Brothers and Sisters in Christ
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Presidential Address to the Synod of the Diocese of Down and Dromore 13 June 2007, 11.25am by Bishop Harold Miller BROTHERS AND SISTERS IN CHRIST: Welcome to the 2007 Diocesan Synod of the Diocese of Down & Dromore. Welcome in the name of Christ, who is the Lord of the Church, and the one whom we gladly and gratefully serve. Sometimes, as a Diocesan Synod comes closer, a bishop finds himself wondering what particular ‘angle’ or focus to take for a Presidential Address. This year, for me, the answer was fairly obvious. On 25 April, I celebrated the tenth anniversary of my consecration to the episcopate and serving in Down & Dromore, and it was a real joy to be surrounded on that occasion by the clergy of the diocese as we met together for a Quiet Day around the Word of God. When I was consecrated on the Feast of St Mark the Evangelist 1997, I really could not have imagined being at the point of looking back over a first decade as a bishop, and please God looking forward into a second. But here we are, and I am thoroughly grateful to the Lord for entrusting me with such a fulfilling and enjoyable ministry, and for giving me the health and strength to carry it out. What I want to do in this Presidential Address then, is (as your bishop) to compare the world as I see it now to the experience of setting out ten years ago. And I do this in three areas: a. The Experience of being rooted in Northern Ireland, because we are one of only two diocese entirely in Northern Ireland b. The Experience of being part of the Anglican Communion c. The Experience of being the overseer of the Diocese of Down & Dromore. First, NORTHERN IRELAND: Coming back to the Province in 1997 was, on one level, heartening. At the time I was chosen to be Bishop we were living, of course, in Cork. In returning to the North, Liz and I were returning to a city which we dearly love. Indeed, I remember us saying together to the Lord: ‘Lord, if you want us anywhere else, make it Belfast’. But we were also returning to a city and province which had been deeply scared by the pain of the previous thirty years, some of which pain we had experienced in those darker days ourselves. And you could feel that. My memories are that, at that point, although it was becoming clear that the worst of the Troubles were behind us, nevertheless, the very obvious open wounds of Drumcree and the marching season were there for all to see. When I was interviewed on the day of the Consecration I remember clearly being asked 1 by the BBC’s Noreen Erskine: ‘Bishop, is there anything you want to say about Drumcree?’ My answer (which I’m so glad they didn’t broadcast at the time) was: ‘I’m glad it’s not in the Diocese of Down & Dromore!’ That could have been the end of my episcopy. Marches, sectarianism, misunderstanding, mistrust, and all the consequences as well as causes of our terrible years of troubles were still very much to the fore for all to see. And indeed, it was out of that that our Diocesan Bridgebuilding Commitment was drawn up and unanimously, in that case, supported by the Diocesan Synod. That commitment is still to be found in many porches and vestries in the diocese to this day, and I see it everywhere I go, and I have suggested to the Reconciliation Committee that it is as relevant now as ever, and should be reissued for the next, hopefully peaceful, stage of our history – and lived out. One of the other things which strike me is that my first Good Friday in the diocese was not the usual opportunity to meditate on the Cross at the Three Hours Service, but rather, a time to be in the Television Studios commenting on what later became known as The Good Friday Agreement of 1998. It is only now, nearly ten years later, and after a great deal of frustration and a great number of false starts, that we have a real sense of the Assembly and Executive up and running, of devolution being meaningful, of that agreement being fully implemented, and of all parties being nearly 100% on board. So, I come to the end of this first decade, like the rest of you, extremely hopeful. It is truly nothing less than miraculous to see Ian Paisley and Martin McGuiness as first minister and deputy first minister, and all the parties working together for the common good of this province. But I want to sound four ‘reminders’ in the area to the Synod today: 1. We must never forget the work the ‘middle ground’ did over those years, when it was not popular to work together and even considered weak to compromise in any way. We are grateful for the risks some of the middle ground politicians took, which were a key part of preparing our community for the world of today. And some of those risks were taken at great cost to political careers. This is the time to say ‘Thank you’ to them, and not least to people like David Trimble and John Hume. 2. We must never, ever, ever, forget the victims of the Troubles here in Northern Ireland – many of them utterly innocent, many of them killed and maimed while working for the security of the whole community. For every victim there was a whole arena of relations, friends and loved ones. These people still live with the pain. Many of them are thrilled to see that we can now look into a more positive future. But the most appalling tragedy of all would be if they were ‘airbrushed’ out of the picture and simply forgotten. And that includes young people like Father Nigel (who is with us today), transported by the British Army into this province to help sort out an intractable situation, who saw and experienced things 2 no young person should ever see or experience, as he told us about this morning, and who live with the memories. It is only by the grace of God, and the healing and forgiving power of Christ that so many have survived and retained their sanity and I was so pleased to see that Archbishop Robin Eames is part of a new small independent Consultative Group to draw up proposals about how Northern Ireland should come to terms with its past. 3. I don’t need to quote figures for this; but the truth is that, in terms of sectarian housing, we are a more divided community than we have ever been in our entire history. I applaud politicians and visionary community workers who dare to paint a picture of a different future – an integrated future - even if others, who consider themselves more pragmatic, more intelligent and hard nosed, tell them it is an impossible dream. In all honesty, where we are now was an impossible dream even a short time ago, and we need prophetic and visionary voices to paint a new picture of a shared future, in which we rediscover one another (and discover others who have come to live among us) as one community of human beings made in the image of God, where every single person is given their true value and worth. We need to paint a picture which will become so engaging that we will see it emerging before our very eyes, - and we in the churches should be at the forefront in this, as we make the Kingdom of God real in the localities in which we serve. 4. Although we have moved forward a great distance in the decommissioning of paramilitary weapons, there is still a remainder, an incompleteness, which cannot be ignored. This is seen in the Republican side in the existence of dissident groups. But it is seen even more starkly in the loyalist paramilitaries at this stage. In early May, I was glad to issue a statement welcoming what the UVF and Red Hand Commando had said about assuming a non-military, civilianized role. There has been a great deal of movement in some parts. But what I want to say firmly is this. What was required of the IRA is also required for loyalist paramilitaries. That is not just the putting of weapons beyond reach, but the verifiable putting of weapons beyond use, as we move into a truly peaceful future. So, the Assembly and Executive are in place. Peace may have come dropping slowly but it is dropping. Deo gracias. One of our priestly tasks as a church, which has traditionally been and should remain as is our Anglican tradition, is week by week to pray for our new ministers, pray for our MLA’s, pray that through devolved government we will build a society which is just, good and fair for all. Second, THE ANGLICAN COMMUNION: To avoid the issues of the Anglican Communion at this point in our history would be to bury our heads in the sand, and a lot is achieved by that. When I became a bishop in 3 1997, I was very aware that one of my early privileges would be to attend the 1998 Lambeth Conference, along with around 800 bishops and their spouses from all over the world. This was something I looked forward to with all my heart. It became the place where I met so many wonderful fellow bishops, leaders in the Gospel in many different countries, living out their discipleship and caring for their people in situations which I could only begin to imagine.