Update from Bishop Andrew

Happy Easter everyone. This year I had the pleasure of journeying through Maundy Thursday and Good Friday with the Parish of Havelock North, and then at our Cathedral for the Easter Vigil and Easter morning. 

As I reflect on these photos from the Easter Vigil at the Cathedral, I’m reminded how the light of that night continues to guide us into the season we now inhabit. Easter is not a single day but a fifty‑day journey in which the Church lingers with the mystery and joy of the resurrection. These weeks invite us to slow down, to pay attention, and to let the wonder of that holy night take root in us.

Throughout Eastertide, our lectionary places us alongside the first disciples as they encounter the risen Jesus. In their awe, their questions, their moments of recognition and belief, we see our own lives reflected. Their experience becomes a mirror for our own discipleship. Just as Lent prepares us for Easter, these days after Easter prepare us to live because of it—to grow in confidence, hope, and trust in the risen Christ.

This season is every bit as important as our Lenten preparation. Eastertide teaches us how to inhabit resurrection life, not only as a proclamation but as a daily practice. It is a time for renewed faith, for curiosity, for allowing the Spirit to shape us as we move toward Pentecost.

I encourage all in our diocesan community—clergy, staff, and laity—to keep the feast fully. Attend to these fifty days with intention. Let the stories of the risen Jesus accompany you and let the joy of the Vigil continue to illuminate our common life as we await the coming of the Spirit.

May God bless you with the gift of faith this Eastertide. 

 +Andrew