IF those who forget their history are indeed doomed to repeat it, then Ian d’Alton’s article in this issue of Search should offer some succour. If Disestablishment turned out to be ‘unmitigated blessing’, could the same be said of Brexit a hundred years from now? Of more immediate concern must be the matter of the future membership of our House of Bishops: how upcoming elections will shape our common life. The Bishop of Derry and Raphoe is unlikely to be the only bishop retiring in the next couple of years, so the responsibility of the electoral colleges is a heavy one. Hoping to help the electors, four senior members of the Church ponder the outstanding qualities we need to look for. A cautionary tale centered on Bishop Richard Hanson of Clogher follows, illustrating the need to consider episcopal character and context carefully. In two of the above articles, the desirability of another woman bishop is mentioned explicitly and it is taken for granted in a third. In Dean Susan Green’s article, ‘Do you see this Woman?’, the handicaps suffered by many women clergy are carefully considered and helpful statistical information offered. Although the Church of Ireland was three years ahead of England in ordaining women, the C of E has overtaken us roundly, with higher percentages of women serving in dioceses throughout the Church. This article assesses the reasons and suggests a way forward.
Bishop Michael Burrows continues the theme with some thoughts on the challenges facing ministry today – challenges to be presented by Dr David Hewlett and taken up and chewed on by experienced and thoughtful speakers in the Search Colloquium ‘Developing Ministry’ on March 30th in Trinity College Dublin. Before we come to the Book Reviews, we offer two refreshingly di erent articles. Dr Robin Stockitt, whose recent work centres on the radical quality of shame in Christian life, reflects on the power of names to shame (and not only on social media), while a longstanding member of the Dublin City Interfaith Forum, Swami Purnananda of the Eire Vedants Society, looks at the peaceful purpose of the DCIFF and the progress it has made in Dublin over the past two decades.
Contents
An unmitigated blessing: the disestablishment of the Church of Ireland
BREXIT isn’t an obvious pattern (yet) for historical study. But what happened to the Irish Church 150 years ago resonates with the contemporary turmoils over Britain leaving the EU. A long and entwined union was suddenly undone by a political upheaval in Britain. A determined prime minister soldiered on in the face of all sorts and conditions of opposition, eventually emerging with a result. The process was complex, taking some 2½ years from initial thrust to completion.
WITHIN the next few years it is likely that, in addition to the Bishop of Derry and Raphoe’s retirement in May 2019, the Church of Ireland will see significant change in the House of Bishops. Given the internal conflicts within the Church and the threats to its unity and the ongoing challenges of mission and ministry, it may be useful for the electoral colleges in particular to look carefully at what the Church of Ireland needs in its future bishops. Those we elect may be with us for a long time, and on their character and wisdom the Church’s very survival may depend.
John Mann, Maria Jansson, Ethne Harkness, Andrew Eadie
Calling a spade a spade: Richard Hanson as Bishop of Clogher, 1970-73
RICHARD HANSON came from a distinguished Irish Protestant family. His grandfather had been a Professor of Classics at Trinity College Dublin, among the fi rst group of scholars to be elected to the British Academy; his father, Sir Philip Hanson, had served as Chairman of the Board of Works for the new Irish state; his mother Deena was a prominent social figure.
“Do you see this woman?” – Women’s ministry in the C of I today
IN THE GOSPEL of Luke there is an account of a conversation that takes place between Simon the Pharisee and Jesus immediately after Jesus’ encounter with the woman who washed his feet with her tears. Both Jesus and Simon perceive the scene differently. Simon sees a sinful woman being an interruption, but Jesus, having wholeheartedly accepted her, acknowledges the value of her gift to him, then asks Simon, ‘Do you see this woman?’
Developing Ministry: Looking forward to the SEARCH Colloquium
THE CHURCH is often accused of being unable to change. Yet, when I look back at my memories of the Church of Ireland for over half a century now, I discern in retrospect much evidence of initiative and adaptability. Perhaps this is most obvious in the area of Ministry. When I was a child, ministry was almost exclusively the preserve of the clergy, something they were specially trained to offer to the lay people.
Can anything good come out of Nazareth? – pondering names and their power to shame
NATHANIEL’S question to Philip was instinctive. How could a wise, upright citizen emerge from such a place? In articulating the epithet – Nazareth – Nathaniel assumed that all those within earshot would know its meaning. To be known as an inhabitant of such a town was to be tainted, to be diminished and ultimately to be dismissed. So this was an act of public shaming by means of naming.
Dublin City Interfaith Forum – Beginning a necessary journey
SINCE January 2012, the Dublin City Interfaith Forum has been working for mutual respect and openness not only between Christian denominations, but between the people of diff erent world faiths in the city of Dublin and its environs. Hindus and Buddhists, Muslims and Jews, Sikhs, Jains and Bahais, are all equally welcome to its meeting, as are members of all the Christian churches in Ireland.
IN OUR Holy Communion services, we are familiar with the Sanctus, ‘Holy, holy, holy…’, a hymn of praise drawn from Isaiah’s Temple vision of the Lord (Isa. 6), used in Jewish and Christian liturgies for centuries. This is immediately followed by the Benedictus qui venit, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest!’, the crowd’s acclamation of Jesus as he entered Jerusalem (Matt.21.9). These two biblical passages are usually sung, whether by the congregation and choir as a whole – (traditionally these words were for the people to say) - or by the choir alone.
