The first Mo
derator in over 20 years to come from a position outside of parish ministry used the occasion to talk about a diverse range of subjects, including the concept of ‘Home’ – the theme for his year in office, which he has taken from the biblical story of Ruth.
From the outset, however, Dr Bruce said that he was “under no illusions about the delicacy and complexity of the matters facing us at a time when we are prevented from meeting face-to-face.” He was referring to the fact that this year’s General Assembly had been cancelled, due to the Coronavirus emergency and the ‘unusual situation’ he found himself in, “exemplified by the empty hall before us, and that you, the congregation, are watching on line.”
You can watch the Opening Night of the Standing Commission and Installation of the new Moderator here:
He also recognised that beyond the current emergency, “our society remains in a state of flux, where pressures to embrace a new social agenda are rapidly growing. Aspects of this are of course very good, and are to be welcomed – others less so.”
Dr Bruce commended Northern Ireland’s Health Minister, Robin Swann MLA, and his counterpart in the Republic of Ireland, Simon Harris TD, for their leadership during the crisis so far. Talking about the future, the Moderator said, “If there is to be a ‘new normal’ at some point to come, perhaps we might hope that some of the richest learning we have gleaned might endure as abiding features of Irish life – things like generosity, community spirit, volunteering for practical care and warm appreciation for good work well done.
“The COVID-19 emergency has refocused our attention on the need for excellent care in the community. If a weakness has been exposed here, (and who could argue otherwise) it behoves us to put it right.
“The most vulnerable ought to be our first, not our last priority in caring – and we commend the incredible commitment of all on the front line, in particular those in our health services, and care home staff, working in difficult conditions across the sector, and note among them the wonderful work of the Presbyterian care teams working in our residential facilities across the country.”
As Dr Bruce talked of the care afforded to those in the twilight of their lives, “this is surely true for people at the earliest stages of their lives also. It has been deeply distressing to see the radical liberalisation of the law in both jurisdictions regarding abortion. Like all ethical issues, there must surely be a point of principle upon which our decisions rest and we as a church affirm again that life is holy to God, and that the most vulnerable in society deserve the most assiduous protection from society – and this includes the unborn.
“In this week when the Northern Ireland Assembly will address the issue, we encourage legislators to listen carefully to the persuasive call of people, such as Heidi Crowter, a lady with Down’s syndrome, who powerfully makes the case against abortion for non-fatal disabilities,” he said.
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In his wide-ranging address, the 62-year-old Secretary to PCI’s Council for Mission in Ireland spoke briefly about Brexit and how, “Presbyterians see this island as our home”. With that in mind, Dr Bruce said that “we welcome conversations about its long term future and its relations with its neighbours, and if invited will be active participants in any dialogue which may emerge as both sets of Irish relations with Europe and Great Britain are worked out in detail.”
He also referred to last November’s publication of Considering Grace: Presbyterians and the Troubles, which had been commissioned by the Church. Dr Bruce said that the book, had “ensured that the way we address the past must be with honesty and directness, hearing from those most affected even if what they say to us is sometimes hard truth.”
Turning to the centenary of partition in 2021 he said, “Ireland will mark 100 years since partition next May, and I sincerely hope we will be able to speak of this in ways that are nourishing, both to those who welcome partition, and those who lament it. How we feel and speak about the past weaves the fabric of our dreams for the future. Ireland has struggled with this for generations. Surely we can do better?”
Before talking about this theme for the year, Dr Bruce said, “I hope that with God’s help, I as your Moderator with others, will be able to speak into these and other issues, to help our church participate in the conversations, and with the hope that the deep-seated Christian heritage of this island is neither set aside, nor forgotten, amidst the massive changes we are witnessing.”
Focussing on his theme for his year in office, the Moderator said that the story of Ruth was “a compelling glimpse into the heart of God for his world…” and how this picture of homecoming would “resonate with uprooted people everywhere. My theme for the year will therefore consider multiple aspects of this biblical picture of ‘Home’...
“I get frustrated sometimes when migration policies describe pulling down the shutters on our borders, as if the motives of those who wish to come to live among us are universally corrupt. Of course we need to be wise, and our policies need to reflect this wisdom, but we must never lose sight of the cost involved in leaving behind everything a person has known and loved, including perhaps family and livelihood, to make a new life in a new place. The risks are enormous. The cost incalculable. The motivation to do it, overwhelming.
“And neither as a church can we lose sight of what God in his grace may do with such a moment of dislocation and relocation…” Reflecting on the well-known verse found in the first chapter of Ruth, Dr Bruce continued, “‘Your people will be my people’. ‘Your God, my God’. We might say, your home, will be my home…
“If this is what our home is like, then let us be those who readily welcome others because God has first shown us hospitality in Christ. He has welcomed us, and adopted us into his family. Ours must therefore be a home with doors that are open to be places of welcome and adoption of others.”
