‘We are called to be people of hope’ says new Bishop of Cashel at enthronement

The enthronement of The Right Reverend Adrian Mark Wilkinson as Bishop of Cashel took place at the Cathedral Church of St. John the Baptist in Cashel on Sunday December 4th.

Bishop Wilkinson began his ministry as curate in Douglas Union, Cork in 1994. He then moved to the Dioceses of Meath and Kildare in 1997 as Rector of the Dunboyne Union and Rathmolyon, before returning to the Douglas Union in 2002 as their Rector.

He was appointed as Archdeacon of Cork, Cloyne and Ross in 2014. He was elected Bishop of Cashel, Ferns and Ossory on 23 June 2022. He succeeds the Rt Revd Michael Burrows, who was translated as Bishop of Tuam, Limerick and Killaloe on 14th April 2022, following his election to that role in January of this year.

Speaking prior to the ceremony the Bishop–elect said that he was humbled and honoured to have been elected Bishop of Cashel, Ferns and Ossory and that he looks forward to this new chapter in his ministry.

His childhood years were spent in Cashel, Ferns and Ossory so he has a particular affinity with the area. Diocesan and visiting clergy along with the Dean of Cashel, Dean James Mulhall, and the RC Archbishop of Cashel & Emly, Kieran O’Reilly, along with local clergy, were present for the occasion.

Also present was the County Cathaoirleach, Cllr Roger Kennedy and Cllr Michael Fitzgerald.

In his sermon at the enthronement Bishop Wilkinson said that as a church we are called to be people of hope and that this is a challenge at times.

"Some have suggested that the church in Western Europe is 'anxiety driven'. We are concerned about numbers and finances, about buildings and their costly maintenance, about the young and the Sunday morning activities and distractions that keep young families away from the church. And these concerns are real, but we must guard against an all-encompassing narative of scarcity and decline.

“Advent reminds us that what we are called to is faithfulness to hold steady and wait for God’s future to emerge. Like Noah, Abraham, Moses and the prophets who spoke out in difficult times. Like John the Baptist and Mary, we don’t yet know what that future will look like, but God does, and we can hold on to that.

“The challenge for us all is to be God’s people in our part of God’s world. To be faithful beacons of love and hope in the context of our own communities.

“Today the first two candles are lighting on the Advent wreath. As the days shorten and darkness closes in, we light ever more candles in this wreath as an act of liturgical defiance. It reminds us that darkness does not have the last word.

“I like the definition of hope given to us by the early Christian writer Tertullian. Hope is ‘patience with the lamp lit’. So as a Diocese, as we continue our Advent journey, may we not be just people of hope, but people of Christian hope," concluded the Bishop.

Representatives of the community in Cashel were also in attendance at the enthronement along with Bishop Wilkinson’s wife Jacqui, who is lecturer in teacher education at the Church of Ireland Centre at Dublin City University, and their three children.