Denise Ferguson is a

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

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 ...

in the

Anglican Church of Australia The Anglican Church of Australia, formerly known as the Church of England in Australia and Tasmania, is a Christian church in Australia and an autonomous church of the Anglican Communion. It is the second largest church in Australia after the R ...

. She has served as an

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 the

Anglican Diocese of Adelaide The Anglican Diocese of Adelaide is a diocese of the Anglican Church of Australia. It is centred in the city of Adelaide in the state of South Australia and extends along the eastern shore of the Gulf St Vincent from the town of Eudunda in the ...

since July 2019, and is the first woman to be appointed bishop in the Province of South Australia. Ferguson was born in

, and prior to entering ministry served as a staffer to the

New Zealand Defence Force The New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF; mi, Te Ope Kātua o Aotearoa, "Line of Defence of New Zealand") are the armed forces of New Zealand. The NZDF is responsible for the protection of the national security of New Zealand and her realm, prom ...

. She commenced training for ministry at the age of 39, and began her ministry career in the

Anglican Diocese of Wellington The Diocese of Wellington is one of the thirteen dioceses and hui amorangi of the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia. The diocese covers the area between the bottom of the North Island of New Zealand up to the area of Mount Ru ...

, where she was ordained as a lay reader in 1988 and as a deacon in 1999. Ferguson served as vicar of St Matthew's

Palmerston North Palmerston North (; mi, Te Papa-i-Oea, known colloquially as Palmy) is a city in the North Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Manawatū-Whanganui region. Located in the eastern Manawatu Plains, the city is near the north bank of the ...

and then as

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 churches and some other Christian denominations, above that o ...

of Manawatu. She later served as the Bishop's Chaplain for Ministry Discernment in the Diocese of Wellington, and her final position prior to relocating to Australia, Ferguson was the Canon Registrar for the Diocese of Waikato and Taranaki. In 2014 Ferguson moved to Australia, where she worked in the Diocese of Brisbane as Rector of the Parish of East Redland as well as Archdeacon of Moreton. Ferguson was consecrated as an assistant bishop in the Diocese of Adelaide on 21 July 2019. Her responsibilities involve parish visiting and liturgical roles, as well as oversight of three areas of ministry across South Australia: multicultural diversity in ministry, healthcare chaplaincies – covering both hospital and social service based care contexts – and ministry formation. Ferguson is married to Martin, an army officer who put his career on hold to support her ministry training. She also has a daughter and is a grandmother.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ferguson, Denise 21st-century Anglican bishops in Australia Assistant bishops in the Anglican Diocese of Adelaide Living people New Zealand Anglican clergy New Zealand emigrants to Australia Year of birth missing (living people) Women Anglican bishops