Paul Colton: ‘We should pray with the Bible in one hand and the newspaper in the other’

From marriage equality and covid to social media — let alone being the celebrant at Posh and Becks' wedding — Paul Colton has plenty to reflect on as he retires after 27 years as a bishop

Recently retired from his post as Bishop of Cork, Cloyne and Ross, Paul Colton was celebrated at the recent farewell service in St Fin Barre's Cathedral. Picture: Gerard McCarthy

Church of Ireland Bishop of Cork, Cloyne and Ross Paul Colton has stepped into retirement, ending more than 25 years at the helm, a period that saw him become the longest-serving bishop of the diocese since 1617.

The popular bishop, the last Church of Ireland bishop to be consecrated in the 20th century, is now reflecting on his time.

“A huge trust is placed in you,” he said. “I’ve really enjoyed the engagement with the people and the place.

“It would be naive to think that it has been plain sailing. There are always, in any walk of life, huge challenges and difficulties.

“Of course, you make mistakes and you learn from the mistakes and you hope people forgive you for the mistakes.

‘I could do no more. I did my best'

“Last September, when we met as a diocese when I was talking about my retirement, I’d been watching Sinner play Alcaraz at Flushing Meadow in the US Open tennis. On that occasion Alcaraz beat Sinner.

“At the end of it, Sinner said ‘I could do no more’, and ‘I did my best’. I said to myself, ‘gosh, that is how I feel’.”

Bishop Paul Colton taking part in the recent farewell service at St Fin Barre’s Cathedral in Cork which was also the diocesan 'Glory of Easter' celebration. Picture: Gerard McCarthy

Consecrated in 1999, Bishop Colton has been a prominent voice not just within the Church of Ireland, but also in wider Irish society. 

He often contributed to debates on key social issues, ethics, and the role faith has to play in a changing Ireland, including the changing landscape and the dangers posed by social media.

This included being the first Church Of Ireland Bishop to openly support same-sex marriage.

Bishop Colton very much feels the Church Of Ireland has an important role to play in the conversations about the wider issues across society.

“A lot of the people think we should butt out and have nothing to say," he says. 

Then Garda chief superintendent Mick Finn, footballer Valerie Mulcahy, and Bishop Paul Colton marking LGBT awareness week at Cork City Hall in 2015. Picture: Jim Coughlan.

"When you look at the Bible in general, there is plenty of engagement with realities.

"So, it’s not right to say that the church should stick to praying and stay out of politics.

I always say, we should pray with the Bible in one hand and — as one archbishop famously said — with the newspaper in the other. 

"But today, you have to have the social media feed in the other hand as well, as you’re praying.

“As Christians, we believe Jesus came to this Earth and made himself fully human. So therefore he engaged with the reality, total reality.

"That’s what it’s all about. So a church that doesn’t engage is to be so heavenly-minded to be of no earthly use.”

Paul Colton photographed during his consecration as Bishop of Cork, Cloyne and Ross at St Fin Barre's Cathedral in Cork on April 24, 1999. File picture: Gerard McCarthy

'I admire the way Pope Leo is speaking up'

Of course, there is an obvious recent example of a religious leader speaking about issues impacting society. Pope Leo XIV recently criticised leaders who spend billions on wars and said the world was “being ravaged by a handful of tyrants”. 

US president Donald Trump posted a lengthy attack on the Pope, who has been a vocal critic of the US-Israeli operation in Iran.

Bishop Colton said: “Obviously, it’s not for me to comment on Pope Leo and on that particular interaction. 

"But all I would say is that I admire the way that he’s speaking up for the Christian view of things, like war, peace, and conflict. That’s what we’re there to do.

“I mean, after all, Jesus said blessed are the peacemakers. So we have to pass that message on and tease out what that means for our own time.”

Bishop Paul Colton with Adam, one of his two sons, and his wife Susan after the farewell service at St Fin Barre’s Cathedral in Cork. Picture: Gerard McCarthy

During his time in office, Bishop Colton had the strong backing of his wife Susan and their two adult sons. 

They have been a pillar of support over the years, in a period which has brought plenty of highlights and memories.

“There are hundreds, and the best memories are all to do with people, and moments in their lives. Some of them were very joyful of course — people’s weddings and baptisms and celebrations. Then, of course, there were tragedies and there were sad times as well.

The euro, social media, 9/11, and the crash...

“Journeying with people in those times was an immense responsibility and a very humbling privilege.

“Of course, there were the things going on in the world. 

"Just after I arrived, the euro was introduced. Then we had the explosion of social media —  the smartphone came along and changed everything.” He adds: “We had 9/11 in the States. 

