This article is about the Episcopal diocese. For other uses, see Diocese of Chicago.
The Episcopal Diocese of Chicago is the official organization of the Episcopal Church in Chicago and Northern Illinois, US. The diocese is headed by Bishop Paula Clark, who is the first woman and first African-American to lead the diocese.[1] The diocese was previously served by Jeffrey Lee, who served as bishop until December 31, 2020.[2] The mother church of the diocese is St. James Cathedral, which is the oldest Episcopal congregation in the city of Chicago.
St. James Cathedral is the mother church of the Episcopal Diocese of Chicago
The Diocese of Chicago covers 22 counties located in the northern third of the state of Illinois, stretching from the shores of Lake Michigan on the east, to the banks of the Mississippi River on the west. Its northern boundary is the state of Wisconsin; the southernmost city is Watseka, Illinois.
The diocese was founded in 1835 as the Episcopal Diocese of Illinois. Philander Chase, the retired bishop of Ohio, was the first bishop. He was succeeded in 1852 by Henry John Whitehouse, a priest previously from New York. Edward McLaren, elected bishop in 1875, saw the Diocese of Illinois divided into three parts in 1877. The newly formed dioceses of Quincy and Springfield elected their own bishops, while McClaren's diocese was renamed the Episcopal Diocese of Chicago.
Present day
The Diocese of Chicago ranks among the 12 largest Episcopal dioceses in the United States, with 137 congregations, of which 36 are missions. However, in parallel with declining national memberships, the diocese has seen a decline in membership: 47,171 baptized members in 1994, but only 42,667 in 1996. As of 2011 the diocese website said it had 40,000 members.[3]
The diocese is far more ethnically diverse than the Episcopal Church at large. There are four Hispanic congregations, one of which is located in the near western suburbs of Chicago. In addition, four congregations outside Chicago provide Spanish language services, and two others share their facilities with congregations of the Philippine Independent Church. There is one Korean American congregation, and the diocese also serves eight African-American congregations. Minority outreach, like the kind found at the Cathedral Shelter of Chicago continues to this day.
Bishop Jeffrey Lee assumed office in 2008. On February 14, 2019, Lee announced his intention to retire in August 2020.[4]Paula Clark was elected as the thirteenth bishop on December 12, 2020, to assume office in 2021.[5] Clark experienced health issues in April 2021 which required postponement of her assuming office until her health improved. Clark's health subsequently improved and she was consecrated as Bishop on September 17, 2022.[1]
Reunification
In 2008, a majority of laity and clergy in the neighboring Episcopal Diocese of Quincy left to form a diocese in the more conservative Anglican Church in North America.[citation needed] The remaining Episcopalians in Quincy reformed their diocese, electing John Buchanan, retired Bishop of West Missouri as their provisional bishop. In 2012 Quincy officials approached Lee and the leadership of the Chicago diocese about the possibility of reunification with Chicago, since it was determined that a remnant diocese would be too small in membership and too geographically dispersed to be viable in the long term.
In November 2012 the Chicago diocese's convention agreed that reunification with the Quincy diocese should be pursued. On June 8, 2013, both diocesan conventions voted unanimously to reunify.[6] The reunification was ratified by a majority of bishops and the standing committees of the Episcopal Church, and on September 1, 2013, the Diocese of Quincy merged into the Diocese of Chicago as the Peoria Deanery.[7]
^ abEmily McFarlan Miller (September 18, 2022). "Nearly two years after election, Episcopal Diocese of Chicago's first Black female bishop takes office". Religion News Service. Retrieved September 18, 2022.
^, Telling Our Stories, Chicago: Episcopal Diocese of Chicago, October 28, 2015, archived from the original on November 1, 2015, retrieved November 1, 2015
^Episcopal Diocese of Chicago. Retrieved August 12, 2011.
^Lee. The Rt. Rev. Jeffrey D. (February 14, 2019), A Letter from Bishop Lee/Una Carta del Obispo Lee: Call for the Election of the Thirteenth Bishop of Chicago (in English and Spanish), Chicago, Illinois: Episcopal Diocese of Chicago, retrieved February 14, 2019
^"The Rev. Canon Paula Clark Elected Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Chicago". Episcopal Diocese of Chicago. December 12, 2020. Retrieved December 12, 2020.
^"Episcopalians in Illinois Vote to Reunify". Episcopal Diocese of Chicago.
