Diocese well represented at commissioning of MU Worldwide President
MU All Ireland President and parishioner of Saintfield Parish, Mrs June Butler, attended the recent commissioning of Mrs Sheran Harper (pictured right) as Worldwide President of Mothers’ Union. Down and Dromore Diocesan President, Mrs Roberta Macartney also atttended.
The service took place in Southwark Cathedral on Wednesday 27 February and Sheran was commissioned by the Archbishop of Canterbury, The Right Revd Justin Welby.
Sheran is from Guyana and the former Provincial President of the Mothers’ Union in the Province of the West Indies. She is the first Worldwide President to be elected from outside the United Kingdom.
June, who was commissioned along with other members of the Mothers’ Union Worldwide Trustee Board, said:
“The commissioning service at Southwark was a most moving experience. It was very special to hear Sheran Harper make her vows as Worldwide President and we, as Trustees, to be commissioned and welcomed by the Archbishop of Canterbury. The service had very meaningful scripture readings and prayers, while the volume of the hymn singing was tremendous – our rendition of “ Praise to the Lord” nearly raised the roof.
“However, for me the highlights were the Archbishop’s sermon when he said Mother’s Union was the greatest gift, yet best kept secret in the Anglican Communion, and we needed to be much more visible to make people appreciate our worth; and the music at the end of the service provided by a Caribbean steel band. It’s not often one sees senior clergy dancing down the aisle of a cathedral after a service!”
Down and Dromore Diocesan President, Mrs Roberta Macartney pictured with Mrs Sheran Harper and Mrs June Butler.