General Synod Election Candidates 2026

Election of a Member of the House of Laity to represent Chichester Diocese in General Synod
Candidates Election Address 3 September 2026

Mark Gill
MBA BSc DIS CEng FICE MAPM

1 Vicarage Close
Seaford
East Sussex
BN25 1SQ

Birth: April 1960

[email protected]

07541541935

Sutton with Seaford Parish

Proposed by:
Martin Auton Lloyd
Chichester Diocese

Seconded by:
Michele Scott White
Chichester Diocese

Deanery

“If elected to General Synod, I
trust that God will enable me to
be meet the challenges of the
church today and for the future.
Thus, through prayer and
commitment, to learn more
about where God is leading his
Church, I hope to honour Him,
to serve on the Synod to
represent the Diocese of
Chichester for the glory of God
and His Kingdom. I will
advocate to share His inclusive
love for humanity and His
creation, to be good stewards
and to see the His Kingdom
grow through ministry and
mission”.

Grace and Peace in Jesus name!

If elected to the General Synod, I will continue to practice faithful discipleship for
effective mission, considered stewardship of creation with constructive engagement
within our diverse church traditions. I will apply myself prayerfully to bring both my local
parish and international experience to my potential time in the General Synod.

While serving in Mission and living overseas for 35 years in Nepal, Albania and Pakistan, I
have learned the joy of diversity in different church traditions; in observing different
faiths, in seeing God’s inclusive love for everyone. Thus, like Paul, I have learned to be
content in knowing God is with me and seeks only good for His creation, for He is Love.
This is summed up I believe in Prov. 22:2 which was part of my call to Mission vocation.
“The rich and poor have this in common, the Lord is maker of them all”.
Being a Hydropower Engineer, I have interest in ‘green’ issues which include social and
community impact. Trends develop such as sustainability, climate change, carbon
reduction, net zero: new understandings are developing such as net gain and nature-
positive – and so we come back to God’s creation and His charge to be good stewards of
His garden! However, we still have the poor with us, disasters to reach out to, wars to
bring peace to and the issues of today to deal with.
Returning from long term overseas Mission service in 2013, I started a new job in an
engineering consultancy in Brighton. I am a Chartered Engineer, working for most of my
career in Hydro Electricity Projects, most recently in Pakistan where I led projects worth
up to $1.2B. I am a Fellow of the Institution of Civil Engineers.
Now, I am semi-retired and seeking to explore more Kingdom building through further
ministry and mission; maybe through this opportunity if elected to serve on the General
Synod.
I believe my professional career has been planned for me by my Heavenly Father, as he
guided me towards mission service with Church Mission Society. After my first tour in
1983, I was to speak at a CMS enquirer’s weekend for others interested in mission. Alison
Richardson was also attending to speak on her experience in Iran. Alison was preparing
with CMS for mission service in Sierra Leone as a Midwife, but God had it all lined up: we
married and went to Nepal - together!
We were seconded to the United Mission to Nepal where we lived, witnessed and
worked building hydropower projects in remote areas. When there, we saw the Holy
Spirit work: hearts were changed, churches formed and the Kingdom, growing. Some
people call this ‘Business as Mission’ – just as Paul was a tentmaker. Our ‘tent making’
allowed us to move around the country to new projects, talking to people, building
relationships and seeing their hearts and lives change. We were thankful to see the
Kingdom grow until we left in 2013 – a first generation church established in Nepal; it
was just like the Acts of the Apostles! Being fluent in Nepali, I led, taught and preached in
our growing fellowships, saw signs and wonders in people’s lives and in whole
communities. Like Paul and the early disciples, we had our challenges and low times, but
grateful to know God was with us.

Our two ‘mishkids’ were born and grew up in Nepal: for me, I was glad they had that upbringing, very different from my own
in the ‘troubles’ of N. Ireland. My son has also served with Mission Aviation Fellowship in Australia and South Sudan.
Throughout our mission service in Nepal, we lived in relatively basic conditions, close to nature and the environment. We
learned about sustainability and climate effects before they became popular here in the ‘10-40 window’. I have learned
about Kingdom investment and the hope that we have in our Lord Jesus Christ and His great love for His creation.
Being in Nepal further developed my interest in bird life and with engineering geometry in my
learning, some of my spare time is in drawing Celtic knotwork.
Growing up in Northern Ireland, in the Church of Ireland, I have always been a church attender
from being in the boys’ choir to serving as Church Warden and leading, helping with, serving on
various church related organisations. My faith is rooted through the grace of our Lord Jesus
Christ and His love. Now back in UK, I continue to see green shoots and branches of faith.
Currently, I worship in the Parish of Sutton with Seaford, Chichester Diocese, with its two churches: St Leonard’s and
St Luke’s. Since returning home I have the privilege of coordinating the re-ordering of some extension work to our
950 year old church which is substantially complete. I continue to be an active member, also serving on the PCC,
Deanery and Diocesan Synods and the Overseas Council.
I am thankful for the opportunities I have had in life and for the grace, mercy and forgiveness from our Lord Jesus:
for the theological training at CMS Crowther Hall and Belfast Bible College, for seeing the Kingdom establish as a first
generation church in Nepal, for Mission opportunities to engage in different sectors, in addition to engineering, such
as hospital development and management, school governance, vocational training and teaching MA Organisational
Leadership and Management to Christian leaders in Nepal, India, Uganda and Burundi. All by God’s grace.
I am told that there is a lot of reading to do for General Synod, if elected and as I read preparation papers, it will be
in prayer with reflection and reference to Scripture and comprehension of the issues to discern and seek God’s will.
I humbly submit my candidacy for your prayerful consideration.
Grace and Peace through our Lord Jesus.
Mark Gill

church mission society,climate change,disciples,discipleship,environment,inclusive,mission,net zero,pcc,prayer,scripture,stewardship,vicarage