![]() | ||||||
|
![]() |
| The Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham The Rt. Rev'd George Cassidy was enthroned as the 10th Bishop of Southwell at Southwell Minster on Saturday, September 11th 1999. George Cassidy was born in Belfast and is married to Jane who is a trained nurse. They have two daughters, Sarah married to Pierre with two young sons, Felix and Elliot and Gael who lives in London and teaches Irish folk music. After church posts in Bristol and London area, Bishop George served as the Archdeacon of London and Residentiary Canon at St. Paul's Cathedral for 12 years, before his move to Nottinghamshire. | ![]() |
Bishop George's Easter Message: “The Reverend still had uneasiness that they have who are deep in worldly business. Taxes, losses, crosses, bad mortgages, bad tenants, and the hardness of the times, are frequent subjects of his conversation.” This could be a note about one of our clergy in the present situation. In fact these words were written by William Law the mystical writer in his book A Serious Call to a Devout and Holy Life.. in 1728! So should an Easter message point us to the realities of the economic and financial situation? Or should it ignore these troubles as passing difficulties? Instead should we focus on the signs of new life around us as the gardens and fields, the trees and hedgerows spring into life? When Jesus died most of the world continued as though nothing had happened. It is true that in St Matthew’s Gospel there is a great earthquake and many other signs as Jesus died; in St Mark’s Gospel everything went dark; St Luke has the sun’s light failing. All of them were trying to show the universal consequences of Jesus’ death. But most people in the world would have been unaware, just as today most people, if we are honest, will be unaware what Christians are remembering on Good Friday and Easter Day. It was as the Holy Spirit filled the lives of the disciples in the resurrection days that more and more people realised the joy of God’s love in their lives. Jesus loves us through the ‘hardness of the times’; Jesus loves us as we celebrate signs of new life. It is the lives of those living as ‘the forgiven’ and ‘forgiving people’ Jesus calls us to be, which make people stop and realise something did happen on the cross. As the mystic Teresa of Avila wrote: Christ has no body now on earth but yours, It is such lives which show the truth of the Easter proclamation “Alleluia, Christ is risen,” and which bring the response: A very special and holy Easter to all who are finding the present situation the most difficult of times, and to those whose hearts are cheered by the signs of new life all around. Jesus died and lives for all.
Bishop George writes in the Spring 2009 issue of C The Magazine: In January Jane and I were privileged to visit Natal, our link diocese, with a group from Southwell and Nottingham. We stayed with Bishop Rubin and his wife Rose, and attended the installation of Ndabazinhle Sibisi as the first black Dean of Pietermaritzburg Cathedral. Our link officer, the Reverend Barbara Holbrook came on the visit and will keep you all informed through Nifty Notes.
+George Southwell and Nottingham
Ad Clerum - Lent 2009 |
