New Anglican Bishop of Bermuda Patrick White wants the church to team up with charities to help people in need as the global economic crisis hits the Island.

Bishop White was consecrated at the Cathedral in a two-hour ceremony led by the Archbishop of Canterbury's personal representative the Rt. Rev. John Llewellin yesterday afternoon.

Afterwards, he told The Royal Gazette about one of his first goals in his new post: "We don't know what the impact of this current downturn in the economy is going to be.

"The church needs to partner with other charitable organisations to make sure the people most impacted are first of all identified, and then we will be able to work with them.

"You have groups like the Ace Foundation and the Bank of Bermuda Foundation, but we need to be there as a church as well. That's one of the big issues in Bermuda at the moment."

Bishop White said the church needs to try to keep up its numbers, but also help those who are not churchgoers.

He added: "For Anglicans, we baptise people at a young age but one of the real challenges we have is: how do we hold on to them and help them to grow into good strong Christians in church. We need to make church appealing and attractive to them — as well as challenging because it's not supposed to be a bowl of cherries.

"Christian faith strengthens you to deal with difficult issues we have to face."

Yesterday's ceremony included contributions from Bishop of Toronto Colin Johnson, Suffragan Bishop of Toronto Philip Poole and former Bishop of Bermuda Ewen Ratteray.

Bishop White, who has served in Toronto and more recently St. Paul's Church in Paget, is the second Bermudian Anglican Bishop of Bermuda, after Bishop Ratteray, who retired early last year.

He was elected last September but his consecration and installation was delayed due to ill health.