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Robert Duncan (bishop)
Encyclopedia
Robert William Duncan, Jr. (born July 5, 1948) is an American bishop. He has been Archbishop
of the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) since June 2009. In 1997, he was elected Bishop
of the Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh. In 2008, a majority of the diocesan convention voted to withdraw the diocese from the Episcopal Church, and in October 2009, the diocese renamed itself the Anglican Diocese of Pittsburgh. Duncan continues to serve as bishop for this diocese as well as archbishop of the ACNA.
Duncan served as moderator of the Anglican Communion Network
from 2003 to 2009 and chairman of the Common Cause Partnership from 2004 until the creation of the Anglican Church in North America. He has honorary doctorates from General Theological Seminary
(1996) and Nashotah House
(2006). Until Duncan's departure from the Episcopal Church, he was considered to be "probably the top conservative Episcopal bishop in America".
, New Jersey
, in 1948. His mother suffered from mental illness
and he found refuge from the tumult of his family life in prayer and meditation at Christ Episcopal Church in Bordentown.
Duncan attended Bordentown Military Institute
where he graduated valedictorian
. He then entered Trinity College
(A.B.
cum laude) in Hartford, Connecticut
. After graduating from Trinity in 1970, he enrolled at the General Theological Seminary of the Episcopal Church (MDiv.
, DD
honoris causa) in New York. During his time at seminary, he also studied Scottish history
at Edinburgh University.
Duncan was ordained
as a deacon
on April 22, 1972, and as a priest
on October 28, 1973, the feast of Saints Simon and Jude. His first assignments were at the Chapel of the Intercession in New York City; at Grace Church in Merchantville, New Jersey
; and a short period at Christ Church in Edinburgh
. From 1974 to 1978, he served as assistant dean at the General Seminary. He spent the next four years in campus ministries in the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
, serving as assistant rector
for campus ministries at the Chapel of the Cross in Chapel Hill, North Carolina
. In 1982, he was called to be rector of St. Thomas' parish
in Newark, Delaware
, where he served for 10 years.
in 1990. In 1992, Alden M. Hathaway, then Bishop of Pittsburgh and a noted theological conservative, named Duncan his canon
to the ordinary
. He also served as bishop coadjutor of the diocese.
Duncan was not nominated by the committee that picked candidates for Bishop Hathaway’s successor. He was nominated from the floor of the convention, however, and was eventually elected. On September 13, 1997, he was consecrated Bishop of Pittsburgh. The Diocese of Pittsburgh was at that time considered by many in the Episcopal Church to be one of the most conservative and evangelical dioceses in the Episcopal Church. Duncan served on the programme committee of the Network for Anglicans in Mission and Evangelism, an agency created at the 1998 Lambeth Conference.
was elected Bishop of New Hampshire
, Duncan voiced strong opposition to the election. After Robinson's election was confirmed by the church's general convention on August 5, 2003, Duncan acted as spokesman for a group of conservative bishops and lay leaders at a press conference expressing disappointment at Robinson's election. Duncan denounced the election claiming that the Episcopal Church had "departed from the historic faith and order of the Church of Jesus Christ". Duncan and Robinson were members of the same GTS class, both having taken their MDiv degrees in 1973.
In January 2004, Duncan became the leader of the newly formed Network of Anglican Communion Dioceses and Parishes
, a conservative action group whose stated mission was to allow "Episcopalians to remain in communion with the vast majority of the worldwide Anglican Communion who have declared either impaired or broken communion with the Episcopal Church USA."
At the March 17, 2005, meeting of Episcopal Church's House of Bishops, Duncan read a speech in which he admitted that the rift between the two sides may be "irreconcilable". In a possible sign of schism
, St. Brendan's, a liberal parish in Franklin Park, Pennsylvania
, announced in February 2005 that it no longer wished to be under Duncan's oversight.
In July 2007, Duncan made remarks criticizing Rowan Williams
, the Archbishop of Canterbury
, for inadequately supporting "orthodox" breakaways from ECUSA, declaring, "The cost is his office... To lose that historic office is a cost of such magnitude that God must be doing a new thing." The statement critical of the Anglican Communion's worldwide leader led the Rev. Dr. Ephraim Radner to resign from the Anglican Communion Network
, which he had assisted in founding, out of the concern that "Bishop Duncan has, in the end, decided to start a new church." Radner explained, "Bishop Duncan has now declared the See of Canterbury and the Lambeth Conference — two of the four Instruments of Communion within our tradition — to be 'lost'."
Duncan replied by letter on March 14, 2008. In his response he denied all charges levelled against him.
