William Howard Love (born August 14, 1957, in

Dallas, Texas Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County w ...

) is an American prelate. Love was the ninth bishop of the

Episcopal Diocese of Albany The Episcopal Diocese of Albany is a diocese of the Episcopal Church covering 19 counties in northeastern New York state. It was created in 1868 from a division of the Episcopal Diocese of New York. History The Church of England arrived in ...

, and he served in that role from 2007 until January 31, 2021. Beginning in April 2021, Love has served as Assistant Bishop of the

Anglican Diocese of the Living Word The Anglican Diocese of the Living Word, formerly the Missionary Diocese of CANA East, is a diocese of the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA). It was one of the four missionary dioceses of the Convocation of Anglicans in North America, a dual ...

. Love is known for his support for a traditional definition of marriage and for his opposition to the blessing of same-sex unions; this stance led to his departure from the Episcopal Church. In October 2020, Love was found to have violated Episcopal Church doctrine and rules due to his unwillingness to permit same-sex unions to be blessed by clergy within the Albany diocese. In response to that finding, Love resigned from his position as bishop effective February 1, 2021. Love later requested that he be released from ordained ministry in the Episcopal Church; that request was granted by Presiding Bishop Michael Curry. In April 2021, Love was appointed Assistant Bishop of the

, a diocese within the

Anglican Church in North America The Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) is a Christian denomination in the Anglican tradition in the United States and Canada. It also includes ten congregations in Mexico, two mission churches in Guatemala, and a missionary diocese in Cuba ...

Education, family, and early career

According to the Episcopal Diocese of Albany, Love is a Texas native; he earned a Bachelor of Arts in journalism from Southwest Texas State in 1980, a Master of Science degree in education from the State University of New York-Plattsburgh in 1988, and a master's degree in Divinity in 1991 from

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, ...

. Prior to becoming a priest, he served as an intelligence officer in the Air Force. Love was ordained a

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Churc ...

in 1991 and a

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...

in 1992. He served as rector of St. Mary's Church in

Lake Luzerne, New York Lake Luzerne, formerly the Town of Fairfield and then Luzerne, is a town in southern Warren County, New York, United States. The town is located within the Adirondack Park. The town is part of the Glens Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area. Lake Luz ...

for 14 years. Love married retired Air Force Colonel Karen Love in 1983; the Loves have two children and several grandchildren.

Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Albany

Love was elected

bishop coadjutor A coadjutor bishop (or bishop coadjutor) is a bishop in the Catholic, Anglican, and (historically) Eastern Orthodox churches whose main role is to assist the diocesan bishop in the administration of the diocese. The coadjutor (literally, "co- ...

of the

on March 25, 2006; he received the consent of the General Convention that summer in

Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...

. Love was consecrated as bishop coadjutor by Presiding Bishop

Frank Griswold Frank Tracy Griswold III (born September 18, 1937) is a retired American bishop. He was the 25th Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church. Early life and education Griswold was born in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. He was educated at St. Paul's Sc ...

on September 16, 2006, at the

Empire State Plaza The Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller Empire State Plaza (known commonly as the Empire State Plaza, and also as the South Mall) is a complex of several state government buildings in downtown Albany, New York. The complex was built between 1965 a ...

in Albany. On February 4, 2007, Love was installed as the ninth bishop of Albany. Jefforts Schori and Love 1

Love has consistently stood for an

orthodox Orthodox, Orthodoxy, or Orthodoxism may refer to: Religion * Orthodoxy, adherence to accepted norms, more specifically adherence to creeds, especially within Christianity and Judaism, but also less commonly in non-Abrahamic religions like Neo-pa ...

view of the Bible and for the stance of the Anglican Communion on matters of human sexuality. He asserts that "'the Bible is, in fact, the word of God. It’s not just some historic document that was written some 2,000-plus years ago, but sGod’s revealed word.'" Regarding marriage, Love adheres to an orthodox interpretation of Scripture, affirming that sexual intimacy is reserved for marriage and that marriage is an opposite-sex union. Love takes the view that homosexually-oriented persons should remain celibate. On January 19, 2008, Love celebrated the Eucharist at St. Andrew's Church in Albany while hosting a visit by Bonnie Anderson, president of the Episcopal Church's House of Deputies. A

dialogue Dialogue (sometimes spelled dialog in American English) is a written or spoken conversational exchange between two or more people, and a literary and theatrical form that depicts such an exchange. As a philosophical or didactic device, it is c ...

followed between progressives from ''Via Media'' and the more conservative representatives of the church, and "stressed unity and communication". Both liberals and

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...

s in the diocese praised Love for attending the event. The national church's web site posted a story about the event, quoting Bishop Love and several of the 300 attendees at the event. In June 2008, under Love's leadership, the Episcopal Diocese of Albany passed a resolution stating that only heterosexual marriages would be celebrated within the diocese. After the resolution was passed, Bishop Love was quoted as stating that "the important thing ... is that God loves all people, regardless of where they might be in their life. That doesn't necessarily mean he approves of all of our behaviors." Love gained national attention at the Episcopal Church's July 2009 convention in