"There’s never been a time when there haven’t been wars and conflicts somewhere throughout the world, which has been very sobering. Then with the economic crash, which caused an awful lot of suffering and tragedy, locally and around the world. 

'...then along came the pandemic'

"Then along came the pandemic and I was very involved in the Cork County and Cork City community forums throughout that, to see what we could do remotely and practically.

“Of course, no sooner was that petering out then there was war in Ukraine, on our own continent. All the time, Ireland was changing and attitudes were changing.”

Then Roman Catholic bishop John Buckley and Church of Ireland bishop Paul Colton launching the SHARE Christmas crib at Daunt's Square in Cork in 2013. The much-loved crib is the focus of an annual fundraising appeal run by Cork secondary school students, having been initiated by Presentation Brothers College students in 1970. File picture: Gerard McCarthy

Bishop Colton feels that the church still has a very prominent role to play.

“I think the challenges that the Church of Ireland faces aren’t unique to the Church of Ireland. There is changing attitudes to religion and that’s fine. There are many people out there who describe themselves as not religious. So we have a much more diverse and fluid society.

“But I’m seeing and still seeing a lot of faithfulness, seeing a lot of religion and seeing a lot of engagement with spirituality.

“It’s true to say that more and more people are doing it outside the institution of the church. It is a changing pattern.

“I think that the main thing that the church is facing are things that society as a whole faces. The people who have no homes, or are finding it hard to get on the housing ladder, they are the people who are in our parishes.”

Cork Lord Mayor Fergal Dennehy with Paul Colton at the farewell service for the retiring Bishop of Cork, Cloyne and Ross at St Fin Barre's Cathedral. Picture: Gerard McCarthy

Bishop Colton highlights the danger of misinformation through social media for society. Given the heightened anxiety around the world — including with wars in the Middle East and the fuel crisis, which has a knock-on impact on Ireland — he says communication is key across society.

Uniting against covid

“My understanding is that simplistic answers are not usually the right ones to complex situations. I think you have to wrestle [with issues] ... with people who have different views from us, and make common ground.

“We did that during the pandemic. 

"On the community response forums in the pandemic, we had people of totally different outlooks who normally weren’t on the same side, and we were all on the same side.

Then bishop Paul Colton and Rev Meghan Farr, priest in charge at Saint Anne's Shandon, at an event in March to mark the completion of a major restoration project led by Cork City Council. The Lord Mayor of Cork City and Mayor of Cork County rang the bells of the historic church to mark the occasion. Picture: Clare Keogh

“In my time as bishop, I’ve always said to people, ‘don’t expect your bishop to have a magic wand to solve problems’.

On what the future holds for the Church of Ireland, Bishop Colton remains upbeat.

“The Church of Ireland is an all-Ireland church, so it’s very different around the country in different ways with different priorities. But in this part of the Church of Ireland, I still detect, yes, that people think about the future and worry about what form the church will take because there are an awful lot of young people out there who don’t find some of the attitudes of the church credible.

“But at the same time, they want to belong. So, I’m hopeful. The young people give me hope, and the people of the diocese give me hope above all else.”

Posh and Becks

Of course, among the many standout moments from the career of Bishop Colton was in 1999 when he married ‘Posh and Becks’ — Spice Girls member Victoria Adams and footballer David Beckham — at Luttrellstown Castle in Co Dublin. Bishop Colton said he still keeps in contact with the Beckhams.

Canon Paul Willoughby and officiant Paul Colton after the marriage service and nuptial choral Eucharist for Dean of Cork Nigel Dunne and Mrs Sonya Dunne (nee Keogh) last November. Paul Colton also famously officiated at the wedding of Victoria Adams and David Beckham in 1999. Picture: Larry Cummins

“I mean it’s not regular or anything like that. But I could pick up the phone and be in touch, that sort of thing. And they could pick up the phone if they needed me. On and off over the years, they’ve kept in touch, and I’ve been to visit them since.

“When they were 25 years married in 2024, on their wedding anniversary, they sent me flowers, which I thought was a lovely touch.”

Paul Colton was celebrated at the recent farewell service in St Fin Barre's Cathedral as he retired from his post as Bishop of Cork, Cloyne and Ross. Picture: Gerard McCarthy

In relation to what advice he would have for his successor as the Bishop of Cork, Cloyne and Ross, he said: “My advice would be obviously to be faithful to the tradition, to engage with the exciting new realities, to listen carefully to the people, to draw on the strengths of the people and to work with others.

“Above all else, to spend time getting to know and to love the place and the people that we call County Cork.”