Diocese of Rochester

Dioecesis Roffensis
Coat of arms of the Diocese of Rochester
Coat of arms
Flag of the Diocese of Rochester
Flag
Location
Ecclesiastical provinceCanterbury
ArchdeaconriesBromley & Bexley, Rochester, Tonbridge
Statistics
Parishes218
Churches268
Information
CathedralRochester Cathedral
St Saviour's Pro-Cathedral, Southwark (1897–1905)[1]
LanguageEnglish
Current leadership
BishopJonathan Gibbs, Bishop of Rochester
SuffraganSimon Burton-Jones, Bishop of Tonbridge
ArchdeaconsAndy Wooding Jones, Archdeacon of Rochester
Sharon Copestake, Archdeacon of Tonbridge
Allie Kerr, Archdeacon of Bromley & Bexley
Website
rochester.anglican.org

The Diocese of Rochester is a Church of England diocese in the English county of Kent and the Province of Canterbury. The cathedral church of the diocese is Rochester Cathedral in the former city of Rochester. The bishop's Latin episcopal signature is: " (firstname) Roffen",[2] Roffensis being the genitive case of the Latin name of the see.

An ancient diocese, it was established with the authority of King Æthelberht of Kent by Augustine of Canterbury in 604 at the same time as the see of London.[3] Only the adjacent Diocese of Canterbury is older in England. Its establishment was the first part of an unrealised plan conceived by Pope Gregory the Great for Augustine of Canterbury to consecrate 12 bishops in different places and another 12 for the prospective see (later province) of York.[4]

The Rochester diocese includes 268 parish churches throughout:

The diocese is subdivided into three archdeaconries:

The current diocesan boundaries roughly match its pre-19th century extent. On 1 January 1846 parishes in Hertfordshire from the dioceses of Lincoln and of London and Essex (from London diocese) were added to Rochester, while all West Kent parishes except those in the Rochester Deanery were transferred to the Diocese of Canterbury.[5] In May 1877, Essex and Hertfordshire became part of the newly created Diocese of St Albans. On 1 August 1877,[6] the Diocese of Rochester gained some northern parts of Surrey from the Diocese of Winchester and the Diocese of London which were later transferred to the Diocese of Southwark at its creation in 1905.

Bishops

The Bishop of Rochester is Jonathan Gibbs[7] since the confirmation of his election, on 24 May 2022.[8] The diocese also has a suffragan bishop: Simon Burton-Jones, Bishop of Tonbridge; the suffragan see of Tonbridge was created in 1959. Since 1994 the Bishop of Fulham (Jonathan Baker from 2013) has provided "alternative episcopal oversight" in the diocese (as well as in the London and Southwark dioceses) to parishes which do not accept the ordination of women to the priesthood. Baker is licensed as an honorary assistant bishop in the diocese for this ministry.

In addition to the diocesan and suffragan bishops, there are a number of other bishops licensed in the diocese:

See also

References

  1. "The Dioceses of England: An Outline History", p. 47.
  2. Debretts Peerage, 1968, p. 945.
  3. Bede, Ecclesiastical History, II.3
  4. Bede, Ecclesiastical History, I.29
  5. "The Dioceses of England...", p. 34.
  6. "No. 24483". The London Gazette. 17 July 1877. p. 4189.
  7. "New Bishop of Rochester announced". Diocese of Rochester. 31 March 2022. Archived from the original on 1 April 2022. Retrieved 2 April 2022.
  8. "(Section: Forthcoming Events)". St Mary-le-Bow. Archived from the original on 4 June 2022. Retrieved 29 September 2022.
  9. "Venner, Stephen Squires". Who's Who. Vol. 2014 (December 2013 online ed.). A & C Black. Retrieved 18 August 2014. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
  10. "Turnbull, Michael". Who's Who. Vol. 2014 (December 2013 online ed.). A & C Black. Retrieved 25 April 2014. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
  11. "Cray, Graham Alan". Who's Who. Vol. 2014 (December 2013 online ed.). A & C Black. Retrieved 25 April 2014. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)

Sources

51°23′20″N 0°30′12″E / 51.38889°N 0.50333°E / 51.38889; 0.50333

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