Updated Monday
The next Bishop of Chichester is to be the Rt Revd Martin Warner, Bishop of Whitby. This has been announced by Number 10 this morning.
Diocese of Chichester
Thursday 3 May 2012Queen approves Right Reverend Martin Clive Warner for election as Bishop of Chichester
The Queen has approved the nomination of the Right Reverend Martin Clive Warner, MA, PhD, Suffragan Bishop of Whitby, for election as Bishop of Chichester in succession to the Right Reverend Dr John William Hind, BA, DD, on his resignation on the 30th April 2012.
Notes for Editors
The Right Reverend Martin Warner (aged 53) trained for the ordained ministry at St Stephen’s House, Oxford. He served his first title at St Peter’s, Exeter from 1984 to 1988. From 1988 to 1993 he was Team Vicar of the Parish of the Resurrection, Leicester. The Right Reverend Martin Warner was the Administrator of the Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham from 1993 to 2002, and also Priest in Charge of Hempton with Pudding Norton from 1998 to 2000. He was an Honorary Canon of Norwich Cathedral from 2000 to 2002. From 2003 to 2010 he was Canon Residentiary of St Paul’s Cathedral. Since 2010 he has been Suffragan Bishop of Whitby.
The Right Reverend Martin Warner has wide ranging interests in the arts, including opera, theatre and medieval and contemporary art. He enjoys writing and has been widely involved in the area of theological and spiritual exploration. Preaching engagements have taken him round the world, and he has led pilgrimages in Europe and the Holy Land. For relaxation he enjoys travel by bike.
The Diocese of Chichester has a longer announcement on its website and there is also this video.
Updates
The Rector of Chichester Diocese Society of Catholic Priests Chapter and the Convenor of Affirming Catholicism in Chichester Diocese have written to their members following the announcement of Bishop Martin Warner’s appointment as their new Bishop. You can read their letter as a PDF here.
WATCH has issued a press release which is copied below the fold, as it has not appeared on any other website yet.
WATCH press release
Appointment of the Bishop of Chichester
The decision to appoint another diocesan bishop to Chichester who will not ordain women will cause widespread disappointment throughout the diocese and across the rest of the Church of England. After a full consultation, many in the Diocese were hoping to work with a new bishop who follows normal practice in the Church of England in accepting ordained women on the same terms as men.
The message this gives to the wider Church of England is that it still acceptable for women to be seen as a problem that some people feel they need to be protected from rather than a gift to the Church. We wonder how the ordained women of Chichester will feel supported with a bishop who does not recognise their orders? We wonder how the lay women and men of Chichester will feel seeing their female priests compromised in this way?
At a time when 42 out of 44 Dioceses have voted for women to be made bishops and large numbers in the Church are looking to the day when women will become bishops this decision seeks to preserve a past that has long gone.
Even in Chichester the Diocesan Synod voted (informally) ‘in favour of ordaining women to the episcopate in the Church of England’, but the three Bishops did not support the motion. Total clergy + laity figures were 86 for, 61 against including 3 Bishops.
In a diocese where the courageous bishop George Bell and the saintly Richard of Chichester served the Church with such distinction and foresight this is a missed opportunity.
Nevertheless, it is hoped that the new bishop of Chichester will help to explore opportunities to move women’s ministry forward for lay and ordained alike and to make full use of the gifts and experience they offer.
A fresh start, thank God! Hasten the day (in July) when the Bishop of Lewes, Wallace Benn retires bringing an ugly chapter of ecclesiastic errors to a close.
Pity a church without the political will to force his resignation. Pity the poor violated children who will be forever scarred with the legacy of those Permission To Officiate ‘errors’.
