General Synod Election Candidates 2026

Revd Canon Dr Christian Selvaratnam
Proposed: Revd Kathryn Jackson, St Mary, Haxby and Wigginton
Seconded: Revd Matt Woodcock, St Stephen, Acomb

I hope you will re-elect me as one of your clergy
representatives for the Diocese of York on General Synod.
I have served previously from 2010 to 2015 and 2020 to 2026. During my time, I have
been on the Ministry Division Pioneer Panel, the Ordained Vocations Working Group, the
Vision and Strategy 2020s Working Group, and been an ‘Assessor’ supporting the
Northern Prolocutor to manage the interests of clergy who represent northern dioceses.
Last year, I worked with others on the motion to repeal the document ‘Issues in Human
Sexuality’ as part of the Living in Love and Faith discussions. This year, I helped gather and
represent the views of global heritage members of Synod. I was a General Synod member
on the Crown Nominations Commission to appoint the Bishop of Leeds in 2026.
About me
I was born in London in 1968. I grew up in Hull and I have lived in York for the last twenty-
six years. My wife, Amanda, works at York St John University. Amanda and I have been
married for thirty years and we have three grown-up children.
I studied Mathematics at the University of Warwick where I became a Christian through
the witness of friends. My first job was as a Church of England verger in Coventry, a
serving role that has defined my approach to ministry. Before ordination I served for a
decade as a free church minister and I was also the National Director of Alpha UK.
Ordained ministry
I was ordained nineteen years ago in the Diocese of York, after training at Cranmer Hall,
and have served in various churches in this diocese and the Diocese of Leeds. I am
currently the Dean of Church Planting at St Hild College where I train Anglican ordinands
and Baptist ministers-in-training, and deliver other programmes that support the
dioceses of the North and the Church of England nationally.
I am an honorary Canon at Manchester Cathedral, a Fellow at St John’s, Durham
University and an Adjunct Professor at Asbury Theological Seminary. This last role keeps
me connected to the global church through teaching opportunities in Europe and North
America, and with students from the Global South.
In the Diocese of York, I am the SSM Associate Minister at St Stephen, Acomb in York,
which is the parish where I live. I also volunteer as a member of the Diocese of York Racial
Justice and Intercultural Ministry Task Group and as an elected member of the York
Archbishop’s Council.
I love the Diocese of York and the Church of England and have great hopes for our future,
though some of the challenges we face are significant. I would love the opportunity to
keep using my skills, experience and wider connections in General Synod to make a
positive contribution as a representative of our diocese.

My priorities
The Church of England and the Diocese of York face some big decisions over the next few
years, and I believe the choices we make now will shape our future for a long time to come.
Here are a few of my particular priorities and areas of interest.
Flourishing parishes
The Church of England is, at heart, a collection of parishes. Almost everything we hope for
nationally happens when local parishes are doing well. So, our national and diocesan
decisions should be tested against a simple question: does this help parishes flourish?
Clergy care
Clergy are vital to the Church's future, yet too often overworked and under-supported. I see
it in the ordinands I train and the clergy I mentor. I want us to be kind to our ordained
leaders, cut away needless complexity, and give them what they need to flourish. I would
keep bringing what I hear into Synod's decisions.
Growth of the church
Helping the church grow and become more effective in mission is part of my calling. Over
fourteen years leading one local church, I saw several hundred people come to faith, and
sixteen from that congregation have gone into ordained ministry. Ministry is a jigsaw: I hold
some pieces, you hold others, and together we can see the fuller picture.
Race, diversity and intercultural church
I am proud of my heritage — a white-English mother, a Sri Lankan father — which shapes
how I see racial justice and our increasingly multicultural society. Intercultural church is an
emerging diocesan priority and will be a key national question: what it means to be a parish
church for the full diversity of people we serve, across ethnicity, class, wealth and political
difference. I want other UKME and GMH clergy and laity to see someone like them serving
nationally, and to know they have a place in the Church.
Human sexuality
Human sexuality will remain one of Synod's big discussions over the next five years. Finding
a way forward for the whole Church of England will take grace, wisdom, diplomacy and a
great deal of listening. I have worked behind the scenes to build the friendships and trust
across difference that good decisions depend on, and I will keep listening to those on every
side, including those who find this painful.
Safeguarding
The next Synod will complete major safeguarding scrutiny reforms and pass the law that
sets up a new independent safeguarding body, along with the detail needed to make it
work. The Church is safer than it was, but not yet where it needs to be. I want oversight that
is genuinely external and objective but retaining safeguarding leadership close to the
ground. Doing this well is how we begin to earn back the trust of survivors and the public.
Get in touch
If you have any questions about my views, or about why I’m asking for your vote, please
don’t hesitate to get in touch at [email protected]. And do tell me about
the concerns and interests you would like represented at General Synod.

archbishop,baptist,church planting,crown nominations,crown nominations commission,dioceses,free church,global south,human sexuality,independent safeguarding,justice,living in love and faith,mission,ordinands,ordination,racial justice,safeguarding,sexuality,survivors,vocations,witness