Bishop Christine Hardman announces retirement
Written by Sunny Unachi on 16th August 2021
The Right Reverend Christine Hardman has announced she’s to retire from her role as Bishop of Newcastle, at the end of November.
Bishop Christine is a Member of the House of Bishops in the Church of England’s General Synod and her major area of work on General Synod was the legislation to allow women to be bishops.
Bishop Christine said: “I am reaching my 70th birthday at the end of August and my time as Bishop of Newcastle is drawing to a close. Her Majesty the Queen has graciously accepted my resignation, and with the Archbishop of York’s permission I will be stepping down as Bishop of Newcastle on 30th November, 2021.
“I am profoundly grateful for the six years I have served this Diocese, the depth of welcome and relationships in this region has been inspirational and encouraging. We have all been called to minister together, lay and ordained, at a time of extraordinary challenge, and I am very proud of the way in which our clergy and laity have responded to this. I give thanks for all of you. It has been a privilege to be your Bishop.
“My husband Roger and I have been incredibly blessed by the generosity and support that has been shown to both of us in our time in Newcastle Diocese. Its people, history, and landscape have an enduring place in our hearts, and we will always treasure the years we have spent here.”
Bishop Christine became a Deaconess in 1984 and was ordained Deacon in 1987, serving in the Diocese of St Albans. From 1987 to 1996 she was a tutor, and then course director for the St Alban’s and Oxford Ministry Course. In 1996, she was appointed Vicar of Holy Trinity and Christ the King, Stevenage, also Rural Dean of Stevenage in 1999, and in 2001 served as Archdeacon of Lewisham and Greenwich in the Diocese of Southwark. In 2012, she retired only to return to active full-time ministry when she was consecrated Bishop of Newcastle.
She is also a Church Commissioner, Chair of the Archbishops’ Pastoral Advisory Group, sits in the House of Lords and chair of the North of Tyne Combined Authority Inclusive Economy Board.
Suffragan Bishop of Berwick, the Right Reverend Mark Wroe said: “Bishop Christine has been a profound voice of hope and faith for the Church and the North East, locally and nationally, as a passionate advocate of our region. It’s been a privilege to serve in the team she has developed, in the midst of so many changes and challenges, to help us be a growing church bringing hope for our Diocese. We have appreciated her compassionate, straight-talking, faith-filled and collaborative leadership which never shies away from the issues at hand. “Although we will miss Bishop Christine deeply in the diocese, we will be bolstered by the hope and faith in Jesus Christ which she constantly holds before us. Our prayers and love will go with her and Roger.”
Stephen Cottrell, Archbishop of York said: “Christine Hardman has been an outstanding Bishop of Newcastle, bringing hope and purpose to the parishes and communities she serves and becoming a trusted and respected voice for the Christian faith in the North East, but also in our national life through her work and witness in the House of Lords. As she approaches retirement I wish her and Roger every blessing. We thank God for her tenacious faithfulness.”
Right Reverend Mark Wroe will lead the Diocese of Newcastle as the process begins to appoint the next Bishop of Newcastle.
