Bathurst Bishop’s Newsletter — August 2026

Read the latest from the Diocese of Bathurst in The Bishop’s Newsletter for August 2026 – including –

“We give great thanks to God for the upcoming ordinations and commissioning on 22 August at 11am. …

Bishop Mark’s final service: A service of Praise, Prayer and Proclamation, 1.30pm, Sat 19 Sept at All Saints Cathedral. All welcome.

At the conclusion of the service, Bishop Mark will officially lay up his pastoral staff and his time as bishop will conclude.

The bishop’s election board recently reported: ‘We have met several times, and we believe, under God’s hand, that we have identified a number of suitable candidates. We appreciate your continued prayers for wisdom and discernment’…”

And from Bishop Mark Calder –

“Dear friends,

Four years ago last month, we launched Sharing Jesus for Life. It was never intended to be just another diocesan slogan or a strategic document that sat on a shelf. It was, and remains, a reminder of why we exist as churches: to share the Lord Jesus so that people might find life in him. …”

– Please be encouraged to download the newsletter and use it in your prayers, particularly in this coming time of transition for the diocese, for the eternal welfare of men and women, boys and girls, across this huge region of New South Wales.

Ordinations for Bathurst Diocese announced for 22 August

From the Diocese of Bathurst –

“Bishop Mark [Calder] has announced today that, God willing, five people will be ordained at All Saints’ Cathedral, Bathurst, on Saturday 22 August at 11am.

Robert Yemm, Xanthe Yemm and Justin Baker will be made Deacons,
and Robbie Nichols and Jim Kapetangiannis will be ordained Priests.

Please join us in thanking God for each of them and praying that the Lord will strengthen and sustain them as they prepare for this significant step in their ministry.

(Steve Cimarosti will be commissioned as Archdeacon in this service.)”

–Source, Bathurst Diocese Facebook page.

Three key positions for your prayers

For your prayers – three strategic positions to be filled in the not-too-distant future –

• As readers of our website will know, Dr Mark Thompson, Principal of Moore Theological College, will retire at the end of 2027.

• Bishop Mark Calder, Bishop of the Diocese of Bathurst, is concluding his term as Bishop on 19 September 2026. (Bishop’s Election Board.)

• And in the Presbyterian world, Dr Ian Smith, Principal of Christ College (the NSW Presbyterian theological college, at Burwood) will also retire at the end of 2027. (Applications.)

Please do uphold these men in your prayers, and pray for the bodies responsible for finding their successors, so that Christ is honoured, so that churches are strengthened, and so that many hear and believe the gospel, are saved, and grow as disciples.

 

Bathurst Diocese Bishop’s Newsletter June 2026

The latest Bishop’s Newsletter from the Diocese of Bathurst has been published. PDF file at this link.

Among other important topics is this request – “Please pray for great wisdom and the Lord’s guidance for the Bishop’s Election Board.” (Bishop Mark Calder retires on 19th September.)

In this newsletter, Bishop Calder writes,

“It’s been a joy and privilege to preach through Romans these past weeks; something I’ve not done before. It quickly became clear to me that Romans is not simply a detailed theological document. It is a deeply pastoral letter, written to ordinary Christians learning what it means to live in the King’s kingdom.

Again and again, Paul takes us back to the gospel: our universal sinfulness, God’s astonishing grace, justification by faith, peace with God, life in the Spirit, and the certain hope of future glory. Yet Romans never leaves these truths in the realm of theory. The gospel transforms how we think, how we worship, how we suffer, how we relate to governing authorities, how we love one another, and how we live together as God’s people.

I soon realised how determined Paul is to remove every ground for boasting in ourselves. We cannot boast in law-keeping, our religious background, or any effort to make ourselves right with God. Instead, we are reminded again and again that it is only through Jesus’ sacrifice that we are declared right with God. If we are to boast at all, we boast in the Lord.

Romans also reminds us that God’s saving purposes are far bigger than we often imagine. Through Christ, God is creating one people from many peoples, united not by background, culture, tradition, or personal preference, but by faith in his Son. We are to serve one another in humility and love our enemies generously.

My prayer is that this series has helped us to more clearly see the greatness of Jesus and what he has done for us, that we might with one mind and one voice, glorify him.”

Also on the diocesan website, and for your prayers and consideration, there’s a reminder of this parishes which are seeking leaders –

St Barnabas’ Orange East at 100

The parish of St Barnabas’ Orange East celebrated the centenary of the parish and Christian ministry in this key central west city on Sunday.

Photo: Cutting the celebration cake. The Rev’d Bob Cameron, immediate past Rector, Bishop the Rt Rev’d Mark Calder, and the Rev’d Ben Mackay, current Rector.

Via the Bathurst Diocese Facebook page.

No condemnation No separation — Romans chapter 8

Bishop of Bathurst Mark Calder is continuing his series on Romans – this week he is up to chapter 8.

See the full series here.

Help for Nyngan?

From the Diocese of Bathurst Facebook page:

“Friends, Nyngan currently has no Sunday services, as they have no clergy and no licenced lay minister. We struggle to know how to help such churches. Would you be up for a chat about helping?”

A matter for prayer.

Peace with God

At Moore College chapel on Friday, Mark Calder, Bishop of the Diocese of Bathurst, preached from Romans 5:1-11.

– Good to hear and great to share.

Changes in Bathurst Diocese

Today, the Rev Ben Mackay will be commissioned as Rector of St. Barnabas Orange East. Please uphold him and Bron and their family in your prayers – as well as Bob and Fiona Cameron, who served at East Orange from 2017.

