Profile of the Anglican Diocese of Pittsburgh

One Church of Missionary Grace and Miraculous Expectation

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Search Committee Letter to the Diocese

July 30, 2021

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Greetings in the name of Christ. After several months of prayer and discussion, the Bishop Search Committee is prepared to launch our search in earnest. With the publication of the Diocesan Profile, Bishop Profile, and the FAQs, we are prepared to receive nominations for the next Bishop of Pittsburgh. The nomination process is now open.

Thank you for your participation in the Diocesan Survey that we conducted in April. The results were informative and provided helpful insight for our discussions. Our team worked hard to summarize your feedback and did our best to integrate it into the documents. This teamwork has added to the clarity and candidness of the final Profiles.

As we enter this next stage of the search process, we have laid out the timeline, process, and instructions in the FAQs document. Our goal is to be as transparent as possible. Please know that we will answer your questions to the best of our abilities, knowing that much of our work will be carried out in the necessary context of confidentiality. For example, at each stage of the process, we will keep the names of nominees confidential. The final slate will be announced at the appropriate time, following the in-depth vetting process.

In the coming weeks, we will publish a prayer guide, and we ask that you fervently seek the will of God for this diocese, and for the guidance of the Holy Spirit for this committee.

The diocese has created a web page where you can find information about our search process. Nominations can be submitted online at https://pitanglican.org/bishop-search. For those who prefer to submit names in hardcopy, paper forms will be available.

If you have any questions for the Search Committee, please contact us directly at bishopsearch@pitanglican.org.

May the Lord guide and keep the Anglican Diocese of Pittsburgh through this process.

The Bishop Search Committee

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Mission and Vision

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. By his great mercy we have been born anew to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. 1 Peter 1:3

The vision statement of the Anglican Diocese of Pittsburgh, established under the tenure of Archbishop Robert Duncan, is “One Church of Missionary Grace and Miraculous Expectation.” The ADP is part of the Anglican Church in North America (www.anglicanchurch.net). The Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) unites some 112,000 Anglicans in nearly 1000 congregations in 29 dioceses into a single Church. Our Province is committed to reaching North America with the transforming love of Jesus Christ.

Our vision is to be a united Anglican movement centered in western Pennsylvania that helps to demonstrate God’s transforming power through Word, Sacrament, and Spirit in order to draw people into a personal relationship with God in Jesus Christ and help them become members of the Body of Christ, His Church. With God’s help, we aspire to be a gospel-driven diocese with preaching that clearly exposits the Bible, relentlessly proclaims the good news of Jesus Christ, and creatively connects the message of redemption to the many crises of the human condition. Our 43 parishes (self-supporting congregations) call our people to weekly worship that is bound to God’s inspired Word, the two Sacraments, the creeds of the ancient Church, the liturgy of the Book of Common Prayer, and the steadying truths of the 39 Articles of Religion. We are committed to training people of all ages to digest the Scriptures, to pray individually and corporately, and to engage in other life-giving, biblical practices that free us and shape us as disciples of Jesus. Finally, we hope to embrace a biblical, winsome, and counter-cultural orthodoxy in matters of faith and ethics as we seek to grow new disciples committed to the Great Commission.

The ADP encompasses a three-streams expression of the Christian Church, having an evangelical faith, charismatic gifting, and catholic order. As our history since 2000 demonstrates (below), we have been a diocese in transition for the last several years. Under Bishop Duncan’s transformative leadership, we became a global landing place for pilgrim churches during a season of great upheaval. Our hope is that the next epoch of our common life in the ADP will be marked by a strong sense of regional coherence, spiritual health, and demographic growth.

Thus, with God’s help, we are committed to the following:

  1. Growing in the love of God and the power of the Spirit through the faith passed down to us and enabling congregations to grow in discipleship with Christ.
  2. Becoming an interconnected and growing regional diocese as we continue to support and encourage our non-regional parishes.
  3. Planting new and vibrant churches in western PA to advance the gospel.

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Challenges

Realignment

The difficulty of realignment away from The Episcopal Church cannot be overstated. The contentious conventions, acrimonious clergy gatherings, later lawsuits, and ultimately, the departure from cherished properties exacted a heavy toll emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. Those who lived through it still bear the marks from it. While we have survived realignment, we have yet to truly move past it. The uneven way in which our parishes came through the struggle has created a feeling of division. Our next bishop will need to work hard to rebuild a sense of togetherness and common cause.

