Assistant Bishop for Ideality

We are looking for someone who wants to harness the potential of engaged church members for the future church.

At the Härnösand diocese's chancery, we work for the best of the parishes. We are a welcoming and recruiting pilgrimage diocese, preparing for the church we want to see in the future. The diocese is now embarking on a major initiative focused on engaged church members to adapt for the future and shape the church we want to see.

Are you a priest who wants to help shape the future church? We are starting a process to engage in dialogue with the diocese's elected representatives, employees, and volunteers to discuss and educate ourselves to meet the challenges we already face as a rural diocese. Here, you will work with an engaged chancery to plan, organize, and implement a five-year initiative aimed at strengthening the church and the diocese.

The position we are looking for is located in the unit of faith and life, which currently has 13 employees with various roles in promoting worship, education, diaconia, and mission. This includes areas such as recruitment, worship development, church music, baptism and confirmation, Sami church life, pilgrimage, institutional pastoral care, spiritual care, the Church of Sweden's youth, and ideality.

Job Responsibilities

As an assistant bishop for ideality, you will contribute to developing a theological and practical approach to vocation – the calling as a foundation for community and volunteer engagement – inspired by the Church of England's work in this area. Here, vocation is understood as something that applies to all baptized individuals, and volunteer engagement as a place for spiritual growth and meaning.

The assignment involves working together with a colleague to:

• Develop methods, timelines, and plans for dialogue and training for all elected representatives and employees in the diocese, with a particular focus on training parish councils to build congregations based on local conditions with vocation as the foundation.
• Conduct dialogues and training for all elected representatives and employees in the diocese, using the Church of England's understanding of vocation as a starting point.
• Develop methods, timelines, and plans for an initiative aimed at strengthening congregations' ability to harness the power and engagement of volunteers – not just as practical help, but as an expression of people's calling.
• Perform other tasks that may arise within the unit and the chancery as needed.

Qualifications

We are looking for an ordained priest with good experience of parish life within the Church of Sweden. You should have experience taking ideas from concept to implementation. You possess strong pedagogical skills, and good ability to express yourself in both oral and written communication, as well as good collaboration skills.

Requirements

• Ordained as a priest within the Church of Sweden
• At least three years of experience serving in a parish or pastorate within the Church of Sweden
• Driver's license (B)
• Member of the Church of Sweden

Meritorious

• Experience working with ideality

We also want you to identify with the core values of the chancery:

• Integrity – We are objective, factual, and consistent
• Engagement – We are interested, curious, and supportive
• Learning – We are open, developing, and responsible

Working Hours/Place of Employment:

The position is a permanent full-time employment located at the chancery in Härnösand. Start date according to agreement. The main working hours are daytime, Monday to Friday. We apply a local collective agreement on annual working hours with a time bank, as well as time off on bridging days and half days before public holidays. Travel may occur in the job, sometimes requiring overnight stays. Time spent traveling for work counts as working hours.

Härnösand Diocese Offers

We offer you a pleasant environment centrally located in Härnösand. We care about your professional development and encourage various forms of skills development. As an employee of the Church of Sweden, you receive a pension plan. We also offer benefits such as an annual wellness allowance, one hour of wellness per week, and access to occupational health services.

Contact Persons

For more information about the position, please contact:

Unit Manager Göran Lundstedt tel.: 0611-254 14 or email: [email protected].

Selection and interviews for the position are planned around weeks 2-3 of 2026.