Robert Hardwick is a retired

bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

of the

Anglican Church of Canada The Anglican Church of Canada (ACC or ACoC) is the Ecclesiastical province#Anglican Communion, province of the Anglican Communion in Canada. The official French-language name is ''l'Église anglicane du Canada''. In 2016, the Anglican Church of ...

. He served as the 12th

Bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

of the

Diocese of Qu'Appelle The Diocese of Qu'Appelle in the Anglican Church of Canada lies in the southern third of the civil province of Saskatchewan and contains within its geographical boundaries some 50 per cent of the province's population of one million. History Es ...

, which covers much of the southern part of the Canadian province of

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada. It is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and to the south by the ...

. Originally from England, he and his family moved to Canada in 2001, where he became parish priest at St Stephen the Martyr,

Swift Current, Saskatchewan Swift Current is the sixth-largest city in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It is situated along the Trans-Canada Highway west of Moose Jaw, and east of Medicine Hat, Alberta. As of 2024, Swift Current has an estimated population of 1 ...

. In 2008 he was appointed executive

archdeacon An archdeacon is a senior clergy position in the Church of the East, Chaldean Catholic Church, Syriac Orthodox Church, Anglican Communion, St Thomas Christians, Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodox churches and some other Christian denomina ...

for the diocese and in 2012 he was elected Bishop of Qu'Appelle at an electoral

synod A synod () is a council of a Christian denomination, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. The word '' synod'' comes from the Ancient Greek () ; the term is analogous with the Latin word . Originally, ...

. He retired in 2021.

Early life and calling

Hardwick was born in England, near

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located south-east of Sheffield and nor ...

. He initially worked as a machinist with the

Royal Ordnance Factory Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family or royalty Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal ...

in Nottingham, and then as a police officer with the Nottingham Constabulary. He first felt a calling towards the church when serving as part of the security detail for the papal visit of

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

to England in 1982. He has stated that life was not going well for him, describing it as a "rough time" for him and his wife. Then he was assigned to the security detail for a papal event where more than one million people were waiting to see the pope: "As the morning wore on and people were singing, I began thinking these people have something that I need to have. They had joy, they were friendly, faithful. There was singing, in Latin and English and there was such colour and beauty, a day which was beyond my experience." At the close of the day, a nun came up to him and said that she would pray for him. “I began to think why would a nun want to pray for me? What have I done wrong?" He went home and described his experiences to his wife, and they began to attend a local

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

parish.Archdiocese of Regina (Roman Catholic),
New Anglican Bishop of Qu'Appelle Robert Hardwick
" December 31, 2012. He gradually felt a calling which led him to the priesthood. He attended

St John's College, Nottingham St John's College, Nottingham, founded as the London College of Divinity, was an Anglican and interdenominational theological college situated in Bramcote, Nottingham, England. The college stood in the open evangelical tradition and stated that i ...

, a theological college with an emphasis on open evangelism. Hardwick was ordained a priest in the Church of England in the

Diocese of Southwell The Diocese of Southwell and Nottingham is a Church of England diocese in the Province of York, headed by the Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham. It covers all the English county of Nottinghamshire and a few parishes in South Yorkshire. It is b ...

in 1994, having been ordained

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 ...

the year before. He first served as assistant curate at St John the Baptist in Beeston, Nottinghamshire (1993–97), and then as vicar of

Scawby Scawby is a village and civil parish in North Lincolnshire, England. It is situated south-west from Brigg, and just east from the A15 road (England), A15 road, and south from the M180 motorway. According to the 2001 United Kingdom census, 2001 ...

Redbourne Redbourne is a village and civil parish in the North Lincolnshire district of Lincolnshire, England. The village is situated near the A15 road, and south from Brigg. According to the 2001 Census Redbourne had a population of 386, rising slig ...

and

Hibaldstow Hibaldstow is a village and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in North Lincolnshire, England. The population of the civil parish at the 2011 census was 2,433. It is situated on the B1206 road, south from Brigg and the M180 motorway, M180 ...

, in

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (), abbreviated ''Lincs'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands and Yorkshire and the Humber regions of England. It is bordered by the East Riding of Yorkshire across the Humber estuary to th ...

(1997-2001).

Move to Canada and Work within the Diocese

Hardwick and his wife had been considering a move to Canada, and he eventually sent an application to the Anglican church in

Kimberley, British Columbia Kimberley is a city in southeast British Columbia, Canada along British Columbia Highway 95A, Highway 95A between the Purcell Mountains, Purcell and Rocky Mountains. Kimberley was named in 1896 after the Kimberley, Northern Cape, Kimberley mine i ...