The Formation of the ACNA

The final years of Bob Duncan’s tenure as bishop were difficult for the diocese. As he was called to be the first archbishop of the ACNA, his absence from the diocese was felt by most. Canon Mary Hays worked faithfully and diligently for our diocese. She deserves appreciation for her service on our behalf. The necessary and understandable absence of Bp. Bob as the new province was being formed left the diocese struggling to articulate and implement a new vision for its own future.

Diocesan Governing Structures

In the aftermath of realignment, we have become keenly aware that some of our diocesan governing structures do not serve our current needs as well as they once did. We need to reimagine how we structure ourselves to face into the challenges of this new day of ministry.

The Tenure of Bp. Jim Hobby

Though short, Bp. Hobby’s tenure was revelatory. Our diocesan governing structures had fallen into either disuse or disorganization. As was later revealed, there were clergy disciplinary issues left unresolved.

Bp. Jim served this diocese by making it aware of the pending crisis created by our aging clergy for whom we do not have enough replacements. We have become aware that an increasing number of our clergy are working bi-vocationally as many of our parishes simply do not have the resources to support their clergy. We must think creatively about how to address this situation.

There have been further hurts created in the wake of Bp. Jim’s resignation as the Standing Committee made hard decisions to stabilize the diocese financially for the near future. Those decisions, though confirmed by the Diocesan Council as necessary, were understandably painful to both the people whose positions were eliminated and many others in the diocese. Those hurts should be taken seriously by our next bishop as we work together to heal wounds and reconcile with one another.

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Opportunities

The Region

The city of Pittsburgh is a vibrant city. We have a healthy urban hub in a region that has seen much growth and financial prosperity in some of its communities. There is opportunity to reach further outside the immediate urban setting and build good, healthy, and understanding relationships with our parishes in the small towns and rural areas of the diocese. There is opportunity to reimagine what ministry looks like in some of our struggling urban settings and declining steel towns. This diocese is diverse geographically and economically, and also desires increased racial diversity as we pray for the spread of the Gospel to all of this diocese.

The People

Yes, we have many clergy who are soon to retire. However, in these last, difficult months, we have seen both clergy and laity step into new leadership roles. We are actively looking to raise up new leaders. Our governing structures are functioning in significantly healthier ways than they were a year ago and we look forward to how the Lord will use our next bishop to help us move into greater leadership efficiency and healthy accountability.

Church Planting

We are still planting churches and have a strong desire to think strategically and boldly as we reach our diocese for the Gospel. It is our desire to develop an effective strategy to continue this work.

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Snapshots from Around the Diocese

Because we desire that our candidates get a well-rounded view of our diocese, the Bishop Search Committee asked a few churches to tell their stories in their own words. There are many good stories to tell, and we look forward to our eventual nominees coming to know all of our churches a little better through this process.

Shepherd’s Heart, Uptown

For the last 28 years, Shepherd’s Heart has provided daily services to the homeless, which include Sunday worship services, a daily drop in center in which Daily Morning Prayer is said.  In addition, breakfast, showers, laundry, counseling, clothing, financial assistance, etc., are provided.  In 2006  Shepherd’s Heart Veterans Home (SHVH) opened, located on the 2nd floor of the church.  SHVH is a 15 bed transitional housing program for veterans, who for many reasons have become homeless.  Many of the veterans we serve suffer from the traumas of war, drug and alcohol addictions, and almost all are separated from those they love.

Shepherd’s Heart partners with over 120 churches of all denominations, 22 veterans organizations, universities, seminaries, businesses, and medical and recovery programs across Southwestern PA.  The passion of The Rev. Mike and Tina Wurschmidt is to see those who are hurting and suffering come to know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and find the healing and hope they truly need.

