Remembering Robert
On October 22 of this year, the Christian community lost an extraordinary, much-loved disciple with the sudden death of the very Reverend Robert Willis, dean of Canterbury Cathedral from 2001 until his retirement in 2022. He was the 39th dean in a line stretching back to the Reformation and further, almost to the arrival of Saint Augustine in 597. Despite his eminent position he was an unassuming and approachable figure as the head of its services and administration and was equally at home greeting passing tourists and pilgrims as he was with visiting dignitaries and royalty.
It was this common touch and his gift of preaching from the heart that propelled him to global fame during the Covid 19 pandemic in 2020, when church buildings were suddenly closed to worshippers during the lockdown. Undeterred, he led daily morning prayer from the deanery garden on You Tube, with his partner, Fletcher Banner, behind the camera. His initial aim was simply to minister to his flock in Canterbury who were bereft at the sudden cessation of corporate worship. These were not routine services from the book, but a wonderful mélange of prayer and scripture with a plethora of information about the significance of a particular day and the people connected with it. This could range from Saints to rock stars and everyone in between. There were also a host of animals on site, especially Tiger and Leo, the cats, piglets, chickens and other birds, all in a tranquil setting. While Robert was giving a brief talk one morning, Leo strolled nonchalantly into view, and then disappeared under the dean’s cassock.
A later broadcast saw Tiger quietly help himself to the cream and pancakes on a table beside the dean on Shrove Tuesday 2021. These videos went viral, and Dean Robert found himself an unlikely and unwitting internet celebrity. He used this unique opportunity to bring comfort and the hope of Jesus Christ to an estimated million people around the world, many of whom might never have attended a church service otherwise.
The Garden Congregation, as he called those who followed the broadcasts, rapidly became a worldwide community. Without fail each morning and in all weathers, morning prayer continued even after in- person worship at the cathedral began again. After his retirement from Canterbury, he and Fletcher continued their work as they travelled throughout the UK, Europe and the USA, where he was an honorary Doctor of Divinity at Yale. It was while visiting there that his sudden death occurred. He may have left this world, but I am confident that his legacy will be far-reaching. The Garden Congregation videos are all available on You Tube and worthy of watching again and again. His message of hope and inclusion will not soon be forgotten, and many have come to know Jesus because of him. In his tribute to Robert at his Requiem on November 14, Dean Randy Hollerith of Washington National Cathedral put it this way, “His greatest sermon was his life.”
Prayer for the morning, from the Church of England Book of Common Worship:
The night has passed, and the day lies open before us; let us pray with one heart and mind. As we rejoice in the gift of this new day, so may the light of your presence, O God, set our hearts and minds on fire with love for you; now and for ever. Amen
