THE Church of Ireland's new Dean of Belfast has said he wants St Anne's Cathedral to be "a place where bridges are built".
Stephen Forde (55) said he recognised his new role will be a "massive challenge and a daunting task" but he hoped the city centre cathedral can be somewhere where "people discover how much they matter".
The clergyman was installed as the 14th Dean of Belfast during a service at St Anne's yesterday attended by leaders of the main Churches in Northern Ireland and including music from the Cathedral Choir and Ulster Orchestra.
He takes over from the Very Rev John Mann, who has moved to the Salisbury Diocese in England.
Among the high-profile roles the father-of-three will undertake will be to continue the annual 'Black Santa' sit-out charity appeal each Christmas.
The new dean was ordained as a priest in 1987 and served as rector of the parishes of Larne and Inver with Glynn and Raloo, and also as archdeacon of Dalriada.
He said: "With the redevelopment of the Cathedral Quarter, and the arrival of 10,000 students at the University of Ulster, this is a time of new beginnings and new horizons.
"I hope the cathedral will be a place where people who are rushed and hassled by life's demands will find rest and refreshment, a place of peace in a world of many pressures.
"I also hope the cathedral will be a place of ecumenical encounter, a place where bridges are built and barriers dismantled.
"Above all, I pray this will be a place where people discover how much they matter, because they will discover how much they matter to God."
He added: "While I am excited at these new opportunities, I am also conscious that being Dean of Belfast is a massive challenge and a daunting task.
"I approach this new role knowing that I will need the prayers and support of so many."