Grace Anglican Church, Grove City

In recent years, Grace Anglican Church has been prayerfully planning a new church plant in Franklin, PA. As the plant takes shape, the most encouraging facet of these initial stages is recognizing God’s sovereign hand already orchestrating events for the benefit of this work. Because of proximity to Franklin and the health of Grace Anglican Church there is a growing team of mature, gifted individuals and families that are committed to help establish the new parish in Franklin. Furthermore, Grace Anglican averages close to 150 college students in attendance when Grove City College is in session. During the pandemic, Grace Anglican hosted a separate service on campus for the college students in which numerous students were trained to facilitate the liturgy on campus. As we move out of the pandemic and into a more regular pattern of worship, we have found that there are several gifted and trained college students that have indicated their excitement and desire to use their abilities to help establish this new church in nearby Franklin. Additionally, because of the lack of Gospel oriented and historically liturgical churches in the area there are various people that drive from the Franklin region to Grove City to worship at Grace Anglican and desire to see a new Anglican church in their region.

Much needs to be done to get this new church off the ground and some uncertainty remains; nevertheless, in the few short months following the approval of the diocese and Grace Anglican Church to move forward with a plant to serve the greater Franklin region, the support has been overwhelming. God’s blessing has been blatantly apparent regarding financial backing, volunteers, encouragement from local ministers and community leaders, as well as connections to influential individuals in the region that want to support and participate in this new plant. Even though the establishment of this new work is in its initial phase, the overwhelming interest and support it has received has led us to plan for the audacious goal of beginning public worship in October, 2021.

Reconciliation Church, Penn Hills

Facing aging and slowly declining congregations, All Saints and St James, both of Penn Hills, independently turned to God for answers. God brought the leadership of both congregations together to consider and then participate in something unexpected: on Easter 2018, God birthed Reconciliation Church. Much more than a merger of two old parishes hoping to hang on, Reconciliation is a new church built upon three words that God gave us during discernment and prayer: we are to know, serve and obey Him. These three words correspond to three levels of being Jesus’ church: the foundation of Reconciliation is our real and growing relationship with God, know Him; a new leadership model encourages every member of the Body to exercise their unique gifts, serve Him; and embracing Jesus’ mission to the world, each person is called to be the church, obey Him. The ultimate expression of Reconciliation Church is our desire, born of love and trust, to grow in obedience to God’s call, that we may truly be His Church by serving as ambassadors of reconciliation (2nd Corinthians 5:16-20) and peacemakers (Matthew 5:9). Each week we affirm this call as we close in the post communion prayer: "And now Father, send us out and into the world, to do the work you have given us to do, to love and serve you as faithful witnesses of Christ our Lord.” God has built a new Church filled with a new energy and joy, with significant ministries and new people. And most importantly, God is calling us to follow His voice, obediently and day by day, into His mission field, fulfilling the work of the church.

Church of the Ascension, Oakland

Church of the Ascension, like all the churches in our diocese, had to pivot quickly from in-person to online formats in 2020. One of the happy surprises of the pandemic was the deepening of relational bonds and continuance of highly creative ministry at all levels even as we were mostly online. It became very clear to our congregation that the pandemic put no damper on the Holy Spirit’s movement within individual lives. One of the greatest joys in the months of lockdown were three baptisms of adults who had come to Ascension from other countries, one from China and two from the Middle East, all of whom were excited to give visual expression through the sacrament of baptism to their new-found faith in Jesus Christ!

The Anglican Parish of Christ the Redeemer, South Hills

Redeemer Parish was established in Canonsburg in the wake of realignment after moving from their property in the South Hills. The Lord blessed Redeemer Parish with a new building in which to worship and continues to bless the ministry as we seek to reach our community with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. To love their new neighbors and anchor themselves in a new community, the people of Redeemer Parish established a diaper pantry for those receiving government assistance. Since assistance for diapers is not provided by the WIC or SNAP programs this was an obvious and unique way to show love and compassion. Since its establishment in February, 2015, the Redeemer Parish Diaper Pantry has distributed 770,000 diapers to 905 families as the church continues to grow in grace and preach the Gospel.

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Conclusion

Our region has seen both economic hardships and prosperity. These people are tough, and more than a little stubborn. The diocese has lost court battles. Some of the people have lost their church buildings and been forced to relocate or close their doors. Many of our clergy have had their retirement plans cut, and many aren’t sure if they can afford to retire. We’ve lost colleagues and friends. Our bishop was asked to resign. Like the rest of the world, COVID-19 has created its share of stresses and conflicts. By the grace of God, The Diocese of Pittsburgh is still here. We are working for the Gospel. We are seeing the Lord use us for His glory. We have a future. It will look different. It needs to look different. But we believe by faith that we have a future in the plan of God for all of Pittsburgh.

