Priest is also a doctor

The Reverend Dr Steven Benford is also a doctor and is set to divide his time between the operating theatre and the pulpit when he takes charge of St Luke's, Burton Stone Lane, York, today.

The 42-year-old father-of-four became a doctor in 1986 and worked as a general practitioner in New Zealand for five years. He was ordained as a priest in 2001 while working full-time as an anaesthetist at the Friarage Hospital in Northallerton.

He will continue to spend half his working week as an anaesthetist.

"I am delighted to be coming to St Luke's in York and very much look forward to being part of the worshipping community," said Dr Benford, who has been a self-supporting assistant priest in Northallerton parish.

"My prayer is that together we can continue to serve God and seek his will for our lives.

"I think my two roles will complement each other, because both are people-oriented and involve aspects that we don't really understand."

Dr Benford, who is married to Lorraine, succeeds the Reverend Tim Gill, who left St Luke's for a parish in Leeds.

Dr Benford's appointment continues the parish's long-standing links with the medical world, as two of its priests in the 1970s and 1980s were also part-time hospital chaplains, one was a former nurse, and many staff at nearby York Hospital live and worship in the parish. St Luke, the Gospel writer, is also believed to have been a doctor.

Dr Benford's interests include playing the piano and riding motorbikes, and last year he spent a fortnight working with a medical charity in Iraq shortly after the end of the war.

He said: "This will be our first time in York as a family and we've already been shown a lot of love and warmth from people in the parish."

He joins a team at St Luke's which includes two lay readers and three retired priests, who have all worked with the congregation to maintain the work and worship of the church during the last 18 months.

Updated: 10:39 Thursday, March 11, 2004