The Episcopal Diocese of Iowa is the diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America which covers all of Iowa. It is in Province VI. Its offices are in Des Moines, and it has two cathedrals: the Cathedral Church of St. Paul in Des Moines and Trinity Cathedral in Davenport.
In 2024, the diocese reported average Sunday attendance (ASA) of 1,609 persons, down from 2,886 in 2020. Plate and pledge income for the 57 filing congregations of the diocese in 2024 was $4,585,405. No membership statistics were reported in 2024 parochial reports. Between 2015 and 2023, reported membership declined from 7,702 to 4,713.
History
The Episcopal Church in Iowa traces its roots to 1836 when services were held occasionally in Dubuque by Richard Fish Cadle. He was followed by E. G. Gear and J. Batchelder. Philander Chase, Bishop of Illinois, visited Scott County in the fall of 1837.
The church started to develop across the state of Iowa. In July, 1853, Jackson Kemper, missionary bishop of the Northwest, invited clergy and representatives of all the congregations in the state to meet at Trinity Church in Muscatine. On August 17, Alfred Louderback, rector of Trinity Church, Davenport, was elected chairman in the bishop's absence. The constitutions and canons for the diocese were adopted and plans were made for the election of a bishop. The General Convention of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America admitted the Diocese of Iowa to its membership in October, 1853.
On May 31, 1854, the first convention of the Diocese of Iowa began in Trinity Church, Davenport. Henry Washington Lee, rector of St. Luke's Church, Rochester, New York, was elected the first bishop of Iowa. He was consecrated in his church in Rochester on October 18, 1854. Lee preached in the diocese for the first time on October 29, 1854, in St. John's Church, Dubuque.
The cornerstone for Trinity Cathedral, then called Grace Cathedral, was laid in 1867. The building was completed in 1873. It is the second church built as a cathedral in the Episcopal Church in the United States. In 1992 St. Paul's Church in Des Moines was named the diocese's liturgical cathedral and Trinity was maintained as its historic cathedral.Horton, 121 Trinity, St. Paul's and 18 other Episcopal churches in Iowa are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Coat of arms The present coat of arms for the Diocese of Iowa were designed by Cram and Ferguson and approved at the 1946 Diocesan Convention. The arms consist of the a field of green, which represents Iowa's prairies, bisected by two lines that represent the Mississippi River and the Missouri River. The gold cross contains five red diamonds which represent the five communities where the Episcopal Church in Iowa was organized: Dubuque, Davenport, Muscatine, Burlington, and Keokuk. The cross is surrounded by four ears of corn that represents Iowa's agricultural heritage. A bishop's mitre tops the shield and it is surrounded by the words, "Seal of the Diocese of Iowa 1853."Horton, 88
Companion Dioceses
The Diocese of Brechin is part of the Scottish Episcopal Church and is located in North East Scotland. It is the smallest of the seven dioceses in Scotland. The cathedral and administrative offices are in Dundee. The two dioceses entered into companion status in 1982 and it was officially recognized by the Episcopal Church (US) in 1990. The Diocese of Swaziland is located in southern Africa, and encompasses the entire country of Swaziland. The diocese is part of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa. The two dioceses entered into companion status in 1988 and it was officially recognized by the Episcopal Church (US) in 1990.
The Diocese of Nzara is situated in the southwest corner of the new Republic of South Sudan. It is a member of the Episcopal Church of Sudan. The two dioceses entered into companion status in October 2012.
Bishops Bishops over Iowa From Until Incumbent Notes 1838 1854 Jackson Kemper, Missionary Bishop of the Northwest Bishop over the Territory of Iowa beginning in 1838 and the State of Iowa beginning in 1846. Bishops of Iowa From Until Incumbent Notes 1854 1874 Henry Washington Lee Also served as Provisional Bishop of Nebraska (1857–1859) and Provisional Bishop of Kansas (1860-1864) while Bishop of Iowa. 1876 1898 William Stevens Perry 1899 1929 Theodore Nevin Morrison 1929 1943 Harry Sherman Longley Suffragan bishop from 1912 to 1917. Coadjutor bishop since 1917. 1944 1949 Elwood Lindsay Haines 1950 1971 Gordon V. Smith 1972 1988 Walter Cameron Righter Assistant Bishop of Newark (1989-1991) 1988 2001 C. Christopher Epting Coadjutor bishop since September 1988, resigned to become the Episcopal Church's deputy for Ecumenical and Interreligious Relations; Assistant Bishop of Chicago (2012-2015). 2003 2021 Alan Scarfe 2021 Present Betsey Monnot First female Bishop of Iowa.
References
External links
Journal of the Annual Convention, Diocese of Iowa