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Appendices

I. Diocesan Demographics & Statistics

As of December 2020, the ADP had 147 domiciled priests serving 52 congregations including 44 parishes, 3 missions, and 5 church plants (including 7 geographically distant congregations1). As of 2019, there were 6549 total members in the diocese. In 2019, we celebrated 172 baptisms, 106 confirmations, and 42 marriages. The Diocese of Pittsburgh includes congregations and missions in western and central Pennsylvania. The diocese also includes 7 geographically distant parishes in Tennessee, Illinois, and Colorado. The heart of the diocese is Pittsburgh itself, with a population of 2.3 million in the metro area. Throughout the rest of western PA, there are smaller cities, suburbs, and rural communities.

Congregations (52 in 2020)

.Responsive Image

Clergy of the Diocese (2020)

Priests Domiciled:

147

Vocational Deacons Active:

28

Non-Parochial or Retired:

117

Retired/Inactive Bishops:

2

Ordination Process (2020)

Priesthood: Current Aspirants:

6

Diaconate: Class just ordained:

5

Postulants:

8

Aspirants for next class:

2

Population Statistics (2019)

Average Principal Service Attendance 3,971
Total Members: 6,549
Total Operating Income of Congregations: $10.5M
Baptisms: 172
Confirmations: 106
Marriages: 42

Diocesan Staff

  • Director of Administration & Diocesan Treasurer
  • Executive Assistant to the Bishop
  • Director of Communications

1 Congregations include Fort Collins, CO; Franklin, TN; Nashville TN (2); Carol Stream, IL; Wheaton, IL (2)

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II. Governance

We believe that the body of Christ is an organic entity, which in good order should be served by the ecclesial organization. We are guided by the Holy Scriptures, Provincial Canons, and our Diocesan mission. As seen below, our governance is somewhat labyrinthine and multi-layered. In the next season of our life together, we need to make sure our structures (organization) serve the church (the organism).

Constitution and Canons of the Anglican Church in North America
The diocese is governed by the Canons and Constitution of the Anglican Church in North America which is available at the following link: https://anglicanchurch.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/CURRENT-C-and-C-2021.pdf

Constitution and Canons of the Diocese of Pittsburgh
The Constitution and Canons provide the governing structure, rules and regulations of the Anglican Diocese of Pittsburgh. The most recent version of the Constitution and Canons is available at this link: https://pitanglican.org/sites/default/files/resources/Constitution%20%26%20Canons_November%202019.pdf

Standing Committee
The Standing Committee serves as the council of advice to the Bishop, and in the absence of the Bishop holds The Ecclesiastical Authority of the diocese. The Standing Committee shall fill all vacancies that may occur during the recess of the Convention (Diocesan Constitution: Article IX, Sects. 1, 5, 6). Current membership of the Standing Committee is available at this link: https://pitanglican.org/about-us/leadership-bodies

Board of Trustees
The powers and duties of this Board are to collect, receive, hold, manage, and properly dispose of all property that is conveyed or transferred to the diocese, for its benefit or the benefit of any of its Congregations, bodies, or associations (Diocesan Constitution: Article X, Section 2). Current membership of the Board of Trustees is available at this link: https://pitanglican.org/about-us/leadership-bodies

Diocesan Council
The Diocesan Council shall act on behalf of the Convention when the Convention is not in session. In particular, it shall evaluate the policies, programs, and other activities of the diocese, make recommendations to the Convention, and give general oversight to the work, mission, budget and human resources of the Diocese. The Council shall perform such other functions and tasks as the Convention may assign to it (Diocesan Canon: Canon VI, Section 1). Current membership of the Diocesan Council is available at this link: https://pitanglican.org/about-us/leadership-bodies

The Array
If any charges are brought against any member of the clergy of the diocese the Array of the diocese shall serve as the “Ecclesiastical Trial Court.” Current membership of the Array is available at this link: https://pitanglican.org/about-us/leadership-bodies

Committee on Canons
The Committee on Canons reviews and makes recommendations to the Diocesan Convention concerning the content and language of the canons of the diocese. The intent is to keep the canons current, accurate, and relevant to our circumstances as a diocese.

