In all things, Ronald pointed others to Jesus Christ. He was at his heart an evangelist, an evangelist first of all in the Church Army, and then in holy orders in the Church of England, in parishes in Bicester, Washwood Heath, and Wild Green; and then most recently in the Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham.

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Back in 1992, we were desolate, a group of people looking for support, leadership, direction and so on. And Ronald was one of those who jumped in, who became, as it were, a giant in the land. He gave himself tirelessly to his parishes, to his work in the See of Ebbsfleet, in particular at those lay conferences and so on. Also working tirelessly in the production of those children's liturgy sheets, creating a way of making sure that our young children were invested in, that there was a way of
delivering a sound catechesis to them, even as we struggled in our journey ahead.

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Ronald was always at Forward in Faith events, as a dean, and also at National Assemblies, always stirring us up with the good news of Jesus Christ. Ronald also was one of those pioneers, those of us who came in that first wave, into the Ordinariate and here, too, Ronald gave himself tirelessly for the gospel. He was committed to developing communication and this bore fruit in The Portal magazine, - those visits to the groups, so important, particularly in those early days, - ensuring that we had a common identity; we weren't just individuals and isolated communities, but had so much to bind us together.

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Ronald instigated the podcast, so that people could participate in the Ordinariate - not just those who were In Church on Sunday mornings, but the isolated, the housebound, the sick, and so on.

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We owe Ronald a great deal, as we reflect on his legacy - a legacy which is very beautiful, but slightly strange in concept to the secular world. Ronald's enduring legacy will not be the things per se that I've just outlined, (important and essential though they are) and in our generation they have meant so much. But the legacy is the lives Ronald touched. The legacy is the number of people who in some way through him, not necessarily only through him, but through his ministry, his ordained ministry, his ministry in the Ordinariate, those who have been directed, pointed by Ronald to Jesus Christ. People who have seen through Ronald’s love, his care, a pointer to Jesus Christ. In planning his funeral, Ronald said very pointedly, “you know, there will be a short eulogy, but apart from that, make everything point to Jesus Christ, everything point to our salvation, everything point to the gospel.”

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As we entrust Ronald to God, let us give thanks for our own encounters with him. Let us pray from the depths of our hearts for Jenny and the family. But let us rejoice in all those souls who in very different ways have drawn closer to Jesus Christ through the witness of that evangelist Ronald Crane.