The Bishop of Maidstone is an episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Canterbury, in the Province of Canterbury, England. [1] The title takes its name after the county town of Maidstone in Kent.
Until 2009, the suffragan Bishop of Maidstone had a similar, though subordinate, role to that of the Bishop of Dover: to assist the diocesan bishop (the Archbishop of Canterbury) in the episcopal leadership of the Diocese of Canterbury. It was decided at the diocesan synod of November 2010 that a new bishop would not be appointed; rather the Archdeaconry of Ashford was erected. [2]
On 4 December 2014, it was announced that the see of Maidstone would be filled again in order to provide alternative episcopal oversight for particular members of the Church of England who take a conservative evangelical view on male "headship". [3] On 23 September 2015, Rod Thomas was consecrated Bishop of Maidstone. [4]
In June 2022, it was announced that, from January 2023, oversight of conservative Anglo-Catholics in the west of the Province of Canterbury (formerly the Bishop of Ebbsfleet's area) would be taken by a new Bishop of Oswestry, suffragan to the Bishop of Lichfield; while oversight of conservative Evangelicals would be taken by the next Bishop of Ebbsfleet; the See of Maidstone would be left vacant, available for other uses. [5]
| Bishops of Maidstone | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| From | Until | Incumbent | Notes |
| 1944 | 1946 | Leslie Owen | Translated to Lincoln |
| 1946 | 1956 | no appointment | |
| 1956 | 1966 | Stanley Betts | |
| 1966 | 1969 | no appointment | |
| 1969 | 1976 | Geoffrey Tiarks | |
| 1976 | 1980 | Richard Third | Translated to Dover |
| 1980 | 1987 | Robert Hardy | Translated to Lincoln |
| 1987 | 1992 | David Smith | Translated to Bradford |
| 1992 | 2001 | Gavin Reid [6] | |
| 2001 | 2009 | Graham Cray | |
| 2009 | 2015 | vacant | |
| Bishops of Maidstone (AEO) | |||
| From | Until | Incumbent | Notes |
| 2015 | 2022 | Rod Thomas | [4] Retired 2 October 2022. [7] |
| Source(s): [1] | |||
The Bishop of Ripon is an episcopal title which takes its name after the city of Ripon in North Yorkshire, England. The bishop is one of the area bishops of the Diocese of Leeds in the Province of York. The area bishop of Ripon has oversight of the archdeaconry of Richmond and Craven, which consists of the deaneries of Bowland, Ewecross, Harrogate, Richmond, Ripon, Skipton, and Wensley.
The Bishop of Wakefield is an episcopal title which takes its name after the city of Wakefield in West Yorkshire, England. The title was first created for a diocesan bishop in 1888, but it was dissolved in 2014. The Bishop of Wakefield is now an area bishop who has oversight of an episcopal area in the Diocese of Leeds.
The Bishop of Ramsbury is an episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Salisbury, in the Province of Canterbury, England. The title takes its name from the village of Ramsbury in Wiltshire, and was first used between the 10th and 11th centuries by the Anglo-Saxon Bishops of Ramsbury; the modern See was erected under the Suffragans Nomination Act 1888 by Order in Council dated 24 October 1973. From the establishment of the Salisbury area scheme in 1981 until its abolition in 2009, the bishops suffragan of Ramsbury were area bishops. The bishop oversees the Wiltshire parts of the diocese, i.e. the Archdeaconries of Sarum and Wiltshire.
The Diocese of Lichfield is a Church of England diocese in the Province of Canterbury, England. The bishop's seat is located in the Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary and Saint Chad in the city of Lichfield. The diocese covers 4,516 km2 (1,744 sq mi) of several counties: almost all of Staffordshire, northern Shropshire, a significant portion of the West Midlands, and very small portions of Warwickshire and Powys (Wales).
The Diocese of Oxford is a Church of England diocese that forms part of the Province of Canterbury. The diocese is led by the Bishop of Oxford, and the bishop's seat is at Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford. It contains more church buildings than any other diocese and has more paid clergy than any other except London.
