Martin Gorick, currently Archdeacon and Residentiary Canonin the Diocese of Oxford has been announced as the next Bishop of Dudley,returning to the Black Country where he was once Vicar of Smethwick. Here he talksabout his hopes and plans for his new role.
Im delighted to be coming to this great diocese and tojoin with Gods people as together we seek to live lives of love, compassion,justice and freedom. Weve got challenging times ahead, both as a diocese andin our communities, but the Church has a real role to play in bringing peopletogether and Im looking forward to working with Bishop John and others tounderstand our priorities going forward and how we can best achieve this.
As Bishop of Dudley I want to inhabit the diocesan KingdomPeople values. I hope to be a leader in mission whilst encouraging every memberof our congregations across Worcestershire and Dudley to live out our commonfaith in Jesus not just in church, but at home, and work, at school andeverywhere in between. Ive always enjoyed the Church of Englands connectionswith people and places outside the church, and in Oxford I oversee and supportsthe work of over 100 chaplains in prisons, schools, colleges, military basesand hospitals.
I have spent over 24 years in parish ministry and treasurethe calling of the Church of England to be there for everyone. Parish clergyhave the cure of souls for all in their parish not just those who choose tocome to church. Ive been a vicar of an inner urban parish as well as ofchurches in market towns and rural villages. I do understand the challenges andthe joys of parish ministry and, as a bishop, I hope to be an effective servantof the servants of God in all our parishes.
Over the last six years I have held strategicresponsibility for growing new congregations of all shapes and sizes across thethree counties that make up the Diocese of Oxford, overseeing an ambitious5million SDF bid to enable church revitalisation and planting, freshexpressions of church and pioneering ministry in major new housing areas. Ilook forward to bringing some of that experience to bear in the Diocese ofWorcester too. During my first year, my personal priorities will be to listen,learn, love and when appropriate, to lead.I look forward to visiting every deanery, to listen to churches andcommunities, to learn how I can best make a difference, to share in the love ofGod and of neighbour and to discover what kind of leadership you most need froma Bishop of Dudley at this time. I look forward to meeting Rural Deans and LayChairs, clergy and laity and seeing something of the life and witness of the Churchin the Diocese.
In the Borough of Dudley, Im looking forward to workingnot only with clergy and people of the churches, but also getting to know theother faith and community leaders to see how we can best work together for thecommon good. I have had longstanding experience of interfaith work as astudent I formed a study group for Hindu-Christian dialogue and travelled inIndia. I have studied at the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies and at apractical level engaged extensively with the Muslim and Sikh communities whileI was Vicar of Smethwick and also when serving in Coventry Diocese and currentlyin Oxford where I am the Diocesan Interfaith Adviser. I was pleased to see theMayor of the West Midlands recently recognising the value of the faithcommunities across Birmingham and the Black Country and it will be crucial thatwe all work together in the years ahead for the good of every citizen.
Martin will be consecrated as a Bishop on 28 January andwill start work in the Diocese at the end of February. He is married toKatharine, who is County Lead for Visual Impairment in Oxfordshire and theyhave three grown up children. In his spare time Martin enjoys walking,gardening, travelling, birdwatching and wildlife generally he is also a fanof all sport, especially football and supports Liverpool and Notts County.
