The Episcopal Church
The Episcopal Church
Welcome to the Episcopal Church—a community of faith that seeks to respond to the Gospel of Jesus Christ in word and deed. The Episcopal Church is a province of the Anglican Communion, which is a confederation of national churches of former British colonies. The Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Rev'd Justin Welby, leads the Communion as a "first among equals," and with support of other ordained and lay leaders throughout the world.
As of 2022, the Episcopal Church has 1.58 million baptized members. In keeping with Anglican tradition and theology, the Episcopal Church considers itself "Protestant, yet Catholic."
The Episcopal Church was formally organized when the first General Convention was held in Philadelphia in 1785. Its first bishop, Samuel Seabury, was consecrated in Scotland in 1784, and its second, William White, was consecrated in England in 1787. It became, in the words of the 1990 report of the Archbishop of Canterbury's Group on the Episcopate, "the first Anglican Province outside the British Isles." Today it has approximately 110 dioceses in the U.S., Taiwan, Europe, Central and South America, the Caribbean and Europe.
The Most Rev. Michael Bruce Curry
27th Presiding Bishop
While it has taken, for the most part, a more progressive stance on social issues in recent years, Episcopalians hold a variety of views on all of them. A number of its leaders participated in protests and nonviolent direct action during the Civil Rights Movement, and have been active in advocating for equal rights for women and LGBTQ+ individuals. Many of its lay and ordained leaders are actively working toward racial reconciliation.
The current Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church is The Most Rev. Michael Bruce Curry. Bishop Curry's term will expire in 2024, with his successor to be elected by the General Convention in June.
The Bishop of Vermont is the Rt. Rev. Dr. Shannon MacVean-Brown.
The Rt. Rev. Dr. Shannon MacVean-Brown,
11th Bishop of Vermont