Address by the Archbishop of Armagh, the Most Revd Alan Harper OBE 

The lips of the priest ought to preserve knowledge and from his mouth men should seek instruction – because he is the messenger of the Lord Almighty
[Malachi 2.7]

The oracles of the prophet Malachi are so ordered that they stand last of the books of the Old Testament canon and point excitedly and apocalyptically towards fulfilment in the New.

Malachi’s concern and his harsh strictures call, with a note almost of desperation, for renewal in the life of the nation, beginning with renewal in the seriousness with which people fulfil their spiritual obligations under the Law of Moses. The religious life of the nation was still observed in cultic acts but integrity had departed from it, formality had replaced sincerity:
Sacrifice was no longer costly – blemished animals were offered rather than the perfect specimens the law required;
Worse still, the priests of the day were complacent about these things, perhaps even complicit;
Other signs in wider society witnessed to the inner decay of the nation through the decay of spiritual values;
Idolatry had become tolerated, even acceptable;
Faithfulness in marriage and family relationships had become negotiable;
The exercise of power through violence or the threat of violence was undermining the life and stability of the community;
Critically, some people had begun to believe that God was blind to, indeed indifferent to, excesses in their conduct;
While others, observing that wickedness seemed to be rewarded rather than punished, began to question whether God is, indeed, a God of Justice.

Malachi’s warning was this:
God will quickly come near for judgment. He will be quick to testify against sorcerers, adulterers and perjurers, against those who defraud labourers of their wages, who oppress the widows and the fatherless, and who deprive aliens of justice but also do not fear God. [Mal 3.5]
At the heart of the national malaise there stood a failure of spiritual leadership, hence the words with which I began this sermon:
For the lips of a priest ought to preserve knowledge, and from his mouth men should seek instruction – because he is the messenger of the Lord Almighty.

Allow me to explore some of the nuances contained in Malachi’s words.

First, I observe, that Malachi puts deliberate emphasis on “the lips” of a priest. Here he is voicing a strong implication that there is a need for things to be spoken and a need for things to be heard. The priest must be articulate in pronouncing a message which society at large will hear, for he is a messenger of God.

Second, the priest is to speak out of what he knows, out of knowledge. This knowledge is a knowledge preserved. New knowledge should be revered, assuming that its quality has been established, but the knowledge out of which the priest must speak is knowledge of God, preserved over generations of encounter with God and passed to successive generations of priests for them to be, in their turn, contemporary guardians of ancient truth. The lips of the priest must speak out of the tradition.

Malachi then goes on: “from his mouth, men should seek instruction”. There are assumptions here
first that the knowledge of which the priest is guardian is not something one is entitled to keep to oneself: knowledge is given and preserved in order to be spoken;
second, the prophet assumes that people will naturally and quite properly seek instruction from the priest: in other words, at the heart of the vocation of the priest is a requirement to be constantly available and constantly engaged in a dialogue within the context of which it is the priest’s task to apply the knowledge he or she preserves to the issues of life confronting folk at every level in contemporary society.

I am particularly struck by Malachi’s assumption that people will (or at least should) seek counsel from a priest – it might be in the highest matters of state or in the most personal details of private life. However, he seems not to be saying, at this juncture, that the focus of the priest’s contribution should be on high profile interventions in the public forum. Rather, that the voice of the priest is heard in individual guidance to those who seek it personally. Perhaps Malachi has in mind an essential distinction between the work of a priest and the different work of a prophet such as himself.

If the interpretations and distinctions I am making have merit then something else follows, namely, that the personal reputation and stature of the individual priest: qualities of integrity, approachability, trustworthiness in matters confidential, must be such as will persuade people that they are safe in seeking instruction and that they may do so willingly, respectful of the authority of the words that may fall from his or her lips.

Clearly then, there is more to the work of a priest than simple access to the authentic stream of knowledge, there is also the obligation to develop and deploy gifts of communication so that knowledge can be both appropriated and applied by the one who sought it in the first place.

The more highly esteemed the integrity and wisdom of the priest, the greater will be the opportunity to share such knowledge and shape the outcome of the encounter between seeker and speaker. This is why the formation of a priest is so much more than the mere acquisition and preservation of biblical knowledge. That knowledge is the most important component of the resource base, but thereafter there is required the “formation”, the equipping of a reflective heart to speak wisdom when words are called for, to remain silently attentive when they are not, and to possess the capacity to know the difference.