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III. Diocesan Ministries & Affiliations

The Anglican Diocese of Pittsburgh partners with various groups that proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ in western Pennsylvania and around the world. While funding is not implied in the partnership, the groups listed below are welcome to send the diocese content for diocesan-wide distribution.

Anglican Global Mission Partners
(www.newwineskins.org/agmp)
Anglican Global Mission Partners (AGMP) is a voluntary, networking partnership of 33 Anglican organizations that includes mission agencies, theological institutions, churches, dioceses and jurisdictions throughout North America. By intentionally collaborating, AGMP increases the impact of member ministries.

Anglican House Media Ministry
(www.anglicanhousepublishers.org)
Anglican House Media Ministry, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation and Ministry Partner of the Anglican Church in North America. This is a Christian ministry without payroll, office space or physical assets. The work of publishing is managed by volunteer executive officers overseeing various freelance professionals in the important aspects of publishing, together with warehousing and online distribution.

Anglican Relief and Development Fund
(www.ardf.org)
The Anglican Relief and Development Fund (ARDF) works within the worldwide Anglican Communion to transform lives and communities in some of the most challenging parts of the world for the sake of Christ with research expertise and funds for development projects defined by community leaders and through assistance for disaster relief. ARDF is governed by a board of global leaders. The board meets annually to determine priorities, approve projects, and keep ARDF firmly linked to the Global Church.

Brotherhood of St. Andrew
(www.brothersandrew.net)
The vision of the Brotherhood of St. Andrew is to inspire, empower and equip men and boys to fulfill the Great Commission. The Brotherhood endeavors to accomplish this mission through the threefold disciplines of prayer, study, and service.

Christian Associates of Southwestern PA
(www.casp.org)
Christian Associates of Southwest Pennsylvania is Greater Pittsburgh's regional ecumenical agency, working for the unity of the church and the wholeness of communities. Through Christian Associates, 27 church bodies (Anglican, Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant) come together to build relationship and serve the wider world.

Church Army USA
(www.churcharmyusa.org)
With offices in Aliquippa PA, the Church Army is an organization of evangelists in the Anglican Church, seeking to express the Gospel of Jesus Christ in tangible ways to bring transformation. The Church Army seeks to reach out to those outside of the church with the Good News of Jesus Christ, to serve the poor and to resource the wider church in evangelism.

The Church’s Ministry Among Jewish People
(www.cmj-usa.org)
With offices in Ambridge PA, the mission of CMJ USA is to equip individuals and local congregations to fight anti-Semitism, understand and value the Jewish roots of Christian faith, and to foster respectful dialogue between Jews and Christians about their common and divergent beliefs.

New Wineskins Missionary Network
(www.newwineskins.org)
New Wineskins Missionary Network exists to advance the Kingdom of God by mobilizing Anglicans for authentic, cross-cultural partnership around the world. Through online resources, partners, networks, prayer, and mission conferences, the Network facilitates collaboration and inspire mission engagement.

Rock the World Youth Mission Alliance
(www.rocktheworld.org)
Rock the World Youth Mission Alliance is a Christian ministry with roots in the Evangelical stream of the Anglican tradition. It aims to engage, equip and empower young people to follow Jesus and advance the Kingdom of God.

Shepherd’s Heart Veteran’s Home
(www.shepheart.org)
Located in the uptown neighborhood of Pittsburgh, next to Mercy Hospital, the mission of Shepherd’s Heart is to share the heart of Jesus, our Shepherd, on the streets of Pittsburgh and to the ends of the earth.

Society of Anglican Missionaries and Senders – USA
(www.samsusa.org)
With offices in Ambridge PA, the purpose of SAMS is to recruit, send and support missionaries to be witnesses and make disciples for Jesus Christ in fellowship with the Anglican Church around the world. SAMS’ missionaries share the Gospel, establish churches, train national church leaders, and minister socially through medical clinics and Christian schools.