It appears that he has been providing alternative episcopal oversight within York Diocese, so I assume that he will refuse to ordain women. He is only 53, so it looks like we will have to wait at least another 12 years before we can hope for a Diocesan bishop who is not aligned to Forward in Faith. A big disappointment to many here in Chichester…
Now that the appointment has been made I suppose that we ought not to rush to judgement, even thought yet another non-women-ordaining bishop is a great disappointment to those many thousands of us who hoped and prayed for radical change in this diocese. At least, in the video, Bishop Martin shows awareness of the great diversity of the diocese, has a particular interest in the poor and disenfranchised and wishes to continue in our tradition of fostering contemporary art in churches. His first big test will come in what to do about Wallace Benn, Bishop of Lewes, currently the subject… Read more »
It is good that a Bishop of Bp. Martin Warner’s St.Stephen’s House provenance has been elected to the somewhat conservative Diocese of Chichester – in the wake of Bishop Hinds. One can only hope that his video-ed interview, wherein he describes his fruitful working together with Women Clergy at St. Paul’s Cathedral, will lead to a better understanding of the place of women in the Church in his new diocese. Having been the Head of Guardians at the Shrine of Our Lady at Walsingham, one hopes, also, that he can bring a new understanding of the place of the ministry… Read more »
Same old, same old for the next 15 years in Chichester Diocese, then?
The video announcement of +Martin from the swanky White Cube Gallery certainly has a different feel to it from the announcement of our latest diocesan, here in Aotearoa/New Zealand, a local priest elected for Wellington Diocese from the ‘edge’.
http://anglicantaonga.org.nz/
and
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=ICXmVnBArT4
There’s hope for the CofE yet!
An excellent appointment.
Hearty congratulations to Bishop Martin – following in the saintly footsteps of Bishop Bell of Chichester – who should have gone to Canterbury if it were not for the political interference of Winston Churchill.
He’s a very bright and gifted man – good news.
If it is true that many in the diocese would have welcomed a bishop who ordained women, it would be nice if the next appointment to +Lewes was someone allowed to ordain women by their diocesan, and perhaps a moderate evangelical too.
I too hope that + Martin’s comments about his good relationships with women priests at St Paul’s will be reflected in his treatment of them in his new diocese, where many women priests have felt oppressed and unvalued under previous management. If + Martin is to continue not ordaining women, this makes it imperative that the next +Lewes should be someone who does. It really won’t do for this large diocese to continue to have no bishop who ordains women.
It is certainly true that many in Chichester Diocese would have welcomed a bishop who would ordain women, in fact most would have welcomed it. We asked for a Bishop of Horsham who would ordain women, and the request was refused by Bishop John. We asked for a Bishop of Chichester who would ordain women, but the Diocese decided ask for one that would not.
Most of the Diocese even supported women bishops. Forward in Faith is a minority in this Diocese, but they hold much more power than their numbers justify.
My thoughts and prayers go out to Bishop Martin. His appointment gives one some hope for the good old Church of England. An excellent person, whose sincerity and faith have shone out whever he has ministered.
Chichester are being richly Blessed.
What is a St Stephen’s House provenance? Stephen Cottrell? Tim Thornton? Jeffrey John? Mark Vernon? All of whom trained here.
Sadly it appears that with this appointment the Diocese of Chichester will remain in the dark ages- oh for a Bishop Bell with courage to challenge the status quo .
The only hope is that the next Bishop of Lewes will break the mould but I am not holding my breath
I hope and pray that this is a good appointment
It is a little disappointing that at no point in the interview were the words LGBT mentioned , especially in view of Brighton.
Lets assume for the time being that this was merely an oversight
Think he is conservative on marriage etc.
Martin is an alum of our college and by all accounts a good and honourable man. I would like to know, however, whether he recognises the orders of women priests (though I don’t hold the view, I can imagine that one could recognise the ordination of women priests and bishops and still not ordain women for ecumenical or other serious reasons). To repeat a problem many would have noted with regard to the Act of Synod, I do not understand how one can in conscience be a bishop of a diocese and not recognise the orders of those legally ordained… Read more »
“Judge not that thou be not judged”. I promise to keep repeating these words to myself whenever I sink into despair at the thought of yet another bishop in Chichester diocese who will not ordain women. Like others, I can only hope and pray for better news re the appointment of the next Bishop of Lewes. If I hear any more talk of “retaining the collegiate nature of the House of Bishops in the diocese” (ie refusing even to countenance the appointment of one who WILL so ordain) I will retire – finally and permanently – to Bedlam.
