THE P RTAL
July 2014
A New CofE
Diocese
UK Pages - page 15
Anglican
News
The scene in York Minster is described by The Revd Paul Benfield
On Pentecost
Sunday afternoon I attended worship in York Minster which was titled ‘Holy
Communion, Inauguration of the Diocese of Leeds (West Yorkshire and the Dales) and the Confirmation
of Election of the Right Reverend Nicholas Baines as Bishop of Leeds. The President was the Most Reverend
and Right Honourable Dr John Tucker Mugabi Sentamu, Lord Archbishop of York, Primate of England and
Metropolitan.
The first part of the service was a fairly standard
Ministry of the Word of a Common Worship Eucharist.
The account of the descent of the Holy Spirit from
Acts was read by Professor Michael Clarke, Chair
of the Dioceses Commission (whose scheme, when
confirmed by General Synod and the Privy Council,
had set up the new Diocese).
done. If I am I shall pronounce a favourable judgment,
the Bishop elect with then take the oaths and I shall
declare that he has thereby become the bishop.’
After a lot of legal language which I, being a barrister,
found fascinating, but which will not have been
edifying to most of the three thousand other people
present, the learned judge pronounced the sentence of
A reading from Numbers was read by Bishop the Court which was that Nicholas Baines had been
Friedrich Weber, Bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran duly elected and to him was committed the care,
Church in Brunswick and Co-Chair of the Meissen government and administration of the Spriritualities
Commission (the Meissen Commission seeks to of the Bishopric of Leeds.
develop relationships between the Church of England
and the Evangelical Church in Germany and Bishop on Ilkley Moor
After this the Archbishop of York handed to the deans
Nick is the English Co-Chair).
of the three cathedrals of the diocese the Mandate
elected diocesan bishops
requiring them to admit and induct the Bishop into
After the Gospel and sermon came the Confirmation the actual and corporeal possession of the Bishopric.
of Election. In an introduction read by the Vicar- After the Peace we sang the Offertory Hymn ‘O for a
General of the Province of York, the senior ecclesiastical thousand tongues to sing’ to a tune associated with
judge of the Northern Province, dressed in full judicial Ilkley Moor, after which the Eucharist continued in a
robes and long wig, we heard how diocesan bishops more usual manner.
are elected, in this case by the new unified College of
Canons of the three cathedrals of the new diocese at
During the administration of communion the three
Bradford, Ripon and Wakefield.
cathedral choirs each sang an anthem – up to this point
the music had been led by the choir of York Minster.
In the election there is only one candidate, whose
name is sent to the College by Her Majesty the Queen first new diocese since 1929
After the service people were supposed to enjoy a
in the Congé d’Elire (which is Her Majesty’s licence to
carry out the election) along with her ‘Letters Missive’ picnic provided by Morrison’s Supermarket, but I
naming the only candidate in the election. He is think there had been a lack of communication about
the person who has been nominated by the Crown what was required.
Nominations Commission after consultation with the
It was impossible for people to deal with a packet of
Diocese and others.
crackers, a piece of cheese and a jar of chutney when
The Confirmation of Election is a formal legal hearing we had no cutlery, and so most people took their
to determine that everything has been carried out carrier bags home or (as we did) gave them to tramps
properly. The Vicar-General went on ‘Earlier today I on the street. But in the words of the Archbishop, the
began that court hearing…I adjourned the proceedings first new diocese in the Church of England since 1929
when I was about to announce my decision and to say had ‘lift off ’.
whether I was satisfied with everything that had been
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