Five dioceses will elect new bishops this spring: Saskatoon, Moosonee, Montreal, the Arctic and Rupert’s Land.
The diocese of Saskatoon will hold its episcopal election on March 8, to find a successor for Archbishop Chris Harper, who stepped down as bishop of Saskatoon in January 2023 when he became National Indigenous Anglican Archbishop.
The diocese of Moosonee will see a milestone on March 26, when its synod elects a dedicated bishop for the first time in a decade. The diocese had voted in 2011 to become a mission area of the Anglican Church of Canada due to financial difficulties, which took effect in 2014 with the retirement of then-bishop of Moosonee Thomas Corston. Since then, the provincial metropolitan of Ontario—currently Archbishop Anne Germond, acting primate of the Anglican Church of Canada—has served as bishop of Moosonee.
On May 3, the diocese of Montreal will elect a new coadjutor bishop to replace current bishop of Montreal Mary Irwin- Gibson when she retires. The coadjutor bishop will serve jointly with Irwin-Gibson for several months until her retirement, at which point they will be installed as the 13th bishop of Montreal. Irwin-Gibson says she will retire no later than the end of October, though at the time of writing a specific date had not been set.
From May 8 to May 14, the diocese of the Arctic will hold its diocesan synod, with episcopal elections taking place May 9. The provincial executive has requested to elect a diocesan bishop and up to three suffragan bishops, Executive Archdeacon Alexander Pryor told the Anglican Journal. Bishops David Parsons and Lucy Netser retired as diocesan and suffragan bishop, respectively, at the end of December, while Joey Royal resigned as suffragan bishop Oct. 20 to work in Ottawa for the non-profit Christian Embassy of Canada.
Bishop Annie Ittoshat, the remaining suffragan bishop, is currently serving as diocesan administrator. The diocese of the Arctic plans to retain its present number of bishops, Pryor says—meaning if Ittoshat is nominated and elected as diocesan bishop, the diocese would need to elect three new suffragan bishops.
The diocese of Rupert’s Land has also announced it will hold a special meeting of its synod May 31 to elect a new bishop ahead of current bishop Geoffrey Woodcroft’s retirement, expected June 1. Woodcroft announced his retirement in October 2024, following a diagnosis of terminal cancer which also prompted him to go on immediate sick leave. The diocese’s executive archdeacon, Simon Blaikie, has been serving as diocesan administrator in his absence.
