Bishop-elect Announced for Te Hui Amorangi ki TeWaipounamu

Primatial Announcement: Bishop-elect Announced for Te Hui Amorangi ki Te Waipounamu

E tīororotia ana e ngā rangi te korōria o te Atua; e tītohutohutia ana e te kikorangi ngā mahi ā ōna ringa - Ps 19.1

Ka tīorooro ki te tihi o Aoraki mauka,
ka tīorooro ki ngā wai pounamu e rere noa ki ngā tai e whā,
ka tīorooro ki ngā ngākau hari o Te Hui Amorangi ki Te Waipounamu.

E rere nei ko te rongo pai a ngā Pīhopa Mātāmua o te Hāhi Mihinare ki Aotearoa, Niu Tireni me Te Moana nui a Kiwa kua kōwhiria he pīhopa hou ki Te Hui Amorangi ki Te Waipounamu.

It is with a heart of thanksgiving and praise that we announce the election of The Venerable Susan Wallace (Kai Tahu, Ngāti Whātua, Ngāti Wai) to be the new Bishop of Te Hui Amorangi ki Te Waipounamu.

Archdeacon Susan’s election is a moment of deep significance for Te Hui Amorangi ki Te Waipounamu, for Te Pīhopatanga o Aotearoa, and for the wider life of Te Hāhi Mihinare. Susan will become the first wahine Māori to serve as Pīhopa for Te Hui Amorangi ki Te Waipounamu, and only the second wahine Māori to serve as a Pīhopa in the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia.

All throughout the ages God has called women and men to serve in the Church. From those in the bible such as Deborah, prophet, judge and leader of Israel, to Phoebe, entrusted with ministry in the earliest Christian communities, the people of God have always been uplifted, empowered, and enhanced when the gifts of women are received with aroha, thanksgiving, and joy.

Archdeacon Susan brings to her new calling a lifetime of service to the Hāhi, iwi and her hāpori, where she has earned the love and trust of her people. Susan’s ministry has been shaped by more than forty years of lay leadership before her ordination as deacon in March 2024 and priest later that same year.

Since the passing of her beloved late father, Pīhopa Richard Wallace, in 2024, Susan has carried significant leadership responsibility for Te Hui Amorangi ki Te Waipounamu. As Commissary, she helped steady and guide the Hui Amorangi through a season of transition, preparing the way for the calling of a new Pīhopa, whether that calling would fall to her or to another. In this, she has shown humility and faithful stewardship.

Her election also stands within a wider legacy of women’s episcopal leadership in this Church and Communion, including The Right Reverend Penelope Jamieson, the first woman elected as a Diocesan Bishop in the Anglican Communion, and The Right Reverend Waitohiariki Quayle, the first wahine Māori to serve as Bishop in this Province.

We ask the whole Church to surround and uplift Susan in prayer, grace, aroha and unity. The calling of women to Episcopal Leadership is something we celebrate.

We give thanks for the Electoral College of Te Hui Amorangi ki Te Waipounamu, and for the care, prayer and discernment they brought to this sacred process.

The ordination and installation of Archdeacon Susan as Bishop is set for Saturday 6 June 2026 in Christchurch.

Yours in Christ,

Primate and Archbishop Don Tamihere,
Primate and Archbishop Sione Ulu’ilakepa and
Primate and Archbishop Justin Duckworth

Karakia

E te Atua Kaha Rawa,
e karanga nei i āu pononga ki te mahi ātaahua:
ka īnoi mātou mō Susan, kua karangatia nei ki te kāhui pīhopa,
he kuru pounamu wae ngā pounamu ora.
Whāngaia ki tāu Kupu ora, kia māia te kauhau;
whakatipuria i tāu tēpu tapu, kia māhorahora te tiaki;
ā, paiheretia tōu iwi mā āna mahi, he mea nā te Wairua:
kia hora te marino,
kia whakapapa pounamu te moana,
kia tere te kārohirohi i ngā huarahi e tere ai
me he waka kōtuia;
ko Ihu Karaiti hoki tō mātou Ariki,
e ora tahi ana, e kīngi tahi ana me koe,
i te kotahitanga o te Wairua Tapu,
kotahi anō Atua, āianei, ā, āke tonu atu. Āmine.

Almighty God,
who calls your servants to a beautiful work:
we pray for Susan, called to the office of a bishop.
Feed her with your living Word,
that she may proclaim it with boldness;
nourish her at your holy table,
that she may tend your flock with generous care;
and bind your people, by your Spirit,
through her ministry, in unity and peace;
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever. Amen.