^"Bishops Celebrate Reunion". The Living Church. August 29, 2013. Retrieved March 27, 2014.
External links
Official website
Journal of the Annual Convention of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the Diocese of Illinois at the Online Books Page.
Journal of the Annual Convention of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the Diocese of Chicago at the Online Books Page.
episcopal, diocese, chicago, this, article, about, episcopal, diocese, other, uses, diocese, chicago, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, ch. This article is about the Episcopal diocese For other uses see Diocese of Chicago This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Episcopal Diocese of Chicago news newspapers books scholar JSTOR February 2007 Learn how and when to remove this template message The Episcopal Diocese of Chicago is the official organization of the Episcopal Church in Chicago and Northern Illinois US The diocese is headed by Bishop Paula Clark who is the first woman and first African American to lead the diocese 1 The diocese was previously served by Jeffrey Lee who served as bishop until December 31 2020 2 The mother church of the diocese is St James Cathedral which is the oldest Episcopal congregation in the city of Chicago Diocese of ChicagoDiœcesis ChicagoensisLocationCountryUnited StatesEcclesiastical provinceProvince VSubdivisions11 deaneriesStatisticsCongregations120 2021 Members28 531 2021 InformationDenominationEpiscopal ChurchEstablishedMarch 9 1835 As Diocese of Illinois May 28 1884 As Diocese of Chicago CathedralSt James CathedralLanguageEnglish SpanishCurrent leadershipBishopPaula ClarkMapLocation of the Diocese of ChicagoWebsiteepiscopalchicago orgSt James Cathedral is the mother church of the Episcopal Diocese of Chicago The Diocese of Chicago covers 22 counties located in the northern third of the state of Illinois stretching from the shores of Lake Michigan on the east to the banks of the Mississippi River on the west Its northern boundary is the state of Wisconsin the southernmost city is Watseka Illinois Contents 1 History 2 Present day 2 1 Reunification 3 Diocesan Bishops of Illinois and of Chicago 4 Other bishops of the diocese 5 List of deaneries 6 See also 7 References 8 External linksHistory EditThe diocese was founded in 1835 as the Episcopal Diocese of Illinois Philander Chase the retired bishop of Ohio was the first bishop He was succeeded in 1852 by Henry John Whitehouse a priest previously from New York Edward McLaren elected bishop in 1875 saw the Diocese of Illinois divided into three parts in 1877 The newly formed dioceses of Quincy and Springfield elected their own bishops while McClaren s diocese was renamed the Episcopal Diocese of Chicago Present day EditThe Diocese of Chicago ranks among the 12 largest Episcopal dioceses in the United States with 137 congregations of which 36 are missions However in parallel with declining national memberships the diocese has seen a decline in membership 47 171 baptized members in 1994 but only 42 667 in 1996 As of 2011 the diocese website said it had 40 000 members 3 The diocese is far more ethnically diverse than the Episcopal Church at large There are four Hispanic congregations one of which is located in the near western suburbs of Chicago In addition four congregations outside Chicago provide Spanish language services and two others share their facilities with congregations of the Philippine Independent Church There is one Korean American congregation and the diocese also serves eight African American congregations Minority outreach like the kind found at the Cathedral Shelter of Chicago continues to this day The 25th Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church Frank Griswold was bishop of Chicago when he was elected in 1997 Bishop Jeffrey Lee assumed office in 2008 On February 14 2019 Lee announced his intention to retire in August 2020 4 Paula Clark was elected as the thirteenth bishop on December 12 2020 to assume office in 2021 5 Clark experienced health issues in April 2021 which required postponement of her assuming office until her health improved Clark s health subsequently improved and she was consecrated as Bishop on September 17 2022 1 Reunification Edit In 2008 a majority of laity and clergy in the neighboring Episcopal Diocese of Quincy left to form a diocese in the more conservative Anglican Church in North America citation needed The remaining Episcopalians in Quincy reformed their diocese electing John Buchanan retired Bishop of West Missouri as their provisional bishop In 2012 Quincy