Willie James Hill Jr. (born 1951) 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 currently serving as bishop ordinary of the

Reformed Episcopal Church The Reformed Episcopal Church (REC) is an Anglican church of evangelical Episcopalian heritage. It was founded in 1873 in New York City by George David Cummins, a former bishop of the Protestant Episcopal Church. The REC is a founding member of ...

's Diocese of the Southeast and as rector of St. John's Reformed Episcopal Church in

Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint o ...

Early life, education, and family

Hill was born in

Moncks Corner Moncks Corner is a town in and the county seat of Berkeley County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 7,885 at the 2010 census. As defined by the U.S. Census Bureau, Moncks Corner is included within the Charleston-North Charleston-S ...

to Willie J. Hill Sr. and Gladys Hill and raised in the Reformed Episcopal Church. He married Gale in 1974 and has three adult children and six grandchildren. Hill studied at

Reformed Episcopal Seminary The Reformed Episcopal Seminary is a private seminary in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1887 as the first seminary of the Reformed Episcopal Church. History The Reformed Episcopal Seminary was founded in 1887 in West Philadelphi ...

in Philadelphia and received degrees from

Cummins Memorial Theological Seminary The Reformed Episcopal Church (REC) is an Anglican church of evangelical Episcopalian heritage. It was founded in 1873 in New York City by George David Cummins, a former bishop of the Protestant Episcopal Church. The REC is a founding member of ...

in Summerville, South Carolina, in 1981, as well as from Eastern University in St. Davids, Pennsylvania.

Ordained ministry

Hill began ordained ministry in 1982 in the Reformed Episcopal Church and served parishes in Pennsylvania and South Carolina. He was appointed rector of St. John's Reformed Episcopal Church in 2013 and launched new initiatives to engage the surrounding

Ansonborough Ansonborough is a neighborhood in Charleston, South Carolina. In 1726, Captain George Anson acquired a 64-acre tract from Thomas Gadsden. Anson's lands were divided into smaller parcels for development, and several streets were named either for his ...

community. “The truth is there is no vision for a future if we maintain that mindset,” he said. “That is one of the symptoms of a dying church.” He welcomed visiting college gospel choirs to sing in St. John's sanctuary and added a midday Bible study for elderly members who could not travel to evening events.

Episcopal ministry

On 28 February 2022, Hill was elected bishop co-adjutor with the right to succeed Bishop Ordinary William White upon his retirement. Hill's election received consent from 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 ...

College of Bishops on 13 June 2022, and he was consecrated on 13 August 2022 at Grace Reformed Episcopal Church in Moncks Corner. ACNA Archbishop

Foley Beach Foley Thomas Beach (born October 31, 1958) is an American bishop. He is the second primate and archbishop of the Anglican Church in North America, a church associated with the Anglican realignment movement. Foley was elected as the church's prima ...

was the chief consecrator, and REC Presiding Bishop

Ray Sutton Raymond Ronny Sutton (born 1950) is an American Anglican bishop. He was bishop coadjutor in the Diocese of Mid-America of the Reformed Episcopal Church, since 1999, a founding member of the Anglican Church in North America, in 2009. He is the ...

was the consecration preacher. In September 2022, White retired and Sutton installed Hill as bishop ordinary during the diocese's annual synod.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hill, Willie James 1951 births Living people Bishops of the Anglican Church in North America 21st-century Anglican bishops in the United States Bishops of the Reformed Episcopal Church Christians from South Carolina African-American Christian clergy