The Right Revd Andrew Orr was formally installed and enthroned as Bishop of Cork on Sunday, 4 October 2026, during a Service of Choral Evensong at Saint Fin Barre’s Cathedral, Cork.
The service, which began at 3.30 p.m., was attended by Bishop Andrew’s family and friends, the Cathedral Chapter, clergy and Diocesan Lay Readers, parishioners from the Cathedral and parishes throughout Cork, Cloyne and Ross, together with representatives of civic and church life, including the Roman Catholic Bishop Cork and Ross, Fintan Gavin, and Cork City Councillors Dan Boyle, Des Cahill, Ciara O’Connor, Noel O’Flynn, and Jerry Buttimer, TD.
The ceremony of enthronement began at the West Door of the Cathedral, where Bishop Andrew knocked three times and asked to be admitted, having been consecrated Bishop of Cork, Cloyne and Ross in Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin, on 30 September 2026.
The Dean and Chapter proceeded to the West Door to receive the new Bishop, and following the reading of the mandate by the Diocesan Registrar, John C Jermyn, Bishop Andrew was welcomed into the Cathedral by the Dean of Cork, the Very Revd Nigel Dunne, and the service of Choral Evensong began.
Music for the occasion was sung by the Cathedral Choir under their Director of Music, Peter Stobart, and included Sir Hubert Parry’s setting of I Was Glad as the Introit, the Evening Service in A by Sir Charles Villiers Stanford, and the anthem Blessed be the God and Father by Samuel Sebastian Wesley. The organist for the service was Harry Meehan, Director of Music at St Canice’s Cathedral, Kilkenny.
Following Evensong, Bishop Andrew preached his first sermon as Bishop. Drawing on the examples of Saint Fin Barre, patron of Cork, and Saint Francis of Assisi, whose feast was celebrated that day, he reflected on the importance of prayer, wisdom and the building of Christian community. He spoke of a world increasingly marked by fragmentation and loneliness and described the Church’s calling to build communities where people are known, loved and held in prayer. Bishop Andrew emphasised that the wisdom needed for the future of the Diocese belongs not to the Bishop alone but to the whole Church, clergy and laity together, and can also be found beyond its walls. He concluded with his hope that Cork, Cloyne and Ross might be “a beacon of faith, a sanctuary of prayer, and a vibrant, loving community where all are welcome.” The full sermon can be read here.
The formal enthronement followed. Bishop Andrew was led to the episcopal throne by the Dean, the Very Revd Nigel Dunne, the Chancellor of the Cathedral, the Very Revd Cliff Jeffers, and the Treasurer, the Revd Canon Paul Willoughby.
Having made the required declarations with his hand upon the Gospel, Bishop Andrew was taken by the hand by Dean Dunne and led to the cathedra, the Bishop’s throne from which a cathedral takes its name. There, the Dean formally installed and enthroned Bishop Andrew in the Bishopric of Cork.
Bishop Andrew was consecrated Bishop of Cork, Cloyne and Ross in Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin, on 30 September by the Archbishop of Dublin, the Most Revd Dr Michael Jackson. His enthronement in Cork was the first of three such services in the United Dioceses. He will be enthroned as Bishop of Cloyne in St Colman’s Cathedral, Cloyne, on Wednesday, 14 October at 7.30 p.m., and as Bishop of Ross in St Fachtna’s Cathedral, Rosscarbery, on Sunday, 18 October at 3.30 p.m.
Photos: Eoin Murphy
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Sermon preached on the Occasion of Bishop Andrew’s Installation and Enthronement in the Bishopric of Cork
in the Cathedral Church of Saint Fin Barre, Cork by
The Right Reverend Andrew Orr, Bishop of Cork, Cloyne and Ross
Bishop Andrew Orr preaching at his Installation and Enthronement at St Fin Barre’s Cathedral, Cork.
My favourite story for a day like today is an old one, and apologies to Youghal parishioners who have heard it before (although originally about a Rector).
Just before his retirement, a bishop goes to visit one of the oldest members of the diocese, a lady approaching her hundredth year.
“Well,” she says, “the next bishop won’t be as good as you.”
“That’s very kind of you, but you can’t know that for sure,” he replies.
“I do know it,” she says. “There have been eight bishops in my time, and each one was worse than the last.”
Like most parish rectors, I have stood in various vestries and looked at my predecessors’ portraits hanging on the walls.
Here in St Fin Barre’s, my predecessors’ names are literally carved in stone. And if that isn’t hard enough, their portraits cover the walls of the dining room in the See House. There is nothing like that to make one feel the immense weight of tradition and one’s inadequacy for the task. But I’m sure I’m not the first to feel that.
