THE third full-scale Church Times Festival of Preaching is to take place in Cambridge in September.

The inaugural event in 2017, and the one that followed in 2019, both in Oxford, were both attended by more than 500 people, who were offered a programme of talks, seminars, and worship, all focused on the craft of preaching.

The forthcoming festival — from Sunday 15 to Tuesday 17 September — gives participants the chance to return to an in-person and residential event for the first time since the pandemic. The venues will be the city-centre church, Great St Mary’s, where most of the programme will take place, and St John’s College, near by, where some seminars and late-night-liturgy will be on offer, as well as accommodation.

The speakers include the bestselling US authors Barbara Brown Taylor and Amy-Jill Levine; the biblical scholar Dr Paula Gooder, Canon Chancellor of St Paul’s; the Bishop of Chelmsford, Dr Guli Francis-Dehqani; and some festival regulars, including the Vicar of St Martin-in-the-Fields, the Revd Dr Sam Wells, and the Dean of Southwark, the Very Revd Dr Mark Oakley. Newcomers to the programme include the Dean of St John’s College, Dr Vicky Johnson, and the Principal of Ridley Hall, the Revd Dr Isabelle Hamley.

The aim of the festival is to inspire, nurture, and celebrate all who are called to proclaim the gospel today. For the first time, there will be a “preaching clinic”, where delegates can bring their specific concerns. The programme includes daily worship and contemplation, late-night liturgy, and a service of jazz vespers. The festival will end on the Tuesday afternoon with a eucharist at which the preacher will be Barbara Brown Taylor.

The festival director, the Revd Christine Smith, said: “We have worked long and hard on curating a programme that we hope will be the right mix of stimulation and encouragement. For those of us who preach, week in week out, new ideas and fresh inspiration are always welcome. We hope that those attending will be refreshed and energised by outstanding speakers from across the Christian Church.”

There is a range of tickets on offer, including residential and non-residential, catered and non-catered options. A special early-bird discount is available until Monday 20 May.

To find out more and to book tickets, visit: festivalofpreaching.hymnsam.co.uk