Anglican Episcopal Church - History

History

The Anglican Episcopal Church's first bishop was the Rt. Rev. Reginald Hammond (1918 to 2004). Bishop Hammond was consecrated for the Anglican Episcopal Church on 20 April 2000 by the Rt. Rev. Robert J. Godfrey, a former presiding bishop of the Anglican Orthodox Church. The co-consecrators were: the Rt. Rev. Richard Boyce of the Anglican Province of America and the Rt. Rev. Scott McLaughlin, the Rt. Rev. Hesbon Njera, and the Rt. Rev. Thomas Shank, all of the Orthodox Anglican Church. Following Bishop Hammond's death on 5 May 2004, the church was reduced from three parishes to the one parish in Ventura which then voted to ask for the episcopal oversight of two bishops of the Anglican Diocese of the Good Shepherd: the Rt. Rev. Melvin Pickering and the Rt. Rev. George Connor.

In 2006, St. George's withdrew from its association with the Diocese of the Good Shepherd along with several other parishes. Delegates to an October 2006 General Convention which had been called for the purpose of re-establishing the Anglican Episcopal Church elected Bishop Conner to be its presiding bishop. Canon David Pressey was elected by the AEC Convention of 2008 to be a suffragan bishop. He was consecrated on 22 November 2008.

In 2008, the Anglican Episcopal Church joined with the Diocese of the Great Lakes in founding the North American Anglican Conference. The Anglican Diocese of Texas joined in 2010. Cooperation on the training of clergy is one objective of the conference.

These Continuing churches consider themselves to be in the Anglican Low Church tradition, Evangelical, and conservative. The Thirty-nine Articles are accepted unconditionally; and the 1928 Book of Common Prayer is used for all public worship.