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Portrait of The Rt. Rev. Dr. Geoffrey Haines wearing traditional ecclesiastical attire, holding a staff, with a blue background and his name displayed prominently.

A message from the Primate

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Published on 
October 9, 2020

Dear friends in Christ,

On October 8th we learned of the death of the Rt. Rev. Dr. Geoffrey Curtis Ralph Peddle, Bishop of the Diocese of Eastern Newfoundland and Labrador. Bishop Geoff had served over many years as a parish priest, diocesan executive officer, and provost and vice-chancellor of Queen’s College in St. John’s. He became bishop of the diocese in 2014 bringing his passion for the mission of God to the life of the parishes in the diocese.

We ask your prayers for his wife, Kathy, and sons, Benjamin and Adam, in their grief and for the whole diocese as they mourn the loss of their bishop.

In Christ we know that God holds in love all our pain and sorrow. May that love be present with all who mourn today and through the days to come.

Let us pray,

O HEAVENLY Father, whose Blessed Son Jesus Christ did weep at the grave of Lazarus, his friend: Look, we beseech thee, with compassion upon those who are now in sorrow and affliction; comfort them, O Lord, with thy gracious consolations; make them to know that all things work together for good to them that love thee; and grant them evermore sure trust and confidence in thy fatherly care; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

REST eternal grant unto +Geoffrey, O Lord, and let light perpetual shine upon him. Amen.

+Linda Nicholls

The Most Rev. Linda Nicholls
Primate

Explore related topic areas: Archbishop Linda Nicholls

Acknowledging the land and God’s creation

This acknowledgement is crafted in light of the Principles of Reconciliation by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, as we seek to live faithfully in Christ and in right relationship with all. 

We give thanks to the Creator for this land, its waters, forests and all living beings, and for the abiding presence of Christ among us. From coast to coast to coast, these have been cared for and nurtured by First Nations, Inuit and Métis through countless generations. 

We honour the enduring relationship Indigenous Peoples have cultivated with these lands and waters, and the treaties and agreements that reflect these sacred bonds. We acknowledge the harms caused by colonial expansion, through frameworks like the Doctrine of Discovery and structures like the residential school system. We recognize our past failures as a Church, including disruption of connections to the land and suppression of Indigenous spiritualities. 

Guided by the gospel of Jesus Christ, we confess our need for healing. We commit ourselves to seeking truth, pursuing reconciliation and nurturing harmony with all creation. We place our trust in Christ, through whom all things are reconciled to God. 

May God strengthen us to live faithfully as stewards of the Earth. Let us walk in love, justice and reconciliation, joining in God’s work to restore all creation.