Bishop Ronald Milner marks 70 years of ordained ministry in the Church of England on Sunday 4 June 2023.
Ordained deacon in June 1953 and priest in 1954, Ronald served his curacy in Sheffield Cathedral. In 1958 he moved to Coventry diocese to be Vicar of Westwood St John the Baptist before moving to Fletchamstead St James in 1964. While in Coventry, Ronald witnessed the rebuilding and consecration of the new cathedral in 1962.
In 1970, Ronald moved south to Winchester diocese as Team Rector in a new Team Ministry in the city centre. He became Archdeacon of Lincoln in 1983 and was consecrated Bishop of Burnley in the Blackburn diocese in 1988.
Ronald and his late wife Audrey retired to Southwell in 1993 to begin a new sphere of ministry. Ronald as Honorary Assistant Bishop in the diocese of Southwell and Nottingham, and both were involved in Southwell Minster, especially campaigning for issues of world debt, poverty, fairtrade and the environment. Audrey died in 2017.
Ronald publishes his memoire to coincide with his platinum anniversary, Time’s Wingèd Chariot: A backward glance through Ninety Years. Recalling his growing up years in bomb-shattered Hull, university in Cambridge, further studies in Oxford, pioneering ministry in the industrial settings of Sheffield and Coventry, the busy port of Southampton, the rural fens of Lincolnshire and later working in the Urban Priority Areas of east Lancashire, Ronald’s love of people and God shines through.
Bishop Ronald will be joined by family, friends and representatives from every stage of his ministry on Trinity Sunday, 4 June, in the Cathedral Eucharist at 10am, surrounded by the Minster community who have been enriched by his friendship and faith over the last 30 years.
The Very Revd Nicola Sullivan, Dean of Southwell, said: ‘The Minster community is thankful to God for Bishop Ronald’s ministry, friendship, and prayers over the 30 years since his retirement to Southwell. Sunday will be a joyful celebration with a truly remarkable pastor and Bishop.”
