Episcopal Diocese of Arizona

Diocese of Arizona

Diœcesis Arizonensis
Location
CountryUnited States
Ecclesiastical provinceProvince VIII
Statistics
Congregations58 (2023)
Members16,433 (2023)
Information
DenominationEpiscopal Church
Established1959
CathedralTrinity Cathedral
Current leadership
BishopJennifer Anne Reddall
Map
Location of the Diocese of Arizona
Location of the Diocese of Arizona
Website
www.azdiocese.org

The Episcopal Diocese of Arizona is the diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America which has jurisdiction over most of Arizona. It is in Province VIII.

Jennifer Anne Reddall is the current bishop. Her seat is at Trinity Cathedral, Phoenix.

History

The Episcopal Diocese of Arizona was established by General Convention in 1959, but its history began 100 years before. Here are some important dates:

  • February 15, 1860: Joseph C. Talbot consecrated at Christ Church, Indianapolis to be Missionary Bishop over the newly organized Northwest jurisdiction, covering nearly 900,000 square miles (2,300,000 km2), including Nebraska, the Dakotas, Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, Montana and Idaho.
  • 1865: Arizona and Nevada were constituted a Missionary Jurisdiction.
  • 1874: Arizona is separated from Nevada and is joined into a Missionary Jurisdiction with New Mexico.
  • 1880: The first convention of the Missionary District of New Mexico and Arizona was held at the Exchange Hotel, Albuquerque, New Mexico.
  • 1881: St. Paul's, the first Episcopal church building in Arizona was erected in Tombstone with help from Endicott Peabody. St. Paul's is the oldest non-Roman Catholic Church in Arizona.
  • 1889: Trinity Church in Phoenix was completed and held its first service on the first Sunday in January.
  • 1892: Arizona and New Mexico were made separate Missionary Jurisdictions.
  • 1897: The Hospital of the Good Shepherd was founded by Miss Thackara among the Navajos at Fort Defiance.
  • 1907: St. Luke's Home for tubercular patients was founded in Phoenix.
  • August 18, 1931: The Arizona Church Conference Center (Chapel Rock was added to the name in 1995) was bought and paid for with $13,972.85 by Bishop Mitchell.
  • 1959: The Episcopal Diocese of Arizona was established by General Convention.

List of Bishops of Arizona

Missionary bishops over Arizona
From Until Incumbent Notes (Personal data)
1875 1876 Joseph C. Talbot, Missionary Bishop of the Northwest 1816, Alexandria, VA – 1883, Indianapolis, IN; consecrated 1860 at Christ Church, Indianapolis.
1869 1874 Ozi William Whitaker, Missionary Bishop of Arizona and Nevada 1830, New Salem, MA – 1911; consecrated 1869; first Episcopal Visitations to Arizona in 1873; translated to Pennsylvania.
1875 1876 William Forbes Adams, Missionary Bishop of Arizona and New Mexico 1833, Enniskillen, UK – 1935, Los Angeles, CA; consecrated 1875; translated to Easton.
1876 1880 John Franklin Spalding, Bishop of Colorado 1828, Belgrade, ME – 1902, Erie, PA; also acting Missionary Bishop; previously Missionary Bishop of Colorado.
1880 1888 George Kelly Dunlop, Missionary Bishop of Arizona and New Mexico 1830, County Tyrone, UK – 1888; consecrated 1880.
1889 1910 John Mills Kendrick, Missionary Bishop of Arizona and New Mexico 1836, Gambier, OH – 1911, Oceanside, CA; consecrated 1889.
1911 1925 Julius W. Atwood, Missionary Bishop of Arizona 1857, Salisbury, VT – 1945, Washington, DC; consecrated 1911.
1926 1945 Walter Mitchell, Missionary Bishop of Arizona Consecrated 1926.
1945 1959 Arthur B. Kinsolving II, Missionary Bishop of Arizona 1894, Brazil – 1964; consecrated 1945; diocesan bishop from 1959.
Bishops of Arizona
1959 1962 Arthur B. Kinsolving Missionary Bishop since 1945.
1962 1979 Joseph M. Harte 1914, Springfield, OH – 1999, Phoenix, AZ; previously suffragan bishop in Dallas.
1979 1992 Joseph T. Heistand 1924, Danville, PA – 2008, Richmond, VA; consecrated 1976 at St Francis Xavier Catholic Church, Phoenix.
1985 1988 Wesley Frensdorff, coadjutor bishop 1926, Hannover, Germany – 1988, Grand Canyon, AZ; previously Bishop of Nevada (1972–1983); interim Bishop of Navajoland (1983–1985); died in office in an airplane crash.
1992 2004 Robert R. Shahan b. 1939, Elkhart, KS; consecrated in 1992 at St Francis Xavier Catholic Church, Phoenix.
2004 2019 Kirk Stevan Smith b. 1951, Soap Lake, WA; consecrated 2004 at St Francis Xavier Catholic Church, Phoenix; seated 2004 Trinity Cathedral.
2019 present Jennifer Anne Reddall b. 1975, Santa Monica, CA; consecrated 2019 at Church of the Nations, Phoenix; seated 2019 Trinty Cathedral.

33°27′32″N 112°04′37″W / 33.4589°N 112.0769°W / 33.4589; -112.0769