Formation is also about establishing the routines of an attentive life. Attentive through prayer and reflection to the promptings of the God whose messenger and servant the priest is pledged to be. Furthermore, it is about personal integrity which is the wellspring of authority. The priest cannot too often be reminded that compromised integrity swiftly devalues the coinage of personal reputation and even more seriously undermines respect for the truth of God.

At the core of the work required of the Church of Ireland Theological Institute there stands the challenge of priestly formation for a new day. Malachi recognized in the Israel of his own day that there no longer existed any automatic loyalty towards or respect for the institutions or the authenticity of the national religious tradition. We also must accept that the situation of the Christian Church today is little different.
There is no longer any automatic deference towards what used to be called “the Cloth”.
There is no longer universal acknowledgment of the existence, let alone the spiritual authority of God.
Both the capital of the Church in terms of its constitutional authority and the credit worthiness of the Church in the form of its good name and reputation in the public estimation are seriously devalued.
What is more the social and occupational patterns of community life have changed beyond recognition and with them the patterns and ways of inter-personal relating.

Old systems and old approaches, therefore, to clergy training, based on models and the social assumptions of a bygone era no longer fulfil the requirements of the God in whose mission to the world we are engaged. There is no implication in this that the old no longer has value. Rather it is that we must make things new in order to be better fitted and more effective in meeting the demands of a new time. This is the lofty aspiration of the nascent Church of Ireland Theological Institute.

Welcoming and initiating the new does not denigrate the provisions of the past, it affirms them as of their time whilst recognizing that the times have changed and that the changes are irrevocable.

Furthermore, the new serves a vision not better than but different from the past
a broader vision of ministry as the work of the whole People of God;
a broader vision of vocation than one that focuses merely on a single strand and style: that of ordained ministry;
a new evaluation of the mission and ministry of the Church as a pioneering endeavour working outside traditional comfort zones on the frontiers of faith;
a larger vision of the access to and the content of varieties of training for varieties of ministry, with a clear commitment to the raising of standards across the board to equip confident reflective practitioners of the art of living as messengers of the Lord Almighty, for we live now in a society and among a people more highly educated and better informed than ever before;
a larger vision of the Church which recognizes the rich diversity of its ecumenical and cultural expressions and avails more confidently of the gifts of spirituality and insight offered by other traditions of Christianity whilst still drinking ever more deeply of the wells of our own;
a more generous vision of an entity, this new Institute, that may serve not only the Church of Ireland but friends and partners of other provinces and churches who wish to taste the things we can offer through exchange and distance learning.

In the days since training for ministry in the Church of Ireland began with the foundation of the University of Dublin, Trinity College, that training has undergone frequent re-evaluation and continual change: from Divinity School to Divinity Hostel, from Mountjoy Square  to Braemor Park, from Divinity Hostel to Theological College; and now from Theological College to Theological Institute.

Throughout this long history of change and progress, the University of Dublin has been our constant partner (I use the word “constant” in the full range of its meaning!) That partnership continues as the Church of Ireland Theological Institute takes its place in the aspirant School of Theology and Religion.

Furthermore, because the vision for the Theological Institute incorporates a significant requirement for both distance learning programmes and supervised internships, the university has had to develop, in partnership with the Church of Ireland, radical new ways of providing access, teaching and evaluation. The willingness and also the urgency with which Trinity College has seized this opportunity are both deeply gratifying and immensely encouraging. On behalf of the Archbishops and Bishops of the Church of Ireland I wish publicly to salute the Provost and his colleagues for sharing this venture with us.

The engine room in which this project has been driven has been manned by a relatively small but very talented team led by the Bishop of Clogher. A sermon is perhaps not the place to hand out bouquets but I have to say that with advisers of the calibre of Dr Claire Amos and Professor Aine Hyland, and with a project coordinator of the energy and commitment of Andrew McNeile, the team has been particularly blessed. However, the word that really matters here is the word “team”, for this has been and remains a corporate exercise. This is especially apposite since one of the most significant developments we need to realise for contemporary ministry is the acquisition and deployment of skills that permit ministry to be understood and offered as an exercise in teamwork. Needless to say, this has not always been the way in which ministry has been either understood or delivered in the past.

I have spoken about change and the aspirations we all have for the new. What will not change, however, is the continuing requirement to provide formation for priestly ministry at the very heart of the ministry of the whole People of God. It remains of the essence that we ensure that the lips of a priest preserve and articulate sacred knowledge, and that from his or her mouth people shall feel free and confident in seeking instruction. For the priest remains, through both Word and Sacrament, the accredited messenger of the Lord Almighty.

The full results can be downloaded in Word format here.

