The Bishop is visiting St. Martin’s on November 17th.
What’s the schedule for the Bishop’s visit?
Bishop Richards will be leading a parish-wide formation class on at 9:15 AM in Parish Hall.
Our confirmands will be confirmed at the 10:30 AM service.
You’ve probably heard announced that our Bishop is coming to visit us at St. Martin’s on Sunday, November 17th. But who is the bishop? And what does that mean? You’ve come to the right place!
Ignatius of Antioch, d. 140 CE
What is a bishop?
Bishops are the “chief presbyters” of a given area. In the early Church, they were the pastor of several worshipping communities within a geographic area. As the Church grew it became difficult for them to maintain an active presence in those communities and administer the sacraments regularly to them, and so presbyters or “priests” were appointed to minister in their absence. All Episcopal bishops can trace their episcopal lineage to St. Peter, and so by their ordination maintain continuity in the present with the ministry of the Apostles of old.
Bishops are charged with the apostolic work of leading, supervising, and uniting the church. Bishops represent Christ and his church, and they are called to provide Christian vision and leadership for their dioceses. The BCP (p. 855) notes that the bishop is “to act in Christ's name for the reconciliation of the world and the building up of the church, and to ordain others to continue Christ's ministry.” They exercise a ministry of oversight and supervision. Bishops are the “pastor of the pastors,” and so provide particular oversight and pastoral care to the priests and deacons in a diocese.
Who is our Bishop?
Our Bishop’s name is Daniel Richards. He was elected as a Bishop in 2021 and consecrated as the bishop for our diocese (the Diocese of Upper South Carolina) in 2022.
The Right Reverend Daniel Richards.
What happens during a Bishop’s Visit?
Bishops generally try to visit every parish in the diocese annually, partially for the purpose of strengthening our broader Episcopal community, but also for Confirmation.
Confirmation is the process in the Episcopal Church through which baptized Christians make a voluntary, public, reaffirmation of their identity in Christ. The Book of Common Prayer calls upon all who have been baptized at an early age “when they are ready and have been duly prepared”, to make a mature public affirmation of their faith and commitment to the responsibilities of their Baptism and to receive laying on of hands by the bishop.
While the Bishop is with us, he will confirm a number of confirmands (confirmation candidates) from St. Martin’s.
For more information about confirmation contact Mitch Smith.
