Harvey ordained as Bishop of Grenada

During the four-hour ceremony, Harvey was anointed with oil, presented with a book of the Gospels; invested with the symbols of his office – the ring, mitre and pastoral staff; seated on the cathedral (the Bishop’s chair); received the kiss of peace from all the Archbishops and Bishops present; and then the documents that made him officially ordinated were signed. In his homily titled A New Time For Hope and Change, Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Castries in St Lucia Robert Rivas thanked Harvey for saying yes to God and the Pope. He said Harvey had a great responsibility as the diocese had been without a bishop for about a year, and so he was expected to revamp and revitalise the church in Grenada.

He advised Harvey to make himself small so that he would hear the voice of the Lord, to rule wisely and with a gentle heart, to live a simple lifestyle and to be humble. He said it was important because as the clergy would be looking to him for support and direction, the religious for affirmation and inspiration, and the laity for leadership by example and empowerment to act with greater responsibility in the progress of the church.

Rivas described Harvey as tall, handsome, courageous, virtuous, a theologian and a good shepherd who cared for “little people”. He also called him the gift given by Pope Francis to Grenada.

He told the large audience the new bishop came to them in loving kindness, with a “big heart of love” and that he was gentle and kind and so urged the members of the diocese to meet him similarly as he would need their support and collaboration to succeed. “He is coming to build the church in Grenada on loving kindness of the heart of our God. For the church in Grenada, the time has come to change gear and to recharge your batteries for action.” Referring to the incident on June 12 when Harvey was tied up and robbed as he prayed at the Holy Rosary/St Martin’s in East Port of- Spain, Rivas said he paid the price for his kindness and his work with the poor and marginalised. “His commitment to serve the poor and vulnerable will continue as part as his ministry as bishop and you must find in him a model and example for caring.” Rivas asked Grenadians to love their new and fifth bishop as they loved Bishop Emeritus Sydney Charles.

“The church in Grenada has been crying for a messiah and now it has gotten its dream bishop. Wipe your tears church! Your time of joy has come. Be strong, take courage, a good leader has been given to you.” During his light-hearted and at times jovial address, Harvey said he was still struggling with the question of what God wants. He described himself as a senior and a sinner, but one that hoped God would enable him to, one day, become a saint.

He spoke of the steep hill that is Market Hill in St George’s with the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception near the top and the market near the bottom. He invited them to remember the importance of the market in the history of Grenada and as a place of assembly, saying they should “always be in the market in some way.” “If we are to be truly church, we must climb that steep hill to go up to our cathedral yes, but we must never stay in that cathedral. We must come down back into the market place again to sanctify it and make it holy.” He asked the parishioners to join him in doing so on a regular basis, and said he expected many more people to get involved in the religious work in St George’s. Harvey said, to him, holiness and sanctity were not about prayers, but the extent to which a person allows Christ to work on them, and the personal, spiritual, and social climbs they made in their lives despite the difficulties.

However, he admitted sometimes the church itself could be a difficult situation or hill to climb. “Being church, following Christ, and dealing with all the people who say they Christian, including your bishop, but very often fail to be Christian, that is part of the climb.” At the event, there were numerous representatives from the government of Grenada, as well as archbishops, bishops, and priests from the US, Africa, and across the Caribbean. There was a large contingent from Trinidad and Tobago, including Archbishop Joseph Harris who was one of the co-consecrators, along with Charles and Papal Nuncio Archbishop Nicola Girasoli.