Trinity School for Ministry
(www.tsm.edu)
Trinity School for Ministry (TSM), located in Ambridge PA, is an evangelical seminary in the Anglican tradition. TSM’s purpose is to be a global center for Christian formation, producing outstanding leaders who can plant, renew, and grow churches that make disciples of Jesus Christ.

Uncommon Grounds Café
(www.uncommongroundscafe.org)
Located in Aliquippa PA, the mission of Uncommon Grounds Café is to reach the least, the last, and the lost with the gospel of Christ through listening and offering dignity.

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IV. Brief History

A Concise History of Anglicanism in Western Pennsylvania, 1944-2015:

To Make Pittsburgh as Famous for God as for Steel:
“The story of the Diocese of Pittsburgh has more than been fulfilled in the famous utterance of the Reverend Sam Shoemaker, ‘to make Pittsburgh as famous for God as for steel’. From a simple Prayer Book service led by a Presbyterian clergyman on the banks of the Allegheny River in 1758 has grown up to one of the culturally significant dioceses in the Episcopal Church.”

So wrote historian Dr. Jeremy Bonner in the introduction of his 2008 book; Called out of Darkness into Marvelous Light: A History of the Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh. This seminal work commissioned by Bishop Robert Duncan just prior to our realignment out of the Episcopal Church is a must read for anyone interested in the history of Anglicanism in Western Pennsylvania from its beginning in the mid-eighteenth century to the first decade of the twenty-first.1

1. The election of Austin Pardue as Diocesan Bishop, 1944. The Rt. Rev. Courtland Whitehead, second bishop of Pittsburgh, served from 1881 until 1923, an amazing tenure of 42 years in which over 40 parishes were planted expanding the diocese exponentially. From mid-1940s through early 1960s eleven parishes were planted, almost all within the burgeoning post-war suburbs.

2. Sam Shoemaker, a New York rector, and one of the founders of Alcoholics Anonymous, was called as rector of Calvary Church, Shadyside, 1952. In 1955 he began the Pittsburgh Experiment, a ministry in the workplace, led by laypeople that was, partly a prayer group, partly a small group discussion and partly an evangelistic outreach. This ministry transformed many in the diocese including many future clergy of the Diocese. Sam’s wife, Helen Shoemaker, aided in this transformation by establishing the Anglican Fellowship of Prayer in 1958. One of her disciples Deacon Emily Gardiner Neal, also began the Pittsburgh Healing Ministry Foundation during this time.

3. The Rev. George Stockhowe plants St. Martin’s Church, Monroeville, 1956. George was born and raised in Pittsburgh and attended Church of the Ascension Oakland. St. Martin’s was a major supporter of the new seminary (Trinity) both financially but also by providing many of the early local students. George was an active proponent of lay ministry and exercising the gifts of the Holy Spirit in ministry and worship.

4. The calling of John Guest to be Youth Minister of St. Stephen's Sewickley 1967 and as Rector 1971. The importance of this call cannot be overstated. John Guest, with the aid of his assistants John Howe, John Yates and later Mike Henning and Don Wilson, led an evangelical renewal in the Episcopal Church that had far-reaching effects beyond even the United States. Trinity School for Ministry, the Fellowship of Witness (FOW) and South American Missionary Society (SAMS) were three of the major ministries that were created in the first years of his ministry in Pittsburgh.

5. The founding of Trinity School for Ministry in 1976 and its approval by Bishop Robert Appleyard. Under the leadership of early presidents Alfred Stanway, John Rodgers, and Peter Moore, Trinity School transformed the Diocese of Pittsburgh from a somewhat broad church but orthodox entity to an evangelical and charismatic powerhouse. The clergy faculty of the School all became canonically resident priests of the Diocese and as Trinity graduates were ordained they staffed many of the small struggling inner-city and rural parishes bringing renewal and long lost hope.

6. The election of The Rt. Rev. Alden Hathaway as Bishop, 1981. The evangelical transformation of the Diocese came full circle with the election of Alden Hathaway. Alden invited the Community of Celebration with their music ministry of Fisherfolk to re-locate in Aliquippa in the late 1980s which transformed the worship in many of our parishes to a more renewal oriented style.

