Oversight

In The Order of Mission Visitors are appointed to see that TOM is faithful to its calling and to seek to ensure that the Order is soundly led and accountable to the wider church. Visitors are not TOM members and at least one Visitor is always someone who is serving as a Bishop in the Church of England.

Senior Visitor

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Bishop Ric Thorpe is our current Senior Visitor. Ric was appointed as Bishop of Islington in 2015 to oversee the Diocese of London’s church planting and church growth work. He also serves the Church of England nationally, supporting bishops, dioceses, church planters and pioneers, to develop church planting strategies and to plant new worshipping communities to reach new people in new places in new ways. He is the director of the Gregory Centre for Church Multiplication which offers church growth and church planting training and support for the full breadth of the church. Ric is chair of the Fresh Expressions Charity and the Gratitude Initiative and is an assistant bishop in Southwark Diocese. He has a doctorate in church planting from Asbury Theological Seminary and is a tutor in church planting at St Mellitus College, London.

Regional Visitors

Established regions within TOM will often also have regional Visitors. These are our current Regional Visitors :

Scandinavia

Scandinavia’s Regional Visitor is Egil Elling Ellingsen. Egil is married to Hildegunn and together they have three kids. Since 2007 they’ve lived in Stavanger, and have been a part of IMI-kirken.

After pastoring the local church for 8 years from 2010, in August 2018 he took on leadership of the movement that has grown out of IMI – following Martin Cave, who had been leading IMI for 39 years.

Part of the IMI movement is the Agenda 1 network, that runs learning communities on discipleship and mission in 20 countries.

 

United Kingdom

Ric Thorpe, the Senior Visitor to the Order, also functions as the Regional Visitor to the United Kingdom. You can read his full bio above.