Bishop Joey Royal resigned his position as suffragan bishop of the diocese of the Arctic effective Oct. 20, Archbishop Anne Germond, acting primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, announced in an Oct. 2 news release.
Royal told the Journal he was resigning primarily for family reasons. “Episcopal ministry can be demanding on families and that’s especially true in the Arctic where a bishop can be away for weeks at a time… It just requires a lot of travel,” he says. “So for this next season, I’m going to focus on the health of my family. But I love the North and always will… I’m so grateful for these experiences I’ve had.”
Royal will move to Ottawa to work with the Christian Embassy of Canada, a non-profit that ministers to politicians and diplomats.
“We are grateful for Bishop Royal’s ministry in the Arctic,” Germond said. “He will be missed. We also give thanks for his contributions in the National House of Bishops and other areas in the wider church where he has served effectively and well.”
Archbishop Greg Kerr-Wilson, metropolitan of the ecclesiastical province of the Northern Lights and bishop of Calgary, said Royal will be greatly missed in the Arctic and provincial and national House of Bishops.
“He’s a gifted guy and has been a very valued colleague,” Kerr-Wilson said of Royal. “But he and his family have felt the call to another place and we understand that, so we wish him well and send him our blessings.”
Elected March 28, 2019 as one of the diocese’s three suffragan bishops, Royal previously served as director and primary instructor at the Arthur Turning Training School School in Iqaluit and rector at Holy Trinity Anglican Church in Yellowknife. He has been a member of Council of General Synod and General Synod and was the Anglican Church of Canada’s representative on the Inter-Anglican Standing Commission on Unity, Faith and Order.
In addition to Royal stepping down, Bishop David Parsons and Bishop Lucy Netser—diocesan and suffragan bishops of the Arctic, respectively—plan to retire soon. Royal says the leadership of the diocese is discerning the right time for a diocesan synod that will include an episcopal election.