officials approached Lee and the leadership of the Chicago diocese about the possibility of reunification with Chicago since it was determined that a remnant diocese would be too small in membership and too geographically dispersed to be viable in the long term In November 2012 the Chicago diocese s convention agreed that reunification with the Quincy diocese should be pursued On June 8 2013 both diocesan conventions voted unanimously to reunify 6 The reunification was ratified by a majority of bishops and the standing committees of the Episcopal Church and on September 1 2013 the Diocese of Quincy merged into the Diocese of Chicago as the Peoria Deanery 7 Diocesan Bishops of Illinois and of Chicago EditBishops of IllinoisFrom Until Incumbent Notes1835 1852 Philander Chase Translated from Ohio 1852 1874 Henry John Whitehouse Coadjutor since 1851 1875 1877 William Edward McLaren Called Edward December 15 1831 Geneva NY February 19 1905 New York NY diocese split became Bishop of Chicago Bishops of Chicago1877 1905 William Edward McLaren Hitherto Bishop of Illinois 1905 1930 Charles P Anderson Coadjutor since 1900 1930 1930 Sheldon Munson Griswold January 8 1861 Delhi NY November 28 1930 Evanston IL previously missionary bishop of Salina 1930 1940 George Craig Stewart August 18 1879 Saginaw MI May 2 1940 Chicago IL coadjutor since 1930 1941 1953 Wallace E Conkling1954 1971 Frank Burrill1971 1987 James W Montgomery James Winchester Montgomery born May 29 1921 coadjutor since 1965 1987 1998 Frank T Griswold Coadjutor since 1985 1998 1999 Herbert A Donovan Jr Herbert Alcorn Herb Donovan Junior born July 14 1931 provisional bishop retired Bishop of Arkansas 1999 2008 William D Persell2008 2020 Jeffrey D Lee Jeffrey Dean Lee2022 Present Paula ClarkOther bishops of the diocese EditBishops suffraganFrom Until Incumbent Notes1911 1915 William Edward Toll suffragan bishop died June 28 1915 1917 1917 Sheldon Munson Griswold suffragan bishop1939 1947 Edwin J Randall suffragan bishop Edwin Jarvis Randall October 24 1869 Oconomowoc WI June 13 1962 Evanston IL 1949 1963 Charles L Street suffragan bishop Charles Larrabee Street1962 1965 James W Montgomery suffragan bishop1972 1984 Quintin E Primo Jr suffragan bishop Quintin Ebenezer Primo Junior July 1 1913 Freedom Grove GA January 14 1998 Hockessin DE later interim bishop of Delaware 1990 1997 William W Wiedrich suffragan bishop Called Bill born August 19 1931 Assistant bishops2000 2011 Victor A Scantlebury assistant bishop Victor Alfonso Scantlebury born March 31 1945 Colon Panama previously suffragan in Panama 2012 2015 C Christopher Epting assistant bishop born November 26 1946 previously bishop of Iowa Deputy for Ecumenical and Interreligious RelationsList of deaneries EditAurora Deanery Chicago North Deanery Chicago South Deanery Chicago West Deanery Elgin Deanery Evanston Deanery Joliet Deanery Kankakee Deanery Oak Park Deanery Peoria Deanery Rockford Deanery Waukegan DeanerySee also EditEpiscopal Diocese of Springfield Episcopal Diocese of Quincy List of Episcopal bishopsReferences Edit a b Emily McFarlan Miller September 18 2022 Nearly two years after election Episcopal Diocese of Chicago s first Black female bishop takes office Religion News Service Retrieved September 18 2022 Bishop Epting to Retire Study on Diocesan Culture Launched Telling Our Stories Chicago Episcopal Diocese of Chicago October 28 2015 archived from the original on November 1 2015 retrieved November 1 2015 Episcopal Diocese of Chicago Retrieved August 12 2011 Lee The Rt Rev Jeffrey D February 14 2019 A Letter from Bishop Lee Una Carta del Obispo Lee Call for the Election of the Thirteenth Bishop of Chicago in English and Spanish Chicago Illinois Episcopal Diocese of Chicago retrieved February 14 2019 The Rev Canon Paula Clark Elected Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Chicago Episcopal Diocese of Chicago December 12 2020 Retrieved December 12 2020 Episcopalians in Illinois Vote to Reunify Episcopal Diocese of Chicago Bishops Celebrate Reunion The Living Church August 29 2013 Retrieved March 27 2014 External links EditOfficial website Journal of the Annual Convention of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the Diocese of Illinois at the Online Books Page Journal of the Annual Convention of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the Diocese of Chicago at the Online Books Page Coordinates 41 N 89 W 41 N 89 W 41 89 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Episcopal Diocese of Chicago amp oldid 1124250001, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