The Diocese of Canterbury is a Church of England diocese covering eastern Kent which was founded by St. Augustine of Canterbury in 597. The diocese is centred on Canterbury Cathedral and is the oldest see of the Church of England.
A provincial episcopal visitor (PEV), popularly known as a flying bishop, is a Church of England bishop assigned to minister to many of the clergy, laity and parishes who on grounds of theological conviction, "are unable to receive the ministry of women bishops or priests". The system by which such bishops oversee certain churches is referred to as alternative episcopal oversight (AEO).
The Bishop of Dover is an episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Canterbury, England. The title takes its name after the town of Dover in Kent. The Bishop of Dover holds the additional title of "Bishop in Canterbury" and is empowered to act almost as if the Bishop of Dover were the diocesan bishop of Canterbury, since the actual diocesan bishop is based at Lambeth Palace in London, and thus is frequently away from the diocese, fulfilling national and international duties. Among other things, this gives the Bishop of Dover an ex officio seat in the church's General Synod. There is another suffragan, the Bishop of Maidstone, who has different responsibilities.
The Bishop of Thetford is an episcopal title which takes its name after the market town of Thetford in Norfolk, England. The title was originally used by the Normans in the 11th century, and is now used by a Church of England suffragan bishop.
The Bishop of Ebbsfleet is a suffragan bishop who fulfils the role of a provincial episcopal visitor in the Church of England. From its creation in 1994 to 2022, the Bishop of Ebbsfleet served conservative Anglo-Catholic parishes that reject the ordination of women as priests and bishops. From 2023, the bishop will serve conservative evangelical parishes that reject the ordination and/or leadership of women due to complementarian beliefs.
The Bishop of Richborough is a suffragan bishop and provincial episcopal visitor for the whole of the Province of Canterbury in the Church of England.
The Bishop of Edmonton is an episcopal title used by an area bishop of the Church of England Diocese of London in the Province of Canterbury, England. The title takes its name after Edmonton, an area in the North of the London Borough of Enfield; the See was erected under the Suffragans Nomination Act 1888 by Order in Council dated 29 May 1970.
The Bishop of Aston is an episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Birmingham, in the Province of Canterbury, England. The title takes its name after Aston, an area of the City of Birmingham; the See was erected under the Suffragans Nomination Act 1888, by Order in Council dated 15 July 1954. The suffragan bishop of Aston assists the diocesan bishop of Birmingham, sharing Episcopal oversight throughout the diocese.
The Bishop of Brixworth is an episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Peterborough, in the Province of Canterbury, England. The title takes its name after the village of Brixworth in Northamptonshire and has shared responsibility over the whole diocese. Following a proposal initiated by Bill Westwood, Bishop of Peterborough in 1985, and with the agreement of the General Synod of the Church of England in July 1987, the See was erected by Queen-in-Council on 26 July 1988.
The Anglican Bishop of Plymouth is an episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Exeter, in the Province of Canterbury, England. The title takes its name after the city of Plymouth in Devon; the See was erected under the Suffragans Nomination Act 1888 by Order in Council dated 21 November 1922. The suffragan bishop has particular episcopal oversight of the archdeaconries of Plymouth and Totnes.
Roderick Charles Howell Thomas is a retired Church of England bishop. He was the Bishop of Maidstone, a provincial episcopal visitor for conservative evangelical members and parishes of the church, from 2015 until his retirement in 2022.
The Bishop of Oswestry is a suffragan bishop of the Diocese of Lichfield who fulfils the role of a provincial episcopal visitor in the Church of England.
Paul Richard Thomas SSC is a British Anglican bishop who has served as Bishop of Oswestry, a suffragan bishop in the Diocese of Lichfield and the provincial episcopal visitor for the western half of the Province of Canterbury since February 2023. From 2011, he was vicar of St James's Church, Paddington.
Robert Speight Munro is a Church of England bishop. Since 2023, he has been Bishop of Ebbsfleet, the second provincial episcopal visitor for conservative evangelical members and parishes of the church.
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