Press Releases
Presentations made to Archbishop and Lady Eames at the Thanksgiving Service
The Archbishop of Canterbury presented Archbishop Eames with the highest award in the Anglican Communion, the Archbishop of Canterbury?s Award for Distinguished Service to the Anglican Communion. Mr Sydney Gamble Chairman of the Representative Body Executive Committee and The Very Revd Des Harman, Honorary Secretary of the General Synod made a presentation to Archbishop Eames on behalf of the General Synod and the Representative Body of the Church of Ireland. Lady Sheil, another of the four Honorary Secretaries made a presentation on behalf of the two bodies to Lady Eames. Photographs of the various presentations are available in the gallery.
The Very Revd Des Harman said:
?Archbishop, if this were a ?This is your Life? programme it would need to be greatly extended to cover the years of your primacy. Such is not possible tonight.
However, this piece of art is intended to be a symbol of some of your life?s work.
It is a dove that hints at the dove of Noah. It is the dove that Noah sent out, unsuccessfully on occasions but which ultimately returned with a sign of hope for the future in its beak.
Through the years of your primacy you have carried the olive branch of peace and reconciliation through this island and through the Anglican Communion.
Doves are also seen as messengers in flight. In difficult times when others were lost for words you continued to carry a message of Christian conviction and flew on the wings of faith.
This bird has been designed to have active wings representing the movement of the Holy Spirit which has energised your leadership.
The creator of this piece is Liam Butler, a self taught artist who made his living as a welder in the United States and who has now returned to work as an artist in Ireland.
Archbishop, we hope that this symbol will remind you that those of us in the General Synod, in its Standing Committee and in the Representative Church Body, have appreciated your leadership and have been honoured to be associated with you in this work of the Church of Ireland .?
Mr Sydney Gamble said:
?Archbishop Robin Eames has presided over the work of The Representative Church Body for the past 20 years. He has served on numerous committees of The RCB and in all of his involvement he has brought unrelenting energy.
?Archbishop, your responsibilities in central Church work have been many and diverse. I have often seen you arrive in Church House in Dublin having endured endless traffic delays to join in the cut and thrust of debate with a focus which is enviable and to do all of this in an ever courteous manner that has given inspiration to so many.
?Travelling the length and breadth of this island is demanding in itself and says so much about your dedication and stamina. Few previous primates have held the distinction of membership of the Institute of Advanced Motorists ? a demonstration of the commitment to detail that you bring to every aspect of your work. This depth of engagement is just one of the many attributes which you have brought to your role as Archbishop of Armagh.
?Your Grace, may I share an insight into your involvement in the administration of the Church in the Representative Church Body? Often, when Chairs of committees are reporting complex issues perhaps in relation to Allocations or Investments, Archbishop Eames would often raise his head, and without hesitation make an incisive contribution to the discussion that would send shock waves through the meeting. Archbishop, you have a unique ability to declare that some of the complex matters relating to finance are beyond your comprehension and then manage to exhibit an understanding of the issue which leaves many of us in the starting blocks. Again I know of no one else who can manage on occasions to say NO and, do so in a positive manner. Clearly somewhat of a contradiction- but your concept of a negative is invariably constructed from a positive.
?Archbishop Eames has an amazing ability to meet people and to relate to their condition and to reflect their concerns. Your Grace, your capacity to get alongside people has been so much a part of your immense contribution to the Church of Ireland and never more so than in troubled times in Northern Ireland. Your pastoral support is appreciated in many homes throughout the community.
?Your Grace, the contribution which you have made to the day to day administration of the Church of Ireland has been of monumental proportions. On behalf of the members of the Representative Church Body, including the staff of Church House and the members of the General Synod, I thank you for all that you have done and wish Lady Eames and your good self a long and happy retirement together.?
Lady Sheil said:
?There is an old saying that ?behind every great man there is a great woman?. In the case of the Primate, it would be truer to say that ?beside? every great man there is a great woman, because in the past 20 years Christine Eames has been at the side of the Archbishop and together theirs has been an outstanding partnership of service to the Church of Ireland and, indeed, to the wider community in Ireland.
?In her own right, Lady Eames has carved a niche as the first Irish World President of the Mothers? Union and she has been a familiar and greatly-respected figure in the world-wide Anglican Communion.
?Within the Church of Ireland, however, it is as the precious wife of the Primate that she has won the affection and respect of so many people in parishes throughout the Church of Ireland.
?An excellent speaker, Lady Eames has been widely sought at parish, diocesan and all-Ireland occasions where her deep personal faith has coloured all she says and does.
?As the mother of two eminent surgeons, Niall and Michael, and now as a much-loved grandmother, Lady Eames has successfully balanced the many commitments, duties and responsibilities of public life with the needs of her family.
?To the Church of Ireland she has brought much over many years and will be greatly missed.
?On behalf of the General Synod and the Representative Body of the Church of Ireland, I am delighted to present Lady Eames with a token of our affection.?