Keith William Dalby is an Australian

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

bishop who has been Bishop of The Murray since 2019 but stepped aside in December 2023 and is not currently serving.

Early life

Dalby was born in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, but returned to

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...

where his parents had married. He spent time in the

Northern Territory The Northern Territory (abbreviated as NT; known formally as the Northern Territory of Australia and informally as the Territory) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian internal territory in the central and central-northern regi ...

before joining the

Australian Navy The Royal Australian Navy (RAN) is the naval branch of the Australian Defence Force (ADF). The professional head of the RAN is Chief of Navy (CN) Vice Admiral Mark Hammond. The Chief of Navy is also jointly responsible to the Minister for D ...

where he served for 13 years, 12 as a submariner.

Ordained ministry

Dalby commenced training for the priesthood at St Barnabas College, Adelaide, in 1992 and obtained a Bachelor of Theology degree. He became curate at St Michael's

Mitcham Mitcham is an area within the London Borough of Merton in South London, England. It is centred southwest of Charing Cross. Originally a village in the county of Surrey, today it is mainly a residential suburb, and includes Mitcham Common. It ...

Adelaide Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...

before being a parish priest in

Timboon Timboon is a town in the Western District of Victoria, Australia. The town is in the Shire of Corangamite local government area, located approximately south-west of the state capital, Melbourne. In the 2021 census, Timboon had a population o ...

and

Warracknabeal Warracknabeal ( ) is a town in the Australian state of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, located in the Wheatbelt (Australia), Victorian wheatbelt. Situated on the banks of the Yarriambiack Creek, 330 km northwest of Melbourne, it is the bus ...

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...

in the Diocese of Ballarat from 1997 and

Gordon Gordon may refer to: People * Gordon (given name), a masculine given name, including list of persons and fictional characters * Gordon (surname), the surname * Gordon (slave), escaped to a Union Army camp during the U.S. Civil War * Gordon Heuck ...

in the Diocese of Sydney from 2004.

Episcopal ministry

In June 2019, Dalby was announced as the fifth diocesan bishop of the

Diocese of The Murray The Anglican Diocese of The Murray is located in the south-eastern region of South Australia. Founded in 1970 as part of the Province of South Australia, it takes in the Fleurieu Peninsula, Riverland, Adelaide Hills, Murraylands and the southern ...

in South Australia. He was consecrated as bishop at

St Peter's Cathedral, Adelaide St Peter's Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in the South Australian capital of Adelaide. It is the seat of the Archbishop of Adelaide and Metropolitan of the Province of South Australia. The cathedral, a significant Adelaide landmark, is sit ...

, on 16 August 2019 and enthroned as Bishop of The Murray on 17 August 2019 at St John the Baptist Cathedral,

Murray Bridge Murray Bridge may refer to. *Murray Bridge, South Australia Murray Bridge (formerly Mobilong and Edwards Crossing; ) is a city in the Australian state of South Australia, located east-southeast of the state's capital city, Adelaide, and north ...

. Dalby stepped aside as Bishop of The Murray effective 9 December 2023. It was later revealed that he had secretly married newly-ordained priest Alison Dutton in August 2023, and that a controversy had since arisen in the diocese in relation to the marriage. A spokesperson for the diocesan council said that the diocese, in line with the procedures and protocols of the Anglican Church of Australia, was working through the controversy, in a manner sensitive to Dalby and Dutton.

Ordination of women

In 2022, Dalby followed through with a decade-old commitment by a previous synod to allow a discussion on the ordination of women as priests. During 2022 and 2023 consultations and workshops were held with clergy and lay people and Dalby sought advice from

Stephen Pickard Stephen Kim Pickard (born 1952) is an Australian academic and retired Anglican bishop, who served as an assistant bishop in the Anglican Diocese of Canberra and Goulburn since 24 March 2012, and as Executive Director of the Australian Centre fo ...

, former assistant Bishop in Adelaide and the canon theologian of the diocese. Dalby mentioned the mentorship of Bishop David McCall and circulated discussion papers written by

Kevin Giles Kevin N. Giles (born 1940) is an Australian evangelical Anglican priest and theologian who was in parish ministry for over 40 years. He and his family live in Melbourne, Australia. Giles studied at Moore Theological College in Sydney, Durham Un ...

. He allowed a canon to be put to the next synod in 2023 which enabled the ordination of women as priests. The vote was 57-4 in favour with no debate. On 12 August 2023, Dalby ordained three women and one man to the priesthood, Margaret Holt, Carol Cornwall, Alison Dutton and Rodney Fopp.

References

External links

Anglican Parish of Mount Barker, video of service of the 12 August 2023 ordination
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dalby, Keith 21st-century Anglican bishops in Australia Living people 1960s births Anglican bishops of The Murray Moore Theological College alumni