– via the Diocesan Facebook page.

Also, The Western Advocate has published a story on the upcoming retirement of Bishop Mark Calder. It’s a great reminder to pray for Mark and Susan and also for the election of the next Bishop of Bathurst.

– via the Diocesan Facebook page.

Bathurst Diocese newsletter — Easter 2026

The Easter 2026 Bishop’s Newsletter from the Diocese of Bathurst is now available for your interest – and for your prayers.

– PDF file at this link.

Three Reflections for Good Friday – from Bishop Mark Calder

Three Reflections for Good Friday – from Bishop of Bathurst Mark Calder – on

1. The courtroom scene: Romans 3:21–26

2. The cross scene: 1 Peter 2:21–24

3. The heart of God scene: 1 John 4:9–11.

– Watch here.

Prayers requested for the Bathurst Bishop’s Election Board

Bishop of Bathurst Mark Calder – as foreshadowed late last year – will be retiring from that role in six months,

Today he submitted his letter of resignation, effective 19 September 2026, to the Metropolitan, Archbishop Kanishka Raffel.

He also wrote to members of the Diocese,

“This marks the beginning of an important time for the Diocese. Please pray for the Bishop’s Election Board as their work now begins in earnest.

Clergy: Andrew Thornhill (Chair), Tim St Quintin, Phil Howes, Andy Martin, James Boardman, Bob Cameron.

Lay people: Jane Francis, Mark Galbraith, Ray Haigh, Lisa Milton, Sandy White, Eliot Harper.

It has been a great joy and privilege to serve as your Bishop. I will continue in this role over the coming six months and would value your prayers that this may be a time of wise preparation for the next chapter in the life of the Diocese.

Thank you for your support and encouragement over these years.”

– As he requests, please continue to pray for Bishop Calder in these next six months, for continued strength and encouragement and wisdom – for the Bishop’s Election Board and all involved in one way or another in choosing the next Bishop of Bathurst.

Pray that the Lord will be glorified in all this, that the churches of the Bathurst Diocese will be strengthened, and that many in the region will come to know Christ in the days and years ahead.

Bishop of Bathurst’s Newsletter for Lent 2026

The latest Bishop’s Newsletter from the Diocese of Bathurst – for Lent 2026 – is now available.

Please be encouraged to download and read – to inform your prayers!

No such thing as an ordinary ordination!

Tara Sing reports on this morning’s ordinations at St. Andrew’s Cathedral.

“In some ways, this year’s ordination was delightfully routine. It was another very warm February morning, there were a bunch of eager (and slightly nervous) ordinands preparing to make lifelong promises to the Lord, and the pews were, once again, filled to the brim with family, friends and church communities ready to pray with them and cheer them on.

However, there is nothing ordinary or mundane about an ordination ceremony! …

This year’s ordination also saw the Rev Robert Nichols ordained for ministry into a diocese outside of Sydney. The Bishop of Bathurst, Mark Calder, also stood alongside Sydney’s Archbishop and bishops to lay hands and pray for the new deacon.

‘He will be serving in the parish of Cudal-Molong,’ said Mr Calder. …”

– See the full post at SydneyAnglicans.net.

Photos thanks to the Diocese of Bathurst.

Bathurst Diocese newsletter Summer 2026

The Newsletter of the Diocese of Bathurst is now available on their website.

It includes this letter from Bishop Mark Calder:

“Dear friends,

For many Australians, summer is a season of gathering – time with family, perhaps a few days away by the coast, a change of pace from the year just past. And yet, we know that this year summer has been anything but restful for so many across our nation.

Some communities have been living with the fear and disruption of bushfires; others have endured the devastation of flooding. The long work of recovery has begun.

Closer to home, across our own Diocese—and particularly in the west—summer has brought a different but no less heavy burden. The lack of rain is becoming acute. Dams are drying, stock numbers are being reduced, and the uncertainty of what lies ahead weighs heavily on farmers and their families. For many, summer has been a time of anxiety, watching the skies and refreshing the weather apps, hoping for relief.

As God’s people, we are invited to bring all of this before him. Please pray that, in his mercy, God would send good, soaking, refreshing rain in the right measure. Pray too for those facing the slow grind of drought—that they would be given strength, patience and grace to keep trusting God through circumstances that often feel overwhelming.

Across our Diocese, I trust that we will commit ourselves this new year to loving and serving one another in practical and generous ways. As we draw near to God together, may we keep turning up for one another—encouraging, supporting and spurring each other on in love and good works—so that we may continue Sharing Jesus for Life.

With every blessing,

Mark

Bishop Mark Calder.”

The newsletter includes important prayer requests, notably to –

“pray for the bishop’s election board as they prepare to begin in earnest on 19 March”.

At 1:00pm on Saturday 19th September, there will be a Service at All Saints Cathedral in Bathurst for the end of Bishop Mark’s episcopacy.

Please pray for Mark in the coming months before his retirement, and pray that the Lord may lead the Bishop’s Election Board to the right man to continue the work of building up the Churches in the Diocese of Bathurst.

A additional reminder for prayer:

“Pray for our parishes without clergy – that the Lord raise up clergy to love and serve our people:

1. Bourke / Brewarrina
2. Coonamble
3. Warren
4. Cumnock
5. Trundle
6. Condobolin
7. Coonabarabran
8. Wellington
9. West Wyalong
Including these with resident lay ministers for whom we are very thankful:
10. Nyngan
11. Coolah–Dunedoo.”

– Download the Summer 2026 Newsletter here (direct link to PDF) or via this page.

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