This Bishop thing.
On Sunday the 29th of October, Garry our Bishop will be with us and this will be a great joy and cause for celebration. It will also be a great reason for a party because we have no less than 4 candidates of varying ages being confirmed.
There is a line of logic that says that as the Bishop is preaching, I get to have the morning off from writing a homily, but then the pew sheet would be a bit sparse and a homily is needed for the Parish website and Facebook page. Quite literally, people from all over the world do ‘look in at us’ and it would be slothful of me not to offer up some pickings.
So I thought I might offer up some glimpses of a Bishop's ministry.
First, the things we easily see about a Bishop.
The most obvious thing we see with a bishop is his distinctive headwear. Far more grandiose and elegant than Fr. David’s humble black biretta, the Bishop’s headdress is called a mitre. It is shaped quite deliberately in the style of a flame. Why?
Well, you will recall the story of Pentecost, how the disciples and Our Lady were all gathered and something like tongues of flame descended on the apostles' heads and they began to speak in differing dialects.
Those first 12 handed on the ministry to others and part of the uniform of an apostle became our modern-day mitre.
I hope that there might be a picture of one in the pew sheet this week.
Other Bishop bits and pieces to watch out for are the Bishop's Crozier or Pastoral Staff. It’s like the episcopal walking stick but its symbolism is a bit more serious. Bishop Garry is our chief Shepherd and he is to care for us his folk with all the diligence and love of The Good Shepherd. He must always encourage as well as correct. Inspire, teach and reach out.
If your eyesight is particularly good, you might also see a pectoral cross on his chest, which is to remind everyone who it is all about and the Bishop's Ring which is on his right hand and reminds everyone of the solemn union that the Bishop has with the Church and his people.
Bishop Garry has the lovely habit of taking this ring off just before we get to the heart of the Eucharist at the offertory hymn. He says (and his logic makes splendid sense) ‘that when he is at the altar he is simply a priest doing and being what priests do and what they are. They offer sacrifice. It’s a potent and helpful reminder.’
What else do we know about Bishops? Well, there are some Church services for which you need a bishop. Confirmation is one of them, which is why the Bishop will get in his car very early on Sunday morning to come to us. The ordaining of a deacon or a priest are other sacraments that require a Bishop.
There is another service that we don’t get to see very often and that is the Reception of people into the Anglican Communion.
This is a very simple little service where people from different denominations decide that they would like to make the Anglican church their home. From our perspective of course we say ‘Welcome friend. We are delighted that you have come to be with us and we will support and encourage you. As a sign of how seriously we take you and this momentous step, we get no less than a bishop to come and officially welcome you. Hoorah!’
There are other things that we sort of see. If we read the Dnews carefully we get glimpses of this Episcopal ministry. The next meeting of the Bishop in Council… will tell you something. When we read Reverend X continues to do well after their surgery, you will know that the bishop has at the very least been in touch via phone, but more likely been to Reverend X’s bedside.
When we read Provincial Council or General Synod or the Appellate tribunal met, you know that Garry our Bishop has been to some pretty hefty meetings, the details of which don’t quite make the news. We glimpse him magnanimously and competently chairing Synod each year which is really just the icing on a lot of cake that has been carefully and assiduously put together in the weeks before. His presidential address at Synod, which is always masterful and insightful, is usually about 4,000 words. Not something you knock out over a cuppa at the breakfast table in ten minutes.
Then there are the tricky letters, the uncomfortable phone calls, and the perennial problem of trying to staff the diocese with competent priests and care of their families, to say nothing of the whole child abuse catastrophe. The things that we sort of know about, the hours that we subconsciously realise must be put in, but are always hidden from us.
Then there are the things that only Bishop Garry knows about. We will never understand these issues or glimpse them because they are none of our business. The wrong things he makes right, without anyone knowing. Please pray for and give thanks for the ministry of Garry our Bishop.