Today marks the 10th anniversary of The Right Reverend Bishop Ewen Ratteray?s as head of the local diocese.

May 19, 1996 marks the date that Bishop Ratteray became not only the first Bermudian, but also the first man of African decent to be installed as Bishop of Bermuda.

His consecration is of historic importance. And while the facts may stick out in the minds of many, The Bishop said in an interview with the last week that at the time race and nationality did not figure much into the equation.

?I was elected on the 20th of April and consecrated on the 19th of May,? he recalled.

?It was a very narrow space of time and little time to think about what it meant or to even get scared. But in being Bermudian and being black and all that sort of thing, I guess it is an honour, I suppose, but I don?t spend a lot of time thinking, ?oh, I am the first one?. I just happen to be ? no big deal.?

Before Bishop Ratteray was elected The Venerable Andrew Doughty, Archdeacon of Bermuda said: ?The diocese had made several attempts in the past to elect its own Bishop but with no success so there was much celebration when Bishop Ratteray was consecrated.

?Bishop Ratteray was also the first Anglican Bishop of Bermuda to be consecrated in Bermuda. In 1996, the then Archbishop of Canterbury, George Carey made a whirlwind weekend visit to the Island to perform the ceremony.

?Anglican protocol is that three bishops are needed to perform the ceremony so Bishop Arthur Peters, of Nova Scotia, and Bishop Frank Vest, of Southern Virginia, were also flown in to assist,? remembered the Archdeacon.

?There was an elaborate procession from City Hall to the Cathedral complete with the Bermuda Regiment Band, a special choir and servers from each of the nine Parish churches.?

To mark his 10th anniversary the church will hold a special Evening Eucharist Service at the Cathedral this evening at 7.00

The speaker will be the Reverend Andrew Mead of St. Thomas, 5th Avenue Church of New York City. In 2002 he received the Order of the British Empire Queen?s Honour for his contribution to spiritual and pastoral needs of the families of the British victims in the September 11, attack. Rev. Meade organised a multi-faith service of prayer, which gave solace to many after the World Trade Center attack.

When Bishop Ratteray graduated from his seminary training at Codrington College, in Barbados in the 1960s it was at a time when it was difficult for any Bermudian and almost impossible for a black man, to be hired as Anglican clergy locally.

So from Barbados he went to Wakefield, in Yorkshire, where at just 23, he was made Deacon.

He met his wife Jennifer while in Yorkshire and returned to Bermuda with her and their three children Jeanine, Alexandra and Matthew in 1980. He then served as Rector of St. John?s, Pembroke for 16 years.

When asked what brought him home initially, he said: ?I always intended to come back at some stage, and there was an opening in Pembroke and I applied and I got it.

?I could have come back about 10 years prior to that, but interestingly enough it was Pembroke (also), and the then Rector offered me a position as Curate because at the time people who looked like me couldn?t become Rectors. But that changed not very long after that.

?I became an incumbent in England and was there for nine years. Originally I had thought to stay (here) for about ten years and then see what was available, but that didn?t happen.?

Over the last 10 years, one of the changes in the church is the increase in the number of non-Bermudians joining, said the Bishop.

?I guess what is happening in Bermuda is the presence of people from diverse places who are becoming a part of our congregation,? he said, ?And I am sure others too and that is a valuable contribution.?

In the next decade, Bishop Ratteray would like to see the membership of the Anglican Church continue to grow.

?The words huge and growth are not something that goes together in Bermuda, there is growth, but it is small - little by little - it is not on a big scale,? he admitted.

?On Sunday, I am baptising 14 people in all. Two of the adults I am baptising will be confirmed as well so that is growth and that is one of the largest numbers that I have done even though that is not enormous when you think in terms of Africa - there it would be hundreds of people.

?Two of them I know, so that makes it kind of special and one child I knew his grandma and his father. The church was initially spread by one-to-one contact and that is what I have been trying to do, to encourage members to bear witness to the faith.

