Andrew James Forster is an Irish

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

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 ca ...

. He is currently Serving as Bishop of Derry and Raphoe since 8 December 2019. Forster was educated at

Queen's University, Belfast , mottoeng = For so much, what shall we give back? , top_free_label = , top_free = , top_free_label1 = , top_free1 = , top_free_label2 = , top_free2 = , established = , closed = , type = Public research university , parent = ...

and the Church of Ireland Theological College. He 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 va ...

in 1992. His first post was a

curacy A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' (''cura'') ''of souls'' of a parish. In this sense, "curate" means a parish priest; but in English-speaking countries the term ''curate'' is commonly used to describe clergy w ...

at Willowfield. After that he was

Dean Dean may refer to: People * Dean (given name) * Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin * Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk * Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean Titles * ...

of Residence at his old university then from 2002 to 2007 he was Archdeacon of Elphin and Ardagh and rector of the

Drumcliff Drumcliff or Drumcliffe () is a village in County Sligo, Ireland. It is 8 km (5 miles) north of Sligo town on the N15 road on a low gravel ridge between the mountain of Ben Bulben and Drumcliff bay. It is on the Drumcliff river, original ...

group of parishes in

County Sligo County Sligo ( , gle, Contae Shligigh) is a county in Ireland. It is located in the Border Region and is part of the province of Connacht. Sligo is the administrative capital and largest town in the county. Sligo County Council is the local ...

. From 2007 - 2015 he had Served as rector of Drumglass. He previously served as Archdeacon of Ardboe from 2015 to 2019 when he was ordained a bishop.Diocese of Armagh web-site
/ref> On 29 August 2019, Forster was elected as Bishop of Derry & Raphoe, following the retirement of Bishop Kenneth Good In 31 May 2019. His consecration took place on the evening of Sunday 8 December in St Patrick's Cathedral, Armagh. He was enthroned in the two diocesan cathedrals in Derry and Raphoe at the beginning of January 2020. Forster is married to Heather and has three children, Hannah, Patrick & Megan (in age order).

References

Living people Archdeacons of Ardboe Archdeacons of Elphin and Ardagh Alumni of the Church of Ireland Theological Institute Alumni of Queen's University Belfast 20th-century Irish Anglican priests 21st-century Irish Anglican priests Year of birth missing (living people) {{Ireland-Anglican-clergy-stub Evangelical Anglican bishops