James Beattie "Jay" Magness (born October 21, 1946 in

St. Petersburg, Florida St. Petersburg is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 258,308, making it the fifth-most populous city in Florida and the second-largest city in the Tampa Bay Area, after Tampa. It is the ...

) is an American

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

bishop and former

military chaplain A military chaplain ministers to military personnel and, in most cases, their families and civilians working for the military. In some cases they will also work with local civilians within a military area of operations. Although the term ''cha ...

. From 2010 to 2017 he served as Bishop Suffragan for the Armed Services and Federal Ministries of the Episcopal Church. As such, he was responsible for the Episcopal

chaplains A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric (such as a minister, priest, pastor, rabbi, purohit, or imam), or a lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secular institution (such as a hospital, prison, military unit, intelligence ...

and their congregations in the

U.S. Department of Defense The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD or DOD) is an executive branch department of the federal government charged with coordinating and supervising all agencies and functions of the government directly related to national secur ...

, the

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs The United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is a Cabinet-level executive branch department of the federal government charged with providing life-long healthcare services to eligible military veterans at the 170 VA medical centers an ...

, and the

Federal Bureau of Prisons The Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) is a United States federal law enforcement agency under the Department of Justice that is responsible for the care, custody, and control of incarcerated individuals who have committed federal crimes; that i ...

. He previously served as a

in the

United States Navy Chaplain Corps The United States Navy Chaplain Corps is the body of military chaplains of the United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services ...

, from which he retired in 2004 with the rank of

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

. He resigned from the Armed Forces and Federal ministries and stepped down from his bishopric in 2017; he was succeeded as bishop by Carl Wright. He later served as assistant bishop of the

Episcopal Diocese of Southern Virginia Episcopal Diocese of Southern Virginia is the diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America located in the southeast area of Virginia. It is in Province III (for the Middle Atlantic region). The diocese includes the Hampton Roa ...

. From January 1, 2019 until February 1, 2020, he served as bishop pro-tempore of the diocese. Magness joined the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

in March 1966 and served in the

Navy Supply Corps The Navy Supply Corps is the United States Navy staff corps concerned with supply, logistics, combat support, readiness, contracting, and fiscal matters. Duties Commissioned officers in the Supply Corps practice a variety of disciplines, includi ...

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

. He also is an amazing grandfather to his four grandchildren. He transitioned to the

U.S. Naval Reserve The United States Navy Reserve (USNR), known as the United States Naval Reserve from 1915 to 2005, is the Reserve Component (RC) of the United States Navy. Members of the Navy Reserve, called Reservists, are categorized as being in either the Se ...

in December 1969. He earned his BA degree from

Western Carolina University Western Carolina University (WCU) is a public university in Cullowhee, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina system. The fifth oldest institution of the sixteen four-year universities in the UNC system, WCU was founded t ...

in 1974 and his

M.Div. For graduate-level theological institutions, the Master of Divinity (MDiv, ''magister divinitatis'' in Latin) is the first professional degree of the pastoral profession in North America. It is the most common academic degree in seminaries and di ...

degree from The Episcopal Theological Seminary of the Southwest in 1977. He was ordained by Bishop William G. Weinhauer on May 25, 1978 and commissioned in the

Navy Chaplain Corps The United States Navy Chaplain Corps is the body of military chaplains of the United States Navy who are commissioned naval officers. Their principal purpose is "to promote the spiritual, religious, moral, and personal well-being of the mem ...

on July 2, 1979. He later earned a D.Min. degree from the

Gordon–Conwell Theological Seminary Gordon–Conwell Theological Seminary (GCTS) is an evangelical seminary with its main campus in Hamilton, Massachusetts, and three other campuses in Boston, Massachusetts; Charlotte, North Carolina; and Jacksonville, Florida. According to the Ass ...

in 1999 with a concentration in Christian Leadership.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Magness, Jay 1946 births Living people People from St. Petersburg, Florida United States Navy personnel of the Vietnam War Western Carolina University alumni Seminary of the Southwest alumni United States Navy chaplains Gordon–Conwell Theological Seminary alumni 21st-century Anglican bishops in the United States Episcopal bishops for the Armed Forces (United States)