Iraq’s Bishop Will Not Shy From Politics

 

By Gerald Butt

Iraq – churchtimes — Working for interfaith dialogue will be a top priority for the newly-appointed Bishop of Cyprus & the Gulf, the Rt Revd Michael Lewis, when he takes up his post in November (News, 17 August).

The new Bishop also intends to immerse himself in the politics of the region. Bishop Lewis, speaking his week, said that he had been “intimately involved” in Christian-Jewish and Christian-Muslim dialogue in the diocese of Manchester. While this was in the context of the United Kingdom, the experience would be useful in his new post. “I will certainly bring a keen interest in interfaith dialogue, and I think it is high up on the list of priorities of what I have to do.”

Bishop Lewis’s interest dates back to his time at Oxford University: his degree in Oriental Studies involved learning Hebrew, Aramaic, and Syriac. More recently, he has led numerous pilgrimages and study tours to Lebanon, Syria, Israel, the Palestinian Territories, and Turkey. The new Bishop of Cyprus & the Gulf is aware that he is coming to one of the most turbulent regions in the world.

Iraq is one of the countries in his international diocese. Despite the complexity and sensitivity of the political scene in the Middle East, Bishop Lewis takes the view that “involvement is non-negotiable. It’s got to be wise and it’s got to be listening. I want to watch intelligently and listen intelligently, and then I hope I can talk intelligently to anyone who needs talking to.”

From his office at St Paul’s Cathedral in Nicosia, Bishop Lewis will be administering a vast diocese. He says that coping with “the great diversity of the diocese and the isolation of congregations and Christian communities” will be one of the biggest challenges of his new job. As for Cyprus itself, Bishop Lewis said he would “relish living in it and learning from it”, and developing a relationship with the Greek Orthodox Church.

He said that while some of the bitter pain experienced by the Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities still existed, it was a positive sign that the line dividing the island had been opened up.