In the case of Lay members of Synod elected by parishes, the parish represented is shown for information, but in the case of Lay members elected by the Diocesan Councils, the area of residence is shown.

The names are listed in the order of the number of votes received. In the case of elections where there were no more people nominated than places to be filled, the names are listed in alphabetical order.


HONORARY SECRETARIES to the DIOCESAN SYNODS

Section A - ELECTIONS BY THE JOINT SYNODS


MEMBERS of the REPRESENTATIVE CHURCH BODY

D. Geoffrey PERRIN (Rathmichael) – elected 2008 for three years
Robert S. NEILL (Powerscourt) – elected 2008 for two years
Ven. David A. PIERPOINT (Christ Church Cathedral Group)– elected in 2006 for three years


EPISCOPAL ELECTORAL COLLEGE

DIOCESAN COUNCIL for MISSION


Ex-Officio: The Archdeacon of Dublin, the Venerable David. A. PIERPOINT
The Archdeacon of Glendalough, the Venerable Edgar J. SWANN

Section B - ELECTIONS by the DUBLIN SYNOD

GENERAL SYNOD REPRESENTATIVES

DIOCESAN COUNCIL

Ex-Officio: The Archdeacon of Dublin, the Venerable David A. PIERPOINT

COMMITTEE of PATRONAGE (Diocesan Nominators)

DIOCESAN BOARD OF EDUCATION

Ex-Officio: The Archdeacon of Dublin, the Venerable David A. PIERPOINT

DIOCESAN COMMITTEE for SOCIAL ACTION

DIOCESAN COURT

Chancellor (appointed 1999) – The Hon. Mrs. Justice Catherine McGuinness

Section C - ELECTIONS by the GLENDALOUGH SYNOD


GENERAL SYNOD REPRESENTATIVES

DIOCESAN COUNCIL

Ex-Officio: The Archdeacon of Glendalough, the Venerable Edgar J. SWANN

COMMITTEE of PATRONAGE (Diocesan Nominators)

DIOCESAN BOARD of EDUCATION

Ex-Officio: The Archdeacon of Glendalough, the Venerable Edgar J. SWANN

DIOCESAN COMMITTEE for SOCIAL ACTION

DIOCESAN COURT

Chancellor (appointed 1999) – Mrs. Justice Catherine McGuinness

 
From 1 – 12 December 2008 the UN Climate Change Conference will take place in 
Poznan, Poland.  World leaders will meet to discuss action on climate change for the
last time before the Copenhagen Climate Conference, which will seek to replace the
Kyoto Protocol when it runs out in 2012.  Over the next twelve months, governments
around the world must receive a loud and clear message that bold decisions will have
to be made in Denmark next December if we are to avoid catastrophic climate change.
 
To coincide with this year’s conference, there will be an international day of action on
6 December.  Marches and demonstrations will be taking place across the world,
including in the UK and Ireland, which will illustrate the demand for strong action to
be taken by governments on climate change.  
 
In Northern Ireland Christian Aid, Eco-congregation Ireland, Friends of the Earth,
Tearfund and Trócaire have teamed up to organise “Ring the Changes on Climate
Change – the Countdown to Copenhagen.”  
 
In the Republic the same event is being organised by the Stop Climate Chaos
coalition.
 
On 8 December last year, while world leaders met in Bali, dozens of Churches in
Northern Ireland and the Republic rang their bells at 2pm as part of an event called
“Sound the Alarm on Climate Change.”  At the same time, activists gathered in
Belfast and Dublin.  We want to build on the success of that event this year by
including many more Churches and activists.
 
We have renamed our event “Ring the Changes” because we want to convey a
positive message, one concerned with solutions to climate change – both scientific
and political.  This is a message of hope and possibility, not one of panic.  
 
There are a couple of ways in which you can take part in this event:
 
1. Arrange for the bells to be rung in your local Churches and Cathedrals
and organise events in your town or village around the bell-ringing
2. Incorporate the message of action on climate change into your Church
services over that weekend 

It only takes one or two Churches in each town or village to ring their bells in order to
make an impact and we would like your Church to join in.  All you have to do is
arrange for the bells to be rung at 12 noon precisely.  If your Church doesn’t have
bells, then why not get in contact with other Churches in your town that do?  
Invite members of other Churches in your town to come to whatever event you’re
organising or organise an event in conjunction with them.
 
