Bexley Hall Seminary honors Bishop of Seychelles

September 12, 2008 [Bexley Hall Seminary] Dean John Kevern of Bexley Hall Seminary, Columbus, Ohio visited the Diocese of the Seychelles on August 29 to confer the degree of Doctor of Divinity, honoris causa, on Bishop Santosh Marray at a sung Evensong at St. Paul's Cathedral in Victoria.

Marray is a native of Guyana and was educated for the priesthood at Codrington Theological College in Barbados. After serving a number of parishes in Guyana, he served several multi-point charges in the Diocese of the Bahamas, during which time he wrote for Bexley Hall and the Colgate-Rochester Divinity School a Doctor of Ministry thesis on the parish growth of small and rural parishes.

In 2003, Marray was elected rector of St. Philip's, Jacksonville, Florida. He was elected in 2005 to the episcopal see of the Seychelles. The Archbishop of Canterbury appointed Marray a member of the Anglican Covenant design group in December 2006.

Dignitaries in attendance included Joseph Belmont, Seychelles Vice President; French Chang-Him, retired Anglican Bishop; Roman Catholic bishop Denis Wiehe and Fergus Cochrane-Dyet, British High Commissioner.

Speaking on behalf of the Board of Trustees of Bexley Hall, Kevern commended Marray for his outstanding work in church growth and pastoral ministry, plus his commitment to lifelong learning. Citing the beloved motto of the first Bishop of Ohio, Philander Chase, "Jehovah Jirah" ("The Lord will provide"), Kevern observed that Bishop Marray has made this motto his own and has never been deterred by paucity of resources or difficult situations.

Marray underscored that the honor was not only for his ministry but also celebrated the entire diocese. He also took the occasion to impress upon the clergy the need for continuing education, a point noted by the national media. In what turned out to be a quasi "state visit," Kevern also preached at the Cathedral on Harvest Festival Sunday on August 30, noting the somewhat disorientating difference in timing between this and American Thanksgiving, plus the considerable difference in weather between the Seychelles and the American North in November.

Kevern preached partly in French and also celebrated the Sunday mass, at which the three official languages of the Seychelles were interspersed: English, French, and Creole French. He also visited with the leader of the opposition, the Rev. Wavel Ramkalawan, and visited several parishes in the central island of Mahe and on the island of Praslin. He spoke with local clergy about continuing education in the Episcopal Church, and he and the bishop called on the British High Commissioner, who asked for views on the outcomes of the recent Lambeth Conference.

Bexley Hall Seminary is located in Columbus, Ohio, and shares its campus with Trinity Lutheran Seminary.

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