09.10.2024
‘Relax into the gifts God has given you’ – New Student Readers Commissioned at CITI
Four Ordinands at the Church of Ireland Theological Institute were commissioned as Student Readers on Wednesday October 2 by the Archbishop of Dublin.
Neville Cobbe (Connor), Francis Khamanra (Down and Dromore), Stephen Moore (Down and Dromore and Ashley Morgan (Armagh) were licensed by Archbishop Michael Jackson during the Community Eucharist in the Church of Ireland Theological Institute.
The students were presented to the Archbishop for licensing by the Revd Dr Patrick McGlinchey who coordinates student placements. Student readers are called to lead worship, proclaim the word and assist in the distribution of the bread and wine of Holy Communion.
For his sermon, the Archbishop focussed on the Collect of The Eighteenth Sunday after Trinity: Almighty and everlasting God: Increase in us your gift of faith that, forsaking what lies behind, we may run the way of your commandments and win the crown of everlasting joy; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
He asked what the theological logic and the purpose of the Collect were and how it might help on a day when the congregation in the chapel gathered to wish the ordinands well on the paths that would unfold before them.
“You are called today in your ministry to use and to share your spiritual imagination in the quest for a particular type of joy which is also justice, which is also care, which is also worship. These gifts God has given into your hands to treasure by sharing, to hold by giving away, to live out the divine paradox that it is more blessed to give than to receive. And you will find that such an approach is the antidote and the vaccine for the clericalization of which I spoke earlier. Its cloud is ponderous. It hangs low and heavy. You need to dispel it and I hope that today’s Collect will help you to do so. You need to relax into the gift of goodness that God has given to you,” the Archbishop said.