While the bells are ringing you can take a number of actions to let your local
community know why this is happening.  You could:
 
- Hold a carol service outside the Church and hand out flyers to passers-by

- Host a prayer service to be held inside the Church
- Organise a climate change prayer service in your Church hall for all the
Churches in your area
- Host a “Night of non-power” by turning off the lights and heating and have a
candlelit service with your coats on.  The service can focus on care for the
environment and you could have a talk about the effects of climate change and
how we can all make a difference
- Get your youth workers to lead a session on climate change with the young
people – we can provide free resources to help you do this.
 
Instead of, or in addition, to this, we would like the message of this year’s event to be
included in Church services over the weekend of 6 and 7 December.  We can provide
you with the information they need to bring the message of action on climate change
to your congregation.
 
We are encouraging every Church or group of Churches which takes part to contact
their local press, using a template press release which we can provide to participating
Churches.  
 
In Belfast we hope to have members of the clergy of all denominations, as well as a
diverse range of activists and members of different congregations from across
Northern Ireland.  If nothing is happening in your town, then please come along to St
Anne’s from 11:00am onwards.
 
In Dublin Stop Climate Chaos are in the middle of organising events and will make
announcements about these soon.

In February 1979 a Report was presented to the Church of Ireland entitled ‘First of All’.
It was the result of the deliberations of a joint group of senior clergy and laity on what they considered were the priorities for our Church. The Report began with these words:

“The first priority of the Church of Ireland is spiritual – not material…
The history of our Church is an inspiration – not a burden…”

I cannot think of a more appropriate way to begin this short tribute to the late Robin Lewis-Crosby, a lay canon of our church. Not only was he a member of that think-tank but his thoughts and vision played a key role in our recommendations. With all his professional experience in the world of commerce he still had no doubt as to the priority of the spiritual not alone in the church he loved and served, but in his everyday life. His Church represented for him an inspiration – not a mundane duty or burden. Such beliefs hold the key to one of the most significant lay leaders of the Church of Ireland of this generation. For that life and witness we give thanks to Almighty God this morning – for a life of great richness, compassion and integrity which touched so many lives for good within and beyond the Church of Ireland.

Honored though I am to give this Address at the request of family, recognise the impossibility of embracing all the facts of Robin Lewis-Crosby’s life. I was privileged over the years to work extensively with him, to share his confidence and to count on him as a true and trusted friend. While the Church of Ireland benefited so much from his input that was one facet of his immensely active life. Some of that fullness is captured in the word picture of his career in the Order of Service.

Robin was the son of the rectory – his father was to become Dean of this Cathedral. He was educated at Abberley Hall in Worcesteshire, Rugby School and Corpus Christi at Oxford. The Second World War was to interrupt his career as a chartered accountant here in his beloved Dublin. As a young Artillery officer he was awarded the Military Cross for bravery on several occasions and yet he was always reticent to talk about that period of his life. In fact not many knew of his war honours. After the war he became a partner in Stokes Bros and Pim which is now KPMG Ireland. He was appointed to the Boards of many Irish companies and was one of the architects in creating the Irish Times Trust thus securing the independence of one of our leading newspapers. From 1957 to 1988 he was a member of the Court of the Bank of Ireland and for 13 years its Deputy Governor. On his retirement he became President of the Royal Dublin Society and later he served on the Board of the National Gallery of Ireland. He was Chairman of Baggott Street Hospital, and for many years a Board member of the Smyly Homes. Sport was always a great interest for him – he was Captain and President of both Three Rock Rovers Hockey club and Carrickmines Golf Club. How proud he was of his membership of the MCC. He was a life member of the Hibernian Catch Club, the Friendly Brothers of St Patrick, an honorary member of the Royal Irish Academy and an active member of the Kildare Street and University Club. Despite the fact that even the mention of the sea caused this man of so many parts to visibly pale – he was also a member of the Royal Irish Yacht Club. I could never understand that!

There were several key pillars to the life of Robin Lewis-Crosby – his personal faith manifested in his life with his beloved Peggy and a loving family: his service to this city and to Ireland: his professional ability recognized throughout Irish Civic Society – but all had to take their place beside his love for the Church of Ireland.

One of the great strengths of our Church has been the devoted and gifted laity who have so enriched us by their service and contribution to our life as a Church. Robin will long remain for many of us a shining example of such a person. For 84 years Stillorgan was his parish and he occupied most of the lay appointments there. He was a member of the Board of this Cathedral and his love for Christ Church was infectious. It was only natural that as a representative of Dublin Diocese he would play a pivotal role in the work of the Representative Church Body, ‘the RB’, and it was here that many more were to come to rely on his judgement and experience. Nothing seemed too great to ask of him at Church House and rarely did anyone seeking his help turn away disappointed. The Finance Committee, the Priorities Committee, Lay Honorary Secretary of Dublin Diocesan Council, a member of the General Synod and a member of the Committee of Management of the APCK – and I am sure I have left something out.

