I am grateful for this opportunity, as the Search website is getting a makeover, to add a few words of encouragement to the Editor, Canon Ginnie Kennerley, and all who write for and read the periodical.

No one will be unaware of the polarisation which has taken place in almost all public debate and in every sphere of life over the past ten or so years. The “wedge issue” has become a default weapon in the armoury of many politicians and social commentators and we in the Church have sometimes been tempted to conduct our business after the manner of the world around us. We have not always resisted that temptation.

The Church of Ireland is a small, familial body of believers striving to walk and witness together despite the many differences of geography, culture, and world view – not to mention temperament – that mark us out as individuals and communities. So, it is important that we have a periodical such as Search, where the best that can be thought and written on theology, society and faith, from every perspective, has a central place in our corporate life.

I commend its work to you.

+ John Armagh