Correspondents write:
IT WAS always likely that David Burleigh would end up in ordained Christian ministry. As a child in Lewisham, south London, David often attended three Sunday services and contrived to re-enact them at home with Ray, his younger brother. He sang with the choir, worshipped as a server, and then, as a teenager, started a Bible discussion group that he labelled, curiously, “The Martyrs” — perhaps an indication of his already strong faith and commitment to Christ, but more probably a moniker generated from his gentle and subtle humour. In adulthood, David served as a Reader before his eventual ordination in the diocese of Chester.
David’s passage to ordained ministry was, as most journeys are, rather scenic. He worked in insurance, first at Lloyds of London, and then as Eagle Star’s branch manager in Chester. David pursued ordination training during the 1970s and was accepted later on. In 1988, he became a non-stipendiary minister at St Mark’s, Saltney, Chester, and later the same at St Mary’s, Eastham.
On retiring from insurance in 1992, David took on a series of full-time posts: an assistant curacy at Birkenhead Priory Church preceded various leadership posts at several churches in the diocese of Truro (Liskeard, Duloe, St Keyne, St Pinnock, Bradoc, Morval, and Herodsfoot), before a final position as Vicar of St Barnabas’s, Bath, with Englishcombe. Despite retiring in 2010, David remained actively involved in church life until ill-health made this impossible.
There was more to David’s life than a litany of parishes, of course. He was always interested in ministering to the whole person and the community, loving to help people grow in their faith through Emmaus Courses, mentoring, and post-ordination training. David’s creativity especially shone through his crafting of services for particular pastoral needs: he adapted, for instance, the wedding rites for a couple, one of whom was deaf, to sign their commitments to each other — a unique revision shared within the diocese. David also found inspiration in liturgies from around the world to fashion just the right service or prayer for the occasion.
David imparted his wealth of biblical knowledge in various ways, using visual aids, music, and story to pick out and present unusual aspects of familiar passages. He was equally at home ministering to children and adults in both rural and urban settings, engaging closely with community groups and leaders of other denominations and faiths — most notably, perhaps, during the 1999 solar eclipse, when he joined druids standing by the Duloe stone circle.
David was also the diocesan adviser for the paranormal in both Truro and Bath & Wells: his focus was always on God’s love, and his careful, prayerful attitude helped him to deal calmly with some quite disturbing situations.
Outside of church life, David enjoyed amateur dramatics, classical music, and jazz, passions that he shared with others. His quiet sense of fun found expression through various escapades: countryside carol-singing on the back of a tractor carriage and a stay in a Cornish police cell (to raise money for Children in Need) are just a couple of many highlights. David was a keen traveller, too, which gave him opportunity to provide cover at St Nicholas’s Cathedral, Nicosia, in Cyprus, on two occasions.
David was promoted to glory on 1 February, aged 78. He is survived by his wife of 53 years, Janet, their children, Simon and Ruth, and their grandchildren, Rachael and Isaac. Above all, David will be remembered for his kindness and compassion.