Robert Speight Munro (born 8 May 1963) is a British

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ...

in the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britai ...

. Since 2023, he has been

Bishop of Ebbsfleet The Bishop of Ebbsfleet is a suffragan bishop who fulfils the role of a provincial episcopal visitor in the Church of England. From its creation in 1994 to 2022, the Bishop of Ebbsfleet served traditionist Anglo-Catholic parishes that could not ...

, the

provincial episcopal visitor A provincial episcopal visitor (PEV), popularly known as a flying bishop, is a Church of England bishop assigned to minister to many of the clergy, laity and parishes who on grounds of theological conviction, "are unable to receive the ministry of ...

for

conservative evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being "born again", in which an individual expe ...

members and

parishes A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

of the church.

Early life and education

Munro was born on 8 May 1963 in

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...

, England. He was raised as an

atheist Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...

and converted to Christianity through the

youth ministry Youth ministry, also commonly referred to as youth group, is an age-specific religious ministry of faith groups or other religious organizations, usually from ages 12 to 30, whose mission is to involve and engage with young people who attend t ...

of St Mary's Cheadle. Munro received a degree in maths at the

University of Bristol The University of Bristol is a Red brick university, red brick Russell Group research university in Bristol, England. It received its royal charter in 1909, although it can trace its roots to a Society of Merchant Venturers, Merchant Venturers' sc ...

. After university, he moved to London to study in the ministry training scheme at All Souls Langham Place, then known as All Souls College of Applied Theology. While at All Souls, Munro taught part-time at All Souls School. He returned to Manchester for teacher training at the

University of Manchester The University of Manchester is a public university, public research university in Manchester, England. The main campus is south of Manchester city centre, Manchester City Centre on Wilmslow Road, Oxford Road. The university owns and operates majo ...

and taught maths and physical education in

Hazel Grove Hazel Grove is a suburb in the Metropolitan Borough of Stockport, Greater Manchester, England, close to the Peak District national park. Within the boundaries of the historic county of Cheshire, the area was known as Bullock Smithy until 18 ...

. After a call to ordained ministry, Munro trained for ordination at

Oak Hill College Oak Hill College is a conservative evangelical theological college located on Chase Side in Southgate, London, England. Its aim is to prepare men and women from the Church of England and Independent churches for ministry in the real world. Ove ...

, a

theological college A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clerg ...

. He graduated with a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

(BA) degree in theology and pastoral studies in 1993. He later studied for a doctorate from the

Reformed Theological Seminary Reformed Theological Seminary (RTS) is a theological seminary in the Reformed theological tradition with campuses in multiple locations in the United States. Founded by conservatives in the Southern Presbyterian Church, the Presbyterian Church in ...

in the United States, graduating with a

Doctor of Ministry The Doctor of Ministry (abbreviated DMin or D.Min.) is a professional doctorate, often including a research component, that may be earned by a minister of religion while concurrently engaged in some form of ministry. It is categorized as an advance ...

(DMin) degree in 2008.

Ordained ministry

Munro was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform var ...

in the

as a

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 churches, such as the Catholic Chur ...

in 1993 and as a

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...

in 1994. He first served at St John's Church, Hartford, in the

Diocese of Chester The Diocese of Chester is a Church of England diocese in the Province of York covering the pre-1974 county of Cheshire and therefore including the Wirral and parts of Stockport, Trafford and Tameside. History Ancient diocese Before the s ...

. In 1997, he became rector of

St Wilfrid's Church, Davenham St Wilfrid's Church is in the village of Davenham, Cheshire, England. The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II* listed building. It is an active Anglican parish church in the diocese of Ches ...

, and in 2003 he returned to St Mary's Cheadle with St Cuthbert's as rector. He was additionally

rural dean In the Roman Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion as well as some Lutheran denominations, a rural dean is a member of clergy who presides over a "rural deanery" (often referred to as a deanery); "ruridecanal" is the corresponding adjective ...

for Cheadle from 2016 to 2023. In addition to his service in parish ministry, Munro held several positions in church leadership, including: chairman of the House of Clergy in the Diocese of Chester; an elected member of the

General Synod of the Church of England The General Synod is the tricameral deliberative and legislative organ of the Church of England. The synod was instituted in 1970, replacing the Church Assembly, and is the culmination of a process of rediscovering self-government for the Church ...

from 2005 to 2022; a member of the Dioceses' Commission; and a council member of the

Latimer Trust The Latimer Trust is a conservative evangelical Christian think tank in the United Kingdom. Overview The Latimer Trust is an evangelical think-tank dedicated to providing biblical input and a considered response to significant issues within the C ...

