| The Right Reverend Reginald Heber Weller |
|
|---|---|
| III Bishop of Fond du Lac | |
| Province | The Episcopal Church |
| Diocese | Fond du Lac |
| See | St. Paul's Cathedral |
| Enthroned | 1900 |
| Reign ended | 1933 |
| Predecessor | Charles Chapman Grafton |
| Other posts | Church of the Intercession, Stevens Point |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | 1884 |
| Consecration | 8 Nov 1900 |
| Personal details | |
| Born | November 6, 1857 Jefferson City, Missouri |
| Died | November 22, 1935 Aurora, Illinois |
| Denomination | Episcopalian |
| Spouse | Bessie Brown |
| Children | Ruth, Daniel, George, Walter, Horace and Reginald |
| Alma mater | Nashotah House |
The son of an Episcopal clergyman, Reginald Heber Weller was born in Jefferson City, Missouri, USA, on November 6, 1857. He was educated in Florida where his family moved when he was a boy. After attending the University of the South at Sewanee, Tennessee, Bishop Weller received his degree of Bachelor of Divinity at Nashotah House in 1884. He was ordained deacon in 1880. He was ordained a priest in 1884 at All Saints’ Mission, Providence, Rhode Island after serving his diaconate there. Bishop Weller was married to Bessie Brown in 1886 in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, and together they had one daughter, Ruth, and five sons, Daniel, George, Walter, Horace and Reginald.
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Rectorships at Christ Church, Eau Claire, and St. Matthias, Waukesha, were served before he became rector at Church of the Intercession, Stevens Point, where he was at the time of his election to be Bishop Coadjutor of the Diocese in 1900.
He was consecrated coadjutor on November 8, 1900, at the Cathedral of St. Paul the Apostle in Fond du Lac. The Russian Orthodox bishop of Alaska, Saint Tikhon, was present as well as Rt. Rev. Anthony Kozlowski of the Polish National Catholic Church. Bishops Grafton and Weller were photographed with these and other bishops wearing copes and mitres, a "Catholic" practice which was not widely accepted in the "Protestant" Episcopal Church at that time. The photo, published widely back east, became known as the Fond du Lac Circus.
During his thirty-three years of active service, a longer episcopate than any other in the state at the time, Bishop Weller preached in all parts of the country. He held many positions of importance in the church and became widely known in England. He became diocesan on August 30, 1912, after the death of Bishop Grafton. He held the position of Superior General of the Confraternity of the Blessed Sacrament from 1913-35, succeeding Bishop Grafton who held the office from 1890-1912.
In 1919, Bishop Weller was a member of the Commission on Faith and Order, which went abroad for a world conference on the fundamentals of the Christian religion seeking to restore communion between the Eastern Orthodox Church, Roman and Anglican. Attendants at the Lambeth Conference in 1930 found Bishop Weller taking an active part in its deliberations and preaching in several English cathedrals. At home or abroad, Bishop Weller was a defender of the faith, a stirring, convincing preacher of great ability, a wise pastor, generous friend and a man of God.
Bishop Weller held many preaching missions, especially in the eastern United States. He took an active and influential part in the deliberations of the House of Bishops. On St. Andrew’s Day, November 30, 1929, Bishop Weller acted as the chief consecrator at the consecration of the Rev. Harwood Sturtevant as the Bishop Coadjutor of the diocese. Four years later in November 1933, Bishop Sturtevant succeeded Bishop Weller as the fourth bishop of the diocese. He died on November 22, 1935, at the home of his son, George in Aurora, Illinois.
| Episcopal Church (USA) titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Charles Chapman Grafton |
3rd Bishop of Fond du Lac 1900-1933 |
Succeeded by Harwood Sturtevant |