To understand what it means to be a bishop in this unique place, I want to take the example of two saints. One is Fin Barre himself, patron of this diocese. In the sixth century, Fin Barre sought out the isolation of Gougane Barra. Like many of the great Irish saints, he realised that before we can speak to the world on behalf of God, we must first learn to listen to God in the silence. He retreated to that tiny island in a mountain lake to cultivate a life of prayer.
But the story of Fin Barre doesn’t stop there. The light which Fin Barre received in the silence of Gougane Barra could not be hidden under a bushel. True prayer always compels us towards community and neighbour. Fin Barre left the solitary lake and went downriver, along the River Lee, to the marshes where he founded a monastery. Around that monastery people gathered, not just to pray, but to learn, to work and to live together. That small community grew into a great centre of learning, giving rise to the famous proverb: “Where Fin Barre taught, let Munster learn.”
This tells us something profound about our identity as a diocese. The very city and community of Cork were born out of a monastery. They were born out of a community that prayed together, worked together and studied together.
Our world is increasingly fractured, fragmented and lonely. People are deeply connected digitally but profoundly isolated spiritually. The Church must be, first and foremost, an answer to this isolation. We are called to build communities where people are known, loved and held in prayer.
Community building is not easy, which brings us to our second saint, Saint Francis of Assisi, whose feast we celebrate today. If Fin Barre reminds us of the scholarly and learned basis of faith, Francis reminds us of its radical, joyful and inclusive simplicity. Francis was famously told by Christ from the crucifix at San Damiano, “Go and rebuild my Church, which, as you can see, is falling into ruin.”
Francis initially thought this meant repairing the physical walls. But he soon realised that Christ was calling him to rebuild the human community, what St Peter describes as the living stones. Francis did this by breaking down barriers. He embraced the leper, preached peace across lines of conflict, cared for the whole of God’s creation and lived in solidarity with the poor. He showed us that Christian community is not a closed fortress protecting itself from the world, but an open circle with what my predecessor liked to call fuzzy edges, expanding to include the marginalised, the ones who feel the Church has rejected them, the broken and the searching.
How do we achieve this? How do we find our way through the complexities of leadership and modern life? The answer is in the reading we heard today from the Book of Proverbs:
“For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul; discretion will watch over you, and understanding will guard you.” (Proverbs 2:10-11)
Notice where wisdom goes first. Into the heart. Not so much the brain, but the emotions, the soul. When wisdom settles in the heart, leadership is less about corporate management (always a danger for bishops) and more about spiritual discernment.
We will face many decisions together as a diocese. We must navigate changing demographics; we have to grapple with the Church as an institution, which is often frustrating, and with a society which is increasingly secularised. But the promise of Scripture is that when we seek God, discretion will watch over us, and understanding will guard us. I know I don’t have all the answers. You can’t outsource your thinking to anyone else. The wisdom that guarded Fin Barre in his hermitage, the wisdom that guided Francis in the streets of Assisi, is the very same wisdom promised to us today.
Also, this wisdom is not meant for the bishop alone; it belongs to the whole body. True wisdom recognises that the bishop is far from the only place where the Holy Spirit works. The Holy Spirit has been poured out upon all of you here today: clergy and lay people alike. And we need to recognise that wisdom can be found far beyond our walls: in other churches, other faith traditions and in all people of goodwill. And perhaps especially in those who feel far away from the churches, like the LGBT communities, and whose prophetic voices we must learn to hear.
Community building cannot happen without prayer together. When we pray as a community, our individual agendas fade away. We stop looking at each other with suspicion or division, and we start looking together at Christ. In prayer, our hearts are aligned with His heart. In prayer, we find forgiveness, tolerance and even acceptance.
In a week when the spectre of communal strife, which we all thought had begun to fade, rears its ugly head again in Portadown, we remember the prayer ascribed to St Francis which the two Archbishops of Armagh have asked us all to pray this weekend:
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace; Where there is hatred, let me sow love; Where there is injury, pardon; Where there is error, the truth; Where there is doubt, the faith; Where there is despair, hope; Where there is darkness, light; And where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master, Grant that I may not so much seek To be consoled, as to console; To be understood, as to understand; To be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive; It is in pardoning that we are pardoned; And it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
And may this Diocese of Cork, Cloyne and Ross once again become a beacon of faith, a sanctuary of prayer and a vibrant, loving community where all are welcome.
