Richard Frank Grein (born November 29, 1932, in Bemidji, Minnesota) was fourteenth bishop of the

Episcopal Diocese of New York The Episcopal Diocese of New York is a diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America, encompassing three New York City boroughs and seven New York state counties.

Biography

A graduate of

Carleton College Carleton College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Northfield, Minnesota. Founded in 1866, it had 2,105 undergraduate students and 269 faculty members in fall 2016. The 200-acre main campus is between Northfield and the 800-acre Cowling ...

and

Nashotah House Nashotah House is an Anglicanism, Anglican seminary in Nashotah, Wisconsin. The seminary opened in 1842 and received its official charter in 1847. The institution is independent and generally regarded as one of the more theologically Conservatism, ...

, he was ordained to the diaconate on June 20, 1959, and to the priesthood on December 21, 1959. He served communities in Minnesota and was professor of pastoral theology for two years at

. In 1974 he moved to Kansas and became rector of Saint Michael and All Angels church in Mission, Kansas. On February 14, 1981, he was elected Bishop of Kansas at a special diocesan convention that took place in Grace Episcopal Cathedral. He was consecrated bishop on May 22, 1981, by Presiding Bishop

John Allin John Maury Allin (April 22, 1921 – March 6, 1998) was an American Episcopalian bishop who served as the 23rd Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church from 1974 to 1985. Early life Allin was born in Helena, Arkansas. He graduated from the Un ...

. In 1989 he was elected Bishop of New York and was installed on October 14 of the same year. Bishop Grein devoted much of his time and energy as Bishop of New York to financial and administrative chores such as Episcopal Charities, the Congregational Support Plan, the Trustees of the Diocese, renewal of the diaconate, and renewal of the priesthood. The Diocese had no endowment fund when he took charge and now has a more than decent endowment. Grein also launched a program to give financial help to congregations too poor to pay their own bills. He always believed that "strong parishes mean a strong diocese." The bishop fostered a connection with a companion diocese in South Africa. He began an ecclesiastical diplomacy with the Orthodox Church that forged a relationship and made him a trusted liaison. Bishop Grein was named by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Istanbul to be an Honorary Metropolitan of the International Throne, a singular honor bestowed on no other bishop. One of his last major public ceremonies was as part of the Episcopal delegation invited to Moscow in 2000. Bishop Grein and Bishop George Packard were the only invited leaders in Western Christendom at the consecration of the newly rebuilt Cathedral of Christ the Savior in Moscow on August 19, 2000. On April 25, 1998, the Very Rev. Mark S. Sisk was consecrated as Bishop Coadjutor at the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine. For the next two years, Sisk was responsible for the Mid-Hudson Region of the diocese. Bishop Richard Grein announced plans to retire on January 4, 2001. His last appearance in the pulpit of the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine took place on June 24, 2001. The bishop officially retired on June 30, 2001.

External links

MAN IN THE NEWS; Diocese Calls On a Kansan: Richard Frank Grein
Living people 1932 births People from Bemidji, Minnesota Nashotah House alumni Episcopal bishops of Kansas Carleton College alumni {{US-Anglican-bishop-stub