The man to the left is the late Anglican Bishop, H.V.R. Short, formerly bishop of the Diocese of Saskatchewan. It was under Bishop Short that I served my two parishes as an Anglican priest. I came to him as a deacon, and he ordained me priest several months later in 1979. He was always kind to me, with the heart of a true bishop and father. When I first met him in his office before continuing my trek out to my first parish, he said something I shall never forget: "I'm not asking you to be successful; I am asking you to be faithful. St. Paul said that it was required of stewards that they be found faithful, and that is all that is required of us." That is, I think, good advice, and not just for clergy. We may not set the world ablaze, or leave our mark. In fact for most of us, it is a certainty that within a hundred years of our death, after our children and grandchildren have also died, it will be as if we had never existed, and we will be completely forgotten by the world. That is okay; what matters is that God keeps us in His eternal memory. And when we finally stand before Him to be judged, He will not ask how successful we were. He will ask if we were faithful. Thank you, Bishop Short. May your memory also be eternal.
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
Remembering Bishop Short
The man to the left is the late Anglican Bishop, H.V.R. Short, formerly bishop of the Diocese of Saskatchewan. It was under Bishop Short that I served my two parishes as an Anglican priest. I came to him as a deacon, and he ordained me priest several months later in 1979. He was always kind to me, with the heart of a true bishop and father. When I first met him in his office before continuing my trek out to my first parish, he said something I shall never forget: "I'm not asking you to be successful; I am asking you to be faithful. St. Paul said that it was required of stewards that they be found faithful, and that is all that is required of us." That is, I think, good advice, and not just for clergy. We may not set the world ablaze, or leave our mark. In fact for most of us, it is a certainty that within a hundred years of our death, after our children and grandchildren have also died, it will be as if we had never existed, and we will be completely forgotten by the world. That is okay; what matters is that God keeps us in His eternal memory. And when we finally stand before Him to be judged, He will not ask how successful we were. He will ask if we were faithful. Thank you, Bishop Short. May your memory also be eternal.
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Thumbs up (and amen)!
ReplyDeleteMy luck was to have him as a dad
ReplyDeleteDear Anon: I would like to dedicate my next book (on the episcopate) to him. Would you please email me at frlawrence@shaw.ca so that I might have your mailing address (and name) to send you a copy.
DeleteDear 'Anon': Thank you for writing in. Please know that I keep your dad in my prayers every day when I pray for departed loved ones, and also that I remember him every week also when I prepare for the Liturgy, including him in the departed to be remembered at the Eucharist. I am grateful to have known him and to have had him as my bishop.
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