Office of the Bishop
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San Diego, CA. 92103-6397
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Here you will find information on just about everything. If you still can't find what you're looking for, please contact us in the office: 619-291-5947.
Manual of Business Methods in Church Affairs (PDF)
Parochial Reports and Workbooks
Living Into Our Ministries: a mutual ministry cycle resource
Facts about The Episcopal Church
Basic Info
- Member province of the Worldwide Anglican Communion. The Anglican Communion is made up of about 77 million members in 44 regional and national churches around the globe in 164 countries. Its spiritual leader is the Most Reverend Rowan Williams, 104th Archbishop of Canterbury.
- Correct name is “The Episcopal Church.” The correct abbreviation is “TEC.” It is no longer called The Episcopal Church USA, as it is in several other countries outside the United States.
- In 16 nations: United States and Puerto Rico, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Haiti, Honduras, Micronesia, Taiwan, Venezuela, and the Virgin Islands and the Convocation of Episcopal Churches in Europe (Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Austria).
- Nine geographical provinces For provinces, go here
- Over 7,400 congregations in 109 dioceses and three regional areas
- 2.2 million members
- Approximately 18,000 deacons, priests, and bishops who are alive, in good standing (i.e., not deposed, renounced, or otherwise removed), and are canonically resident in a diocese of The Episcopal Church.
Governance
- Governed by a bicameral General Convention, which meets every three years, and by an elected Executive Council, which will customarily meet nine times during interim years.
- The General Convention consists of the House of Bishops and the House of Deputies.
- The House of Bishops is composed of every bishop with jurisdiction, bishop coadjutor, suffragan bishop, retired bishop, bishop elected to an office created by General Convention, and every bishop who has resigned because of missionary strategy. (As of August, 2008, about 51% of bishops in The Episcopal Church were active bishops and about 49% were retired.) All members of the House of Bishops have seat and voice in the House of Bishops. There are about 300 bishops in the House of Bishops.
- The House of Deputies is composed of up to four lay and four clerical deputies from each of the dioceses. It has more than 800 members.
- Concurrence of each house is required for passage of legislation.
- Between General Conventions, the Convention’s work is carried out by interim bodies: Committees, Commissions, Agencies and Boards, commonly called CCABs. The areas of interest of CCABs range from domestic issues to international activities, liturgical topics to social justice issues, and more …
Leadership
- The two top leaders of the church are the Presiding Bishop, who is also called Primate and Chief Pastor, and the president of the House of Deputies.
The Most Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori is the 26th Presiding Bishop and Primate of The Episcopal Church.
Bonnie Anderson, D.D., is president of the House of Deputies.
- The Rev. Canon Dr. Gregory Stephen Straub is Executive Officer and Secretary of the General Convention. The Executive Officer, appointed by the Presiding Bishop and the President of the House of Deputies, oversees all aspects of the work of Church governance.
- Mr. Kurt Barnes is the current Treasurer.
Budget The full budget can be found here
The Episcopal Church budget is adopted at General Convention for a triennium, then apportioned for each year in the triennium. The 2009 General Convention budget asks for less money from dioceses each successive year during this triennium: 21 percent for 2010, 20 percent for 2011 and 19 percent for 2012.
Diocesan income amounts to 56 percent of revenue and investment income accounts for 20 percent. Sixteen percent of triennial income will come from government money granted to the church for its refugee resettlement work. Eight percent will come from other income.
The Episcopal Church and the Anglican Church of North America (ACNA)
- Membership in ACNA includes churches and denominations which have disassociated from The Episcopal Church both recently and over the last 130 years, as well as congregations which have never been part of The Episcopal Church. A definitive number is difficult to ascertain.
- ACNA is lead by an archbishop who is not a member of The Episcopal Church, the Church of England, the Anglican Church of Canada, or the Anglican Communion.
- The Episcopal Church welcomes all who wish to serve God through Jesus Christ.
- The Episcopal Church welcomes women in ordained ministry – deacons, priests and bishops. ACNA does not permit women to serve as bishops and, in some areas, bars women from all ordination.
- The Episcopal Church is a member province of the worldwide Anglican Communion, serving God together and working together to bring the Reign of God on earth. ACNA is not a member of the Worldwide Anglican Communion.
- Recently, in an amended resolution passed by its General Synod, the Church of England has said it recognizes and affirms the desire of the Anglican Church in North America to remain in the Anglican family, but it is not yet ready to be in full communion with the breakaway entity.