Proudly located in Lerwick since the 1860’s, St Magnus Scottish Episcopal Church has welcomed generations of worshipers through its doors over its 160+ year history.
Last year, St Magnus and its congregation celebrated the Ordination to the Order of Priests of Rev Helen Randall with a special service, ordained by our Bishop, Rt Rev Anne Dyer.
After working with children and young people as a class teacher, mentor, and manager within the English primary education system, Helen moved to Shetland in 2018. Quickly becoming an integral part of the Diocese community, Helen undertook three years of training at the Scottish Episcopal Institute to become a Deacon. Now, as a priest, Helen is looking forward to strengthening her connection with her local community.
Hear from Helen below.
Can you tell us a bit about yourself?
I was born in Reading, Berkshire, the youngest of five children. I was brought up in an evangelical Anglican tradition and regularly attended Sunday morning church and an afternoon Bible class, where my parents were both leaders. My family moved to rural Hertfordshire when I was ten. Daily walks with my dog in the local woodlands helped develop my love of the natural world and provided a safe space to walk and wonder. Music was important during my teenage years; playing the clarinet, being a member of the school orchestra, supporting younger players in a Music School, and choral singing in the college choir.
After leaving school, I studied Rural Science, alongside theoretical and practical Education Studies, at Newton Park College in Bath. Then, in July 1974, I was awarded a Certificate in Education from the University of Bristol. Later that same month, I married my husband, Martin, and then began my teaching career in September, at the same time as Martin began his ordination training at Trinity College, Bristol.
Three years later, we moved to Sale, in the Diocese of Chester, and then to Everton, Liverpool Diocese, in 1980. During this time, our two sons were born. We then moved to another church where we stayed for nine years. I valued being a full-time mum during their early formative years, as well as being in the role of a supportive ‘vicar’s wife’. One of the projects I was involved in was helping to establish a local ‘Mums and Tots’ group, initially for church families, which happily developed into a wider community group. As the boys grew, I slowly resumed my teaching career part-time, then full-time five years later.
One of my full-time posts, where I was the music coordinator, involved establishing a school orchestra and directing the school choir. Four years later, I was appointed as Senior Deputy Head and Religious Education Manager of a large, newly built joint Church of England and Catholic Primary School, situated in the centre of a large housing estate. This role, which I loved, proved to be a formative appointment in my discernment pathway. I later took on the role of student coordinator and mentor. In 2004, I gained an MSc in Education Studies, with my research leading to a recommendation for the development of teacher training for the management of teaching assistants.
After retiring from Emmaus Primary School in 2011, I became a moderation tutor with Schools Direct, visiting schools and supporting mentors in their work with post-graduate student teachers.
I then trained as a Lay Reader in the Church of England, with All Saints, and was licensed in 2014. During this time, I completed Godly Play training and established a Godly Play room in one of the churches in the St Luke in the City Team. I was fully involved in the life of the Ministry Team and a member of the Chaplaincy team at the Liverpool Women’s Hospital, which was situated in the parish.
We moved to Shetland in August 2018, after three visits and a time of dreaming and discernment. I soon became involved with the life of St Magnus Church, joining the rota to help with refreshments, then being a reader, intercessor, and server. The following year, May 2019, I was licensed as a Lay Reader with the Scottish Episcopal Church at St Magnus’ Lerwick. Soon afterwards, I continued my discernment journey and commenced ordination training and formation with the Scottish Episcopal Institute in 2021, with ordination to the Order of Deacons on 21st September 2024, and a year later, ordained to the Holy Order of Priests on 17th September 2025.
What brought you to Shetland in 2018? How did you find the move, and did the Diocese community support you in feeling welcome and at home?
We first came to Shetland in 2016 for a holiday, as our favourite holiday haunts were the Highlands and Islands of the West Coast of Scotland. Friends of ours had moved to Fetlar a year or so earlier, and we were inspired to travel to Shetland to see them and explore another island, after previously thinking that it was too far away for a holiday while we were both working full-time. While sailing away on the NorthLink boat, I felt we would have to return the following year to discover more places in Shetland.
We returned for another holiday in 2017 and visited Fetlar, where we spent a beautiful evening with our friends, including observing some rare Red-Necked Phalaropes. Something stirred deep within me, and at the end of our holiday, we both imagined what it would be like to live in Shetland after seeing an interesting house for sale!
