This page is for informational purposes.

The Rt Rev Mark D. W. Edington was ordained and consecrated Bishop at the American Cathedral of the Holy Trinity on April 6, 2019, and assumed his position of Bishop in Charge of the Convocation of Episcopal Churches in Europe.

See Consecration Page

 

The Episcopal Church in Europe

The Convocation of Episcopal Churches in Europe is one of four Anglican jurisdictions in continental Europe. (The other Anglican jurisdictions in Europe are: the Lusitanian Church of Portugal, the Reformed Episcopal Church of Spain, and the Church of England's Diocese of Gibraltar in Europe.) The Convocation is the jurisdiction of the Presiding Bishop and Primate of The Episcopal Church, the Most Rev. Michael B. Curry. The Episcopal Church is one of 39 provinces of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the Episcopal Church is present in 16 countries around the world. 

The Bishop in Charge of the Convocation of Episcopal Churches in Europe, a suffragan bishop to the Presiding Bishop, is based at The American Cathedral of the Holy Trinity in Paris. There are congregations in France, Germany, Italy, Belgium, Switzerland, and Austria. The Convocation functions both as a European Church with a legal corporate structure based in France, as well as being a diocesan-like jurisdiction of the Episcopal Church.

The Episcopal Church has been present in Europe since 1815. The Convocation was created by a Canon of General Convention in 1859, and Bishops in Charge were appointed by the Presiding Bishop. Some were diocesan Bishops or recently retired Bishops, who exercised oversight on a part-time basis. Bishops in Charge have been resident in Europe since 1960.

The first full-time resident Bishop in Charge was the Rt. Rev. Edmond Browning (1971-1974). The first Bishop in Charge to be elected by the Convocation itself and the first to be ordained and consecrated in Europe is our present Bishop, the Rt. Rev. Pierre Whalon, who was elected in 2001 and consecrated in St. Paul's Within the Walls Episcopal Church in Rome on November 18, 2001.

Bishop Whalon announced his intention to resign as Bishop in Charge effective July 31, 2019. This has initiated a Search Process for our second elected Bishop in Charge of the Convocation of Episcopal Churches in Europe.

Prayer for the Convocation

O God, we pray for the Convocation of Episcopal Churches in Europe as we discern and elect a Bishop to serve your people, build up your Church and proclaim boldly the Gospel to the world.  Send us, we pray, an Apostle who is a wise counsellor, a merciful pastor, filled with your joy and grace.  May your servant have the abundant gifts needed to lead your flock and the strength and courage to administer them. And may we renew and rededicate our lives to your will and service.  All this we pray in the Name of our Great High Priest and Servant of the servants of God, Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

Timetable of the Search for our next Bishop in Charge

October 2016 - Convocation Convention in Fürstenried Palace, Munich, Germany

• Bishop Whalon announces his intention to resign as Bishop in Charge effective July 2019
• Strategic planning process begun with small groups activity at convention
• Strategic Plan committees is appointed and commissioned

Winter and Spring 2016/2017

• Strategic plan is developed with input from all significant groups in the convocation and full-communion partners in Europe

September 2017

• Strategic plan is approved by the Council of Advice

October 2017 - Convocation Convention in Wiesbaden, Germany

• Strategic Plan is presented to Convention
• The Search/Nomination Committee and Transition Committee are commissioned

November 2017

• Search/Nomination and Transition Committees organize themselves
• In consultation with the Presiding Bishop's Office, a Search Consultant is engaged by the Council of Advice

December 2017

• Search and Nomination Committee retreat with the Search Consultant in Paris, France, December 1-2
• Input from congregations and parishioners is received by congregational forums and online surveys.

January 2018

• Transition Committee retreat with the Search Consultant in Florence, January 12-13
• Search Profile is written by Search and Nomination Committee and approved by Council of Advice at the January 26-27, 2018 meeting in Waterloo, Belgium.

Early February 2018

• Publication of the Convocation Bishop Search Profile on the Bishop Search website (europebishopsearch.org) 
• The Position is announced in various ecclesiastical venues
• Applications for bishop are received

 March 9, 2018

• Window for applications is closed

 Spring 2018

• Applications are vetted and a list of up to eight candidates is compiled

 May 24-27, 2018

• Discernment Retreat with up to eight candidates and the Search and Nomination Committee, close to Munich, Germany

 June 30, 2018

• Final shortlist is presented to the Council of Advice

 July 1-20, 2018

• Petition process open for additional candidates

 August 15, 2018

• Final list of candidates is made public

 September 27-30, 2018

• Presentation of Bishop Candidates and spouses:
• September 27: Paris, France
• September 29: Munich, Germany
• September 30: Rome, Italy

October 18-21, 2018 -  Election Convocation Convention in Waterloo, Belgium

• Election of the Bishop in Charge and regular convention business  
• The Rev. Mark D.W. Edington of the Diocese of Massachusetts was elected bishop on the eight ballot.

Following the Election

• The Standing Committees of all the Episcopal dioceses and all diocesan bishops are asked to approve the election. This process can take several months.
• The Presiding Bishop, Deo volente, receives notice that consents have been received from a majority of bishops and standing committees of the Episcopal Church and announces the name of the Bishop-elect
• The Bishop-elect begins her/his transition to assume office.

April 5, 2019

• Reception honoring Bishop Pierre W. Whalon (Friday evening) and welcoming the Bishop-elect Edington at the Cathedral of the Holy Trinity, Paris, France

April 6, 2019 - Ordination and Consecration of the new Bishop in Charge in the Cathedral in Paris, France

• The festival liturgy will be celebrated in the Cathedral of the Holy Trinity in Paris, France. The Most Rev. Michael B. Curry, Presiding Bishop and Primate of the Episcopal Church, will preside (Saturday at 11:00 a.m.)
• Bishop Edington is the twenty-sixth Bishop in Charge of the Convocation of Episcopal Churches in Europe.