John:
‘dark ages’? This is a highly respected and gifted man who happens to be opposed to the ordination of women. Might yours be a slight overreaction?
I think people will love Martin and find an end to the gloom of recent years in that diocese. But he won’t enable people of different opinion to live together if we liberals think there is no room for the other opinion without talk of ‘dark ages’ and ‘same old’.
In some ways it’s not a surprising appointment. The vacancy in see committee was packed with anglocatholics and conservative evangelicals and our efforts to circumvent them obvioulsy failed.
On the BBC SE News the new Bishop said that he would be concerned about all clergy abuse. Does this include bullying, lying and deceit?
I’m not the john above.
I am glad that those who are glad about this appointment are glad. But I hope they recognise the justice of pleas for suffragans who will ordain women priests. However illogical such arrangements may be, it is in the cooperation that they represent that the ‘hope’ for the C of E resides, not in some ‘hopeless’ ‘hope’ for the re-Catholicisation of England.
Unless this month’s “fine tuning” of the legislation by the House of Bishops re women in the episcopate proves to be to severe and the innovation fails to recieive the required majority at the July meeting of the General Synod – then Rowan’s legacy will include a divided House of Bishops not in communion one with another once the first woman bishop is consecrated. In spite of the warmly expressed and no doubt, sincere good relationships they enjoyed at St. Paul’s – I cannot see + Martin Cicestr participating in the laying on of hands at the consecration of +… Read more »
Once again the people of Chichester diocese have been ignored and let down. In a diocese with 3 bishops why can’t we have at least 1 is is willing and allowed to ordain women as priests!
Our only hope now is that when a new bishop is appointed to Lewes we can move onto the 21st century.
‘Dr Warner suggested that the Church of England had “somehow got on to the wrong side of this debate” because the terminology of the debate, centering on marriage, had been “an unhelpful starting point”.’ Starting point ? Where has he been for the last several decades ? “I’m not sure who is pushing for this and I’m not sure that it has been the wisest way of raising serious questions about how we value people who are in same-sex relationships.” It had, he said, done “damage” to those “of good conscience and intention” who “want to ask important questions about… Read more »
The more I think about it, or do I mean stew on it, I find it sickening that a Church which has decided to ordain candidates who are women, permits (new) bishops to opt out of ordaining them, almost twenty years later. Can this really be right ? It makes no sense. Those who think it is not ‘Catholic’ to receive the ministry from women, must see that if ordaining them makes the Church cease to be Church, it has already happened; and it would have made sense to leave. But by staying on in the Church of England for… Read more »
So which is it, Father David?
The choice is: (1) a messy, compromised reality; (2) complete uniformity. If the second, you and people like you should leave, because you are never going to be able to turn the clock back. If the first, you should stop belabouring the lack of uniformity. There are liberals – plenty of them – who want to cut you and your people sufficient slack, but if it’s not reciprocal, why bother?
Like Rome, many in the Anglican hierarchy are out of touch with The People of God. They need to be challenged and reprimanded until they do the right thing. A woman Archbishop of Canterbury would be a great way to get beyond the misogyny.
What interesting posts!
Fr David tells us that extra space has to be given to +Martin and co. or +Martin will cease to be in communion with others of different opinion.
Laurence Robert fulminates against +Martin’s inclusion at all in a church which reckons to have space for him as a bishop. (Sounds like a liberal church with space ‘in communion’ for people only of like mind.)
