Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina

Diocese of North Carolina
Location
Ecclesiastical province	Province IV
Statistics
Members	49,966
Information
Rite	Episcopal
Current leadership
Bishop	The Rt. Rev. Michael Bruce Curry
Map
Location of the Diocese of North Carolina
Website
www.episdionc.org

The Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina, founded in 1817, roughly corresponds to the segment of the U.S. state of North Carolina between I-77 in the west and I-95 in the east, including the most populous area of the state. Charlotte, Winston-Salem, Greensboro, Raleigh, Cary, and Durham are the largest cities in the diocese. The Episcopal Diocese of Western North Carolina lies to the west extending into the Appalachian Mountains, and the Episcopal Diocese of East Carolina lies to the east extending to the Atlantic Ocean.

About the Diocese

The Diocese has no cathedral, but its offices are in downtown Raleigh. It meets in annual convention in November. Between conventions, the Diocese is administered by a Diocesan Council in conjunction with diocesan staff.

The Eleventh Bishop of North Carolina is the Right Reverend Michael Bruce Curry, and the Bishop Suffragan of the Diocese is the Rt. Rev. Anne Hodges-Copple.^[1] Other bishops who have served the Diocese since 1980 are the Rt. Rev. Robert Estill (Ninth Bishop of the Diocese), the late Rt. Rev. Robert C. Johnson (Tenth Bishop of the Diocese), the late Rt. Rev. Frank Vest (Suffragan Bishop of the Diocese who subsequently became Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Southern Virginia), the late Rt. Rev. Huntington Williams, Jr. (retired Suffragan Bishop), the Rt. Rev. J. Gary Gloster (retired Suffragan Bishop), the Rt. Rev. William Gregg (retired Assistant Bishop and previously the Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Eastern Oregon), and the Rt. Rev. Alfred C. "Chip" Marble, Jr. (retired Assisting Bishop and previously the Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Mississippi).

Congregations in the Diocese vary from conservative to liberal and from low church to high church, but the Diocese itself is generally considered moderate and is highly supportive of the Episcopal Church. Consisting of approximately 48,000 communicants,^[2] the Diocese is the tenth-largest in the nation and has shown a 3% compound annual growth rate over the last ten years. The density of Episcopalians varies across the Diocese but is highest in Wake County, the capital county.

Programs and Institutions

Principal programs of the Diocese are its campus ministry (North Carolina State University, St. Augustine's College, Duke University, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, and Davidson College);^[3] and social ministry, notably the Episcopal Farmworkers Ministry in Newton Grove, a joint venture with the Diocese of East Carolina.^[4] In a state with a growing Latino population, the Diocese supports a Chartered Committee on Hispanic Ministry.^[5] The committee provides liturgical and pastoral resources, supports congregations' service and outreach among Latinas and Latinos, and advocates for immigration reform and other laws to protect the rights of migrant workers.

The Diocese no longer operates a camp and conference center, having sold its facility near Browns Summit, North Carolina to the State of North Carolina for use as Haw River State Park. However, the Diocese maintains an active youth program. The territory of the Diocese includes independent schools with current or former diocesan affiliations including St. Mary's School, Trinity Episcopal School (Charlotte, NC), and Ravenscroft School.

Other major institutions affiliated with the Diocese are Penick Village in Southern Pines, a retirement community; and Thompson Child and Family Focus in Charlotte, a youth services ministry.

References

External links

• Website of the Diocese of North Carolina
• Website of the Diocesan Committee on Hispanic Ministry
• Journal of the Conventions of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the Diocese of North Carolina a complete listing of diocesan conventions from 1817-1923, 1926-2003, 2010-12

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