Christ Church Cathedral on Monument Circle

The Episcopal Diocese of Indianapolis, formerly known as the Episcopal Diocese of Indiana, is a

diocese In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associa ...

in Province V (for the Midwest region) of the Episcopal Church. It encompasses the southern two-thirds of the state of

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

. Its see is in

Indianapolis, Indiana Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Mari ...

, at Christ Church Cathedral. According to the diocesan newsletter, the diocese has 10,137 communicants in 49 parishes. The current bishop is

Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows Jennifer Lynn Baskerville-Burrows is an American Anglican bishop in the Episcopal Church. In October 2016, she was elected bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Indianapolis, and she was consecrated on April 29, 2017. She is the first African-America ...

, the first African-American woman to serve as diocesan bishop in the Episcopal Church and the first woman to succeed another woman as a diocesan bishop in the Episcopal Church; Catherine Waynick served as bishop of the diocese from 1997 to 2017.

History

Like many of the Episcopal dioceses in the Midwest, the history of the Diocese of Indianapolis begins with the consecration of

Jackson Kemper Jackson Kemper (December 24, 1789 – May 24, 1870) in 1835 became the first missionary bishop of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America. Especially known for his work with Native American peoples, he also founded parishes in wha ...

as Missionary Bishop of the Northwest in 1835. At the time, Indiana was a wilderness and the first Anglican meetings were often held in remote Methodist and Presbyterian churches, as well as courthouses, stores, schoolhouses and private homes. Kemper founded several Indiana churches; the oldest one still standing is Saint John's Church in

Crawfordsville, Indiana Crawfordsville is a city in Montgomery County in west central Indiana, United States, west by northwest of Indianapolis. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 16,306. The city is the county seat of Montgomery County, the only char ...

. The Episcopal Diocese of Indiana was formed in 1849 with the consecration of George Upfold as bishop of Indiana. The first cathedral was Saint John's Church in

Lafayette, Indiana Lafayette ( , ) is a city in and the county seat of Tippecanoe County, Indiana, United States, located northwest of Indianapolis and southeast of Chicago. West Lafayette, on the other side of the Wabash River, is home to Purdue University, whi ...

, because it was the only parish with a parsonage at the time. Within a few years, Upfold moved the episcopal residence to Indianapolis, where Saint Paul's Church, Grace Church, and All Saints' Church served as the cathedral before it was moved to Christ Church in 1954. Christ Church was consecrated as the

pro-cathedral A pro-cathedral or procathedral is a parish church that temporarily serves as the cathedral or co-cathedral of a diocese, or a church that has the same function in a Catholic missionary jurisdiction (such as an apostolic prefecture or apostoli ...

for the diocese on October 10, 1954. In 1898 the Episcopal Diocese of Indiana was divided to create the Episcopal Diocese of Indianapolis, covering the southern two-thirds of the state, and the

Episcopal Diocese of Northern Indiana The Episcopal Diocese of Northern Indiana, originally called the Episcopal Diocese of Michigan City, is the diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America with jurisdiction over the northern one-third of Indiana. It is in Prov ...

, covering the northern one-third.

Churches in the Diocese

The Episcopal Diocese of Indianapolis is made up of 48 parishes across the lower two-thirds of the state of Indiana: * All Saints Episcopal Church,

* Chapel of the Good Shepherd,

West Lafayette, Indiana West Lafayette () is a city in Wabash Township, Tippecanoe County, Indiana, United States, about northwest of the state capital of Indianapolis and southeast of Chicago. West Lafayette is directly across the Wabash River from its sister cit ...

* Christ Church Cathedral,

* Christ Church,

Madison, Indiana Madison is a city in and the county seat of Jefferson County, Indiana, United States, along the Ohio River. As of the 2010 United States Census its population was 11,967. Over 55,000 people live within of downtown Madison. Madison is the larges ...

* Church of the Nativity,

* Episcopal Campus Ministry at

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. *Indiana Universi ...