Amen.
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As the Right Revd Andrew Orr begins his ministry as Bishop of Cork, Cloyne and Ross, two new symbols of his episcopal office carry with them the history and heritage of the United Dioceses. At his consecration in Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin, Bishop Andrew was presented with his episcopal ring and pectoral cross by the Archbishop of Dublin, the Most Revd Dr Michael Jackson. Both pieces were made in Cork by the in-house craftspeople at Keane’s Jewellers and were given as gifts from the clergy and parishes of Cork, Cloyne and Ross.
The Bishop’s Ring
Bishop Andrew’s episcopal ring, a gift from the clergy of the Diocese, is made of gold and engraved with the coat of arms of the United Dioceses of Cork, Cloyne and Ross.
While episcopal rings are often set with a precious stone such as an amethyst, Bishop Andrew’s simple gold ring reflects an older tradition. Rings have been associated with the office and authority of a bishop since the early centuries of the Church, with references to their use in consecration dating back as far as the sixth century, when Saint Isidore, Bishop of Seville from 593 to 633, claims one of the earliest mentions of the bestowal of a ring as a feature of the consecration ceremony.
The diocesan coat of arms engraved on the ring contains several symbols of episcopal ministry: the cross, representing the death and resurrection of Christ; the mitre, symbolising the gift of the Holy Spirit to the bishop and the people; and the shepherd’s crook, representing the Bishop’s calling to shepherd and serve the people of the Diocese.
A Cross with a Cloyne History
Bishop Andrew’s pectoral cross, a gift from the parishes of the Diocese, is a replica of the Cross of Cloyne, the original of which was discovered in the Chapter House of St Colman’s Cathedral, Cloyne, in the late nineteenth century. Dating from approximately 1100–1150 AD, the Cross of Cloyne is a remarkable example of Hiberno-Norse craftsmanship, combining Irish Celtic art with influences from Viking settlement.
The cross features four figures of Christ, one on each arm, each wearing a kilt-like garment. Although their expressions differ slightly, the figures share a distinctive pose, with their arms bent at the elbow and one hand reaching behind the back to grasp the opposite arm.
Intriguingly, it may even be possible to identify the workshop in which the original cross was made. Its figures closely resemble those found on the famous Lismore Crozier, which bears the inscription OR DO NECTAICERD DO RIGNE I GRESA (pray for Nechtain, the craftsman, who made this piece). The similarities of the figures suggest that the Cross of Cloyne may also have been made by Nechtain or by craftspeople working in his workshop.
For Bishop Andrew, the significance of the two pieces is not simply historical. They also reflect his own connection with the Diocese he has now been called to serve.
Both the ring and the cross are symbols of this Diocese, which has become a very special place for both me and my wife Susan. We both served in Cloyne Diocese, with Susan as the Dean. Together, both the cross and the ring remind me of my call to serve the people of this wonderful place.
As Bishop Andrew begins his episcopal ministry, the ring and cross bring together symbols of faith, history and service: reminders both of the long Christian story of Cork, Cloyne and Ross and of the ministry entrusted to its new Bishop.
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The Bishop of Cork Cloyne and Ross, the Right Reverend Andrew Orr is delighted to announce the appointment of the Reverend Canon John Ardis as Archdeacon of the diocese. Archdeacons are appointed by the bishop of the diocese, and their role is to assist the bishop in his or her pastoral care of the diocese, as well as the general oversight and administration of the diocese.
The Reverend Canon John Ardis, newly appointed Archdeacon of Cork, Cloyne and Ross.
Bishop Orr said:
I am delighted to make this appointment, John is one of the most experienced priests in our diocese. He is highly regarded by clergy and laity alike, not least in his current parish of Abbeystrewry union. The position of archdeacon is an important one, as they are the “oculus episcopi”, the Bishop’s eye, keeping watch over the welfare of parishes and clergy alike.
As a ‘child of the rectory’, John grew up in a number of places around Ireland. Before coming to Cork, John lived in Dublin, Wexford and has spent his formative years in Mayo. Prior to ordination, John studied Archaeology and Medieval Studies at University of Wales, Lampeter. After his degree he worked as an assistant University Chaplain, then as a field Archaeologist on various sites around Ireland, and then as a virger in Canterbury Cathedral.
After training in the Church of Ireland Theological College he was ordained Deacon in 2006 and Priest in 2007, serving as curate in Christ Church Cathedral Group of parishes in Dublin Diocese. After two years, he moved to Cork Diocese where he has served ever since, working as Dean’s vicar at St. Fin Barre’s Cathedral, then Church of Ireland Chaplain at University College Cork and since 2013 in his present position as Rector of Abbeystrewry Union of Parishes in West Cork.
