Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina

The Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina, founded in 1817, roughly corresponds to the segment of the U.S. state of North Carolina between I-77 in the west and I-95 in the east, including the most populous area of the state. Charlotte, Winston-Salem, Greensboro, Raleigh, Cary, and Durham are the largest cities in the diocese. The Episcopal Diocese of Western North Carolina lies to the west extending into the Appalachian Mountains, and the Episcopal Diocese of East Carolina lies to the east extending to the Atlantic Ocean.

Diocese of North Carolina
Location
CountryUnited States
Ecclesiastical provinceProvince IV
Statistics
Congregations112 (2014)
Members47,210 (2018)
Information
DenominationEpiscopal Church
Established1817
Current leadership
BishopSamuel Sewall Rodman III
SuffraganAnne Hodges-Copple
Map

Location of the Diocese of North Carolina
Website
www.episdionc.org

About the diocese

The diocese has no cathedral, but its offices are in downtown Raleigh. It meets in annual convention in November. Between conventions, the diocese is administered by a Diocesan Council in conjunction with diocesan staff.

The current diocesan bishop is Samuel Sewall Rodman III. He was consecrated bishop on July 15, 2017, as twelfth bishop of North Carolina, after the election of his predecessor, Michael Bruce Curry, as Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church.[1][2] The bishop suffragan of the diocese is Anne Hodges-Copple.[3]

Other bishops who have served the diocese since 1980 are Robert W. Estill (ninth bishop of the diocese), the late Robert C. Johnson (tenth bishop of the diocese), the late Frank Vest (suffragan bishop of the diocese who subsequently became bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Southern Virginia), the late Huntington Williams, Jr. (retired suffragan bishop), J. Gary Gloster (retired suffragan bishop), William Gregg (retired assistant bishop and previously the bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Eastern Oregon), the late Alfred C. Marble, Jr. (retired assisting bishop and previously the bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Mississippi), and Peter James Lee (formerly provisional bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of East Carolina and bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Virginia).

Congregations in the diocese vary from conservative to liberal and from low church to high church, but the diocese itself is generally considered moderate and is highly supportive of the Episcopal Church. Consisting of approximately 48,000 communicants,[4] the diocese is the tenth-largest in the nation and has shown a 3% compound annual growth rate over the last ten years. The density of Episcopalians varies across the diocese but is highest in Wake County, the capital county.

Programs and institutions

Principal programs of the diocese include campus ministry and social ministry:

The diocese no longer operates a camp and conference center, having sold its facility near Browns Summit, North Carolina to the State of North Carolina for use as Haw River State Park.[8] However, the diocese maintains an active youth program. The territory of the diocese includes independent schools with current or former diocesan affiliations including Trinity Episcopal School and Palisades Episcopal School in Charlotte, Canterbury School in Greensboro, and St. Mary's School and Ravenscroft School in Raleigh.

Other major institutions affiliated with the diocese are Penick Village in Southern Pines, a retirement community; and Thompson Child and Family Focus in Charlotte, a youth services ministry.

Bishops
Bishops of the Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina[3][9]
From Until Name Title Notes
18231830John Stark Ravenscroft1st bishop of North Carolina
18311852Levi Silliman Ives2nd bishop of North Carolina
18531881Thomas Atkinson3rd bishop of North Carolina
18731881Theodore B. LymanAssistant bishop of North Carolina
188118934th bishop of North Carolina
18931893Joseph Blount CheshireAssistant bishop of North Carolina
189319325th bishop of North Carolina
19181928Henry Beard Delany1st bishop suffragan of North Carolina
19221932Edwin Anderson PenickBishop coadjutor of North Carolina
193219596th bishop of North Carolina
19511959Richard Henry BakerBishop coadjutor of North Carolina
195919657th bishop of North Carolina
19601965Thomas FraserBishop coadjutor of North Carolina
196519838th bishop of North Carolina
19671975Moultrie Moore2nd bishop suffragan of North CarolinaBishop of Easton, (1975–1983)
19801982Robert Whitridge EstillBishop coadjutor of North Carolina
198319949th bishop of North Carolina
19851989Frank Vest3rd bishop suffragan of North CarolinaBishop of Southern Virginia (1991–1998)
19901996Huntington Williams, Jr.4th bishop suffragan of North Carolina
19942000Robert C. Johnson Jr.10th bishop of North Carolina
19962007J. Gary Gloster5th bishop suffragan of North Carolina
20002015Michael Bruce Curry11th bishop of North Carolina27th Presiding Bishop of The Episcopal Church (2015 – Present)
20052013Alfred C. "Chip" Marble, Jr.Assisting bishop of North CarolinaBishop of Mississippi (1993–2003)
20072013William O. GreggAssistant bishop of North CarolinaBishop of Eastern Oregon (2000–2007)
2013PresentAnne Hodges-Copple6th bishop suffragan of North CarolinaThe first female bishop in the Diocese of North Carolina.
20152017Bishop pro tempore of North Carolina
20152017Peter LeeAssisting bishop of North Carolina[10]Bishop of Virginia (1985–2009); bishop provisional of East Carolina (2013–2015)

Lee was brought in as a temporary bishop of North Carolina after Bishop Michael Curry was called to serve as Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church. Lee served until Samuel S. Rodman, III was consecrated in April 2017.[11]

2017PresentSamuel S. Rodman, III12th bishop of North Carolina

References
  1. Sennott, Adam (March 4, 2017). "Massachusetts reverend elected Episcopal bishop of North Carolina". Boston Globe. Archived from the original on March 8, 2017.
  2. "The Rev. Samuel Rodman Elected XII Bishop Diocesan of the Diocese of North Carolina". The Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina. March 4, 2017. Archived from the original on April 11, 2017.
  3. "The Bishops of North Carolina". The Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina. Retrieved April 10, 2017.
  4. As announced by Curry at the Diocese's 2007 Convention
  5. "Campus Ministry". The Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina.
  6. "Our Ministry". Episcopal Farmworker Ministry.
  7. "Hispanic / Latino Ministry". The Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina.
  8. "History." History | NC State Parks, www.ncparks.gov/haw-river-state-park/history.
  9. "Previous Bishops". The Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina. Retrieved April 10, 2017.
  10. "Diocese of NC Welcomes the Rt. Rev. Peter Lee as Assisting Bishop". The Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina. November 12, 2015. Retrieved April 10, 2017.
  11. "Diocese of NC Welcomes the Rt. Rev. Peter Lee as Assisting Bishop." Diocesan House, www.dionc.org/dfc/newsdetail_2/3175359.

Further reading

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