General Synod Election Candidates 2026

General Synod Statement
I am standing for election to General Synod because I believe passionately in the priority of
building up the Kingdom of God and the truth of the Gospel revealed to us by our Lord and
Saviour Jesus Christ and manifested in His Church through Word and Sacrament.

I am a Priest in North Manchester having been ordained now for over twenty years, during
this time I have served in parochial ministry in Oldham, Salford, Southport and North
Manchester (my current parishes are Failsworth, Lightbowne and Blackley). These parishes
are diverse and multi-cultural which helps to shape a wider worldview, not just of place but
the whole Anglican Communion of its present and its future as being lived out in the Diocese
of Manchester. The parishes keep me grounded and enable me to have a very open
understanding of not just the parochial settings they are in but the challenges and
opportunities faced by our communities and the context they are in. We are blessed by and
encouraged by our strong youth work, and this keeps us in tune with the future leaders of the
church.
However this is never at the expense of those more senior in our congregations and the care
of the elderly is paramount as each and every one of us is precious to Almighty God and we
benefit greatly from their wisdom and their experience.

My parishes are committed to the Eco life within our Diocese, one of the parishes is a Silver
Award holder, and the other two are well on their way to Bronze. The importance of being a
church that engages with ecology and the immediate actions that we need to take is
something, which the parishes and I engage with on a serious level. We are very much part
of being an Eco Church and have created two very important green spaces which are having
a positive impact on the local eco system.

Although having sojourned outside the diocese for one post it was great to be able to return
to Manchester where I have always felt at home, the cultural diversity and the excitement
around this wonderful place really engages me and I thank the Lord for being able to serve
in such a place. I am whole-heartedly at the centre of my being Jesus centred and
committed to the service of the servants of God. I am rooted in the Catholic tradition as lived
out in the Church of England. I am really heartened to have been nominated by Archdeacon
Karen Best and Canon Helen Scanlan.

I also serve the diocese as an Honorary Canon of Manchester Cathedral as well as being a
member of various bodies such as the Diocesan Synod, Racial Justice Board, DMPC, DAC
(of which I am Chair) and the Council for Social Aid. I am also a Mission Community Leader
in the Deanery of Manchester North and East.
I do want to note the Racial Justice Board involvement, because I do believe that at this
moment in our nation there is still a very wide gap on this very pertinent matter. I believe
very strongly that the Church should be at the forefront of this matter for all people and that
undeniably there is one race, the human race and so therefore any imbalance in this is
totally wrong and we as a church must call this out and promote the equality of race and
gender, all are one in Christ.
I am also a Vocations Advisor and Examining Chaplain and value greatly the opportunity to
walk alongside those discovering what the Lord is calling them to in the life of the church.
I am also a School Governor at two church schools as well as being on the board of a faith
academy school, the richness and strength of our diocesan schools are such a key factor in
helping us be a church for a different world and in the priority of Growing younger in our
Diocese.

In the life of the Church at this moment in time we live through challenging times, each
generation finds that there will be issues, which they have to engage with, and we live
through no different circumstances.

Before the birth of Jesus the world was known as Before Christ, then after his birth becomes
After Christ (Year of Our Lord) but as Christians we do not live before or after him, we live
with him and through him. Our own words and examples will present him to the world, that is
how we will be seen, the optics are crucial if we are to attract others to know and love him.
To quote Stuart Blanch (former Archbishop of York)
‘Politics is too important to leave to the politicians’- the church must be in every area of life
and helping to build communities in harmony particularly at a multi-cultural engagement level
with people who choose to make their home here through being economic migrants or
through seeking asylum due to terror.

Through good governance and healthy conversation, which leads to debate, we have to as
Anglicans I believe find a Via Media, which is one of the hallmarks of classical Anglicanism.
It is a way forward that will, I believe, enable us all in a way that makes room for a
divergence of opinions all under him who is the way, the truth and the life. Through genuine
Caritas, one for another, we will I feel be able to grow and be a blessing to the life of God’s
Church on earth and in heaven and especially to our nation as a national church and the
wider Anglican Communion.

Undoubtedly, for the life of General Synod and the Church of England Same Sex marriage
will continue to feature highly on Synod’s agenda.
I am totally committed to listening and making my mind up in due course with a hope and
desire, given the diversity, which is clearly in existence in the Church. It is at this moment in
time impossible to square up a circle and so I am committed to the highest degree of
communion between us all. I would be happy to speak with any of the electorate to elucidate
this in conversation. The difficulty and strain for the unity of the Church of England is of
tantamount importance and it is important to find a way that everybody can stay within the
life of the Church of England.

There is no doubt that sometimes we all feel the strain and stress of the dynamics we find
ourselves in as serving clergy, whether stipendiary, SSM, chaplaincies or other aspects of
ministry that we live through, most keenly felt through the way in which resources are not as
they once were.
That said we still have the joy of the Gospel. If we focus on this as our core and we must not
lose sight of that, when we might experience our Emmaus moments of walking away it is
crucial to hold onto that joy, that ember. The crucial thing about that road to Emmaus is that
it goes both ways and the way back is by following Christ and discovering that joy when our
hearts are set on fire by him through the revealing of scriptures and the breaking of bread.

As a member of General Synod, I would be faithful and loyal to you and the needs you would
wish me to act upon as a way forward for the furtherance of the Kingdom of God. I would be
a servant that looks forward and walks with Jesus. I would do my utmost to fully engage and
play a full part across the life of our Diocese and the Church of England. I believe whole-
heartedly in the joy of the Gospel and especially in the uniqueness of our diocese and the
people of God found in Manchester and I hope that I reflect that in the person that God is
calling me to be.

Paul Hutchins.

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