Shetland would not go away, and after discussing it with our family in London and New Zealand, as well as some close friends in Liverpool, who held us in prayer, we decided to return to Shetland in March 2018 to see if the call was still there. I described this call as the call of the Wild Goose, or the Red-necked Phalarope!
Listening to the call of birds and observing their flight excites and connects me with the wonders of creation and God’s calling on my life.
I have been associated with the Community of Aidan and Hilda, a dispersed, international, ecumenical community which draws its inspiration from Celtic Christian spirituality, since 2012, when I was exploring various rules of life. When I became a full member of the CA&H in April 2018, I found the words of the trail promises which I made deeply personal, especially the following, as we were by then preparing to move to Shetland:
‘…you have heard the call of the Wild Goose, the untameable Spirit of God: be ready for the Spirit to lead you into wild, windy or well-worn places in the knowledge that God will make them places of wonder and welcome’.
At this stage in our lives, we had no elderly parents to care for and our adult sons were happily settled, so it was time to follow the call of the Holy Spirit, or the Red-Necked Phalarope!
Shetland seemed to us a place where we could settle, feel at home and contribute to the life of the community. In many ways, this was a huge change after working in Liverpool for 38 years, living in the inner city and outer housing estates. The move itself was the most efficient of any move we have experienced.
The Rector and members of St Magnus Church, together with our local community, made us feel most welcome.
Bishop Anne made contact and welcomed us during one of her visits to Shetland. We were then invited to attend the Diocesan Cergy and Lay Reader Conference, where I enjoyed meeting clergy and lay folk from the Diocese.
What does it mean to you to be appointed Assistant Priest of St Magnus Scottish Episcopal Church? As a Priest, what are you hoping to bring to the church and wider community?
I understand my Ordination to the Order of Priests in St Magnus, Lerwick, as the continuation of a journey in response to being called to be a ‘priest on the edge’. To bring God to people and people to God, while journeying with those who seek God in creation, walking the pilgrim way.
It was wonderful to share this special service with the congregation, local friends, and the wider community in Shetland and beyond.
I never imagined that I’d be called to continue my journey of ministry as an ordained minister at my age, but I’m happy to respond to what I believe to be a call of God. As a Priest, I can now begin to give something back as I minister to the church and the wider community.
Shortly after your ordination, you celebrated your first service of Holy Communion on the beach at the Sands of Sound – what was that experience like?
I was thrilled to be invited to celebrate my first Communion beyond the walls of the church, despite the practical challenges of conducting an outdoor service in Shetland around the time of the Autumn Equinox!
First, to find a suitable location for the service, an accessible beach within walking distance from St Magnus, with adequate parking for those who had further to travel. The ‘Sands of Sound’ was the obvious choice, near the high tide mark. After asking a Shetland friend, I discovered that the Shetland name for this area of the beach is shoormal, ‘the turning point of waves breaking on a beach’. I have grown to understand this as a liminal and sacred space.
I arrived on the beach early, while it was gently raining. It was good to see people walking together across the beach for the service, as well as noting an inquisitive seal nearby. By the time all had arrived, the rain had eased off.
I spoke about my understanding of shoormal in my homily, as a place of discovery, with unexpected treasures, a place of danger, with crashing waves and strong tides, and a place of playfulness and dance.
I linked these thoughts to the Gospel reading from Luke 8. 1-3, about the women who accompanied Jesus, especially Mary Magdalene. She discovered more about Jesus as she walked alongside Him. She journeyed to a place of danger, by the Cross, when Jesus died, and she met Jesus in the garden on the morning of the resurrection. I imagine that she held the joyful moment to herself before she danced and rushed off to share the good news that Jesus is alive!
May we discover more of Jesus, be protected from danger, and dance with joy as we share the good news of new life in Jesus.
It was wonderful to preside at our first ‘Shoormal Kirk’ service. Sharing bread and wine on the beach was sacred and joyful. As someone later commented, “it was special, sharing the sacrament and singing and dancing together on a very windy beach”.
Outside of your role within our Diocese, what are your interests and hobbies?
My interests include walking, observing wildlife in creation, photography, pilgrimage, local history and archaeology, offering hospitality, appreciation of arts and crafts, and choral singing.
Trips to London to see family, especially our elder son, daughter-in-law and three grandchildren, are also important, as are holidays to New Zealand to stay with our younger son, daughter-in-law, and two grandchildren. This gives us plenty of opportunity to explore the wild beauty of NZ.
We also love to welcome friends to our home in Shetland, sharing our love of the island and the surrounding areas with them.