. By a chapter of accidents, his application ended up in Swift Current. On a phone call from the Swift Current church, after 20 minutes then-Bishop Duncan Wallace said, "We want you here." The Hardwick family moved to Canada three months later, in 2001. He took up the position of rector of St. Stephen the Martyr in

. In 2008, he was appointed executive

by Bishop Greg Kerr-Wilson and the family moved to

Regina, Saskatchewan Regina ( ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan. The city is the second-largest in the province, and is a commercial centre for southern Saskatchewan. As of the 2021 Canadian census, ...

, the see of the Diocese of Qu'Appelle. As archdeacon, he was heavily involved in the production of a new Mission Action Plan for the Diocese.

Election and consecration

Following the transfer of Bishop Kerr-Wilson to the Diocese of Calgary, a special electoral

was held in the Diocese of Qu'Appelle. The synod met on December 8, 2012 and elected Hardwick on the first ballot, choosing him over the five other candidates. Hardwick was consecrated on March 2, 2013. The event was a large one, with over 350 in attendance, including many from Hardwick's former church in Swift Current. Prior to the consecration, diocesan First Nations Elders performed a traditional smudge ceremony. Twenty Anglican bishops participated in the consecration service, including the Primate of the Anglican Church, Archbishop Fred Hiltz. The service was also attended by four of Hardwick's predecessors as Bishop of Qu'Appelle (

Michael Peers Michael Geoffrey Peers (31 July 1934 – 27 July 2023) was a Canadian Anglican bishop who served as Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada from 1986 to 2004. Life and career Born in Vancouver, British Columbia, Peers completed an undergraduat ...

, Eric Bays, Duncan Wallace, and

Greg Kerr-Wilson Gregory Keith Kerr-Wilson is a Canadian Anglican bishop. Since 2012, he has been bishop of Calgary, and since 2015, he has been archbishop of Calgary and metropolitan of the Ecclesiastical Province of the Northern Lights in the Anglican Churc ...

), the first time in the history of the Anglican Church of Canada that so many former bishops had attended a consecration of their successor in the see. Archbishop David Ashdown,

Metropolitan Metropolitan may refer to: Areas and governance (secular and ecclesiastical) * Metropolitan archdiocese, the jurisdiction of a metropolitan archbishop ** Metropolitan bishop or archbishop, leader of an ecclesiastical "mother see" * Metropolitan ar ...

of the

Province of Rupert's Land The Ecclesiastical Province of the Northern Lights, founded in 1875 as the Province of Rupert's Land, forms one of four ecclesiastical provinces in the Anglican Church of Canada. Territorial evolution The territory covered by the province is r ...

, led the consecration. Bishop Jonathan Frost of

Southampton, England Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

, a friend of Hardwick from England, preached the sermon. The two had been ordained together as deacons in 1993.Joanne Shurvin-Martin,
Rob Hardwick ordained as bishop
" ''Saskatchewan Anglican'', April 2013, pp. 1, 5 Because of the size of the event, and the fact that the diocesan cathedral,

St Paul's St Paul's Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of St Paul the Apostle, is an Anglican cathedral in London, England, the seat of the Bishop of London. The cathedral serves as the mother church of the Diocese of London in the Church of Engl ...

, was undergoing major construction, the service of consecration was held in a local Roman Catholic church, Holy Trinity. In addition to the numerous representatives of the Anglican church, there were also representatives from the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Canada, the Roman Catholic church, the Serbian Orthodox Church, the United Church of Canada, the Baptist church, the Salvation Army, the Regina Council of Churches, the federal and provincial governments, and the RCMP.Anglican Bishop Robert Hardwick Consecrated
" Archdiocese of Regina, March 5, 2013. Hardwick was installed as Bishop of Qu'Appelle the next day at St Paul's.

Goals as Bishop

Upon his election, Hardwick confirmed that his goals included moving forward with the Mission Action Plan, particularly developing children and youth ministries and urban and reserve First Nations ministries; improving communication strategies; equipping the faithful for ministry, including parishes which did not have a parish priest; and developing a sustainable financial plan. He noted that when he moved to Canada in 2001, he had been warned that the diocese was on the verge of bankruptcy, but was now in much better shape. In an interview after his election, he was asked what he would bring to the episcopacy. He described himself as a “missioner, an innovator, an encourager of collaborative ministry, a prayerful team player and a man passionate about Christian stewardship.” He added that others have said he is a good pastor, a good listener, a good preacher and someone who is unflappable and has a sense of humour.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hardwick, Robert Year of birth missing (living people) Living people 21st-century Anglican Church of Canada bishops Anglican bishops of Qu'Appelle English emigrants to Canada People from Regina, Saskatchewan Place of birth missing (living people)