As many of you will be aware, it was recently announced that our Bishop, Nick Baines, Lord Bishop of Leeds, is retiring in the autumn term. We pray for Bishop Nick and his wife Linda as they prepare for this move, giving thanks for their ministry in God’s Church here in West Yorkshire and for all that is to come in their retirement.

We are now engaged across the Diocese in the process of discerning who God is calling to be our next Bishop. This process is rooted in prayer, consultation and collaboration as the Vacancy In See Committee work together across our five episcopal areas. You can see who is on this committee and a timeline for this process here.

Prayer

Everything we do is rooted in prayer. We will be praying in the parish for this process regularly in our intercessions, though our prayer group and prayer chain. You can find resources – words to pray – suggestions of people to pray for – here.

Consultation

We have also launched our consultation process, and we would love to know what you think as we prepare for our new Bishop of Leeds. We would like your answers to three questions, which are: 

• What are your three hopes for the future of the church in your community?
• What three words describe the main skills and qualities the next Bishop of Leeds needs to have, to help us grow in confidence as a diocese?
• What is the one thing you want to say to the next Bishop of Leeds?

These questions can be answered by filling in our online form, which can be found here. It can also be accessed by scanning the QR code above.

We have also produced postcards which are being sent to every church, which can be filled in by hand and are pre-addressed to be posted back to Church House in Leeds. 

Your voice and the voices of those inside and beyond our church are part of this shared discernment – and we hope as many people as possible will respond, knowing their response is welcome and encouraged.