The Church in Wales has announced that the Very Revd Dr Manon Ceridwen James has been elected as the 82nd Bishop of Bangor.
The election took place at Holy Trinity Church, Llandudno, during a meeting of the Electoral College on 16 June. The vacancy arose following the retirement of the Right Reverend Andrew John in August 2025. The Electoral College, comprising 45 clergy and lay representatives from across the Church in Wales, alongside the diocesan bishops, met to select his successor.
Dr James currently serves as Dean of Bangor Cathedral, where she has spent the past year addressing a number of challenging governance and finance issues.
Originally from Nefyn on the Llŷn Peninsula, Dr James was ordained deacon in Bangor Cathedral in 1994 before becoming one of the first women to be ordained priest in the Diocese of Bangor in 1997.
She has served as a parish priest in both the Bangor and St Asaph dioceses and has held a variety of diocesan roles in training, education and vocations, most recently serving as Director of Ministry.
From 2018 until 2025, Dr James was Dean for Initial Ministerial Training at St Padarn’s Institute in Cardiff.
She holds a degree in Theology from the University of Cambridge and a PhD in Practical Theology from the University of Birmingham. Her publications include Women, Identity and Religion in Wales, based on her doctoral research, as well as a poetry collection, Notes from a Eucharistic Life. Several of her school assemblies have also been published by SPCK.
Away from her ministry, Dr James enjoys writing poetry, attending Wales and Wrexham football matches, and comedy events with her husband, Dylan, who is Group Financial Controller at Bangor University.
Upon reaching the required two-thirds majority vote, the announcement was made at the doors of Holy Trinity Church, confirming Dr James as the bishop-elect to lead the Diocese of Bangor. The diocese stretches from Ynys Môn to the Llŷn Peninsula and is rooted in a long tradition of pilgrimage and prayer.
Archbishop of Wales, Cherry Vann, said: “Manon is well-known to the people of the diocese and she will be a huge asset to the diocese and the Province and the Bench of Bishops. We are delighted at her election and wish her every blessing as she steps into this ministry.”
Following the election, the bishop-elect has up to 28 days to formally accept the position. If accepted, the election will be formally ratified at a meeting of the bishops in sacred synod before her consecration and enthronement take place.
Photo: The Very Revd Dr Manon Ceridwen James (Credit: Church of Wales)