“If this is what our home is like,” he suggested that those coming to our shores may “bless us, and change us for good...” For those “whose health of mind has become a burden, not a blessing,” he hoped that they would find refuge, for young and old, Dr Bruce spoke of how it could be “a place of nurture and learning…so that they glimpse God’s big story, and take their place in living it out. May theirs be a rich faith in Christ that is not easily lost…a place of prayer, where we can without awkwardness or difficulty, express our utter helplessness before God, and our complete dependence upon him for everything – even when the path ahead is unknown and unimaginable – as today, it is.
Dr Bruce also talked of ‘Home’ being a place of conversation around God’s Word, and “a place of generosity, even when in these days, we might have less to give. May we be known for this. May it be our reputation that we are a people with open hands to give away what we have…” He concluded by saying, “If this is what our home is like, let it be a lovely place, where you O God, live by your Spirit.”
Dr Bruce was speaking in the Assembly Hall, which would have been this evening’s venue for the Opening Night of the denomination’s General Assembly - cancelled last month, due to the current Coronavirus emergency. Apart from a small technical support team, only four people were physically present and participating in the installation – the outgoing Moderator, Dr William Henry, the Clerk and Deputy Clerk of the General Assembly, the Revs Trevor Gribben and Jim Stothers and Dr Bruce himself. The Moderators’ Chaplains joined remotely reading and leading in prayer with a recorded song (‘All my ways’) played and sung by members of Dr Henry’s congregation at Maze Presbyterian near Lisburn. The hour-long special event concluded with a video of the song ‘There is a Hope’ by Sylvia Burnside of the New Irish Orchestra.
Married to Zoë, the father of four and grandfather to two grandchildren, is the denomination’s 175th Moderator since 1840. Also taking part, but remotely via live video conference, were the members of the 2020 Standing Commission of the General Assembly, who were appointed to conduct all necessary business of this year’s Assembly – including the election the Moderator, usually recorded in the hall by acclamation.
Before Dr Bruce was elected, his predecessor, Dr William Henry, gave his address and reflected on his year in office. Dr Henry spoke of how he had become “evermore aware of the complete sense of privilege that has been afforded to me to be able to serve you as Moderator over the past 12 months.” He also spoke of how he had sensed “the reassuring presence of God” during that time and had felt “the prayers of God’s people.”
While he talked of his whole year in office, including his overseas trip to Kenya to encourage the work of PCI’s Global Mission Workers there, his four week-long presbytery tours to see the work of the Church at home and his visits to congregations, Dr Henry also talked about the last three months and how a number of people had said to him “‘it’s a pity this Covid thing has ruined the last couple of months of your year’ as the diary was wiped. There certainly were many visits I couldn’t make that I was really looking forward to. But like many of our ministers during this period I have found it extremely busy and a multitude of new opportunities opened up to me…The past 12 weeks actually afforded me an opportunity never afforded to a Moderator – to lead a service each week to which all our members could tune in…” he said.
Dr Henry talked about being able to call his colleagues – all 400-plus of them. “I was also able to make phone calls to each of our active ministers to find out how they were during this difficult time of ministry – and I was pleased to hear how they were doing physically and spiritually, but also to hear of all the creative ways in which they have been leading their congregations,” he said.
Of his presbytery tours, Dr Henry commented, “The most striking lesson I gleaned from these visits was the impact that individual Christians are having in their own areas of influence. This is the principle of salt and light – churches are empowering believers to live as agents of transformation in the workplace and local neighbourhoods. Believers are scattered throughout society in homes, commerce, recreation, politics and every imaginable area of life – living as Jesus would have to do.”
Reflecting on what had most impacted him during his year in office, Dr Henry said that it was the “utter urgency of evangelism”, as he put it, and how this had been “burnt into my heart…Our churches, we ourselves as believers, must embody confident authentic gospel living. Our churches must see themselves as mission stations and not safe bastions of orthodoxy. We need these churches in rural Ireland, in the suburbs and in the cities. They will all look different, they will express their witness in a multitude of ways, some of which might even cause us to take a second look and wonder what they are doing.”
In conclusion, he said that the Church had afforded him a wonderful opportunity to serve God. “…I pray I have been faithful to that calling as Colossians 3:17 reminds me “And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”
Photos: (1) The new Moderator of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland, Rt Rev Dr David Bruce giving is address to the Church across Ireland and further afield (2) Dr Bruce seated in the 1905 Moderator’s Chair in the Assembly Hall (3) Those who took part in the installation ceremony were (left to right) PCI's Clerk of the General Assembly and General Secretary of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland, Rev Trevor Gribben, Deputy Clerk, Rev Jim Stothers, Rt Rev Dr David Bruce and outgoing Moderator, Very Rev Dr William Henry (4) Dr David Bruce and Very Rev Dr William Henry standing either side of the Moderator's Chair.
The body appointed to take decisions on behalf of the cancelled General Assembly, the 2020 Standing Commission of the General Assembly, continued to meet on the Tuesday and Wednesday of that week via video conference. The Moderator chaired the Standing Commission. You can read about it here.