30.09.2020
Passing on the baton of ministry – the Revd Christopher West is Ordained to the Priesthood
“Carry the baton of ministry with pride, integrity and faithfulness as the church, society and the world unfolds before you.” This was the advice given to the Revd Christopher West who was ordained to the Priesthood in Taney Parish Church, where he will serve as Curate.
Christopher is starting out in ministry at a strange time when the world is grappling with Covid–19. His Service of Ordination took place in a closed church with just his immediate family and a handful of witnesses present.
However, the Rector and preacher, Canon Robert Warren, reminded him that while he was making solemn promises in the company of a gathering limited by the current restrictions, he was making these promises before God.
Archbishop Michael Jackson presided at the service and said that while every compliance was in place for the evening to launch Christopher’s ministry, everyone could look forward to celebrating his ministry together in the future. Canon Warren and the Revd Nigel Pierpoint, who is also a Curate of the parish took part in the service. Christopher was joined by his parents Linda and Nigel, and his brother Owen.
In his sermon Canon Warren referred to 1 Corinthians 9; 24 & 25: “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.”
He suggested that the race was not just a sprint but more like a relay. “You Chris have done the strict training and are now in the starting blocks, rearing to go … For me, the finishing line is in sight after more than 42 years of Ordained Ministry,” he said. “So in a way, today I imagine I am passing on the baton of ministry to you, Chris, in the hope that you will be richly blessed in the exciting, although undoubtedly challenging opportunities that lie ahead of you.”
He offered three gifts to encapsulate what he wanted to say on Christopher’s Ordination day. Noting that a Bible would be given to him by the Archbishop as laid out in the Ordinal, the first gift was a copy of the Desiderata, a work of prose which was discovered in a church in Baltimore, Maryland. He said it contained a number of important pointers for those in ministry including an instruction to remember what peace there may be in silence. He urged the soon to be ordained priest not to let the pressures of parish life supplant the important tools of ministry – prayer life and spiritual and theological reading.
The Desiderata also advises to be yourself and Canon Warren added that if Christopher continually danced to other people’s tunes, his ministry would be frustrating and unfulfilling and would not be genuine. The prose also urges clergy to be “gentle with yourself” and the preacher observed that self–care was a most important part of any caring ministry.
He also wished to present Christopher with a copy of the Constitution of the Church of Ireland noting that the protocols and directions as to how parishes, dioceses and the Central Church are governed offered protection and guidance.
His final gift was a piece of wood representing the baton of the relay race. It was not shiny or smooth but rather rough and gnarled and could act as a reminder that priestly ministry would not be easy, straight–forward or simple.
“It will instead be challenging with times of happiness and sadness, with times of frustration and fulfilment as you travel and journey with those committed to your charge from their beginnings of life to their end of life and with so much in between. Carry the baton of ministry with pride, integrity and faithfulness as the church, society and the world unfolds before you,” he stated.
