You may have heard that Bishop Steven is about to head away on Sabbatical for three months, so we asked him to tell us about this.
Link to video
Bishop Steven will be spending time in USA and the UK, including talking to fellow Bishops with Aotearoa - New Zealand connections about how they are facing similar challenges to ours in this part of New Zealand. This will include spending time with Bishop David Rice (former Bishop of Waiapu and Dean of Dunedin) about how they have handled a move away from being building focused, Bishop Doug Sparks (former Dean of Wellington) in Indiana and Bishop John Armes in our sister Diocese of Edinburgh. An opportunity to travel in Scotland, then onto England and Wales, will have a mixture of connecting with family and old friends as well as spending time looking a different ways that ministry is being provided in various locations. Bishop Steven will also be completing an 8-day directed retreat in Wales.
While Bishop Steve is away from 12 June to 7 September, The Venerable Jan Clark (Vicar General) will be the main point of contact via the Diocesan Office, supported by the Peter Mann House team and other Archdeacons (The Ven Dr. Anne van Gend, Deputy Vicar General and the Ven Damon Plimmer).
We will continue to keep the Diocese informed (and hopefully inspired!) via our fortnightly newsletter - keep an eye out for people we will video asking them for their testimony of how God has been working in their lives.
Please hold Bishop Steve in your prayers for safe travels, peace, and to be able to slow down and hear what God is saying to him.... and to us in this part of Aotearoa.