Isn’t it marvellous that those in favour of the ministerial innovation within the Established Church are forever encouraging those who are faithful to 2000 years of tradition to “leave”? My prayers are with the next Bishop of Chichester as he fearlessly follows in the wake of his illustrious predecessor – Bishop George Bell who had such an ecumenical passion to extend the Kingdom of Christ. One of my favourite Alleluya-filled hymns is Bishop Bell’s “Christ is the King! O friends rejoice” which ends with this verse:- “Let love’s unconquerable might God’s people everywhere unite In service to the Lord of… Read more »
Father David,
You’re not responding fairly to my challenge.
Father David, the majority of those who want to see the development of women’s ordination as Bishops do not want to see people leaving but also do not want legislation so compromised that it relegates the episcopacy of women, and men in favour of the ordination of women, to a second tier, where the validity of all that they do is compromised. The requirement to transcend difference to work together for the Kingdom is of major importance. Women who are priests have often had to tolerate rejection and rudeness and have continued in faithful service for the sake of the… Read more »
Poor Bishop Bell, a visionary bishop, invoked by the supporters of his successor, who must be turning in his grave to see what has been done to his diocese over the past thirty years. His couldn’t have been called ‘The Dead See’ as it is now.
It seems to me that “a messy, compromised reality” is precisely what we will achieve if the General Synod gives the necessary majority to the motion with regard to women and the episcopate during the July 2012 session, as it currently stands. That is – a House of Bishops divided and not in communion with one another around the Lord’s table. Not only will we have achieved greater disunity within the Church of England but also unity with the great churches of Christendom (Latin and Orthodox), for which so many have worked so long and so hard to achieve, will… Read more »
Bishop Bell was indeed “a visionary bishop” and, like Michael Ramsey and Edward King, one of our great Anglican saints. Part of his vision was for the Unity of Christ’s divided Church. He died peacefully in office on October 3rd, 1958, aged 75 and his influence is still keenly felt – especially within the Chichester diocese. At his Memorial Service in Chichester Cathedral on 10th October, 1958 – Archbishop Fisher said this:- “He will go down in history as one of the special glories of the Church of England: in days to come when the Catholic Church recovers again its… Read more »
“The Lord’s prayer in Gethsemane “that they may be one” continues to be neglected and unheeded.” That’s a lovely comment from someone who supports a theology that leaves lgbt people out of this unity and that includes women only on his own terms. Many of us happen to believe that your kind of structural unity has nothing to do with the genuine unity in Christ that Jesus was praying for. Maybe when all those “traditional” churches get their act together and genuinely welcome everyone on equal terms, we might be ready to discuss more structural unity with them. Until then,… Read more »
Father David, I’m in favour of a ‘messy, complicated reality’, if it enables people such as yourself to stay in the C of E. It’s actually the best people like you can achieve, because ‘uniformity’ on your terms is out. That being so, harping on its absence doesn’t seem very sensible. Recent diocesan votes have made it very clear – what always was clear – that a very large majority within the C of E favours women priests and, accordingly, women bishops. As for the Latin and Orthodox churches, the evidence is strong regarding the former that ‘the hierarchy’ are… Read more »
‘…but also unity with the great churches of Christendom (Latin and Orthodox), for which so many have worked so long and so hard to achieve…’ and which will remain a chimera until and unless Rome itself changes.
“The Lord’s prayer in Gethsemane “that they may be one” continues to be neglected and unheeded.”
– Father David –
Dear Brother, the endemic Diversity that threatens to be continued in the atmosphere of ‘Alternative Oversight’, where even Bishops cannot sit together around the Altar because of a gender problem, must surely be a diversity too far-stretched to ever end in Christian UNITY.
‘Unity in Diversity’ is something else.
