The Bishop of Swansea and Brecon is the Ordinary of the Church in Wales Diocese of Swansea and Brecon.
The diocese covers the City and County of Swansea and the ancient counties of Brecknockshire and Radnorshire. The diocesan cathedral is the Cathedral Church of Saint John the Evangelist in the town of Brecon, which has been a parish church since the Reformation, becoming elevated to cathedral status in 1923. The diocese is administered from Brecon, with an additional office in Swansea. [1]
The Bishop's residence is Ely Tower, Brecon. The office was created in 1923 at the founding of the diocese, [2] an area stretching south to the coast of Gower and north into much of mid-Wales. Immediately prior to the diocese's erection, the first bishop, Edward Bevan, had served as Bishop of Swansea, a suffragan in the Diocese of St Davids. [3]
It was announced on 4 November 2021 that John Lomas, Archdeacon of Wrexham had been appointed as the 10th Bishop of Swansea and Brecon. [4] His election was confirmed at a Sacred Synod in Wrexham on 22 November 2021.[ citation needed ]
Bishops of Swansea and Brecon | |||
---|---|---|---|
From | Until | Incumbent | Notes |
1923 | 1934 | Edward Bevan | Previously suffragan/assistant Bishop of Swansea (Diocese of St Davids) |
1934 | 1939 | John Morgan | |
1939 | 1953 | Edward Williamson | |
1953 | 1958 | Glyn Simon | |
1958 | 1976 | Jack Thomas [5] | |
1976 | 1988 | Benjamin Vaughan | |
1988 | 1998 | Dewi Bridges | |
1999 | 2008 | Anthony Pierce | |
2008 | 2021 | John Davies [6] | Archbishop of Wales from September 2017 until his retirement |
2021 | present | John Lomas [4] | since 22 November 2021 |
Source(s): [7] |
Brecon, archaically known as Brecknock, is a market town in Powys, mid Wales. In 1841, it had a population of 5,701. The population in 2001 was 7,901, increasing to 8,250 at the 2011 census. Historically it was the county town of Brecknockshire (Breconshire); although its role as such was eclipsed with the formation of the County of Powys, it remains an important local centre. Brecon is the third-largest town in Powys, after Newtown and Ystradgynlais. It lies north of the Brecon Beacons mountain range, but is just within the Brecon Beacons National Park.
The Church in Wales is an Anglican church in Wales, composed of six dioceses.
The post of Archbishop of Wales was created in 1920 when the Church in Wales was separated from the Church of England and disestablished. The four historic Welsh dioceses had previously formed part of the Province of Canterbury, and so came under its Archbishop. The new Church became the Welsh province of the Anglican Communion.
Brecon Cathedral, in the town of Brecon, Powys, is the cathedral of the Diocese of Swansea and Brecon in the Church in Wales and seat of the Bishop of Swansea and Brecon. Previously the church of Brecon Priory and then the Parish Church of St John the Evangelist, it became Brecon Cathedral following the disestablishment of the Church in Wales in 1920 and the creation of the diocese in 1923.
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cardiff is an archdiocese of the Latin Church of the Catholic Church which covers the south-east portion of Wales and the county of Herefordshire in England. The Metropolitan Province of Cardiff therefore covers all of Wales and part of England. Cardiff's suffragan dioceses are the Diocese of Menevia and the Diocese of Wrexham.
The Diocese of Swansea and Brecon was established as a Diocese of the Church in Wales in 1923 with Brecon Priory as the cathedral. The area of the diocese had formerly been the Archdeaconry of Brecon within the Diocese of St Davids. The diocese has a border with each of the other five Welsh dioceses, as well as with the English Diocese of Hereford.
The Bishop of St Asaph heads the Church in Wales diocese of St Asaph.
The Bishop of Llandaff is the ordinary of the Church in Wales Diocese of Llandaff.
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Menevia is a diocese of the Catholic Church in Wales. It is one of two suffragan dioceses in the ecclesiastical province of Cardiff and is subject to the Archdiocese of Cardiff.
The Diocese of Wrexham, is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in Wales. The diocese is a suffragan in the ecclesiastical province of the metropolitan Archdiocese of Cardiff.
The Suffragan Bishops Act 1534 is an Act of the Parliament of England that authorised the appointment of suffragan bishops in England and Wales. The tradition of appointing suffragans named after a town in the diocese other than the town the diocesan bishop is named after can be dated from this act.
Religion in Wales has, over the years, become increasingly diverse. Christianity was the religion of virtually all of the Welsh population until the late 20th century, but it has rapidly declined throughout the early 21st century. Today a plurality (46.5%) of people in Wales follow no religion at all.
William Thomas Havard was a Welsh clergyman and rugby union international player. He served as a military chaplain during the First World War, and later as Bishop of St Asaph and then Bishop of St David's in the Church in Wales.
Edward Latham Bevan was a Welsh churchman, the inaugural Bishop of Swansea and Brecon from 1923 until his death, having previously been the final suffragan Bishop of Swansea.
John David Edward Davies KStJ is a Welsh Anglican bishop and former solicitor. From 2008 he was the Bishop of Swansea and Brecon in the Church in Wales. On 6 September 2017, he was also elected Archbishop of Wales; he continued in his role as diocesan bishop. He retired from both offices with effect from 2 May 2021.
The archdeacon of Gower is the priest in charge of the archdeaconry of Gower, an administrative division of the Church in Wales Diocese of Swansea and Brecon. The archdeaconry comprises the six deaneries of Clyne, Cwmtawe, Gower, Llwchwr, Penderi and Swansea.
The Archdeacon of Brecon is a senior ecclesiastical officer in the Church in Wales Diocese of Swansea and Brecon. The archdeacon is the senior priest with responsibility over the area of the archdeaconry of Brecon, which comprises the five rural deaneries of Brecon, Builth, Crickhowell, Hay and Maelienydd.
Joanna Susan Penberthy is a Welsh Anglican bishop. Since November 2016, she has served as the Bishop of St Davids in the Church in Wales. She was the first woman to become a bishop in the Church in Wales, when she was consecrated a bishop on 21 January 2017.
John Derrick Percy Lomas is an Anglican bishop in Wales, serving as the Bishop of Swansea and Brecon since 2021.