“Don’t call me Rev”—That is the polite request from Bolton minister Stephen Lingwood.

Having taken up a position as minister at Bank Street Unitarian Chapel, Bolton, last year, he was formally welcomed onto the roll of ministers of the General Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian Churches at a ceremony in Chester on Friday.

It is customary for ministers to take the title of reverend, but Mr Lingwood says he feels that taking the title goes against Jesus’s teaching.

He said: “As a Unitarian, I am committed to the inherent and sacred worth of all people, and I feel designating some as more worthy of being revered than others is inconsistent with this belief.

“As a minister, I believe I am defined by my professional training, spiritual calling, and accountability, but it does not make me inherently more sacred or worthy than anyone else.”