CAPTION: The six people elected will represent Devon's churches on the Crown Nominations Commission
Six People Elected to Help Select Next Bishop of Exeter
Six people from the Diocese of Exeter have been elected to sit on the national commission responsible for selecting the next Bishop of Exeter.
Tim Hamilton, the Very Rev’d Jonathan Greener, Annie Jefferies, the Rev’d Carl Robinson, Simon Friend and the Rev’d Karl Freeman are all members of the Diocese of Exeter’s Vacancy in See committee.
They were elected to sit on the Crown Nominations Commission (CNC) by their fellow committee members at a meeting last Thursday.
Jonathan Greener is the Dean of Exeter Cathedral, Rev’d Robinson is a vicar in Exeter and Rev’d Freeman has recently retired as a vicar in Plymouth.
The Vacancy in See Committee includes clergy and lay people from across Devon
Annie Jefferies lives in rural West Devon and is Chair of the House of Laity for the Diocese. Simon Friend lives near Cullompton and is a lay member of the Church of England’s General Synod, as is Tim Hamilton, who lives in Exeter.
The Vacancy in See Committee, which has 29 members made up of clergy and laity from across the Diocese, also approved the Statement of Needs (a document like a parish profile), which will inform prospective new diocesan bishops about the strengths of the Diocese of Exeter, the challenges it is facing and the gifts the new bishop will need.
The new CNC representatives were commissioned by the Bishop of Crediton, the Rt. Rev’d Jackie Searle, who said “We thank you for offering to represent the Diocese in the discernment for a new diocesan bishop. We will pray for you and assure you of our support in this work you have undertaken.”
Anne Foreman, Chair of the Vacancy in See Committee said “Our reps will play a significant part in who will be nominated as our new bishop, so please continue to pray for them as they begin their work.”
There will be an online public consultation meeting on 19 September.
It is hoped the new Bishop of Exeter will be appointed by November 2024.
