10 Downing Street has announced that Canon Dagmar Winter is to be the next Bishop of Huntingdon in the diocese of Ely.
The Queen has approved the nomination of the Reverend Canon Dagmar Winter, DrTheol, Rector and Lecturer of St Andrew, Hexham, in the Diocese of Newcastle to the Suffragan See of Huntingdon, in the Diocese of Ely, in succession to the Right Reverend David Thomson who resigned on 31st October 2018.
Background
Dagmar was educated at the universities of Aberdeen and Heidelberg and she trained for ministry at Herborn Theological Seminary. She served her title at St Mark, Bromley in the Diocese of Rochester and was ordained Priest in 1997. In 1999, Dagmar was appointed Associate Vicar of St Andrew, Hexham, and Deanery Training Officer, and in 2006 she became Priest-in-Charge of St Bartholomew, Kirkwhelpington with Kirkharle, Kirkheaton, and Cambo, and also held the role of Diocesan Officer for Rural Affairs during this time. She was made an Honorary Canon of Newcastle Cathedral in 2011. Additionally, she has been a member of General Synod since 2005, served as Area Dean of Morpeth between 2011-2013, and has been the Bishop’s Advisor for Women in Ministry since 2012. In 2015, Dagmar took up her current post of Rector and Lecturer of St Andrew, Hexham (Hexham Abbey).
The diocese of Ely website carries this story here.
Why do we get little tidbits of domestic detail from Downing Street when a man is appointed as bishop (name of Bishop Usher’s spouse, her occupation, numbers of progeny etc.) but not when women are made bishops – Shrewsbury, Putney & Huntingdon? Does anyone know?
At least some information comes from Downing Street. The diocese itself clearly thinks that its clergy are not worthy of any information
Have you read the Ely press release above?
Yes, eventually after I had been advised of the this by a parishioner. What I am referring to is the simple courtesy of an ‘ad clerum’ email which used to happen and kept people informed. Seemingly the diocese assume we are all office based and constantly monitor the website, which btw only posted this initially on its ‘announce’ page, some time after it had become public. To quote another parishioner ‘It is yet another the symptom of the church becoming a business, its middle management are of no value, the directors and consumers are all that matter’.
Thank you for clarifying your local frustrations.
My very cynical theory is that these function (intentionally or otherwise) as hetero/patriarchal dogwhistles. There is reassurance in a man’s wife and children – that he is not a gay man, that he is Head of the household, that he is virile… All that toxic nonsense.
We usually get reference to a woman’s husband, especially if he is a priest, and that might be reassurance that she is under a man’s headship in at least a sense; but it’s less important to know she’s straight because certain people overreact less to gay/bi women than gay/bi men.
TLDR: patriarchy.
I think you’re right Dan that these are dog whistles to the patriarchal attitudes to the Church’s approach to women and men. It had not occurred to me until you raised it that it is also about ‘male’ fecundity.