Site Glossary

Literally, the seat of a bishop; normally refers to the geographic area of a bishop’s ecclesiastical authority.

See Bexley Hall Seminary

The first bishop, and later the second presiding bishop, of The Episcopal Church in the 18th century. A slaveholder and former loyalist to the British Crown, he was ordained and consecrated in Scotland after the American Revolution because he would not take an oath of allegiance to the king. Feast day: Nov. 14.

A formal and willful separation from the unity of the church. The earliest major schism from The Episcopal Church was the Reformed Episcopal Church in 1873, and the most recent was the establishment of the Anglican Church in North America in 2009.

A 17th-century scholar and bishop, Taylor is one of the leading devotional writers in English history. Feast day: Aug. 13.

The first Christian martyr, Stephen, a deacon, prayed for his enemies as he was being stoned to death, as recounted in Acts of the Apostles. Feast day: Dec. 26.

Two of the 12 apostles, Simon and Jude were an evangelizing team, and tradition holds they were martyred together in 65. Feast day: Oct. 28.

From the Latin for holy, a hymn of adoration and praise which begins, “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of Hosts.”

A service typically held on Wednesday of Holy Week, featuring candles and structured around psalms, readings, and responsories.

A long band of fabric placed behind the neck, draped over the shoulders, and hanging down the front of the body for a priest, and diagonally across the torso for a deacon, to signify the wearer’s particular order and authority.

A devotion to the Passion of Christ marking a series of events at the end of the life of Jesus. Usually 14 stations, beginning with Jesus condemned to death and ending with being laid in the tomb.

A canonically required body, composed of clergy and lay members elected by diocesan convention, that advises the bishop, acts on governance matters as required by the Canons, and serves as the ecclesiastical authority in the absence of a bishop.