Bloomington, Indiana Bloomington is a city in and the county seat of Monroe County in the central region of the U.S. state of Indiana. It is the seventh-largest city in Indiana and the fourth-largest outside the Indianapolis metropolitan area. According to the Mo ...

* Good Samaritan Episcopal Church,

Fishers, Indiana Fishers is a city in Fall Creek and Delaware townships, Hamilton County, Indiana, United States. As of the 2010 census the population was 76,794, and by 2019 the estimated population was 95,310. A suburb of Indianapolis, Fishers has grown rapidl ...

* Peace Episcopal Church, Rockport, Indiana * St. Alban's Episcopal Church,

* St. Andrew's Episcopal Church,

Greencastle, Indiana Greencastle is a city in Greencastle Township, Putnam County, Indiana, United States, and the county seat of Putnam County. It was founded in 1821 by Ephraim Dukes on a land grant. He named the settlement for his hometown of Greencastle, Pennsylv ...

* St. Augustine Episcopal Church,

Danville, Indiana Danville is a town in and the county seat of Hendricks County, Indiana, United States. The population was 9,001 at the 2010 census, up from 6,418 at the 2000 census. In 2019 the estimated population was 10,126. History Danville was founded in 18 ...

* St. Christopher's Episcopal Church,

Carmel, Indiana Carmel is a suburban city in Indiana immediately north of Indianapolis. With a population of 100,777, the city spans across Clay Township in Hamilton County, Indiana, and is bordered by the White River to the east; the Hamilton-Boone county l ...

* St. David's Episcopal Church, Bean Blossom, Indiana * St. Francis-in-the-Fields Church, Zionsville, Indiana * St. George's Episcopal Church, West Terre Haute, Indiana * St. James Episcopal Church,

New Castle, Indiana New Castle is a city in Henry County, Indiana, east-northeast of Indianapolis, on the Big Blue River. The city is the county seat of Henry County. New Castle is home to New Castle Fieldhouse, the largest high school gymnasium in the world. T ...

* St. James' Episcopal Church,

Vincennes, Indiana Vincennes is a city in and the county seat of Knox County, Indiana, United States. It is located on the lower Wabash River in the southwestern part of the state, nearly halfway between Evansville and Terre Haute. Founded in 1732 by French fur ...

* St. John's Episcopal Church,

Bedford, Indiana Bedford is a city in Shawswick Township and the county seat of Lawrence County, Indiana, United States. In the 2020 census, the population was 13,792. That is up from 13,413 in 2010. Bedford is the principal city of the Bedford, IN Micropo ...

* St. John's Episcopal Church,

Washington, Indiana Washington is a city in Daviess County, Indiana. The population was 11,509 at the time of the 2010 census. The city is the county seat of Daviess County. It is also the principal city of the Washington, Indiana Micropolitan Statistical Are ...

* St. Luke's Episcopal Church,

Cannelton, Indiana Cannelton is a city in Troy Township, Perry County, in the U.S. state of Indiana, along the Ohio River. The population was 1,563 at the 2010 census. Cannelton, which was the smallest incorporated city in the state until 2010, was formerly the ...

* St. Luke's Episcopal Church,

Shelbyville, Indiana Shelbyville is a city in Addison Township, Shelby County, in the U.S. state of Indiana and is the county seat. The population was 20,067 as of the 2020 census. History In 1818, the land that would become Shelbyville was ceded to the U ...

* St. Mark's Episcopal Church, Plainfield, Indiana * St. Mary's Episcopal Church,

Martinsville, Indiana Martinsville is a city in Washington Township, Morgan County, in the U.S. state of Indiana. The population was 11,828 at the 2010 United States Census. The city is the county seat of Morgan County. History Martinsville was founded in 1822. It i ...

* St. Matthew's Episcopal Church,

* St. Michael's Episcopal Church,

Noblesville, Indiana Noblesville is a city in and the county seat of Hamilton County, Indiana, United States, a part of the north Indianapolis suburbs along the White River. The population was 51,969 at the 2010 census making it the state's 14th largest city/town ...

