The Bishop of Durham is delighted to announce the appointment of the Revd Stephen Edmonds, currently Acting Archdeacon of Doncaster in the Diocese of Sheffield, as our next Archdeacon of Auckland.
Stephen, who served his curacy in Sunderland at St Ignatius the Martyr, Hendon and before ordained ministry lived and worked in Darlington, is expected to start his new role later this summer.
Welcoming the appointment, Bishop Rick said: “I look forward very much to Stephen returning to the Diocese of Durham, now as Archdeacon of Auckland and a member of the Bishop’s Leadership Team. Stephen was clear that his love for the North East of England, its people and its saints lay behind his clear sense of call to this role, and I am confident that he will rapidly gain the affection and trust of the churches of the Archdeaconry as he serves them.
“We are working and praying for the renewal and revival of the church here in the Diocese of Durham and I am excited that Stephen is coming to join us here in that mission.”
Stephen grew up in Nottinghamshire and first experienced the joy of the North East when he came as an undergraduate to study Theology at Durham. He then worked in housing, firstly for the Northern Housing Consortium in Sunderland and latterly for Darlington Borough Council as Housing Strategy Manager.
Having met and married Rachel, they settled in Darlington, where their daughter, Sarah, and son, Samuel were born. No longer able to resist the call to ordained ministry he had felt since his early teens, Stephen was eventually selected and trained for the priesthood at the College of the Resurrection, Mirfield.
Looking forward to returning to the North East, Stephen said: “I am profoundly moved to be invited by Bishop Rick to take up the baton from him in the Archdeaconry of Auckland and humbled by the confidence the panel have shown in me. The whole Diocese is clearly on the cusp of a newly energised chapter and I eagerly look forward to working with all parishes, clergy and lay leaders for the flourishing of the Christian communities across Auckland and the wider diocese.
“Durham is the cradle of formation for me as a husband, father and a priest, and whilst I have benefited hugely from the development and investment I have received in the Diocese of Sheffield, and I will miss it deeply and the colleagues, parishes and communities I have served, I cannot deny a strong sense of a call home.”
The Bishop of Sheffield, the Right Reverend Dr Pete Wilcox, added: “I am absolutely delighted that Fr Stephen is to be the next Archdeacon of Auckland in the Diocese of Durham. He will be a superb addition to Bishop Rick’s senior team and will quickly be taken to the hearts of the people of the Archdeaconry and Diocese. Stephen has been a great asset to this Diocese, as a parish priest and as Associate Archdeacon Transition Enabler, and most recently as Acting Archdeacon. We will miss his wit and wisdom, his devotion to the Lord and his capacity to form relationships of trust and affection across theological difference.”