Last updated 15th August 2022
The final meeting of the Vacancy-in-See Committee was held on Tuesday, May 24 at Blackburn Cathedral, writes Rt Rev. Dr Jill Duff, Chair of the Committee.
We were delighted to welcome Stephen Knott (Archbishops’ Appointment Secretary) and Helen Dimmock (Prime Minister’s Appointment Secretary) to meet with us over a buffet supper.
They had appreciated spending time in the Diocese and the time spent in all the consultations. We then prayer time in the Jesus Chapel before our meeting.
A song used in our prayer time at the Cathedral which resonated with many was 'Be still for the presence of the Lord'. May we all know His stillness, presence and leading in the coming months.”
At the meeting which followed prayer we ...
| June | Names could be suggested (by June 12) for the next Bishop of Blackburn |
| End July | CNC draw up long list of candidates (8-15) |
| Wednesday 21 September | CNC meet in York to shortlist five candidates |
|
Tuesday and Wednesday 8 and 9 November |
CNC interview candidates in York
|
| Announcement (8 weeks) |
January 2023 |
|
New Bishop of Blackburn (3-6 months later) |
July 2023 |
The following six people were elected to the Crown Nominations Commission and will interview potential candidates on November 8 and 9.
Please keep them especially in your prayers ...
The Statement of Needs document is available to view below here via an 'Issuu flipbook' which allows you to view the whole document online without the need to download.
Click below and you will be taken to the document on Issuu where the best way to view is to click either 'larger view' or 'full screen' and follow the arrows at right to travel through the document.
The Church Times recently published notification of the Vacancy in the See of Blackburn.
Anyone wishing to comment on the needs of the Diocese or the wider church, or who wished to propose candidates, was invited to write before June 12, and via email, to:
Please continue to keep this discernment process for our next Bishop of Blackburn in your prayers and particulary using this prayer ...
Heavenly Father, we pray for a bishop full of your Holy Spirit:
a disciple who makes disciples,
a bold witness to Jesus,
and a Christ-like leader,
able to inspire children and young people with the transforming message of your Gospel.
We ask this in the name of your Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen
We have produced a prayer card with this prayer and the Vision prayer. Download here. Plain version here.
The Vacancy in See Committee had two roles:
The Committee met three times. Its discussions are confidential.
Bishop Jill adds: "There are many Diocesan bishops retiring at the moment, but wonderfully, the National Church is responding to this, so our interview slot is sooner than we expected in November 2022, subject to the Archbishops’ approval; which would mean the following timetable..."
The briefing document provided to members of the Vacancy in See Committee is available to read for anyone who wants to do so by downloading here.
The committee members were as follows
Ex-Officio
The Rt Rev Dr Jill Duff (Chair)
The Rt Rev Philip North
The Venerable David Picken
The Venerable Mark Ireland
The Very Rev Peter Howell-Jones
The Rev Paul Benfield
The Rev Stephen Corbett
The Rev Alex Frost
The Rev Peter Lillicrap
The Rev Dr Tom Woolford
Mr Stephen Boyall
Mr Bob Collins
Mrs Vivienne Goddard
Mrs Rosemary Lyon
Dr Laura Oliver
Mr Paul Ronson
Mrs Jacqueline Stamper
Lancaster Archdeaconry (Clergy Elected)
The Rev Paul Bye
The Rev Canon Dr Simon Cox
The Rev Canon Fleur Green
The Rev Damian Porter
Blackburn Archdeaconry (Laity Elected)
Mr David Barlow
Mr Duncan Walsh
Mr David Wilkinson
Dr Julie Woolford
Lancaster Archdeaconry (Laity Elected)
Dame Pauline Fielding DBE
Mr Sam Walmsley
Vacancy
Nominated by Bishop's Council
Miss Elizabeth Agbettoh
The Rev Anne Beverley
The Rev Munawar Din
Vacancy
Ronnie Semley, March 2022; updated regularly, last June 2022
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