Victoria Matthews elected bishop in New Zealand

Bishop Victoria Matthews, a Canadian bishop, commonly thought of as a moderate to conservative voice has been elected the bishop of Christ Church in New Zealand.

Stephen Bate's report in his Guardian "People" column appears below:

"Interesting times beckon in Antipodean Anglicanism, where the former Canadian bishop Victoria Matthews - narrowly beaten to become Canada's primate last summer - has been elected Bishop of Christchurch, New Zealand, a place she has never visited. She is a theological conservative who nevertheless voted that gay partnerships do not violate core church doctrines, which should bring her into interesting relations with the arch-conservative Archbishop of Sydney across the Tasman Sea, Peter Jensen, who does not believe that women should be put in charge of anything, least of all a church. The defeated candidate for Christchurch was the combative dean of Southwark cathedral, Colin Slee, who will thus remain a thorn in the flesh of C-of-E conservatives."

From here.

Posted by Nicholas Knisely on February 22, 2008 10:59 AM | |
Comments (2)

Some followup:

http://www.stuff.co.nz/4414143a11.html

News of her election was leaked on the Internet on Friday. Church leaders refused to confirm the report yesterday but the Archbishop of Aotearoa, David Moxon, said it was "disappointing" someone had leaked the name of the candidate in what was supposed to be a top-secret process. Dr Matthews' election will be controversial for some Anglicans, as her sex and her comments about gay marriage are likely to upset conservatives. Archdeacon of Selwyn-Tawera Mike Hawke said her approach seemed to be "a bob each way".

It also states:

Archdeacon Hawke said looking overseas for a candidate was "typical of New Zealand culture". "The person in front of our eyes is never good enough and we look for a great saviour from outside." It was "not impossible" her election could be vetoed, he said. It still had to be approved by the wider church, including Polynesian members who were more traditional.

See also,
http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/thepress/4414139a6009.html

Posted by John B. Chilton [TypeKey Profile Page] | February 24, 2008 3:36 PM

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