Geralyn Wolf (born April 30, 1947) is an American bishop who was the twelfth diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Rhode Island in the Episcopal Church. Wolf was

consecrated Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different grou ...

as bishop on February 17, 1996.

Biography

Wolf born in

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

, and was raised Jewish before becoming a Christian around 1971. She graduated from

West Chester University West Chester University (also known as West Chester, WCU, or WCUPA, and officially as West Chester University of Pennsylvania) is a public research university in and around West Chester, Pennsylvania. The university is accredited by the Middle ...

in 1968 with a Bachelor of Science degree. She also holds a Master of Arts degree in education from

Trenton State College The College of New Jersey (TCNJ) is a public university in Ewing Township, New Jersey. It is part of New Jersey's public system of higher education. Established in 1855 as the New Jersey State Normal School, TCNJ was the first normal school, or ...

, which she received in 1971. At

Episcopal Divinity School The Episcopal Divinity School (EDS) is a theological school in New York City that trains students for service with the Episcopal Church. It is affiliated with the Union Theological Seminary. Students who enroll in the EDS at Union Anglican st ...

in 1977 she earned a Master of Divinity degree. Wolf was ordained to the diaconate in 1977, and the priesthood in 1978, in the

Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania The Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania is a diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America encompassing the counties of Philadelphia, Montgomery, Bucks, Chester and Delaware in the state of Pennsylvania. The Diocese has 36,641 ...

. Prior to her election she was, from 1986 to 1995,

Dean Dean may refer to: People * Dean (given name) * Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin * Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk * Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean Titles * ...

of Christ Church Cathedral in

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...

, the first woman dean of a cathedral.

David Reed (bishop) David Benson Reed (February 16, 1927 – March 11, 2023) was the first Bishop of Colombia and the sixth Bishop of Kentucky in the Episcopal Church. Early life and education Reed was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on February 16, 1927, to Paul Spen ...

, Bishop of Kentucky, had named Wolf to replace Rev.

Allen L. Bartlett Allen Lyman Bartlett Jr. (born September 20, 1929) is an Episcopal Church (USA), Episcopal priest who became coadjutor bishop in the Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania, the fourth largest in the country. He succeeded Bishop Lyman Ogilby as the dioce ...

Jr., who was elected bishop coadjutor of the Diocese of Pennsylvania in September 1985. Wolf serves on several national committees and is the liturgist for the House of Bishops. She is an associate of the Society of St. Margaret, a companion of the

Oratory of the Good Shepherd The Oratory of the Good Shepherd (OGS) is a dispersed international religious community, within the Anglican Communion. Members of the oratory are bound together by a common rule and discipline, which requires consecrated celibacy, and are strength ...

, an ecumenical oblate of

Mount Saviour Monastery Mount Saviour Monastery is a historic farm and monastery campus within a national historic district located near Pine City, Chemung County, New York. It encompasses 10 contributing buildings and 3 contributing sites on a working farm in cont ...

in Elmira, New York, and has visited and worked with the Taizé community in France. She is the author of several published anthems and articles and creates whimsical figures that are made out of wood. Wolf falls on the mainstream to progressive side of Episcopal Church politics and in 2003 supported the consecration of gay bishop

Gene Robinson Vicky Gene Robinson (born May 29, 1947) is a former bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of New Hampshire. Robinson was elected bishop coadjutor in 2003 and succeeded as bishop diocesan in March 2004. Before becoming bishop, he served as Canon to th ...

. However, she defrocked the Episcopal priest Ann Holmes Redding on account of Redding's choice to embrace the Islamic faith while claiming to remain Christian. In addition, Wolf opposes

same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same Legal sex and gender, sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being ...

and has proposed eliminating the word "marriage" from civil law and replacing it with "civil unions." In 2007 Wolf married Thomas Charles Bair Jr. She retired as Bishop of Rhode Island in 2012.

References

External links

Office of the Bishop, Diocese of Rhode Island
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wolf, Geralyn West Chester University alumni Women Anglican bishops 21st-century Anglican bishops in the United States 1947 births Living people The College of New Jersey alumni American people of Jewish descent Converts to Anglicanism from Judaism Episcopal bishops of Rhode Island

Biography

See also

References

External links