Mr John Stuart, Secretary General of the General Synod of the Scottish Episcopal Church, was installed as an Honorary Lay Canon at St Mary’s Cathedral in Edinburgh on Sunday 10 June.
At the Choral Evensong service, the Rt Rev Dr John Armes, Bishop of Edinburgh, paid warm tribute to Mr Stuart, who retires from the post of Secretary General at the end of July after 28 years of service. The new Canon was presented with a badge worn by Canons in the Edinburgh Diocese, and a deed of installation.
Family, friends and colleagues from around the Province joined Mr Stuart at St Mary’s for the service of celebration followed by a short reception in the Resurrection Chapel.
“I feel humbled and very honoured that the Diocese wants to mark my tenure as Secretary General Church in this way,” said Mr Stuart. “It has been a privilege to serve the Scottish Episcopal Church over the years and it is a special moment to return to the Cathedral for my installation – the community in which I grew up and was confirmed in the 1970s.”
The Edinburgh Diocesan Synod had agreed during its meeting in February this year that it wished to honour Mr Stuart in this way.
Bishop John said at the time: “John has never sought the limelight. He seems to understand innately Jesus’ teaching that greatness comes through service. But now, as he prepares to step back from his long and faithful service to the church, we want, in our small way, to recognise and to applaud all that he has given the Scottish Episcopal Church by inviting him to become a Lay Canon of St Mary’s Cathedral.”
