The new Moderator of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland (PCI), Right Reverend Dr Richard Kerr, was installed today at PCI’s annual General Assembly, which is meeting in Belfast.
The Service of Installation for the minster of Templepatrick Presbyterian Church, was conducted by the outgoing Moderator, Dr Richard Murray. Due to take place yesterday (Wednesday, 10 June), the service was rescheduled when the General Assembly adjourned yesterday afternoon’s sessions as a result of recent events and disruption to public transport.
The rescheduling meant that civic guests, including His Majesty the King’s Lord Lieutenant for Belfast, could not attend today’s installation. Some of Dr Kerr’s family, his wife Brenda, and his parents who had come from Donegal, were still able to attend, along with members of his County Antrim congregation.
During his address the Moderator spoke of the events of the past few days saying, “We rightly condemn the incident in North Belfast on Monday night. It was horrific, barbaric and evil. We must also condemn the actions of those who would manipulate people’s concerns and indiscriminately tar whole communities with one brush, causing fear and consternation among ethnic minorities.
“The PSNI find themselves caught in the middle, as they seek to maintain law and order. Our prayers are with them and all those in the emergency services who have displayed such courage. The Gospel calls us, not to take sides, but to work for a kingdom that brings hope and life, and reconciles people to God and to each other. And the vision we work towards is of every nation, tribe, people and language, worshipping God together. This is who we are!”
Unveiling his theme for the year, which is taken from John 3:16, ‘For God so loved…’ the father of three paid tribute to his predecessor, Dr Murray, thanking him for “his wise and godly leadership through these past months.”
“I know it wasn’t a role you sought. You believed that you had completed your time as Moderator, you had returned to your people in Drumreagh, and you were getting back into the rhythms of congregational life. But when we as a denomination needed you, you answered the call, and returned to lead us through these past tumultuous months,” he said.
“You have done that with Godly wisdom, genuine pastoral concern, and a constant reminder of our need to rely on God. The calm leadership you have exercised, the prayerful and contrite tone you have set, your willingness to go the extra mile to restore trust in our denomination through your engagement with the PSNI and the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland, in investigations and inquiries, is deeply, deeply appreciated by this house. We want to convey to you our profound gratitude.”
The Moderator continued, “You have opened and moderated more General Assemblies than any Moderator in living memory – five at the last count – and therefore I know you’re looking for a rest, which is well warranted, and much deserved. And personally, Richard I want to thank you for your wise counsel and friendship, and I’m sure I’ll be seeking your advice in the days to come!”
The Moderator also paid tribute to the Acting Clerk, Rev Dr David Allen, and to the Convenor of the General Council, Very Rev Dr David Bruce, for their leadership as “we’ve navigated our way through turbulent waters through these past months.
“Their public statements of contrition reflect our collective contrition, even as some of us have expressed our anger and even our sense of betrayal. Yet this exposure of our failings and the investigations and reviews that are on-going - I believe - will provide us with an open and honest foundation from which to move forward. I hope that in some small way I can be part of that,” he said.
Thanking the Church for his nomination and election - the 180th person to hold PCI’s highest office since the all-Ireland denomination was established in 1840 - and the trust placed in him, Dr Kerr admitted that he found the prospect daunting. “We’ve faced a challenging year as a denomination. That’s an understatement. As we move into this coming year I’ve chosen as my theme, “For God so loved…” It’s a phrase that invites us to refocus. To return to what is at the core of our Christian faith, the lavish love of God, the centrality of Christ, the on-going work of the Holy Spirit. This is who we are,” he said.
During his address, the former missionary to Malawi spoke of God’s initiative in the lives of Christians, Jesus’ incarnation and the Holy Spirit’s inspiration. “It all starts with God…our anchor point. The Rock of our Salvation. Our stability in a sea of change and upheaval…Acknowledging that it all starts with God reminds us that it’s not in the first instance about us.
“Yet we need to be honest about who we are, individually and as a denomination. We have failed in our central safeguarding to protect the people who most need protected. People precious to God have been harmed as a result. Our concern is rightly for those who are victims of our failings. External investigations and independent reviews of our safeguarding and structures are ongoing. This is a matter of great shame to us as a denomination,” the Moderator said.
He also reminded the Assembly that God had not gone away. “He’s the same yesterday, today and forever…[and] when we are in crisis, how does God show His love? He gave His Son. God’s greatest expression of love is His Son, who lived and died for us.
“Not while we deserved it, but while we were yet sinners, Christ came and died in our place. This is how God shows His love. “This is love” John writes in his first letter (1 John 4:10) “not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. This is not academic or abstract. Eugene Peterson in his paraphrase, The Message translates John 1:14 as ‘The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighbourhood. When our world was broken and estranged from God, He didn’t wash His hands or walk away, He gave His Son, His greatest gift. Undeserved, free. A gift of grace.”
Dr Kerr continued, “that Jesus comes to be with us, to live with us, and as such He identifies with us. He understands our pain, our brokenness and our hurt. He also understands the pain and brokenness and hurt that our failings as a church have inflicted on others. He came to restore the broken. His coming says that God cares about all that, deeply!
“In the year ahead, my hope is to meet with people who have been hurt by our failings, support those who have felt let down, listen to those who are dealing with brokenness and pain. It’s not that I have all the answers, but I want to listen and seek to understand. Most of all, I want to say God cares. God understands. God wants to bring His healing – and we are deeply sorry.”
The Moderator also said that he wanted to point to the greatest expression of God’s love, “the cross of Jesus Christ…Our salvation is bought by His death in our place. The cross is central to who we are as His church. Our freedom is paid for by His blood.
“…This is the essence of the Gospel, the good news! With all that’s happened in the past year, we’ve rightly been preoccupied with putting our house in order. Victims must be our central focus. Addressing our failings is paramount. Restoring trust, unnegotiable. As we do that, I also want to encourage you today, to take stock, to reconsider our purpose as a church. We have a message to proclaim: “For God so loved…”
Dr Kerr reminded the Assembly that it wasn’t just a message for this afternoon, but the essence of the Church’s mission to society and world. “This is what we exist for. To glorify God and bear witness to who He is in a society which is crying out for love and truth. In a world bombarded by bad news, we have Good News to share.”
Talking about his family’s time in Malawi, he said that it had been a huge blessing. “We saw people coming to faith in significant numbers. Not because of our ministry, but because of the work of the Holy Spirit…The Holy Spirit changes lives. We see the work of the Spirit in our own context today. People coming through our doors seeking meaning and purpose in life. As I talk to colleagues, I hear stories of God at work. We’re planting churches here, north and south, in European cities. The same Holy Spirit of 2,000 years ago is at work today in our land.”
The Moderator continued, “Perhaps God is reminding us that this is not about us. That in the midst of reconfiguration, investigations, and inquiries, He works through that which is weak and powerless, but which is made available to Him…His invitation is to surrender ourselves to Him and allow Him in work in and through us by the power of the Holy Spirit. I certainly believe that God wants to remind us of whose we are. Isn’t that the work of the Spirit? ‘The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children…’” (Romans 8:16.)
“Who we are as PCI must be founded on and shaped by who God is. A God who takes the initiative and reaches into our world, into our lives, into the brokenness and despair. A God who loves us and those we’ve hurt, and who shows that in Jesus, and all He has done for us. A God who wants us to live out of that love, in the power of the Holy Spirit, loving Him, our brothers and sisters, and the world around us. For God so loved…
