Episcopal Diocese of Fond du Lac
Diocese of Fond du Lac Diœcesis Fundi Lacusensis | |
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Matthew Alan Gunter | |
Map | |
Location of the Diocese of Fond du Lac | |
Website | |
diofdl.org |
The Diocese of Fond du Lac is a
History
The roots of the Diocese of Fond du Lac are in 1822 when the
When the First Annual Council of the
After a process begun in 1866 and completed by action of the
In 1875, after three elections,
After a tremendous growth and laying the foundation of the newly erected Diocese, its second bishop, Charles Chapman Grafton, one of the leaders of the Oxford Movement and its third, Reginald Heber Weller, continued to build on the successes of those who came before them.
Growth, time, and distance led to the erection of a third Wisconsin Diocese. The Diocese of Fond du Lac established its current boundaries when the Diocese of Eau Claire was created in out of counties of both the Diocese of Milwaukee and Diocese of Fond du Lac in 1928, immediately prior to the onset of the Great Depression. On October 22, 2011, the Diocese of Fond du Lac and the Diocese of Eau Claire voted to "junction" into one diocese but Russell Jacobus, Bishop of Fond du Lac, withheld his consent due to the closeness and irregularities of the vote.[5][6]
Since its founding in 1875, the Diocese of Fond du Lac has seen congregations come and go, often paralleling the coming and going of the population as towns, villages and cities sprung up and sometimes disappeared with economic opportunities of the area. Some congregations have established themselves deeply in communities and others have closed after many decades of sharing the Gospel. The past two decades have experienced the same decline in members felt by many main-line denominations. Through it all, there have been people of faith in the Anglican and Episcopal tradition who have worshipped God through the liturgies of the Church tracing their roots to the first Apostles and primarily
In 2021 it was announced that the diocese of Fond du Lac, Eau Claire, and Milwaukee would contemplate entering an agreement of greater collaboration. With around 4,000 baptized members, Fond du Lac is among the Episcopal Church's smaller dioceses.[7] In October 2021 it was announced that the three diocese would be actively pursuing reuniting as one diocese in Wisconsin.[8]
Cathedral
The
Much of the interior of the cathedral is a credit to the effort of the second bishop, Charles Chapman Grafton. There are outstanding examples of late Victorian ecclesiastical art including woodcarvings from the workshop of Balthasar Schmitt, a German artisan who emigrated to the US for the job, the Fond du Lac Church Furnishings Company, and the Svoboda Church Furniture Company of Kewaunee, Wisconsin. The frontal on the St. Augustine chapel altar is an exquisite piece of color-infused marble. The stained glass is by Robert L. Jacoby and the Canadian John Spence Company.
Notable congregations of the diocese
- Algoma - St Agnes Episcopal Church
- Appleton - All Saints Episcopal Church
- Fish Creek - Church of the Atonement
- Fond du Lac - Cathedral Church of St Paul
- Manitowoc - St. James' Episcopal Church
- Menasha - St. Thomas Episcopal Church
- Oneida - Church of the Holy Apostles
- Oshkosh - Trinity Episcopal Church
- Ripon - St. Peter's Episcopal Church
Bishops
These are the bishops who served the Diocese of Wisconsin, prior to erection of the Diocese of Fond du Lac.
- Jackson Kemper (1847–70)
- William Edmond Armitage (1870–73)
- Edward Randolph Welles (1874–88)
These are the bishops who served the Diocese of Fond du Lac:[9]
- John Henry Hobart Brown (1875–1888)
- Coadjutor Bishop(consecrated 1900)
- Coadjutor Bishop(consecrated 1929)
- Coadjutor Bishop(consecrated 1953)
- William Hampton Brady(1956–1980)
- William Louis Stevens(1980–1994)
- Russell Edward Jacobus(1994-2013)
- Matthew Alan Gunter (2014- )[1]
See also
- Sisterhood of the Holy Nativity
- List of bishops of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America
References
- Curtiss, A. Parker (1925). History of the Diocese of Fond du Lac and Its Several Congregations. Fond du Lac, Wisconsin: P.B. Haber Printing.
Compiled Under The Direction of The Bishop, in Commemoration of its FIFTIETH ANNIVERSARY
- Inventory of the Church Archives of Wisconsin: Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America, Diocese of Fond du Lac. Madison, Wisconsin: Wisconsin Historical Records Survey. 1942.
prepared by the Wisconsin Historical Records Survey, Division of Community Services Programs, Work Projects Administration
- Kronschnabel, Darlene (1975). Centennial celebration of the Diocese of Fond du Lac, 1875-1975. Fond du Lac, Wisconsin: Diocese of Fond du Lac.
Notes
- ^ a b "Matthew Alan Gunter consecrated eighth bishop of Fond du Lac", Episcopal News Service, April 30, 2014. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
- ^ History of the Diocese of Fond du Lac and Its Several Congregations
- ^ Turner, A.J. (1873). Blue Book of the State of Wisconsin 1873. Madison, Wis: Atwood & Culver. p. 436.
- ^ "History of St. John's Episcopal Church, Cohoes, NY". Archived from the original on 13 July 2011. Retrieved 4 April 2011.
- ^ Bishop Withholds Approval to Form New Diocese[permanent dead link]
- ^ Junction Not Approved
- ^ Paulsen, David (March 16, 2021). "With Diocese of Eau Claire at a crossroads, Wisconsin's three dioceses eye greater collaboration". Episcopal News Service. Retrieved March 17, 2021.
- ^ Paulsen, David (October 5, 2021). "Wisconsin's three Episcopal dioceses to pursue reunion as one, leaders announce". Episcopal News Service. Retrieved October 6, 2021.
- ^ The Episcopal Church Annual. Morehouse Publishing: New York, NY (2005)