Former Ballarat Anglican bishop to become Catholic

A FORMER Ballarat Anglican Bishop who plans to join the Catholic Church is free to do as he chooses, the Ballarat Anglican diocese has said.Bishop David Silk, who stepped down as Bishop of Ballarat in 2003, is one of five Anglican bishops who announced this week they intended to convert to Catholicism at the end of this year.They will seek to join an English Ordinariate of the Catholic Church when it is set up.In a statement released yesterday, Ballarat Anglican diocese Vicar General Bishop Philip Huggins said Bishop Silk would be remembered for his significant contribution as a former Bishop of Ballarat."Bishop Silk is free to do as he chooses in his retirement," Bishop Huggins said. "The diocese assures Bishop David and his wife Joyce of its prayers and good wishes for their health and well-being in the future."He said Bishop Silk's many skills and his hard work were remembered with gratitude. Bishop Silk took over from Bishop John Hazlewood as head of the Ballarat Anglican Diocese in 1994.He served in the role for nine years, before he was succeeded by Bishop Michael Hough. At the time of the announcement he was the honorary Bishop of Exeter in the United Kingdom. In March this year, Bishop Silk concelebrated the diocese Chrism Mass at the Ballarat Anglican Cathedral. The five Bishops said in a joint-statement they were distressed by developments in Anglicanism which they believed to be "incompatible with the historic vocation of Anglicanism and the tradition of the Church for nearly 2000 years". "We have now reached the point, however, where we must formally declare our position and invite others who share it to join us on our journey." They said they would resign from all Church of England pastoral responsibilities at the end of the year.