At a time when the very existence of the Anglican communion is under threat, the new Church of Ireland Bishop of Cashel and Ossory, the Rt Rev Michael Burrows, was already up to speed, his consecration in Christ Church Cathedral was told yesterday.
The Ven Robin White, Archdeacon of Cork, said that the communion, a federation of national churches, was under threat from dislocating forces and questions. It was good therefore that the new bishop would already be up to speed, having represented the Church of Ireland on the Anglican Consultative Council.
"His contribution in a wider field will enrich what he will do in his dioceses," Archdeacon White said. "Michael is a committed but realistic ecumenist. This new bishop will follow up the real and important initiatives in his united dioceses."
The former Dean of Cork was elected after the resignation last January after three years as bishop of the Rt Rev Peter Barrett, when he left his wife and three children.
Archdeacon White said: "This is, to say the least of it, an important day. After a horrible half year for all concerned, we believe that God is sending among the people of Cashel and Ossory, of Waterford and Lismore, of Ferns and Leighlin a new Father in God, a new servant of Jesus, a new chief shepherd under Christ.
"For Michael this has been an unexpected and demanding call for a new ministry."
He said for the new bishop, his wife and four children it was an uprooting. Under the present system of election, this uprooting could be very abrupt.
Archdeacon White paid tribute to the dignified and helpful way the clergy and people, the commissaries and all responsible had handled the last six months, a time made more poignant by the death in February of Bishop Noel Willoughby.
A bishop mattered, he said. When Henry McAdoo was enthroned in Kilkenny in 1962, there was a new confidence that the Church of Ireland was part of something bigger, of the Anglican Communion.
"Then we were aware of the beginnings of the journey of ecumenism - let it not be lost sight of - very costly and prophetic in those days for the leadership of the Church of Ireland," he said.
The new bishop must be a confident administrator, he said. In an age of litigation, of compliance issues in all sorts of fields, the bishop was responsible for safety, not just of clergy and those who served on the church councils but teachers, those on boards of management, youth workers and young people.
"The expert advice of the bishop and of those whom he entrusts with providing such advice will keep those volunteers safe," Archdeacon White said. The new bishop also brought an impressive record of caring and diligent pastoring as a parochial clergyman, he said.