| Jeffrey Neil Steenson | |
|---|---|
| Ordinary of the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of Saint Peter (since 2012) | |
| Church | Roman Catholic Church (formerly a bishop in the Episcopal Church) |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | June 29, 1980 (Episcopal) February 21, 2009 (Catholic) |
| Consecration | January 16, 2005 (Episcopal) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | April 1, 1952 Fort Rucker, Alabama |
Jeffrey Neil Steenson (born April 1, 1952) is a former bishop of the Episcopal Church of the United States. He served as the Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of the Rio Grande from 2005 until 2007 when he resigned and entered full communion with the Roman Catholic Church. On January 1, 2012, Pope Benedict XVI named him the first Ordinary of the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of Saint Peter.[1] Similar to a diocese, the Ordinariate was established for former Anglicans who will become fully Catholic while retaining their Anglican traditions and heritage.
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Steenson is a patristics scholar. He received a Doctor of Philosophy degree from Christ Church, Oxford with a 1983 dissertation entitled Basil of Ancyra and the Course of Nicene Orthodoxy. His earlier degrees are master of divinity from Harvard Divinity School (1978) in New Testament patristics, master of arts from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (1976) in church history, and bachelor of arts from Trinity International University (1974) in history.[2]
Steenson served as curate at All Saints' Church in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania and rector of the Church of the Good Shepherd in Rosemont, and St. Andrew's Church in Grand Prairie, Texas.[3]
In October 2004 Steenson was elected bishop coadjutor of the Episcopal Diocese of the Rio Grande; he was consecrated in January 2005. On August 1, 2005, he succeeded Terrence Kelshaw as Bishop of Rio Grande.[4] Steenson was a member of the Board of Trustees of Nashotah House and the Board of Directors of The Living Church Foundation.
In September 2007, Steenson announced his decision to resign as bishop effective December 1.[5]
Steenson was received into the full communion of the Roman Catholic Church on December 1, 2007. Having petitioned for ordination in the Catholic Church under the Pastoral Provision, he began studies at the Pontifical Irish College in Rome. On February 21, 2009, he was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Santa Fe by Archbishop Michael J. Sheehan.[6]
Steenson taught Western Theological Tradition for a semester in 2009 at the Rome Campus of the University of Dallas.[1] Steenson now teaches at the University of St. Thomas and at St. Mary's Seminary, both in Houston.[6]
On January 1, 2012, he was named the first ordinary of the newly created Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of Saint Peter. At its founding, it was said to have inquiries from over 100 Anglican priests and 1,400 people.[7]
Steenson is married to Debra Jane Steenson,[8] with whom he has three adult children and a grandchild.[9] Jeffrey N. Steenson is an avid amateur pilot and aircraft builder.[10]