Bishops

Rt Rev Bosco MacDonald

A profile of the Catholic Bishop of Clifton, Canon Bosco MacDonald.

Bishop of Clifton

Bishop John Bosco MacDonald, known as Bosco, was born in Bath on 21 July 1963. He was baptised at the parish church of St Mary’s in the city.

He studied at the seminary in Valladolid, Spain, and was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Clifton at St John’s in Bath on 6 July 1991.

His first appointment of his diocesan ministry was at the Cathedral parish as an assistant priest, before being made parish priest of St John Fisher in Wellington from 1995-1998. He then moved to Holy Family, Patchway.

In November 1997, Bishop-elect Bosco was appointed the Diocesan Coordinator of Chaplains for Primary, Secondary and Sixth Form sectors, and from 1998–2023 was a member of the Retired Priests Committee.

On New Year’s Day 2003, he was appointed Dean of Bristol North West and held the role for four years.

His next parish appointment was to St Gregory the Great with St Thomas More in Cheltenham. During this time, in March 2009, he was Installed as Canon of the Cathedral Chapter.

In 2010, Bishop-elect Bosco was appointed Amicus Clero for the diocese. The term means ‘friend of the clergy’ and the incumbent offers a listening ear for any priest with pastoral or personal concerns.

He was appointed Dean of Clifton Cathedral in September 2015, a position he held until Pope Francis appointed him the Tenth Bishop of Clifton on 14 March 2024.

Link

For more, visit the Diocese of Clifton’s website.