The Church of Ireland Diocese of Connor

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Looking back at Synod in sunny Dunluce

Friday June 26th 2026

The 2026 Connor Diocesan Synod in Dunluce enjoyed glorious (but very hot!) weather.

It is always wonderful to say the sun shone on an event and boy did it shine at Connor’s annual Diocesan Synod held in Dunluce Parish with the temperatures hitting the high twenties!

Such was the heat, Bishop George Davison took the decision to close Synod a little earlier than planned, saving a workshop on Pioneer Ministry for another time when delegates would be ‘refreshed and ready for conversation.’

Nonetheless, much was achieved during this north coast Synod, when as well as conducting the official business of the diocese, attendees participated in a Service of Holy Communion in the Church of St John the Baptist and enjoyed a lovely dinner provided by Dunluce Parish. Check out our full Photo Gallery below.

Bishop George led the well-attended service, and the preacher was the Rev Geoff Hamilton, Mission Director with SAMS Ireland. Connor and SAMS are working together to support SAMS partners in the Diocese of North Argentina.

This was followed by refreshments, then the first business session opened with a Reading by Gillian McCaughey, Belfast Cathedral, and prayers led by the Rev Marcus Harte, Parish of Skerry, Rathcavan and Newtowncrommelin (Broughshane).

PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS

After the minutes of the 2025 Connor Synod were confirmed, Bishop George delivered his Presidential Address in which he highlighted recent events in the province which he said had shown ‘humanity at its worst.’

You can read the Bishop’s full Presidential Address HERE.

Diocesan Registrar, the Rev Canon William Taggart, gave a comprehensive report on communications from General Synod, and elections were held for a number of vacant positions.

The Report of Diocesan Council was proposed by the Rev Canon Jim Carson, Lower Shankill, and seconded by Mr Norman Lyons, Jordanstown.

In proposing the report, Canon Carson referenced various items, including the closure of the Church Army’s North Belfast Centre of Mission and expressed thanks that the ministry of Church Army Evangelists Karen Webb and Ste Fitzgerald has been able to continue. He said The Hub chaplaincy was also reaching out to people in the area, and, in keeping with the theme of the Bishop’s Address, the regular student lunches were well attended by international students.

Canon Carson paid tribute to the Church’s Ministry of Healing and the Mothers’ Union – particularly in relation to its ‘Souls of our Shoes’ exhibition raising awareness of gender-based violence.

Referencing his pending retirement, Canon Carson said: “I feel privileged to have been working in Connor Diocese since 1995.”

Seconding the report, Mr Lyons expressed gratitude to all who had contributed, saying it was a reminder of all that had been achieved and the challenges that lay ahead.

YOUTH

As the Report was considered, Diocesan Youth Officer Dave Armstrong took the opportunity to highlight events that have taken place for young people, and those that are coming up during the summer, including Summer Madness and Streetreach.

He thanked the Youth Council for its commitment, and the Rev Dennis Christie, outgoing chair, for his support and guidance. Dave said they were looking forward to the Rev Nathan Irvine taking up the role of Youth Council chair.

Sister Karen Webb explained that while Church Army had withdrawn support for the North Belfast Centre of Mission, she and Ste were thankful that Connor Diocese had continued to support the work the evangelists do in the Greater Shankill area.

Mr Ken Gibson paid tribute to the work the Centre of Mission and others in the area, in particular Canon Carson and his wife Heather, have done in this part of Belfast – an area which he said the Church had previously been accused of walking away from.

“The work they have done has strengthened our links with a community that has suffered over the years,” he said. “I am delighted that Karen and Ste are continuing their work in that area – there is the garden, the men’s group, the schools – we cannot go back on that.”

Explaining the background to the Church Army’s position – the North Belfast Centre of Mission was one of many that had to be closed for financial reasons – Bishop George told Synod: “When we got over the shock of the Church Army withdrawing funding it just seemed a no brainer because of all the work that is going on.”

He said that careful stewardship and the fact that Karen Webb had moved to part-time working meant that the diocese had been able to re-employ both Karen and Ste at no additional cost to the diocese.

FINANCE

Connor Finance and Administration Manager Mr Richard Cotter presented the Diocesan Accounts and was thanked by Bishop George for ‘keeping things on the straight and narrow.’

A motion that the Fair Share for 2027 should remain at 11 per cent was agreed. After some debate, a resolution proposed by Archdeacon Barry Forde and seconded by Canon Carson pertaining to St Thomas’ Parish Church, Belfast, was agreed unanimously.

Speaking to the report submitted by Connor Council for Mission, the Rev Jacob Mercer expressed thanks to the Council for support for a visit to Nepal earlier this year and spoke of the importance of this form of mission both to those who travel and to those who are encouraged by their visit.

Chair of the Council, the Ven Paul Dundas, said that over the past two years it had supported teams in mission in Nigeria, Nepal, Kenya, Uganda, Italy and Spain, and that this year it was partnering with SAMS Ireland. He thanked parishes for their support of North Argentina during Lent and said a new resource would soon be available for Harvest, and asked for continued prayer for North Argentina.

The Very Rev Stephen Forde, Dean of Belfast, took the opportunity to remind Synod that ‘the world is coming to Belfast’ this week, with the city hosting the 19^th meeting of the Anglican Consultative Council from June 27-July 5. The opening and closing services will be held in Belfast Cathedral on June 28 and July 5 respectively, and Dean Forde said representatives from Connor would be very welcome in St Anne’s on these occasions.

MOTHERS’ UNION

Diocesan President of Connor Mothers’ Union, Alison Skillen gave a presentation on two MU initiatives – the Away from it All Holidays and 150 Psalms for 150 Years – we will share full reports of these in due course.

Synod was delighted when the Dean of Connor, the Very Rev Sam Wright, rector of Lisburn Cathedral, took to the podium to thank everyone for their prayers during his recent illness. “The prayers of so many people made such a difference,” the Dean said. Bishop George responded that it was ‘always great to see answered prayers’ and to see Dean Wright ‘looking so well.’

The Rev Brian Lacey updated Synod on healing ministry in the diocese.

The report of Diocesan Council was adopted unanimously.

Delegates then had a presentation by Roger Thompson of CMS Ireland, focusing primarily on partnership with Nepal. During this everyone present was encouraged to rise and share a traditional Nepalese greeting with others in the building.

Roger highlighted a global mission event with Kapil Sharma from Nepal taking place this weekend to which all are welcome, and asked for prayers for the Rt Rev Aime Joseph, Bishop Coadjutor of Gitega Diocese, Burundi, who is currently forced to live in a refugee camp in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Bishop George thanked Roger for ‘the way you resource our parishes to help us engage with our brothers and sisters in Christ worldwide.’

PIONEER MINISTRY

Before closing Synod 2026, Bishop George showed a video from Pioneer Ministry, but stressed this is not just about a number of specific projects. “If Pioneer Ministry only ends up being a few projects across the island, it will have done a little bit of good, but we will have missed a tremendous opportunity,” he said.

“Parishes must recognise that this is a part of who we are and what we do.”

He asked parishes and individuals to consider how they reach out to those who chose not to come to church. “You can be God’s man or woman in the place where you work or where you shop – the way you engage makes all the difference,” Bishop said.

Due to the heat, Bishop said that the further engagement he had planned for this subject would take place on another occasion.

Thanks to Dunluce Parish for hosting this Synod and for accommodating Connor staff and delegates, and to those who provided the refreshments and dinner.

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