Patricia Storey (née Shaw; born 30 March 1960) is an Irish

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. Since 2013, she has been the Bishop of Meath and Kildare in the Church of Ireland. She was the first woman to become a bishop in the Church of Ireland and the first woman to be an Anglican bishop in Ireland and Great Britain.

Early life and education

Storey was born 30 March 1960. She was educated at the

Methodist College Belfast Methodist College Belfast (MCB), locally known as Methody, is a co-educational voluntary grammar school in Belfast, located at the foot of the Malone Road, Northern Ireland. It was founded in 1865 by the Methodist Church in Ireland and is one of e ...

, a

grammar school A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a Latin school, school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented Se ...

in Belfast, Northern Ireland. She studied French and English at Trinity College, Dublin, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in 1983; as per tradition, her BA was later promoted to a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

(MA Dubl) degree. In 1994, she began to train for ordination at the Church of Ireland Theological College. She graduated in 1997 with a Bachelor of Theology (BTh) degree.

Ordained ministry

Storey was ordained in the Church of Ireland as

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian denominations, such as the Cathol ...

in 1997 and priest in 1998. From 1997 to 2000, she served her curacy in the Parish of Kilconriola and Ballyclug, (

Ballymena Ballymena ( ; from , meaning 'the middle townland') is a town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It had a population of 31,205 people at the 2021 United Kingdom census, making it the List of localities in Northern Ireland by population, seven ...

), County Antrim. From 2000 to 2004, she was an assistant curate at St Aidan's Church, Glenavy, County Antrim. In 2004, she was appointed rector of St Augustine's Church,

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry, is the second-largest City status in the United Kingdom, city in Northern Ireland, and the fifth-largest on the island of Ireland. Located in County Londonderry, the city now covers both banks of the River Fo ...

Episcopal ministry

On 19 September 2013, Storey was chosen by the House of Bishops to succeed Richard Clarke as Bishop of Meath and Kildare. She was consecrated to the episcopate at

Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin Christ Church Cathedral, more formally The Cathedral of the Holy Trinity (Irish: ''Ardeaglais Theampall Chríost''), is the cathedral of the Diocese of Dublin and Glendalough, United Dioceses of Dublin and Glendalough and the cathedral of the e ...

, on 30 November 2013. She is the first woman to be elected as a bishop in the Church of Ireland and the first woman to be an

bishop in Ireland and Great Britain. As Bishop of Meath and Kildare, she is the only Anglican bishop who is not also an

archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

primate Primates is an order (biology), order of mammals, which is further divided into the Strepsirrhini, strepsirrhines, which include lemurs, galagos, and Lorisidae, lorisids; and the Haplorhini, haplorhines, which include Tarsiiformes, tarsiers a ...

to be styled ''

The Most Reverend The Most Reverend (abbreviated as The Most Revd or The Most Rev) is an honorific style (form of address), style given to certain (primarily Western Christian, Western) Christian clergy and Christian minister, ministers. It is a variant of the mor ...

'' (rather than ''

The Right Reverend The Right Reverend (abbreviated as The Rt Revd or The Rt Rev) is an honorific style (form of address), style given to certain (primarily Western Christian, Western) Christian ministers and members of clergy. It is a variant of the more common st ...

''), the style usually restricted to archbishops or primates.

Views

Storey has described her churchmanship as " open liberal evangelical". She was previously a board member of the Evangelical Alliance. She voted 'no' on same-gender marriage in Ireland but, at the same time, affirmed civil unions and partnerships for same-gender couples thus taking a middle of the road approach. In her words, "I believe that civil partnerships give gay people clear civil rights and recognition as people committed to one another, and I fully endorse this. ... However, I do not think this requires the redefinition of marriage to uphold it, and I do not believe marriage should be redefined.".

Personal life

Storey is married to an Anglican priest, Earl Storey. Together they have two adult children; Luke and Carolyn.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Storey, Patricia 1960 births Living people 20th-century Anglican bishops in Ireland 20th-century evangelicals 21st-century Anglican bishops in Ireland 21st-century evangelicals Alumni of the Church of Ireland Theological Institute Alumni of Trinity College Dublin Bishops of Meath and Kildare Christian clergy from Belfast Evangelical Anglican bishops Irish evangelicals People educated at Methodist College Belfast Women Anglican bishops