The new Archdeacon of Bermuda was installed in a ceremony at the Anglican Cathedral on Sunday.

Rev. Andrew Doughty, rector for St. Mary?s Anglican Church in Warwick, was installed as Archdeacon by Bishop of Bermuda the Rt. Rev. Ewen Ratteray.

As Archdeacon, he will support the Bishop in his work in the diocese. Special concerns include care for clergy and their families, as well as maintaining Anglican buildings and rectories.

?Bishop Ewen has been Bishop now for eight and a half years,? Rev. Doughty told . ?He?s done a lot of good work in bringing the diocese together and working on ways forward.

?My job is really to support him in his vision. Bishop Ewen and I have known each other for 24 years, so he knows me pretty well.? The two will meet regularly to discuss proposals and policies for the church.

The biggest challenge facing the Anglican Church in Bermuda, said the new Archdeacon, is ?unity and renewal of confidence ? renewal of worship, of our ministry in the Island?.

However the church?s biggest strength, he added, was its diversity.

?There is an amazing cross-section of people within the congregation ? black, white, Bermudian, non-Bermudian, rich, poor ?in the congregations and the clergy.

?The church has worked very hard at trying to be inclusive and a place of welcome for anybody who crosses our doors.?

The ceremony on Sunday was ?a good beginning?, according to the Archdeacon.

?It was a wonderful service. Five hundred people showed up from all across the diocese, as well as clergy and ministers from other denominations supporting us.

?I am looking forward very much to working with Bishop Ewen and the people of the diocese to move the Anglican Church forward.?

There is one bishop in the Bermuda branch of the Anglican Church, with one archdeacon to support him. From there the nine parishes each have their own rectory with a rector, while Canons are of the Cathedral. Every cathedral has a Dean, which in Bermuda is Bishop Ratteray, as well as a chapter, those running the cathedral.

The Bermuda chapter consists of the Archdeacon, the Canon residentiary (a post which is currently empty in Bermuda), and two Canons capitular: Canon James Francis and Canon Alan Tilson. There is no straight hierarchy in the Bermuda Anglican Church, said Rev. Doughty, meaning that one does not have to be a Canon before becoming Archdeacon.

?Canons are people with long experience in the Church ? you could call them the senior staff,? he explained.