, the

Church of England Evangelical Council The Church of England Evangelical Council (CEEC) is an association of evangelical Anglican members of the Church of England. It self-describes as the collective voice of all evangelicals within the Church of England, and states its aim "to promote ...

and the

Church Society Church Society is a conservative, evangelical Anglican organisation and registered charity formed in 1950 by the merger of the Anglican Church Association (founded 1865) and National Church League (founded 1906 by amalgamation of two earlier bodi ...

. As a leader of the Fellowship of Word and Spirit (FWS), Munro supported the 2018 merger of FWS and Reform into the Church Society to unite English conservative evangelicals.

Episcopacy

In September 2022, Munro was announced as the next Bishop of Ebbsfleet, taking over the portfolio of alternative episcopal oversight held by the retired Bishop of Maidstone,

Rod Thomas Rod Thomas (born 11 January 1947) is a Welsh former professional footballer who represented Wales at International level. During his career Thomas played for Gloucester City, Swindon Town, Derby County, Cardiff City, Gloucester for a sec ...

. On 2 February 2023, Munro was consecrated a bishop by

Justin Welby Justin Portal Welby (born 6 January 1956) is a British bishop who is the 105th Archbishop of Canterbury. He has served in that role since 2013. Welby was previously the vicar of Southam, Warwickshire, and then Bishop of Durham, serving for ...

at Canterbury Cathedral during the same service as

Jane Mainwaring Jane Frances Mainwaring (born 1970) is a British Anglican bishop, who has served as Bishop of Hertford, a suffragan bishop in the Diocese of St Albans, since February 2023. She had previously been Archdeacon of St Albans from March ...

and Martin Gainsborough. In deference to Munro's

complementarian Complementarianism is a theological view in Christianity, Judaism, and Islam, that men and women have different but ''complementary'' roles and responsibilities in marriage, family life, and religious leadership. The word "complementary" and its ...

convictions, the women bishops present refrained from the laying on of hands for Munro, and Welby was only assisted by two other male bishops as co-consecrators (

Mark Tanner Mark Simon Austin Tanner (born November 1970) is a British Anglican bishop and academic. Since 2020, he has been the Bishop of Chester; he previously served as Bishop of Berwick, a suffragan bishop in the Diocese of Newcastle since his 2016 co ...

, Bishop of Chester, and Jonathan Gibbs, Bishop of Rochester). At the time of Munro's consecration, 148 resolution churches had passed resolutions requesting

alternative episcopal oversight A provincial episcopal visitor (PEV), popularly known as a flying bishop, is a Church of England bishop assigned to minister to many of the clergy, laity and parishes who on grounds of theological conviction, "are unable to receive the ministry of ...

from the Bishop of Maidstone or his successor. As of March 2024, Munro is an

honorary assistant bishop An assistant bishop in the Anglican Communion is a bishop appointed to assist a diocesan bishop. Church of England In the established Church of England, assistant bishops are usually retired (diocesan or suffragan) bishops – in which case they ...

in 8 dioceses: Blackburn, Sheffield, London, Oxford, Chelmsford, Chester, Durham, and Southwark.

Views

Munro came into office as the General Synod was discussing Anglican bishops' approval (through the Living in Love and Faith process) of same-sex blessings in the Church of England and revisiting the restrictions imposed on gay clergy in same-sex marriages or civil partnerships. Munro commented that the General Synod debate: In December 2023, following the General Synod vote to commend and the subsequent introduction of prayers and blessings for same-sex relationships, he expressed his "great sorrow" and stated that it was a "serious error" that risks "misleading them about issues of sin and salvation".

Personal life

Munro is married to Sarah; they have three adult children.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Munro, Robert Speight Living people Bishops of Ebbsfleet British evangelicals Alumni of Oak Hill College Alumni of the University of Bristol Alumni of the University of Manchester Reformed Theological Seminary alumni 21st-century Church of England bishops Evangelical Anglican bishops 1963 births