Julie Conalty | |
---|---|
Bishop of Birkenhead | |
Diocese | Diocese of Chester |
In office | 2021 to present |
Predecessor | Keith Sinclair |
Other post(s) | Deputy lead bishop for safeguarding (2022–present) |
Previous post(s) | Archdeacon of Tonbridge (2017–2021) |
Orders | |
Ordination | 1999 (deacon) 2000 (priest) |
Consecration | 19 July 2021 by Stephen Cottrell |
Personal details | |
Born | 1963 (age 61–62) |
Nationality | British |
Denomination | Anglicanism |
Spouse | Simon Malcolm |
Children | 2 |
Julie Anne Conalty (born 1963) is a British Anglican bishop. Since 19 July 2021, she has been the Bishop of Birkenhead, one of two suffragan bishops of the Church of England Diocese of Chester. [1] She previously served as Archdeacon of Tonbridge in the Diocese of Rochester since 2017. [2] [3]
Conalty trained for the ministry at the South East Institute for Theological Education; she was ordained deacon in 1999, and priest in 2000. She was at East Wickham from 1999 to 2004; and Charlton to 2010. [4] After a curacy at Plumstead Common she was Vicar of Erith from 2012 until her appointment as Archdeacon. [3]
Conalty was born in 1963. [5] She was educated at Ormskirk Grammar School in Ormskirk, Lancashire: it was a grammar school which became a comprehensive school while she was there. [6] She attended Cottage Lane Mission church and was a member of the youth group, before taking a Biblical Studies degree at the University of Sheffield. [2] [7] [8] Although she felt called to ordained ministry as a teenager, women could not become priests in the Church of England at that time. [3]
After leaving university, Conalty first worked with the homeless as a night shelter manager between 1985 and 1986. [2] [6] She then moved into offender management, first as a community service officer (1986 to 1988), and then as a probation officer (1990 to 2002). [6] In between, she trained as a social worker. [9] In the 1990s, she finally trained for ordination on a part-time basis with the South East Institute of Theological Education. [3] [7]
Conalty was ordained in the Church of England as a deacon in 1999 and as a priest in 2000. [5] She began her ecclesiastical career as a non-stipendiary minister (ie, part-time and unpaid) in the Diocese of Southwark, while continuing to work in probation and youth services. [2] She first served at St Michael the Archangel, East Wickham from 1999 to 2004, and then at St Luke with Holy Trinity, Charlton from 2004 to 2010. [10]
In 2010, Conalty left her secular career and moved into full-time ministry, [3] [11] becoming associate priest of the Plumstead Common United Benefice. [6] In 2012, she moved to the Diocese of Rochester where she had been appointed Vicar of Christ Church, Erith. [7] She was additionally Bishop's Advisor for the Ministry of Ordained Women (2013 to 2017) and Area Dean of Erith (2014 to 2017). [2] [10] In 2016, she was made an Honorary Canon of Rochester Cathedral. [9] On 24 September 2017, she was collated as Archdeacon of Tonbridge. [2] She was also the Bishop of Rochester's Lead for Safeguarding. [9]
Conalty has been a member of the General Synod of the Church of England since November 2013. [6] [9]
On 27 May 2021, it was announced that Conalty would be the next Bishop of Birkenhead, a suffragan bishop in the Diocese of Chester. [7] [8] She legally took up the post on 19 July 2021, the day of her consecration as a bishop by Stephen Cottrell, Archbishop of York, at York Minster; she was consecrated alongside the other suffragan of the diocese, Sam Corley, Bishop of Stockport. [1]
Since April 2022, she has also been deputy lead bishop for safeguarding with a focus on survivor engagement. [12]
In 2023, she was one of 44 Church of England bishops who signed an open letter supporting the use of the Prayers of Love and Faith (i.e. blessings for same-sex couples) and called for "Guidance being issued without delay that includes the removal of all restrictions on clergy entering same-sex civil marriages, and on bishops ordaining and licensing such clergy". [13]
Conalty is married to Simon Malcolm, and they have two sons. [9] The Conalty family support South London club Charlton Athletic. [14]
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