The Episcopal Diocese of Rochester is the
diocese
In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop.
History
In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associa ...
of the
Episcopal Church in the United States of America
The Episcopal Church, based in the United States with additional dioceses elsewhere, is a member church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. It is a mainline Protestant denomination and is divided into nine provinces. The presiding bishop o ...
with jurisdiction over eight counties in west central
New York. It is bounded on the north by
Lake Ontario
Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north, west, and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south and east by the U.S. state of New York. The Canada–United States border ...
, on the east by the
Episcopal Diocese of Central New York
The Episcopal Diocese of Central New York is a diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America encompassing the area in the center of New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the Unit ...
, on the south by the
Episcopal Diocese of Central Pennsylvania
The Episcopal Diocese of Central Pennsylvania is one of the dioceses of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America. It was founded in 1905 as the Diocese of Harrisburg, separating from the original Diocese of Central Pennsylvania no ...
and on the west by the
Episcopal Diocese of Western New York
The Episcopal Diocese of Western New York, is the diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America with jurisdiction over the counties of Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Erie, Genesee, Niagara, Orleans and Wyoming in western New York. I ...
. It is in
Province 2 and has no
cathedral
A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominatio ...
. Its diocesan offices are in
Henrietta, New York
Henrietta is a town in Monroe County, New York, United States and a suburb of Rochester. The population of Henrietta is 47,096, according to the 2020 United States Census. Henrietta is home to the Rochester Institute of Technology and to one of t ...
.
History
At first the Episcopal Diocese of New York encompassed the whole state. By 1837 the "west" was booming, and the Diocese of Western New York was created. In 1873 the new diocese had grown significantly. Bishop Arthur Cleveland Coxe began recommending the partition of the diocese. David Lincoln Ferris, bishop coadjutor of Western New York since 1924, succeeded Charles Henry Brent as bishop in 1929. The partition of the Diocese of Western New York was finally approved by the national church's 1931 General Convention. That December the new Episcopal Diocese of Rochester came into being.
The diocese was newly created, though many of the congregations had already begun more than a century before. In 1816 when John Henry Hobart, Third Bishop of New York, began his work, congregations were active in Avon, Canandaigua, Geneva, Clifton Springs, Catharine, and Bath. On 15 and 16 December 1931, forty congregations sent delegations to the primary convention of the new diocese at Trinity Church, Geneva, where the 1837 primary convention of the Diocese of Western New York had also been held.
At first much of the administration of the diocese was handled in Bishop Ferris' home at 325 Park Avenue, Rochester. Soon the diocese rented a suite of rooms in the Hiram Sibley Building, at 311 Alexander Street. In 1947 the Trustees purchased "Church House" at 110 Merriman Street. In 1954 Elizabeth Sibley Stebbins died, one of the early leaders in the diocese. Her home at 935 East Avenue became "Diocesan House".
The Second World War moved Bishop Bartel H. Reinheimer (1938-1949) and his service group, the "Bishop's Men," to send aid to the Diocese of Rochester, England, where post-war privations and rationing were still severe. The Woman's Auxiliary, working on both congregational and diocesan levels, helped raise money and direct the mission of the church under Bishops Reinheimer, Dudley S. Stark (1950-1962), and George W. Barrett (1963-1969).
The Fifth Bishop of Rochester, Robert Rae Spears, Jr. (1970-1984), helped the diocese to deal with issues like: how to interpret the Bible, whether to ordain women and gay people, and - among others - how to distribute the enormous legacy left to the diocese by Margaret Woodbury Strong's will. That financial windfall gave rise to the diocese's district system in 1972. The system's original purpose was to give voices to people and congregations throughout the diocese in using the Strong Fund. A large portion of the fund eventually went to help the National Episcopal Church and its mission.
Bishops
Current bishop
Prince G. Singh was elected the eighth Bishop of Rochester on February 2, 2008 and was consecrated at the Eastman Theatre in Rochester, New York, on May 31, 2008, by Katharine Jefferts Schori, the Presiding Bishop. Co-Consecrators of the service were Jack M. McKelvey, George Councell, John Croneberger,
Mark M. Beckwith, Carol Gallagher, and Marie Jerge, Bishop of the Upstate New York Synod of the
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Singh became the diocesan Bishop of Rochester at the close of the consecration service on May 31, 2008.
Past bishops
Jack M. McKelvey
Jack M. McKelvey was the seventh bishop of Rochester from 2000 to 2008. He has a master's of divinity and an honorary doctorate from
Virginia Theological Seminary
Virginia Theological Seminary (VTS), formally called the Protestant Episcopal Theological Seminary in Virginia, located at 3737 Seminary Road in Alexandria, Virginia is the largest and second oldest accredited Episcopal seminary in the Unit ...
. He was
suffragan bishop of the
Episcopal Diocese of Newark
The Episcopal Diocese of Newark is a diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America comprising the northern third of New Jersey in the United States. The Diocese represents the Anglican Communion, of which the Episcopal Chu ...
from 1991-1999. McKelvey currently serves as interim president at
Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School
Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School is a Baptist seminary in Rochester, New York It is affiliated with the American Baptist Churches USA.
History 1820s-1960: Early history
Four Baptist institutions merged over the course of the 19th and 20t ...
.
Robert Rae Spears, Jr.
The fifth Bishop of Rochester,
Robert Rae Spears, Jr. (1970-1984), helped the diocese to deal with issues that rocked the church: how to interpret the Bible, whether to ordain women and gay people, and - among others - how to distribute the enormous legacy left to the diocese by Margaret Woodbury Strong's will.
List of bishops
The bishops of Rochester have been:
#
David L. Ferris, (1931–1938), who previously served the
Episcopal Diocese of Western New York
The Episcopal Diocese of Western New York, is the diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America with jurisdiction over the counties of Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Erie, Genesee, Niagara, Orleans and Wyoming in western New York. I ...
as
suffragan bishop (1920–1924),
coadjutor bishop (1924) - 1929) and fifth diocesan bishop, (1929–1931).
[Episcopal Church Annual, 2006, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: Morehouse Publishing, p. 414]* Bartel H. Reinheimer,
coadjutor bishop (1936)
#
Bartel H. Reinheimer, (1938–1949)
#
Dudley S. Stark, (1950–1962)
#
George W. Barrett, (1963–1969)
#
Robert R. Spears, Jr., (1970–1984; d. 2008)
#
William G. Burrill, (1984–1999)
#
Jack M. McKelvey, (2000–2008)
#
Prince G. Singh, (2008–present)
See also
*
List of Succession of Bishops for the Episcopal Church, USA
References
External links
Episcopal Diocese of Rochester, NY websiteOfficial Facebook page of the Episcopal Diocese of Rochester, NYOfficial website of the Episcopal Church
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rochester
1931 establishments in New York (state)
Anglican dioceses established in the 20th century
Christian organizations established in 1931
Rochester
Rochester may refer to:
Places Australia
* Rochester, Victoria
Canada
* Rochester, Alberta
United Kingdom
*Rochester, Kent
** City of Rochester-upon-Medway (1982–1998), district council area
** History of Rochester, Kent
** HM Prison ...
Episcopal Church in New York (state)
Province 2 of the Episcopal Church (United States)