* St. Paul's Episcopal Church, Columbus, Indiana * St. Paul's Episcopal Church,

Evansville, Indiana Evansville is a city in, and the county seat of, Vanderburgh County, Indiana, United States. The population was 118,414 at the 2020 census, making it the state's third-most populous city after Indianapolis and Fort Wayne, the largest city in ...

* St. Paul's Episcopal Church,

* St. Paul's Episcopal Church, Jeffersonville, Indiana * St. Paul's Episcopal Church, New Albany, Indiana * St. Paul's Episcopal Church, Richmond, Indiana * St. Peter's Episcopal Church,

Lebanon, Indiana Lebanon (/ˈlɛbnən/) is a city in and the county seat of Boone County, Indiana, United States. The population was 15,792 at the 2010 census. Lebanon is located in central Indiana, approximately northwest of downtown Indianapolis and south ...

* St. Philip's Episcopal Church,

* St. Stephen's Episcopal Church,

New Harmony, Indiana New Harmony is a historic town on the Wabash River in Harmony Township, Posey County, Indiana. It lies north of Mount Vernon, the county seat, and is part of the Evansville metropolitan area. The town's population was 789 at the 2010 census. ...

* St. Stephen's Episcopal Church, Terre Haute, Indiana * St. Stephen's Episcopal Church,

Elwood, Indiana Elwood is a city in Madison and Tipton counties in the U.S. state of Indiana. The Madison County portion, which includes most of the city, is part of the Anderson, Indiana Metropolitan Statistical Area, while the small portion in Tipton County is p ...

* St. Thomas Episcopal Church,

Franklin, Indiana Franklin is a city in Johnson County, Indiana, United States. The population was 23,712 at the 2010 census. Located about south of Indianapolis, the city is the county seat of Johnson County. The site of Franklin College, the city attracts n ...

* St. Timothy Episcopal Church,

* Trinity Episcopal Church,

Anderson, Indiana Anderson, named after Chief William Anderson, is a city in and the county seat of Madison County, Indiana, United States. It is the principal city of the Anderson, Indiana Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses Madison County. Anderson ...

* Trinity Episcopal Church,

Lawrenceburg, Indiana Lawrenceburg is a city in Dearborn County, Indiana, United States. The population was 5,042 at the 2010 census. The city is the county seat and largest city of Dearborn County. Lawrenceburg is in southeast Indiana, on the Ohio River west of Cinc ...

Bishops of the Diocese

The bishops of the diocese in order are: #

, I Indiana, (1838–1849) # George Upfold, II Indiana, (1849–1872) # Joseph Cruickshank Talbot, III Indiana, (1872–1883) # David Buel Knickerbacker, IV Indiana, (1883–1894) # John Hazen White, V Indiana, (1895–1899) Knickerbacker worked with the Episcopal General Convention to split the Diocese in two to better serve the growing congregation. The 1898 Episcopal General Convention agreed and split the Episcopal Diocese of Indianapolis from the

. White went on to head the new diocese from 1899-1925, while Joseph Marshall Francis ascended to become the sixth Bishop of Indiana. # Joseph Marshall Francis, VI Indianapolis, (1899–1939) The diocese was renamed from Indiana to Indianapolis on September 1, 1902. # Richard A. Kirchhoffer VII Indianapolis, (1939–1959) # John Pares Craine, VIII Indianapolis, (1959–1977) # Edward Witker Jones, IX Indianapolis, (1978–1997) # Catherine Maples Waynick, X Indianapolis, (1997-2017) #

, XI Indianapolis (2017-present)

Resources

* * Harvey, Jane C. ''History of Saint John's Church 1837-1887.'' from the website of St. John's Church, Lafayette. * * Lilly, Eli, ''History of the Little Church on the Circle, Christ Church Parish, Indianapolis, 1837-1955'' Indianapolis: Rector, Wardens, etc. of Christ Episcopal Church, 1957.

References

External links