Anaheim Anaheim ( ) is a city in northern Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States Census, the city had a population of 346,824, making it the most populous city in Orange County, the 10th-most p ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

. At that convention, the Church passed a resolution allowing the blessing of same-sex unions.Laurie Dotson, "Pared-Down Episcopal Church Is Looking to Grow Through ‘Inclusivity’", ''New York Times'', July 19, 2009, found a
''New York Times'' article of July 19, 2009
Accessed July 22, 2009. At a news conference organized by a conservative Anglican group, Love said, "It is breaking my heart to see the church destroy itself"; however, he vowed to remain within the Episcopal Church nonetheless. Love continued to be in the news in October 2009, when he commented on the state of the church after the

Vatican Vatican may refer to: Vatican City, the city-state ruled by the pope in Rome, including St. Peter's Basilica, Sistine Chapel, Vatican Museum The Holy See * The Holy See, the governing body of the Catholic Church and sovereign entity recognized ...

, in the apostolic constitution ''

Anglicanorum coetibus A personal ordinariate for former Anglicans, shortened as personal ordinariate or Anglican ordinariate,"...the liturgies approved for the Anglican ordinariates..." "Bishop Stephen Lopes of the Anglican Ordinariate of the Chair of St Peter..." ...

'', announced a canonical framework to integrate groups of disaffected Anglicans into the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

.''New York Times'' and ''Albany Times Union'' staff reports, "Vatican to ease rules on Anglicans", ''Albany Times Union'', October 21, 2009, p. A5, col. 1, found a
''Albany Times Union'' website
Accessed October 21, 2009. Love was quoted as saying, "What state we are in when we get through this, only God knows ..." He also acknowledged that two parishes in the Diocese of Albany were attempting to leave the Episcopal Church. Love granted Delegated Ecclesiastical Parish Oversight (DEPO)--a status where certain parishes remain a part of a diocese, but receive certain pastoral functions from a bishop outside that diocese—to three parishes. As of 2012, the parishes receiving DEPO were St. Luke's, Saranac Lake; St. George's, Schenectady; and St. John's, Essex.Crowe, Kenneth C. III, "Bishop: Episcopal Church Must Change," ''Albany Times Union'', May 4, 2012, found a
''Albany Times Union'' website
Accessed October 23, 2012.Love, The Rt. Rev. William, "Delegated Episcopal Pastoral Oversight (DEPO) in the Diocese of Albany," ''The Albany Episcopalian'', May 2012, found a

Accessed October 23, 2012.

Dissent and departure

In 2015, the General Convention of the Episcopal Church "sanctioned gay marriage across the American church but llowedthe bishops of eight dioceses ncluding Albanyto opt out." In July 2018, the General Convention of the Episcopal Church passed a resolution allowing same-sex weddings to be performed in the eight dissenting dioceses. Love strongly opposed the resolution. In November 2018, he issued a pastoral directive banning same-sex weddings from being held by clergy in the Episcopal Diocese of Albany; in an accompanying letter, Love wrote: "Recent statistics show that The Episcopal Church is spiraling downward... I can’t help but believe that God has removed His blessing from this Church. Unless something changes, The Episcopal Church is going to die." In response to Love's pastoral directive, Presiding Bishop Michael Curry placed Love on a partial ministry restriction. A June 12, 2020 disciplinary hearing was held to determine whether Love had violated church law by refusing to allow same-sex weddings to be conducted by Episcopal clergy in the Diocese of Albany. On October 2, 2020, a disciplinary panel ruled that Love had violated Episcopal doctrine and rules. On October 24, 2020, Love announced his resignation as bishop pursuant to a disciplinary agreement with church authorities. His resignation became effective on February 1, 2021. On March 29, 2021, Love was—at his own request—released and removed from the ordained ministry by Presiding Bishop Michael Curry. On March 30, 2021, Love announced that he would be leaving ministry in the Episcopal church to join the Anglican Church in North America. (Earlier the same year, Love's predecessor as Bishop of Albany, Daniel W. Herzog, also announced that he was leaving ministry.) Four priests and four deacons left the Diocese of Albany in protest following Love's departure.

Assistant Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of the Living Word

The

, a diocese within the ACNA, announced the appointment of Love as assisting bishop on April 3, 2021.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Love, William 1957 births Living people Anglo-Catholic bishops Religious leaders from Albany, New York Nashotah House alumni Texas State University alumni State University of New York at Plattsburgh alumni American Anglo-Catholics Bishops of the Anglican Church in North America Episcopal bishops of Albany 21st-century American clergy Anglican realignment people

Education, family, and early career

Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Albany

Dissent and departure

Assistant Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of the Living Word

See also

References