Reconnecting with the Falklands
As a small autonomous diocese, in the Province of Canterbury in the Anglican Church, but 8,000 miles away in the South Atlantic, what should we do when the Bishop for the Falkland Islands visits? It was a legitimate question asked of the congregation (and of the bishop) when we knew that The Right Revd Jonathan Clark’s travel was confirmed on the MOD flight which connects the Falkland Islands to the UK.
As often with travel itineraries, things might not always go to plan. The weather here can play a major factor on flights reaching us on time, with delay, diversions or in some cases not at all, but on this occasion, we met +Jonathan as planned. We had all sorts of activities in the diary outside of the expected presiding and preaching on a Sunday. These were all in pencil and subject to change but a very brief precis would include: consecrating an extension to a cemetery on West Falkland which was once inaccessible due to mines laid during the 1982 conflict, travelling round the main (and only) orbital road here on the East, visiting major settlements and farms, buying goods from honesty stores and meeting the people who work the land. We paid our respects and reflected on the personal cost of war, both at Blue Beach military cemetery in San Carlos, dedicated to the British military personnel who died liberating these Islands and also at the Argentine cemetery at Darwin.
We took delight in spotting an enormous variety of wildlife worth stopping the car for to ‘get out and look’, because the weather was rather inclement that day. We broke bread many times, sharing tea, drinks and supper with those who contribute to the vibrant life of the worshipping community here, meeting members of the congregation and cathedral council alike talking about expanding God’s mission through our local community and those we welcome as visitors during the summer months. Catching up with the South Georgia Government about the Whaling Chapel and cemetery in Grytviken, talking to Penguin News, and let’s not forget Burn’s Night. It was a good and busy re-introduction to the people of the Falkland Islands, their life, their needs, their hopes, their faith. The bishop may have returned to the UK, but there is much work to do and we are keeping him busy until he returns again after a brief moment (perhaps) to catch his breath!
Hayley Argles-Grant, Rector at Christ Church Cathedral in the Falkland Islands