The Episcopal Diocese of Michigan is the Episcopal

diocese In Ecclesiastical polity, 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 Roman province, pro ...

comprising more than 70 congregations in the southeast part of

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

. The diocese traces its roots to the founding of St. Paul's,

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

in 1824. It became a diocese of the Episcopal Church in 1836, one year before the State of Michigan entered the Union. Initially encompassing the entire Michigan Territory, it split several times to reflect a growing population, and now comprises only the densely populated southeastern portion of the state. St. Paul's, Detroit was formally designated the

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denomination ...

of the diocese in 1912.

Location

At its foundation, one year before Michigan achieved statehood, the Diocese encompassed all of Michigan. As the church grew, the bishops found it difficult to administer such a large area, and the parishes farther from Detroit desired a bishop closer to their own areas and more attuned to their local needs. To address these concerns, the diocese has divided three times. In 1875, the western half of the Lower Peninsula became the Diocese of Western Michigan. In 1895, the Upper Peninsula became the Diocese of Marquette (later renamed Diocese of Northern Michigan). Finally in 1995, the northeastern Lower Peninsula, Saginaw Valley, and Thumb areas (the northern two-thirds of its then remaining territory) became the Diocese of Eastern Michigan. As a result of these divisions, the current Diocese of Michigan includes only the Detroit Metropolitan Area and adjacent regions as far west as Lansing, Jackson, and Hillsdale. Officially, the diocesan boundaries are as follows: The Counties of Hillsdale, Lenawee, Monroe,

Jackson Jackson may refer to: People and fictional characters * Jackson (name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the surname or given name Places Australia * Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region * Jackson North, Qu ...

, Washtenaw, Wayne, Ingham,

Livingston Livingston may refer to: Businesses * Livingston Energy Flight, an Italian airline (2003–2010) * Livingston Compagnia Aerea, an Italian airline (2011–2014), also known as Livingston Airline * Livingston International, a North American custom ...

Oakland Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the Bay A ...

(except for Holly Township), Macomb and that portion of

Clinton County Clinton County may refer to: *Counties named for George Clinton, first and third Governor of New York, and later the fourth Vice President of the United States: **Clinton County, New York ** Clinton County, Ohio *Counties named for DeWitt Clinton, ...

south of Price Road

History

The Episcopal Diocese of Michigan was organized In the fall of 1832 by parishes in Detroit,

Ann Arbor Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female given name Anna (name), Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah (given name), Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie (given name), ...

Troy Troy ( el, Τροία and Latin: Troia, Hittite language, Hittite: 𒋫𒊒𒄿𒊭 ''Truwiša'') or Ilion ( el, Ίλιον and Latin: Ilium, Hittite language, Hittite: 𒃾𒇻𒊭 ''Wiluša'') was an ancient city located at Hisarlik in prese ...

, Monroe, Ypsilanti and Tecumseh. It became the 21st diocese of the

Episcopal Church of the United States The Episcopal Church, based in the United States with additional dioceses elsewhere, is a member church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. It is a mainline Protestant denomination and is divided into nine provinces. The presiding bishop o ...

. From its beginning, St. Paul's Church in Detroit (the current Cathedral) served, initially informally until the formal designation in 1912, as the see of the diocese, and the early bishops served as rector of St. Paul's. In the 1800s, the diocese focused on rapidly spreading the gospel to the region. As early as the 1840s, the church began to develop urban missions in Detroit to African Americans (St. Matthew's) and laborers (Mariners’ Church). The 1850s saw the development of missions in the Saginaw Valley and Upper Peninsula. Supporting churches in poor farming areas was a focus during this period. The major emphasis of the diocese changed in the 1900s as the automobile industry began to prosper in Michigan. Throughout the century the financial stability of the diocese were closely tied to the development and decline of the industry in the Detroit area. The rapid rise in Detroit's wealth and power in the 1910s and 1920s were reflected in a diocese that became one of the largest and most influential in The Episcopal Church. The suburbanization of the 1940s and 1950s led to a focus on the physical expansion in the diocese with the addition of new church buildings. The

decline of Detroit Detroit, the largest city in the state of Michigan, was settled in 1701 by French colonists. It is the first European settlement above tidewater in North America., p. 56. Founded as a New France fur trading post, it began to expand during the 19 ...

in the 1970s and 1980s saw the diocese cutting back and closing parishes. Early in the 20th century, Bishop Charles D. Williams led the diocese to discuss the church's responsibility to the labor movement. Later Bishops Richard S. M. Emrich and Harry Coleman McGehee, Jr. began community activism around the issues of civil rights, peace, and justice. Beginning in the 1950s, the diocese debated the role of women, and later gays and lesbians, in the church.

Governance

Since 1920 the executive council (since 1995 called diocesan council) has met between conventions to continue its policy-making role. The standing committee provides advice and counsel for the bishop. Since 1875 the trustees of the diocese have managed the diocesan assets. The chancellor has since 1904 provided the bishop with legal counsel. The parishes in the diocese have been divided into regional groupings called at various times convocations, archdeaconries, area councils, and currently deaneries, that have varied over the years in number, names, and responsibilities.

Bishops

The immediate past

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

was the Right Reverend Wendell Gibbs, one of only a few

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

bishops in the Episcopal Church. The current bishop is the Right Reverend Bonnie Perry. Its first bishop was Samuel Allen McCoskry, who served 1836–1878. # Samuel Allen McCoskry (1836 - 1878) # Samuel Smith Harris (1879 - 1889) # Thomas Frederick Davies, Sr. (1889 - 1905) # Charles D. Williams (1906 - 1923) # Herman Page (1924 - 1939) # Frank W. Creighton (1940 - 1948) # Richard S. M. Emrich (1948 - 1973) # Harry Coleman McGehee, Jr. (1973 - 1990) # R. Stewart Wood (1990 - 2000) # Wendell Gibbs (2000 - 2020) # Bonnie Perry (2020-)

References

External links

Official web site of the Diocese of Michigan
*
Journal of the Annual Convention, Diocese of Michigan
' {{DEFAULTSORT:Michigan Michigan, Episcopal Diocese of Diocese of Michigan Religious organizations established in 1836 Anglican dioceses established in the 19th century 1836 establishments in Michigan Territory Province 5 of the Episcopal Church (United States)