From the Diocese of New Westminster comes news of the election of the Rev Canon Melissa Skelton as the 9th bishop of the Vancouver, BC diocese.
The third ballot for the election of the 9th Bishop of the Diocese of New Westminster was called at 1:41pm. With four nominees remaining on the ballot the results showed that the Reverend Canon Melissa Skelton had received a substantial majority of votes from both houses, clergy and lay. Clergy: 81 of 119 and Lay: 126 of 173.
After the results were learned, the Metropolitan of the Eclesiastical Province of BC and Yukon, Archbishop John Privett contacted the other three bishops of the Provincial House of Bishops and there was a concurrence of the Provincial House.
From the Vancouver Sun:
Skelton will replace retired Anglican bishop Michael Ingham, who was the centre of a storm within the 60-million-member worldwide Anglican communion when he became the first Anglican bishop to formally support the blessing of same-sex couples.
In an interview immediately after she emerged as the highest vote getter among eight other candidates, Skelton said that the residents of Cascadia, which includes B.C., Washington State and Oregon, have in common a love of nature and spirituality.
Widely understood among Anglicans to be a progressive on moral and religious issues, Skelton is reasonably well known in the Diocese of New Westminster because she has led leadership workshops throughout B.C