To imagine for one moment that the Great Churches of East and West are going to fall in and follow the lead of the Anglican Communion on the issue of the ordination of women is risible. For the Roman Catholic and Orthodox Churches so do do would be contrary to all that is catholic and orthodox. The CofE is “albeit slowly, at least limping towards the right goal”. The very nature of this slow and halting progress makes me seriously wonder if this departure from Holy Writ and Christian Tradition is, in fact, of the Holy Spirit? Compare this slow… Read more »
Fr David perhaps has overlooked that even the airbrushed account of Acts makes it clear that thought he Pentecost event might have been instantaneous, it took them a long time – and much heartsearching – to work out that it included Gentiles. It wasn’t an sudden outpouring of the Spirit that abolished the Church’s support for slavery, and even people I admire like John Wesley and Edward King were supporters of the death penalty. The long and tortuous process of reception of Vatican II suggests that our sister church of Rome hasn’t fared any better than we have. Anselm once… Read more »
In response to Father David’s latest. It did take a while for the entrenched Scribes and Pharisees to respond to the message of the True Messiah, when He eventually came among them. But the liberality of the Gospel eventually triumphed. Christ is risen, Alleluia. He is risen indeed, Alleluia, Alleluia!
It may take Rome and Constantinople a while yet to recognise the ministry credentials of half of the world’s population (Women.) But it must eventually come! “Even so. Come, Lord Jesus!”
Father David, when Blessed Florence Li Tim-Oi was ordained a priest, under the harshest wartime circumstances, THAT “took place in an instant”. The tiniest pebble ripples unto eternity.
Speaking of Pentecost, Rabbi Gamaliel had a wise response: “let us see.” Almost 70 years—hundreds priests, dozens of bishops—later, why can’t *you* see?
Nevertheless, the speed of the action of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost compared with the tortuous progress towards women in the episcopate to be included within the apostolic succession cannot be denied. As for the inclusion of Gentiles within the Christian felowship – that was pretty well done and dusted well before the covers were placed on the Holy Bible. But – virtually 2,000 years before choosing to alter the Three-fold Historic Ministry? Come off it! Once He gets going – the Holy Spirit doesn’t muck about! Ah, Vatican II – that great throwing open of the window of the… Read more »
‘…any such unscriptual development.’
Come off it, Rome is at it all the time! Immaculate conception, Assumption, Papal Infalibility just for starters. Yet there seems to be to least some evidence for women’s sacramental and authoritative ministry in NT times. Surely if one regards the pope’s prouncements as authoritative then one should be a papist.
Similarly, JCF – why can’t His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI “see” or His All Holiness Bartholomew, the Ecumenical Patriarch “see”?
“To imagine for one moment that the Great Churches of East and West are going to fall in and follow the lead of the Anglican Communion on the issue of the ordination of women is risible” Absolutely. So can we now put this silly idea to bed that anyone is joining Rome any time soon? This is tedious beyond words. If people believed in the Roman and Orthodox view of all of these things, they’d be Catholics of various persuasions. It’s not as if these churches didn’t encourage converts, so every single member of the CoE and the Anglican Communion… Read more »
“Once He gets going – the Holy Spirit doesn’t muck about!” – Father David –
With all DUE respect, Father David; The Holy Spirit (SHE) has already worked – in places where the Anglican Churches have heeded Her call. It may be because of intransigence among the conservative clergy that SHE has not yet been clearly heard in England.
And when will you latent R.C.s come to realise that papal supremacy and rule is not accceptable among non-R.C.s. We are Anglicans, remember? -(Unless, of course, you are in the Ordinariate).
But surely we all claim to be part of the one, Catholic and Apostolic Church and what those who belong to other greater branches of the Church teach and proclaim is not without significance; especially as the great William Temple claimed that the modern ecumenical movement was “the great new fact of our era”. Therefore it is not without relevance, considering all the time and effort that has been expended on ecumenism is recent decades, what Pope John Paul II wrote eighteen years ago:- “Wherefore, in order that all doubt may be removed regarding a matter of great importance, a… Read more »
Fair point – Richard – “Immaculate conception, Assumption, Papal Infallibility just for starters” but what do you suggest is served by Rome for the Main Course and the Pudding?