Steven Croft (bishop)

Steven John Lindsey Croft (born 29 May 1957) is a British bishop in the Church of England and a theologian specialising in mission. He has been Bishop of Oxford since the confirmation of his election on 6 July 2016. He was the Bishop of Sheffield from 2008 to 2016; previously he was Archbishops' Missioner and Team Leader of Fresh Expressions, a joint Church of England and Methodist initiative. He falls within the open evangelical tradition of Anglicanism.

Croft was born on 29 May 1957. He attended Heath Grammar School in Halifax and studied classics and theology at Worcester College, Oxford, graduating in 1980. From 1980 to 1983, he trained for ordination at Cranmer Hall, Durham. The University of Durham awarded him a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree in 1984 for a thesis titled "The identity of the individual in the Book of Psalms".

Croft was ordained as deacon in the Diocese of London on 25 September 1983 by Bill Westwood, Bishop of Edmonton, at St Andrew's Enfield (his title church). The following year, he was ordained as priest by Graham Leonard, Bishop of London, at St Paul's Cathedral on 23 September 1984. From 1983 to 1987 he was curate of the parish church of St Andrew's Enfield. After that, he became vicar of Ovenden, an Urban Priority Area parish in the Diocese of Wakefield, from 1987 to 1996. In 1997, Croft was made a member of the Church of England Evangelical Council, which he was a part of until 2000.

1996–2004: Warden (i.e. head) of Cranmer Hall

2004–2008: Archbishops' Missioner and first Team Leader of Fresh Expressions

Croft was appointed by the archbishops of Canterbury and York to help found Fresh Expressions, a joint Church of England and Methodist initiative "to help Christians of any denomination think about ways of starting and growing fresh expressions of church in their area" where a fresh expression is defined as "a form of church for our changing culture, established primarily for the benefit of people who are not yet members of any church". In recognition of this work he was awarded the silver Cross of St Augustine by the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Croft was nominated as the next bishop of Sheffield, succeeding Jack Nicholls who retired in July 2008, and formally elected by the chapter of Sheffield Cathedral in November 2008 (and that election having been confirmed in the interim), he was consecrated as a bishop by John Sentamu, Archbishop of York, on 25 January 2009, at York Minster; and started in the diocese following his formal enthronement on 9 May 2009. This was followed by three welcome Eucharists celebrated in various locations around the diocese to allow more people to meet the new bishop.

In 2012, Croft was nominated by Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury, to be the Anglican fraternal delegate to the Synod of Bishops in Rome.