The Diocese of Barbados was once the established church of the island nation, and there is wide interest in the deadlocked election of a new bishop.
Bishops are elected by the diocesan synod, and the constitution requires a two-thirds majority in the houses of clergy and laity. After nine ballots since late April the houses are divided.
The Rev. John Rogers, rector of St. George Parish Church and rural dean for St. John, has received the required two-thirds in the House of Laity at every count.
The preferred candidate of the House of Clergy is the Very Rev. Jeffrey Gibson, dean of St. Michael’s Cathedral in Bridgetown. Local reports suggest the deadlock is producing acrimony.
Should the deadlock continue, the diocese has the option to ask the House of Bishops of the Church of the Province of the West Indies to step in and make an appointment.
John Martin
Matthew Townsend is a Halifax-based freelance journalist and volunteer advocate for survivors of sexual misconduct in Anglican settings. He served as editor of the Anglican Journal from 2019 to 2021 and communications missioner for the Anglican Diocese of Quebec from 2019 to 2022. He and his wife recently entered catechism class in the Orthodox Church in America.
