THE Moderator Designate of the Presbyterian Church, the Rev Harry Allen, said yesterday that while he believed the Northern peace process would not break down, a great deal more solid work was needed to consolidate it.
Mr Allen, elected on Tuesday to serve as Moderator for a year from June, said he was an evangelical but had never considered himself a "hardliner".
While he would not feel happy, for theological reasons, to participate in joint services with Catholics, he felt the question of joint worship was "an old chestnut".
He added: "It gives people the impression that you have a label.
"I am more concerned with people living together - being seen to be working together on the ground."
He would never criticise those who took part in joint worship. He had always had a warm relationship with Roman Catholics, and both communities worked closely as colleagues and neighbours in Coleraine Co Derry, where he ministers.
"We've got to live together on this island, and for far too long there has been a great dichotomy over perceived differences" Mr Allen said.
Asked about the proposal for elections in the North, he said politicians would know better than he if this was the best way forward, but he added that it might provide a means for the community to express its views.
He would love to see the peace process consolidated and he hoped "that our people will work together for that".
He felt the paramilitaries had lost a vital opportunity in not decommissioning earlier.
"I am convinced that the sooner the arms are taken out of the situation, the sooner we will move forward," he said.
Mr Allen, in his first media interviews yesterday, said he felt "thrilled, humbled and honoured" at being selected to serve as Moderator.