How grateful I was as Primate and Archbishop of Armagh when Robin accepted my invitation to become a Lay Canon of St Patrick’s Cathedral, Armagh. This was one way on behalf of the whole church that I could recognize the uniqueness and faithfulness of his contribution to Church of Ireland life. He and Peggy came frequently to Armagh and he occupied his canon’s stall on special occasions until a few years ago. After her death Robin continued to visit the Cathedral and I am delighted the honour I conferred gave him such pleasure – and was applauded by so many.

The ‘First of All’ report began with those words: ‘The first priority of the Church of Ireland is spiritual – not material’. I cannot help thinking that it would be entirely appropriate to conclude ‘The first priority of Robin Lewis-Crosby was spiritual – not material’. Immersed as he was in the professional life of banking and commerce he shared that knowledge and expertise so freely with us all at central levels – but in all I remember of him that knowledge was no end in itself. It was a means to strengthen his Church, to enhance his Church and to provide its people with good government and the best possible foundation of administration. He cared about the Church of Ireland, he cared about its clergy, but most of all Robin cared about the things of God.

He was one of those people who never ‘carried his faith on his sleeve’. In conversation his sense of humanity and humour shone through. I know of several cases where his generosity confidentially and quietly offered gave a helping hand to someone in trouble. I know of the lengths he was prepared to go to meet the needs of someone encountering hardship. I know, too, how seriously he took the decision-making process he was involved in at central church level. But through it all he had that quiet confidence which could only come from a deeply personal daily walk with his God.

So this morning we thank God for a humble servant of the Church, a respected business man who exercised influence with great integrity, a family man so greatly loved by Peggy, Antony, Patricia and Claire – but most we thank God for a wonderful human being who made such a contribution to all our lives.

May he rest in peace and rise in glory.

This south County Dublin parish, with one church in a key position, is in a well-established residential area close to Dun Laoghaire.  This parish provides scope for many aspects of ministry and there is a traditional pattern of parish life with local ecumenical and community relations and much potential for church growth.

The Rectory, situated close to the church, is a two storey over basement period house.

To apply for this position or obtain further information, please write to:
The Secretary to The Archbishop of Dublin,
The See House, 17 Temple Road,
Milltown, Dublin 6
E-mail: archbishop@dublin.anglican.org

The Board of Nomination will not meet before 24th November 2008

An inter-institutional agreement between Trinity College Dublin and the House of Bishops of the Church of Ireland was signed today. It underpins the introduction of a new Masters degree course in Theology which will revolutionise the training for ordained ministry in the Church of Ireland and will also provide opportunities for those training for work in other churches.
 
The new course will lead to a Master in Theology (M. Theol.) as opposed to the previous Bachelor in Theology Degree (B. Th.) and will be taught by staff of Trinity College Dublin and the Church of Ireland Theological Institute. Participants may choose between a  three-year and a six-year part-time option with the latter being delivered in an innovative non-residential, distance learning mode. Both options will have a significant parish internship element.
 
The new course, which will have a rigorous academic core whilst also broadening the scope and content and assessment to include professional application, will commence in October 2009.
 
Speaking at the signing ceremony, the Archbishop of Dublin, the Most Revd Dr John Neill said, "what is really exciting about this new course is that it integrates the academic study of Theology with the practical experience of working as a pastor within a parish. We believe this is a critical milestone towards the provision of effective and professional training and formation to enable clergy and laity to be prepared for the mission of the Church in the 21st Century. I would like to pay particular tribute to the Bishop of Clogher, the Rt Revd Dr Michael Jackson and the Ministry Formation Team for their work on finalising this agreement and the authorities in Trinity College for their support and co-operation. This agreement builds very positively on our longstanding relationship with the University and positions us effectively in partnership for the future."
 
The Provost of Trinity College Dublin, Dr John Hegarty said, “Trinity College is delighted about this agreement on the joint delivery of a Masters in Theological Studies. Introducing this new postgraduate programme with its innovative combination of academic and practical elements is an exciting and timely initiative that will develop and strengthen the long-standing, fruitful cooperation between Trinity College Dublin and the Church of Ireland.”
 
Participants in the Masters in Theology will be selected from those taking part in a one year foundation course available in each diocese in the Church of Ireland.