16.06.2020
Worldwide Audience Tunes in for Consecration of Bishop Coadjutor in Jerusalem
Dublin & Glendalough and the Diocese of Jerusalem have enjoyed a partnership for the last five years.
Our partner diocese, the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem has a new Bishop Coadjutor. The former Dean of St George’s Cathedral in Jerusalem, Bishop Hosam Elias Naoum was consecrated to the office of Bishop Coadjutor within the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem on Sunday June 14. In due course he will succeed Archbishop Suheil Dawani as the Anglican Archbishop in Jerusalem and will become one of the Heads of the Churches in the City of the Holy One.
Dublin & Glendalough has enjoyed a friendship and partnership link with the Diocese of Jerusalem for five years and that link has been extended by Archbishop Michael Jackson and Archbishop Dawani.
Due to the covid–19 pandemic the congregation in St George’s Cathedral was limited to 50 and included some diocesan clergy, the Bishop’s family and some official guests. However, several thousand people watched the service online from around the world on the Jerusalem Diocese YouTube channel.
In his sermon at the Service of Consecration, Archbishop Dawani said a Bishop was called first of all to be a servant of God and a servant of God’s people. Jesus spoke to the Apostle Peter about servanthood in the Gospel, the Archbishop said. “In his new role as the Chief Apostle, Peter would discover that his life would no longer be his own. It would belong to God in the service of his people,” he said.
He told Bishop Naoum that his life would change dramatically. “And so, in my experience, what Jesus told Peter was true. The life of a Bishop is not about luxury. It is about taking on a heavy responsibility in the service of the Gospel. As we know, all Christians are called to take up their crosses and follow Jesus. But the cross of a Bishop is an especially heavy one to bear. It means having a full and honest commitment to your ministry, where your mind and your spirit are pulled in more different directions than you ever thought possible. That’s especially the case now in the midst of the coronavirus crisis, something that will remain with us for many years to come, in one way or another,” the Archbishop said.
Archbishop Dawani said the new Bishop would need support, in the form of prayer and worship and from those around him.
He said he was proud to say that the Diocese of Jerusalem had a strong presence locally and internationally. “I am delighted to say that the greatness of our image stems from transparency, integrity, and humility. Make sure, dear Hosam, to keep this magnificent image and good reputation alive. And make sure too, to keep the legacy of our fathers and forefathers alive, maintaining the Christian presence of the Living Stones in this City and the region, working for the Christian Unity of the Body of Christ,” the Archbishop concluded.
Archbishop Jackson would have been at the consecration but for restrictions on travel. He sent a message to be read during the service on his own behalf and that of the people and clergy of Dublin & Glendalough. He said that the link between the two dioceses was live giving.
“It frames our faith and it frames our identity. Our deep and sustained relationship of prayer and friendship with the people and clergy of your diocese connects us tangibly to the roots of our belief through the everyday witness of The Living Stones of today in The Land of The Holy One. Your presence and your engagement are an inspiration to us all,” he said.
