Area Bishops' Offices Staff

Due to its size, the Diocese of Toronto is divided administratively into four episcopal areas, each under the oversight of an area bishop, who is a suffragan bishop of the Diocese of Toronto. The four episcopal areas are:

• York-Scarborough - Bishop Patrick Yu
• York-Simcoe - Bishop George Elliott
• York-Credit Valley - Bishop Philip Poole
• Trent-Durham - Bishop Linda Nicholls

For more information about our episcopal areas, their bishops and their websites, please see the menu at left.

Area bishops in our diocese function somewhat differently from those in other dioceses that use the same title. The role of the area bishop is an organizational one created to help the diocese operate more effectively.

In creating the role of the area bishop, the diocesan bishop granted certain episcopal duties and authorities upon the area bishops that normally reside in the role and person of the diocesan bishop. Therefore, an area bishop is a different type of bishop, not with respect to order, but with respect to jurisdiction.

Also, the creation of the area bishop role shifted the primary working relationship of the clergy from the diocesan bishop to the area bishop. In that respect, an area bishop’s role is distinctly different from that of the suffragan bishop in most other dioceses.