Episcopal Diocese of Southwest Florida

Diocese
name=Episcopal Diocese of Southwest Florida

250px|Shield_of_the_Diocese_of_Southwest_Florida
province=Province IV
bishop=Dabney T. Smith
cathedral=St. Peter’s Cathedral, St. Petersburg
subdivisions= Deaneries
congregations= 77
members= 36,000
website= [http://www.episcopalswfl.org/ Diocese of Southwest Florida websit]

The Episcopal Diocese of Southwest Florida is a diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America (ECUSA) in Florida which extends from Marco Island on the south, to Brooksville on the north, and inland to Plant City, Arcadia and LaBelle on the east.

Major cities in the diocese are Tampa, St. Petersburg, Clearwater, Ft. Myers, Sarasota, and Bradenton. The diocese includes the western half of Hendry County, the mainland portion of Monroe County, and all of the counties of Hernando, Pasco, Pinellas, Hillsborough, Manatee, Sarasota, De Soto, Charlotte, Lee, and Collier.

The diocese is a part of Province IV of the Episcopal Church.The current Diocesan Bishop of Southwest Florida is Dabney T. Smith. The cathedral church of the diocese is St. Peter’s Cathedral, St. Petersburg. The diocesan offices are in Sarasota. The diocese currently comprises 77 churches. [The Episcopal Church Annual (2007) Harrisburg: Morehouse Church Resources, pp. 359-361.]

History

The Diocese of Southwest Florida was created in 1969 when the Diocese of South Florida was split to form the dioceses of Central Florida, Southeast Florida and Southwest Florida.

Bishops of the diocese

The Bishops of the Diocese of Southwest Florida are:

#1969–1975: William Loftin Hargrave
#1975–1988: Emerson Paul Haynes
#1989–1997: Rogers Sanders Harris
#1997–2007: John Bailey Lipscomb
#2007- : Dabney Tyler Smith

NOTE: For earlier bishops, see the Episcopal Diocese of South Florida

Deaneries

In accordance with the usage in the ECUSA, the diocese is divided into seven deaneries as follows:

*Clearwater Deanery: Clearwater, Dunedin, Hudson, Indian Rocks Beach, Largo, New Port Richey, Palm Harbor, Safety Harbor, Seminole, Spring Hill and Tarpon Springs: Richard C. Doscher, Sr., Dean.
*Fort Myers Deanery: Cape Coral, Fort Myers, Fort Myers Beach, LaBelle, Lehigh Acres, North Fort Myers, Pine Island and Sanibel: Ann McLemore, Dean.
*Manasota Deanery: Anna Maria, Arcadia, Bradenton, Longboat Key, Osprey, Palmetto and Sarasota: Harry I. Parsell, Dean.
*Naples Deanery: Bonita Springs, Marco Island and Naples: Michael G. Rowe, Dean.
*St. Petersburg Deanery: Pinellas Park, St. Petersburg and St. Pete Beach: John L. Hartnett, Dean.
*Tampa Deanery: Brooksville, Dade City, Plant City, Ruskin, Tampa, Temple Terrace, Valrico and Zephyrhills: Martha E. Vaguener, Dean.
*Venice Deanery: Boca Grande, Englewood, North Port, Osprey, Port Charlotte, Punta Gorda and Venice: James H. Puryear, Dean.

ee also

*Episcopal Church in the United States of America
*Christianity
*Anglican Communion

Bibliography

*Cushman, Joseph D., Jr., "A Goodly Heritage: The Episcopal Church in Florida, 1821-1892", Gainesville: University of Florida Press (1965)

References

External links

* [http://www.episcopalswfl.org/ The Diocese of Southwest Florida]
* [http://www.spcathedral.net/ St. Peter’s Cathedral – St. Petersburg]
* [http://www.episcopalchurch.org/ The Episcopal Church in the United States of America]