John has also served in the Diocese in a number of other ways throughout the years. He was Bishop’s Chaplain and currently serves Chapter Clerk and since 2011 Canon (Honorary) of St Fin Barre’s Cathedral, Diocesan Liturgical adviser since 2009, Rural Dean for West Cork since 2017 and as the Diocesan Director of Ordinands since 2023.
In the wider church John has served on the Church of Ireland Marriage Council, and currently serves on the Bishop’s Appeal advisory committee, Standing Committee and General Synod.
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The Right Rev’d Andrew Orr was consecrated as Bishop of the United Dioceses of Cork, Cloyne and Ross on Wednesday, 30 September 2026, at a service in Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin.
Bishop Andrew Orr, Bishop of Cork, Cloyne and Ross, and Archbishop Michael Jackson.
Bishop Andrew was consecrated by the Archbishop of Dublin, the Most Rev’d Dr Michael Jackson, with Right Rev’d Adrian Wilkinson, Bishop of Cashel, Ferns and Ossory, and the Right Rev’d David McClay, Bishop of Down and Dromore as co-consecrators. The bishops of the Church of Ireland and the wider Anglican Communion were joined by Rev’d Dr Heather Morris and the Rev’d Laurence Graham, representing the Methodist Church, in the laying on of hands during the act of consecration. The President of Ireland, Catherine Connolly, was represented at the service by Captain Niamh FitzGerald, Aide-de-Camp to the President. Jerry Buttimer TD was also among those attending.
Bishop Andrew was joined on the day by his wife, the Rev’d Susan Green, their adult children Rachel, Ciara and Patrick, and members of their wider family. There was also a large attendance from Cork, Cloyne and Ross, including clergy, diocesan lay readers and parishioners from across the United Dioceses, who travelled to Dublin to share in the service and support their new Bishop as he begins his episcopal ministry.
The lessons were read by Jim Farrell, Chair of Eco-Congregation Ireland, and Hilda Connolly, Diocesan Youth Officer for Cork, Cloyne and Ross.
The preacher at the service was the Right Rev’d Michael Burrows, Bishop of Tuam, Limerick and Killaloe, who took as his text the words of Jesus from St Luke 12:32: “Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.”
The same text was used at the consecration of George Otto Simms as Bishop of Cork in 1952 and Bishop Burrows looked back at sermons preached at the consecrations of successive Bishops of Cork in 1952, 1978, 1988 and 1999, drawing from them a message for the new Bishop and the Diocese today. He encouraged Bishop Andrew to approach his ministry with faith, bringing together different traditions and perspectives, remaining grounded in prayer and compassion, caring for communities large and small, and having the courage to dream boldly for the Church’s future. Above all, he encouraged him to bring joy to his episcopal ministry, trusting that the future of the Church ultimately rests with God.
Bishop Andrew succeeds the Right Rev’d Dr Paul Colton. He was elected by the Episcopal Electoral College in June, and his election was subsequently confirmed by the House of Bishops.
Ordained deacon in 1992 and priest in 1993, Bishop Andrew has served in a variety of ministries across the Church of Ireland. His parish appointments have included incumbencies in Castlecomer, Castleknock and Tullow, and he previously served as Archdeacon of Ossory and Leighlin. Since coming to Cork, Cloyne and Ross, he has served as Archdeacon of the Diocese since 2023, and as Chaplain to Midleton College and Priest-in-Charge of Youghal Union since 2018.
Alongside his parish and diocesan ministry, Bishop Andrew has had a longstanding involvement in environmental and creation care work. He formerly chaired Eco-Congregation Ireland and has represented the Church of Ireland in international environmental networks.
Enthronements in Cork, Cloyne and Ross
Bishop Andrew will be enthroned in each of the three cathedrals of the Diocese in October. His first enthronement will take place at Saint Fin Barre’s Cathedral, Cork, on Sunday, 4 October at 3.30 p.m. He will then be enthroned at St Colman’s Cathedral, Cloyne, on Wednesday, 14 October at 7.30 p.m., and finally at St Fachtna’s Cathedral, Rosscarbery, on Sunday, 18 October at 3.30 p.m.
Everyone is warmly invited to attend the enthronement services and to join the people of Cork, Cloyne and Ross in welcoming Bishop Andrew and supporting him and his family as this new chapter in the life of the United Dioceses begins.
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