The Church of Ireland
Diocesan Press Release

New York, Washington and Northern Ireland

The events of 11 September represent a watershed. While terrorism is as old as humankind the attacks on the World Trade Centre and the Pentagon represent atrocities on a new scale and at a new level of sophistication.

Our sympathy goes out to all who have been injured and to the thousands of families who have been bereaved. It has been a shattering experience not only for individuals and families but also for America as a nation. Until 11 September many Americans saw terrorism as something that happened to others. In one single day that confidence was destroyed.

Terrorism is evil whether in New York or Washington, Greysteel or Omagh or wherever. The scale may vary but qualitatively it is the same. Terrorism is that ugly, evil thing which destroys innocent people and all in the pursuit of some political or strategic objective.

The strong reaction by so many world leaders in calling for a war on terrorism on a global scale causes us to wonder why such condemnation was not always heard when terrorism has been such an evil force in our own community for well over thirty years. Indeed the ambivalence shown to terrorist acts and the ambiguous language used were often paralleled by people from all sides of the community here. Condemnations were often one-sided and partisan and fell short of a total rejection and condemnation. September 11 was a defining moment when terrorism was widely recognised as an evil thing which should have no place whatever in a civilised society.

American Response

The terrible events of 11 September called for a vigorous response and President Bush and his advisers came under intense pressure to strike back. The nature and scale of the response have raised very complex and difficult questions. It is just and right that those responsible for terrorist acts should be brought to justice. But will the present strike by America and her allies achieve that result?

Prior to 11 September Afghanistan was already facing a severe humanitarian crisis. Two decades of civil war, poverty and famine had forced many thousands to become refugees. Aid agencies have predicted that 5 million people, roughly the population of the whole of Ireland, are in urgent need of immediate food aid and without it cannot survive.

In such a situation we have to ask the question – was war the only option? Was every channel of diplomacy and international action exhausted? It will be a tragedy if the ultimate outcome is that the suffering of the innocent people of America has been matched or exceeded by the suffering of the innocent people of Afghanistan and international terrorism has continued to thrive.

Decommissioning of Weapons and Devolved Government

Since the signing of the Good Friday Agreement three and a half years ago there have been many critical moments in the peace process. The present situation is the most serious and time is running out. The two main issues, the decommissioning of weapons and the sharing of power in a devolved administration are closely inter-related and continue to haunt us.

Now at the eleventh hour a call has been made to the IRA to make a ground-breaking gesture on decommissioning which can move the peace process forward and save the Executive and the other devolved institutions. As a community, which has suffered so much from terrorist activity for over 30 years, we have a right to make 2 main demands in this regard:

First, that there will be a substantial response from the IRA which will reassure the community that the process has effectively begun which will lead to the decommissioning of all illegal weapons.

Second, that all illegal weapons held by all paramilitary groups, Loyalist and Republican, will be put beyond use for all time. There is no difference between a Republican gun and a Loyalist gun. They are both lethal weapons which should have no place whatever in our society. Politics not guns is the only acceptable way forward.

There is widespread recognition that the only viable way forward is the sharing of political power in a devolved administration. Because of our history this is a difficult concept for people right across the community, both Unionist and Nationalist. Are we going to allow history to imprison us? Is history an intolerable burden which weighs us down or can we learn from history and find the inspiration and energy to make a new beginning?

Positive moves on decommissioning require a positive response from every political party. We understand the difficulties that political leaders have to face but we want to encourage them to find a way forward. To achieve that will require hard-headed realism combined with generosity of spirit. We pray for all political leaders that they will rise to the occasion and grasp this opportunity. Politics is about the ability to take calculated risks and it requires a lot of courage.

The Challenge to the Church

These are challenging times for the Church. In a rapidly changing world the Church is called to do two things which are difficult to hold in balance. On the one hand to be willing to adapt and manage change in quite radical ways. On the other hand to preserve and promote the historic faith. If we hide our heads in the sand and hope that the storm will pass we will be regarded by the outside world as irrelevant and as an historic relic. But change is never right when done merely for the sake of change. In every aspect of change the Church must ask the question – Will this safeguard, enhance and develop the Christian faith and is it consistent with the principles of the Gospel? There are no slick answers and no quick fixes.

We need to ensure that the changes we make are not made with our backs to the wall. We must acknowledge that God speaks through the changes and calls us to follow Him along new paths and in new ways. We must keep our nerve, keep our faith strong and renew our confidence in the Church of Ireland.

What is God calling us to be and to do?

An essential part of the answer is to focus on the Church as a family. Each parish and congregation is a family of faith and together we are the family of faith in the Diocese.

Let me highlight three main objectives of that family of faith:

1. A family of faith which values and cherishes all its members – women and men, children, young people, adults and the elderly. A family held together in Christian love where there is unfailing respect for diversity and where tolerance and generosity of spirit reign supreme.
   
   
2. A family of faith which holds to the doctrine and discipline of the Church of Ireland. There are worrying trends within the Church which seem to show scant regard for the historic ethos and distinctive features of Church of Ireland teaching, worship and practice. At the Ordination of every Bishop, Priest and Deacon in the Church of Ireland the question is put, ”Do you believe and accept the doctrine of the Christian faith as the Church of Ireland has received it?” and the candidate answers “I do”. That commitment should be made by every ordained and lay member of the Church.
   
   
3. A family of faith which encourages its members to reach out into the wider community in witness and service and which gives them the confidence to be agents of reconciliation and of peace.

Retirement

My Episcopal Ordination took place in St. Patrick’s Cathedral, Armagh on 7 September 1980 and for the past 21 years I have been your Bishop. I intend to retire at the end of January 2002. To serve the Dioceses of Derry and Raphoe has been for me the highest honour and the greatest privilege. Hardly a day passes that I do not thank God for allowing me to live and work here. I have always believed that these Dioceses represent a very special part of the Church of Ireland and have enormous potential.

I wish to place on record my deep appreciation of my clergy. They have worked together as a team and have given me outstanding support and co-operation. There has been an absence of any party spirit among the clergy and an acceptance of each other for the good of the Church in the Dioceses. I have been privileged to lead such a united, gifted team. I thank the laity of the Dioceses for their friendship, their strong commitment to their parishes and their willingness to serve the Church. They are held in great respect by people throughout the wider community and have enhanced the reputation of the Church of Ireland in the Dioceses of Derry and Raphoe.

I wish to pay a very special tribute to my wife Thelma. Throughout the 45 years of our married life she has been my constant companion, confidant and encourager. For the past 21 years we have travelled thousands of miles each year together across the Dioceses. Without her love and support I could not have fulfilled my ministry. Not only as my wife but also in her own right she has made an enormous contribution to the Church of Ireland especially in the area of the Mothers’ Union, as Diocesan President for 7 years and for the last 6 years as All-Ireland President.

I wish you God’s blessing as you continue your journey under my successor. May that journey be characterised by faith, hope and love and may you as God’s people in Derry and Raphoe realise in fuller measure the enormous spiritual potential which lies at the heart of the Church of Ireland.