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Tim Wambunya

The Right Reverend

Tim Wambunya
Bishop of Wolverhampton
ChurchChurch of England
DioceseDiocese of Lichfield
In office2024–present
PredecessorClive Gregory
Other post(s)Bishop of Butere in the Anglican Church of Kenya (2013-20)
Orders
Ordination1997 (deacon); 1998 (priest)
by Richard Chartres (deacon), Graham Dow (priest)
Consecration6 October 2013
Personal details
Born
Timothy Livingstone Amboko Wambunya

1966 (age 58–59)
Kenya
DenominationAnglican
SpouseGertrude
Childrenthree
Alma materMiddlesex University, Oxford University, University of Wales, Oak Hill College

Timothy Livingstone (Amboko) Wambunya (born 1966) is an Anglican bishop.[1] He was the Anglican Bishop of Butere in Kenya[2] until September 2020, when he resigned and left Kenya after recovering from COVID-19.[3] In 2024, he was announced as the next Bishop of Wolverhampton, an area bishop in the Church of England Diocese of Lichfield;[4] which See he took up on 15 October.[5]

Early life and education

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Timothy Wambunya was born in Kenya. He came to the United Kingdom aged 19, and spent seven years in the navy before training for the priesthood.[6]

Wambunya gained a BA in theology from Middlesex University in 1996, followed by a Master's in Philosophy from Oxford University and a PhD in Paremiology from the University of Wales.[7]

He studied at the Simon of Cyrene Theological Institute, then at Oak Hill College in London, receiving a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1994.[1][4]

Clerical career

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Wambunya took orders in the Church of England: he was made deacon at Petertide 1997 (28 June) by Richard Chartres, Bishop of London, at St Paul's Cathedral;[8] and ordained priest the following Petertide (4 July 1998) by Graham Dow, Bishop of Willesden, at St Martin's Church, Ruislip.[9] He served his curacy at St John's Church, Southall, and was ordained priest in 1998.[4] In 2000 he became a team vicar in the Tollington parish, serving at Emmanuel Church, Holloway; and in 2007 was appointed principal of the Church Army's Carlile College in Nairobi, Kenya.[1][4]

Wambunya was consecrated as the third Bishop of Butere on 6 October 2013,[10] succeeding Horace Etemesi (1993–2003) and Michael Joshua Sande (2003–2013).[11][12] As Bishop of Butere he attended and led a seminar at the 2018 Global Anglican Future Conference, but he would later criticise the movement, saying in 2020 "Personally, I think the Gafcon axis has become obsessed with the matter of sexuality."[13][14]

In 2020 he left Kenya and his episcopal role, and in September was appointed vicar of St Paul's Church in Slough, a 'resource church' in the Church of England Diocese of Oxford;[15] he also became an honorary assistant bishop of that diocese in 2021.[16]

In 2024 he was announced as the next Bishop of Wolverhampton, an area bishop in the Diocese of Lichfield.[4][17] His welcome service was scheduled for 15 October 2024;[18] he duly took up his See on that date.[5]

In September 2024, Wambunya was formally rebuked by the Church of England after ordaining Revd Wamare Juma of the Revealed Evangelical Mission, a "non-denominational para-church" not in communion with the Church of England, as a bishop in a service in Germany in April of that year.[19][20] He apologised, attributing his actions to his "lack of understanding of the polity of the Church within which I am now serving".[21]

Personal life

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He is married to Gertrude and has three sons.[6]

References

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  1. ^ a b c Crockford's Clerical Directory. Church House Publishing. 2022. ISBN 978-0-7151-1184-0.
  2. ^ Office, Anglican Communion. "Anglican Communion: Position". Anglican Communion Website. Retrieved 2021-05-24.
  3. ^ "Butere ACK Bishop Wambunya quits five months after Covid-19 attack". The Star. Retrieved 2021-05-24.
  4. ^ a b c d e "Appointment of Suffragan Bishop of Wolverhampton". UK Government. 27 August 2024.
  5. ^ a b "Fifth Bishop of Wolverhampton welcomed in Walsall's Church on the Hill". Diocese of Lichfield. 23 October 2024. Archived from the original on 24 November 2024. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
  6. ^ a b "Intensive care battle for life by Slough's new vicar". Slough & South Bucks Observer. 23 September 2020.
  7. ^ Amalemba, Robert. "My hustle was selling UK suits to Kenyans - ACK Butere Diocese, BishopTimothy Wambunya". Standard Entertainment and Lifestyle. Archived from the original on 2021-05-24. Retrieved 2021-05-24.
  8. ^ "Ordinations". Church Times. No. 7013. 11 July 1997. p. 6. ISSN 0009-658X. Retrieved 1 September 2024 – via UK Press Online archives.
  9. ^ "Ordinations". Church Times. No. 7065. 10 July 1998. p. 17. ISSN 0009-658X. Retrieved 1 September 2024 – via UK Press Online archives.
  10. ^ "The Rt Revd Timothy Wambunya on World Anglican Clerical Directory". World Anglican Clerical Directory. Retrieved 2021-05-24.
  11. ^ "Butere - ACK". www.ackenya.org. Retrieved 2021-05-24.
  12. ^ "Our Story". ACK Diocese of Butere. Archived from the original on 10 July 2024. Retrieved 1 September 2024.
  13. ^ Dominic Steele (29 June 2018). Bishop Sheldon Mwedigwa and Bishop Tim Wambunya - Monday 180618. Gafcon. Retrieved 18 October 2024.
  14. ^ Michael, Mark (20 January 2020). "Seeking Communion in the Midst of Disagreement". The Living Church. Retrieved 18 October 2024.
  15. ^ "'Life and death' struggle against Coronavirus by Slough's new vicar". Slough Observer. 23 September 2020. Retrieved 2021-05-24.
  16. ^ "Appointments". Church Times. No. 8275. 22 October 2021. p. 30. ISSN 0009-658X. Retrieved 1 September 2024.
  17. ^ "No. 64512". The London Gazette. 12 September 2024. p. 17626.
  18. ^ "Downing Street announces next area bishop of Wolverhampton". Diocese of Lichfield. Archived from the original on 1 September 2024. Retrieved 1 September 2024.
  19. ^ Martin, Francis (6 September 2024). "Next Bishop of Wolverhampton regrets part in non-canonical ordination". Church Times. Retrieved 16 October 2024.
  20. ^ "CDM Penalties imposed (under sections: 16 | 30 | 31)". Church of England. Retrieved 16 October 2024.
  21. ^ Tim Wambunya (12 October 2024). "From The Rt Revd Dr Tim Wambunya". Diocese of Lichfield. Retrieved 16 October 2024.
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