When does +Steven Sheffield become +Steven Oxon?

Last week we reported that No 10 had issued a Press Release which stated: “The Queen has approved the nomination of the Right Reverend Steven John Lindsey Croft, MA, PhD, Lord Bishop of Sheffield, in the Diocese of Sheffield for election as Bishop of Oxford in succession to the Right Reverend John Lawrence Pritchard, MA, MLitt, on his resignation on 31 October 2014,”  [emphasis added]. Although the Oxford diocese Press Release indicated “Bishop Steven expects to take up office in the early autumn”, at parish level those of a more legal frame of mind have asked the question “exactly when does +Steven Sheffield become +Steven Oxon:?” In July 2014, as a follow-up to Women in the episcopate: legislation and its adoption Peter Owen wrote a guest post Choosing diocesan bishops in the Church of England which summarizes the steps involved in the appointment of a diocesan bishop. Continue reading →