?Earlier we were talking about the numbers and if that were to happen we should have recovered in 10 years.

?If people take my challenge seriously - and in the end it is not my challenge, it is what the Lord wants. He wants the church to grow because it is an important part of the fabric of society.?

When comparing developed nations with developing nations, the Bishop said the latter are more faithful church-goers.

?It is a sad reality and there are exceptions of course to every situation, but I think that is generally true,? he admitted.

?I think that it is unfortunate, because apart from anything else people that spend all their time making money and ignore the spiritual side of things are losing or missing something in their lives. They may not know it, but they are and their lives would be more rounded, more whole and much richer if they embraced the spiritual side.

?I know some wealthy people who are committed Christians and they carry their wealth very lightly because for them their Christian faith is what counts.?

The Bishop has a message for the Island in regards to the many social ills.

?There are a lot of issues facing us, there is the housing problem, the drug problem, and there are problems with people riding badly on roads and getting killed,? he said.

?Bermuda is supposed to be a religious place and I am not sure how true that is, because none of our churches are bursting at the seams. although, some do better than others. But if our religious faith is real, then it has to manifest itself in two ways, one by regular worship ? not hitting and missing and doing it when you feel like it. And the other is that we have to love our neighbours as ourselves. We have to care about one another and people with their various needs and not be so self-centred.?

He added: ?That means that we need to be like one family and be involved in the housing and drug situation. We must pray about it. I pray about Bermuda everyday, but it is more than just praying. And when we talk about the Church, I am not just talking about the Bishop, but people. ?

He stated that many of our people are doing good things in these areas, but he?d like to see more of them.

?So the message I guess is say your prayers and get involved and do what you can because everything helps.?

One of the groups that he mentioned was Bermudians Against Narcotics (BANs)

?I have been to one of their meetings, but there are all sorts of groups in Bermuda who seem to have found reasons not to be tested for drugs and I think that should end,? he stressed.

?Nobody should be exempt, even the clergy, and I would even have myself included. Politicians, prison officers, athletes, everybody ? no exemptions. I think there is no point talking about fighting drugs and doing something about it and then saying, ?oh no, we can?t do this?, because that suggests that you don?t want to be.?

Something else of concern is that married couples do not use the Church enough when they are facing difficulties.

?We marry a lot of people and I think that most of us try to prepare them, not that it has always paid off,? he said.

?But I have always said, ?if you are having problems call me and if you don?t want to call me call somebody else and get some help. Don?t be afraid to say that we are in a mess.?

?Because it doesn?t take some people very long to mess up and stupidly sometimes. But if you come to me I am not going to laugh at or blame you, I will try to help.

?There have been occasions where I have told people that they shouldn?t get married and that they should delay it, and they are still married. But they didn?t like it at first. There was another where it still didn?t work.?

Being head of one of Bermuda?s largest churches has not always been easy for Bishop Ratteray.

?Prayer helps a lot and I try to pray everyday,? he revealed.

?One of the things that we are obligated to do is to have morning and evening prayers and I do that even if I am on vacation. That helps a lot - the Boss is good.

?I have a loving and supportive wife, who is a great instrument and a help to me, and a supportive family too. So if sometimes, I feel that the world doesn?t love me, I know they do!?

He added: ?I get beat up occasionally, but I have to do what I have to do and even in a tiny place like Bermuda it isn?t always easy. Sometimes you have to make decisions that aren?t always well received for whatever reason and I try to do it as compassionately and caring as I can.

?I don?t do anything out of malice, people may think so and it may have the appearance of that, but there is never any personal malice ? the good of the Church is my ultimate end.?

lEvening Eucharist Service at the Cathedral this evening at 7 p.m.

lYouth Fun Day, at Victor Scott Primary School, from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday

A special service of Cathedral Praise will take place at the Cathedral at 4 p.m. on Sunday.

The weekend celebration will culminate in a gala banquet at the Fairmont Hamilton Princess at 6.30 p.m. Tickets are $95 for the banquet and are available by contacting any Anglican parish church office.