and sang in the church choir. We felt so at home there and this led to confirmation for us both, although to this day my sister still attends chapel as well as church. I later became an organist at Holy Cross Church, now a Chapel of Rest for the area.
That all sounds quite straight forward, however, I grew up with that 1970s image of Jesus portrayed beautifully in the children’s Bibles of the time, with birds flying around His head and everything colourful and palatable to the eyes of a child. It was only at the age of 11, when I was involved in the town’s famous ‘Passion Play – Behold the Man’ that I really started to think about things in more depth. Being part of that play, acting in the crowd, had a profound effect on my personal faith as it made me think more deeply about Jesus, what he had endured and the sacrifice he had made for me and for us all. I remained part of that play until I was 18 years old and it is very much part of my journey. Now, even 35 years on I still can’t visit Margam Park (the beautiful venue for the play) without seeing the three crosses on the hill, hearing the cries of the cruel crowd and the gentle words of the Messiah.
A constant companion on my journey has always been music. My faith has ‘had a soundtrack’ shall we say? From the rich, moving, emotional hymns of chapel (which I find it hard to sing without a tear), to the sacred masterpieces that I have had the privilege to sing over many years of involvement in choirs. Music has always been part of the way in which I worship and praise God. Strangely, in the same way as my faith deepened through involvement in the Passion Play, so did my love of music and my desire to study it. The soundtrack used for the play was carefully chosen and whilst walking away from the cross, the tears I shed were in no small part due to the accompaniment of Barber’s ‘Adagio for Strings.’ I had to go out and buy the record! When I hear it now, it still takes me back to that time.
Like most journeys, mine has been full of twists and turns and there have been times when my faith has been shaken, when I have thought that God wasn’t there or couldn’t hear me. My sisters and I lost our parents 17 years ago and it was understandably a difficult time, especially seeing our mother disappear over the previous years due to Alzheimer’s Disease. It was hard to see that vibrant lady, always on the go, always busy and looking after everyone, become someone who didn’t recognise those she loved. However, she could still sing the alto part of any Welsh hymn we played to her. She was still there, and God was still there, very much so, even if at times it seemed otherwise. God meets us in the darkest places.
As already mentioned, I often remember my mother saying “count your blessings” and in writing this, I have done so again. I have been blessed that my journey brought me to the Diocese of Llandaff as a teacher, when I was 23 and I haven’t left since! I was blessed to be Headteacher of two Church in Wales Primary Schools in the Diocese and now, to be the Diocesan Head of Education. I have been able to combine my love of God, music and teaching into my career which has, and continues to be a blessing. I am blessed in my friends, in my colleagues and in my wonderful family. I am constantly surprised by what the Lord has done and continues to do!