Council recommends Secretary's re-invitation
26 March 2025
The Connexional Council is recommending to the Methodist Conference that the appointment of the Revd Dr Jonathan R Hustler as Secretary of the Conference be extended for a period of five years from 1 September 2026.
The role is one of the most senior positions of Church leadership in Methodism, alongside the roles of President and Vice-President of the Conference. Dr Hustler took up the position in June 2019.
Dr Hustler said: “‘It has been a privilege to serve the Conference as its Secretary for the past six years; it has been a time of challenge and transformation in society and in the Church, in ways that no one would have anticipated in 2019. I am humbled that the Connexional Council has asked me to continue in this role and look forward to working with the Presidency, the Connexional Council, the Chairs and Warden, my dedicated colleagues in the Connexional Team, and many, many others as we face whatever the next few years hold for us.”
The Revd Dr Sonia Hicks, Chair of the Connexional Council said: “In recommending the re-invitation of Dr. Hustler, the Council recognises that the Methodist Church has been well served by his gentle and intelligent presence in the Conference office. We thank God for his pastoral spirit which informs the work he carries out allowing the Methodist people to be confident in their decision-making.”
Notes to editors:
Dr Hustler trained for the Methodist ministry at Wesley House Cambridge from 1987-90 and spent a year prior to his first station at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome. His widespread experience of ministry has been gained through serving in a variety of places and roles across the country over the past 34 years including time spent in circuit ministry and as a superintendent.
He was appointed to the role of Assistant Secretary of the Conference in June 2017; took over as Secretary of the Conference in June 2019 on an interim basis and was appointed to the role from September 2020. Throughout his ministry, he has maintained a rigorous approach to scholarship, reading for his PhD while a circuit minister.
From 2011-14 he served as Vice-Principal of Wesley House, Cambridge, and from 2014 to 2017 was Ministerial Co-ordinator for the Oversight of Ordained Ministries in the Methodist Connexional Team.
The Connexional Council is the trustee body of the Methodist Church and undertakes ongoing work on behalf of the Methodist Conference.
The Methodist Conference will take place in Telford from June 26 to July 3 2025.