# Anglican Diocese of Perth

The Anglican Diocese of Perth is one of the 23 dioceses of the Anglican Church of Australia. The constitution of the Diocese of Perth was passed and adopted in 1872 at the first synod held in Western Australia. In 1914, the Province of Western Australia was created and the diocesan bishop of Perth became ex officio metropolitan bishop of the new province and therefore also an archbishop.
The diocese incorporates the southern part of the state of Western Australia and includes the Christmas and Cocos Islands. The other dioceses in the Anglican Province of Western Australia are the Diocese of Bunbury and the Diocese of North West Australia.
The cathedral church of the diocese is St George's Cathedral, Perth.

## History

The diocese is one of the 23 dioceses of the Anglican Church of Australia. The constitution of the diocese adopted in 1872 at the first synod held in Western Australia. In 1914, the Province of Western Australia was created and the diocesan bishop of Perth became ex officio metropolitan bishop of the new province and therefore also an archbishop.
The diocese incorporates the southern part of the state of Western Australia and includes the Christmas and Cocos Islands. It absorbed the Diocese of Kalgoorlie in 1972. The other dioceses in the Anglican Province of Western Australia are the Diocese of Bunbury and the Diocese of North West Australia.
Wollaston College is authorised by the Archbishop of Perth as the principal provider for theological education in the Diocese. It offers degree-level programs through its partnership with the University of Divinity.

## Churchmanship

The diocese has traditionally had a variety of churchmanship and in recent years has largely moved toward a more liberal and moderate Catholic style. There are, however, parishes and clergy representative of all the main Anglican traditions.
On 10 February 2018, Kay Goldsworthy became the first female archbishop in the Anglican Communion on her installation to the archdiocese.

## Administrative history

The Perth diocese, like all Australian dioceses, has had administrative procedures dealt with by the diocesan trustees. A range of other sub-committees of the diocese handle broader issues. The trustees were known in earlier times as the Trustees of Church Property.
The relationship of the church and government is not just from the proximity of the cathedral to government house. The land ownership and provision of favourable conditions for the diocese has occurred since establishment of the colony. The Diocesan Trustees and Diocesan Council are regularly observed to deal with significant land and building projects in the history of Perth.
In 1866, there were two archdeaconries: James Brown was Archdeacon of Perth and H. B. Thornhill of Geraldton.

## Issues

In the early 2000s the diocese had a large group of Anglo-Catholics from the parish of St Patricks Mt Lawley under the leadership of the then parish priest and high-ranking member of the diocesan clergy, Harry Entwistle, leave to join with another community of the Traditional Anglican Communion which later entered into the Catholic Church as a community of the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of the Southern Cross, St Ninians and St Chads based in Mt Lawley. The Personal Ordinariates were created for Anglicans to enter into the Catholic Church and retain many elements of Anglican worship and spirituality, while accepting all doctrines of the Catholic Church. The group cited persecution and on going doctrinal issues for their leaving.
In 2013 the synod voted to recognise diversity of sexuality within the diocese, note many Anglicans support registration of same-sex civil unions, and acknowledge legal recognition of committed same-sex unions could co-exist with legal recognition of heterosexual marriage. Archbishop Roger Herft vetoed the motion, saying that "what we have in the Diocese of course is a number of people in same-sex relationships amongst the clergy and amongst the laity and we have always said that people of all forms of sexuality and orientation are welcome." In a statement on human sexuality, Archbishop Herft confirmed that "there are gay and lesbian clergy serving in the priesthood. They are licensed by me and are honoured and respected as priests..." In April 2016, a priest in St Andrew's Church within the diocese blessed a same-sex couple's relationship. In 2022, Archbishop Kay Goldsworthy ordained as deacon a man in a same-sex civil partnership and appointed as precentor to the cathedral another man in a same-sex civil union.

