Bishop Pat Harris, former Bishop of Northern Argentina and of Southwell and Nottingham, and onetime Secretary of Partnership for World Mission for the Church of England died peacefully in December.
His family write: ‘Patrick was a man of deep faith, with strong convictions as a Christian since his Army days as a young officer. From there he went to Oxford to study law (at Keble College) where he was President of the Christian Union. After attending theological college (Clifton Theological College, Bristol), he was a curate at St Ebbe’s in Oxford from 1960-63.
‘From 1963, he spent 17 years in Northern Argentina amongst the Wichí people. One key role he had was to prepare the first Wichí for ordination, of which there have now been many. This led to the ordination of the first Wichí bishops.’
‘In 1969 he was appointed Archdeacon of Salta in northwest Argentina. He was consecrated as the first Bishop of Northern Argentina in May 1974. He was strategic in developing multifaceted mission work in Argentina amongst the Wichí- and Spanish-speaking churches.
‘Church planting developed amongst the Spanish-speaking nationals in the towns and cities. He loved the people of the diocese. The Wichí named him Kajyentes, which translates as Barnabas, son of encouragement. He lived closely amongst them in very primitive conditions and constantly travelled, initially on his horse Ebbo, through the arid dust of the Chaco, or ‘Green Hell’. All this very much formed and shaped him into the person of deep humanity that he became.
‘He was a member of the cross-party South Atlantic Council which was established to restore relationships with Argentina after the 1982 Falklands war.’
The current Bishop of Northern Argentina, Nick Drayson, writes: ‘Pat was held in enormous affection everywhere he went, but nowhere more so than amongst the Wichí people, with whom he kept in close contact for more than 50 years. It is perhaps no surprise that the vast majority of those who worked in Argentina as lay missionaries ended up in the ordained ministry, thanks to his influence and guidance.
Pat married in 1968 and he and Valerie had three children.
