Church of Ireland members agree to slash the size of the general synod

A bill aiming to slash the number of people who sit on the General Synod of the Church of Ireland has been approved by a landslide.
By Adam Kula
Published 5th Oct 2021, 16:51 BST
Updated 5th Oct 2021, 20:34 BST
A stained-glass window in Orangefield CoI church, east BelfastA stained-glass window in Orangefield CoI church, east Belfast
A stained-glass window in Orangefield CoI church, east Belfast

The synod is akin to the church’s “parliament”, and is made up of bishops, clergy, and laity.

As reported last week, given the decline in the number of worshippers over the last several decades, a proposal was put forward to axe about 18% of the House of Representatives.

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This is one of the synod’s two main bodies – the House of Bishops being the other one.

The synod ran from last Thursday to Saturday.

The News Letter can now confirm that this bill did indeed pass, by a vote of 289 in favour and seven against.

A church source told the News Letter that this is believed to be the first such cut to synod numbers since the current system entered existence in 1870.

The number of members of the House of Representatives will remain at 648 until 2023, before a reduction to 597 members in a transitional period from 2024 to 2026 inclusive, and then finally dropping to 534 members during 2027-to-2032 inclusive.

A review of synod arrangements will take place in 2030.

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