## List of Bishops and Archbishops of Perth

Bishops of Perth :
| No | From | Until | Incumbent | Notes |
| 1 | 1857 | 1875 | Mathew Hale | Translated to Brisbane. |
| 2 | 1876 | 1893 | Henry Parry | Died in office. |
| 3 | 1894 | 1914 | Charles Riley | Became Archbishop of Perth. |
| Archbishops of Perth |||||
| 1 | 1914 | 1929 | Charles Riley | Previously Bishop of Perth; died in office. |
| 2 | 1929 | 1946 | Henry Le Fanu | Previously coadjutor bishop in Brisbane; elected Primate of Australia in 1935; died in office. |
| 3 | 1947 | 1962 | Robert Moline MC | |
| 4 | 1963 | 1969 | George Appleton CMG, MBE | Translated to Jerusalem. |
| 5 | 1969 | 1980 | Geoffrey Sambell CMG | Previously coadjutor bishop in Melbourne; died in office. |
| 6 | 1981 | 2004 | Peter Carnley AC | Elected Primate of Australia in 1999. |
| 7 | 2005 | 2017 | Roger Herft AM | Previously Bishop of Waikato and then of Newcastle. |
| 8 | 2018 | present | Kay Goldsworthy AO | Previously Assistant Bishop of Perth and then Bishop of Gippsland. |
| Source(s): |||||

## Assistant bishops

Assistant bishops of Perth :
| From | Until | Incumbent | Notes |
| 1957 | 1963 | Robert Freeth, Assistant Bishop of Perth | |
| 1964 | aft. 1977 | Brian Macdonald, bishop coadjutor | Thomas Brian Macdonald; previously Dean of Perth (1959–1961) and Archdeacon of Perth, 1961 to 1967 |
| 1972 | 1978 | Alfred Holland, Assistant Bishop of Perth | Translated to Newcastle |
| 1974 | 1975 | Denis Bryant, Assistant Bishop of Perth | Archdeacon of Northam; former Bishop of Kalgoorlie |
| 1978 | 1999 | Michael Challen, Assistant Bishop of Perth | Previously archdeacon. |
| 1979 | 1981/2 | Vernon Cornish, Assistant Bishop of Perth | see Bishop of Tasmania § Vernon Cornish |
| 1982 | 1993 | Brian Kyme, Assistant Bishop of Perth | |
| 1988 | 1992 | Ben Wright, Assistant Bishop of Perth, Goldfields Country Region | Subsequently, Bishop of Bendigo 1992-1993 |
| 1991 | 2006 | David Murray, Bishop of the Southern Region | |
| 1995 | 1998 | Philip Huggins, regional bishop | Became Bishop of Grafton |
| 1998 | 2005 | Brian Farran, Assistant Bishop of Perth, Goldfields Country Region | Became Bishop of the Northern Region; translated to Newcastle. |
| 1998 | 2003 | Gerald Beaumont, Assistant Bishop of Perth, Goldfields Country Region | Subsequently, Vicar of St John's, Camberwell, VIC |
| 2004 | 2006 | Tom Wilmot, Assistant Bishop of Perth, Goldfields Country Region | Translated between regions |
| 2007 | 2016 | Tom Wilmot, Assistant Bishop of Perth, Eastern and Rural Region | Translated between regions |
| 2006 | 2008 | Mark Burton, Bishop of the Northern Region | Became Dean of St Paul's Cathedral, Melbourne |
| 2008 | 2015 | Kay Goldsworthy, Assistant Bishop of Perth | Became Bishop of Gippsland 2015–2017; elected Archbishop of Perth, August 2017. |
| 2014 | 2022 | Jeremy James, Assistant Bishop of Perth | Translated to Willochra |
| 2015 | current | Kate Wilmot, Assistant Bishop of Perth | Also Bishop of the Gnamma Archdeaconry |
| 2024 | current | Hans Christiansen, Assistant Bishop of Perth | Also Bishop of the Wirra Archdeaconry |
| 2024 | current | David Bassett, Assistant Bishop of Perth | Also Bishop of the Kundaam Archdeaconry |