THE CHURCH of Ireland Bishop of Meath and Kildare has ruled himself out of the running for election today to the position of Archbishop of Dublin and Glendalough.
The episcopal electoral college meets in Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin, this morning to elect a successor to Archbishop John Neill.
Bishop Richard Clarke had been widely regarded as hot favourite for the position.
The Church of Ireland primate Archbishop Alan Harper will chair today’s episcopal electoral college at which an archbishop for the church’s southern province will be chosen.
The college is made up of 12 clerical and 12 lay members from Dublin and Glendalough dioceses and three of each from the other southern dioceses of Cashel and Ossory; Cork, Cloyne and Ross; Limerick and Killaloe; and Meath and Kildare.
The House of Bishops has nominated the Bishop of Kilmore Ken Clarke to represent the northern province and the bishops of Cashel and Limerick, Michael Burrows and Trevor Williams respectively, to represent the southern province at the college.
In theory, any priest of the Church of Ireland, male or female, aged 35 or over is eligible to be proposed for consideration.
However, speculation as to who is most likely to be elected to the position today has centred on Bishop Burrows; Bishop Paul Colton of Cork, Cloyne and Ross; and Bishop Michael Jackson of Clogher diocese.
The secretary general of the Anglican Communion, Canon Ken Kearon from Dublin, has also been mentioned.
Should a candidate fail to get the necessary two-thirds majority from each of the houses of clergy and laity today, the appointment will then pass to the House of Bishops.
Archbishop Neill retired on Monday after eight years in Dublin. A gifted pastor and organiser, ecumenical relations between his and the other churches in Dublin reached a level of unprecedented warmth during his term of office.
Meanwhile, Archbishop Harper has called a special meeting of the general synod for Saturday March 5th to consider “the requirements for episcopal ministry” in Tuam diocese.
It became vacant on Monday with the resignation of Bishop Richard Henderson.