7. The Diocese becomes one of the epicenters for renewal in the Episcopal Church, 1980s. Following the establishment of the Trinity School for Ministry campus in Ambridge in late 1970s, several other ministries located themselves in Ambridge. These relocated ministries included the Brotherhood of St Andrew, Inc. 1983, SAMS-USA 1987, Church Army c.1988, CMJ-USA c.1989, ECMC (new Wineskins) c.1989 and the establishment of Rock the World c.1994. As a result, the main thoroughfare in Ambridge, Merchant Street, earned the moniker “Gospel Alley”.

8. The calling of Bob Duncan as Canon to the Ordinary, 1992. Bob Duncan’s visionary leadership of the diocese began as he came alongside Alden Hathaway as his Canon to bolster Alden’s work and give missional legs to the many revitalized parishes within the Diocese. His work as Canon laid the groundwork for his subsequent election as Bishop Coadjutor in 1995 and his assumption as Diocesan Bishop upon Alden’s retirement in 1997.

9. Bob Duncan’s 20 year tenure as Bishop 1995-2015. First and foremost Bob Duncan actively pastored the clergy under his care. He met monthly with them in each district and then regionally after his election as ACNA Archbishop. He emphasized attendance at these and at the annual Clergy Conference and the Holy Week Renewal of Vows Service. Bob Duncan led the Commission on Ministry to embrace his vision by ordaining clergy for parishes within the Diocese of Pittsburgh and also beyond. By this he strengthened the wider church as it faced realignment. Bob loved, encouraged and held accountable his people during his time as bishop. All these structures and actions resulted in an effectively run diocese.

10. The Diocese allows for the redirection of parish funds away from TEC, 1990s. The first real steps toward realignment began in the 1990s with the increased use of expansive language for God, promotion of openly homosexual persons into Church leadership and the push for same-sex marriage that began to gain traction in portions of the Episcopal Church. The diocese passed a Convention resolution allowing parishes to designate the portion of their Diocesan Assessment earmarked for the national Episcopal Church to be redirected to missionaries, mission organizations and other institutions and parachurch groups.

11. Bob Duncan was recognized as the primary bishop in North America by Council of Anglican Provinces of Africa (CAPA) c.2000. At a CAPA meeting in Entebbe Uganda African leaders led by Archbishops Peter Akinola of Nigeria and Henry Luke Orombi of Uganda designate Bob Duncan to be their point person in North America. The Rev. Dr. John H. Rodgers, Jr., retired Dean of Trinity School for Ministry and a priest of the Diocese is elected an Assistant Bishop in Singapore and assigned to work in the United States through AMiA, 2000. A few years later, in 2005 the Diocese hosted one of the largest renewal and realignment centered conferences ever held for United States leaders: A Hope and a Future Conference (Jer. 29:11) In 2007, the Diocese of Pittsburgh became the second diocese to leave the Episcopal Church, following the Diocese of San Joaquin.

12. The formation of the ACNA in July 2009 and Bob Duncan elected its first Archbishop. The GAFCON Primates encourage the disparate grouping of orthodox Anglicans in the United States, Canada and subsequently Mexico to join together to form a new Anglican Province in North America. Bob Duncan our bishop was unanimously elected the first Archbishop of the ACNA. At his Investiture as Archbishop at Christ Church, Plano TX, he pledged that we would plant 1,000 churches in ten years. As of 2019 the parishes in the ACNA numbered 972.

13. During the early years of the ACNA, as Bp. Bob served as the first Archbishop of our province, Canon to the Ordinary, the Rev. Mary Hays was a key leader in the diocese. Mary did an admirable job leading the diocese under trying and difficult conditions. We are grateful to her for her tireless work, commitment to the diocese, and her genuine care for our parishes. Bp. Henry Scriven, who served as a faithful assistant bishop, was a good-humored, friend to all in the days leading up to realignment. We appreciate his service to the diocese during that contentious time.

14. Jim Hobby’s tenure as bishop of Pittsburgh, beginning in 2015 was marked by the realization of several vital needs, especially clergy development, a recommitment to church planting, creative thinking about this new day of ministry, and the reinvigoration of our current parishes. We are especially grateful to Bp. Jim and the Rev. Canon Shari for their commitment to biblical teaching and proclamation.

1For more on the 18th-century origins of the ADP, see https://pitanglican.org/about-us/history