On September 18, 2008, the House of Bishops voted that Duncan be deposed from ordained ministry on charges of "abandoning the communion of the Episcopal Church". Immediately following the vote, Duncan was named a bishop-at-large of the Anglican Province of the Southern Cone.
Following the vote in ECUSA's House of Bishops, Jefferts Schori formally deposed Duncan. In the sentence Jefferts Schori declares that "from and after 12:01 a.m., Saturday, 20 September 2008, Bishop Duncan shall be deprived of the right to exercise the gifts and spiritual authority of God's word and sacraments conferred at ordination in this Church and further declare[s] that all ecclesiastical and related secular offices held by Bishop Duncan shall be terminated and vacated at that time." The legal validity of the decree of deposition was questioned by Bishop Duncan's attorney.
Duncan was elected the bishop of the now Anglican Diocese of Pittsburgh 50 days after his deposition by the Episcopal Church.
. At the ceremony, conservative Anglicans in the developing world were represented by the Most Rev. Benjamin Nzimbi, the Archbishop of the African Anglican Province of Kenya
. Kenya was one of nine provinces of the Anglican Communion the sent representatives to the ACNA conference. Duncan stated that his role as archbishop was to "reunite a significant portion of our Anglican Church family here in North America" and indicated that he intended to serve for five years before stepping down.
In October 2009, Duncan reacted to the Roman Catholic Church
's proposed creation of personal ordinariate
s for disaffected traditionalist Anglicans by saying that although he felt that this provision would probably not be utilized by the great majority of ACNA's affiliated laity and clergy, he would happily bless those who were drawn to participate in this historic offer.
At the Provincial Council of the ACNA, held at Long Beach
, California
, on 21 June 2011, Archbishop Duncan made a positive balance of the first two years of the church: "According to the data submitted in the Annual Parochial Reports there were, in the year 2010, 987 baptisms of adults over thirty, 424 baptisms of young people aged sixteen to thirty, and 1647 baptisms of children in the ACNA dioceses, not including the congregations of our Ministry Partners. What is so stunning about this data is that the number of baptisms of those 16 and older is almost equal to the number of children baptized. What this says is that we are reaching adolescents and adults who have never known Christ, never been part of a church. This is to reach North America with the transforming love of Jesus Christ, one sign among many that something quite extraordinary is unfolding."
Archbishop
An archbishop is a bishop of higher rank, but not of higher sacramental order above that of the three orders of deacon, priest , and bishop...
of the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) since June 2009. In 1997, he was elected Bishop
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
of the Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh. In 2008, a majority of the diocesan convention voted to withdraw the diocese from the Episcopal Church, and in October 2009, the diocese renamed itself the Anglican Diocese of Pittsburgh. Duncan continues to serve as bishop for this diocese as well as archbishop of the ACNA.
Duncan served as moderator of the Anglican Communion Network
Anglican Communion Network
The Anglican Communion Network is a theologically conservative network of dioceses and parishes working toward Anglican realignment.-Goals and structure:...
from 2003 to 2009 and chairman of the Common Cause Partnership from 2004 until the creation of the Anglican Church in North America. He has honorary doctorates from General Theological Seminary
General Theological Seminary
The General Theological Seminary of the Episcopal Church is a seminary of the Episcopal Church in the United States and is located in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan in New York....
(1996) and Nashotah House
Nashotah House
Nashotah House is an Anglo-Catholic seminary of the Episcopal Church located in Nashotah, Wisconsin, approximately 30 miles from Milwaukee, in the Episcopal Diocese of Milwaukee. The seminary opened its doors in 1842 and received its official charter in 1847...
(2006). Until Duncan's departure from the Episcopal Church, he was considered to be "probably the top conservative Episcopal bishop in America".
Early life and ministry
Duncan was born in BordentownBordentown, New Jersey
Bordentown City is in Burlington County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city population was 3,924. Bordentown is located at the confluence of the Delaware River, Blacks Creek and Crosswicks Creek...
, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
, in 1948. His mother suffered from mental illness
Mental illness
A mental disorder or mental illness is a psychological or behavioral pattern generally associated with subjective distress or disability that occurs in an individual, and which is not a part of normal development or culture. Such a disorder may consist of a combination of affective, behavioural,...
and he found refuge from the tumult of his family life in prayer and meditation at Christ Episcopal Church in Bordentown.
Duncan attended Bordentown Military Institute
Bordentown Military Institute
The Bordentown Military Institute was a private high school in Bordentown, New Jersey from 1881 to 1973.-History:It was created in 1881 when Reverend William Bowen purchased the Spring Villa Female Seminary building and reopened it as the Bordentown Military Institute. In 1972 it was merged with...
where he graduated valedictorian
Valedictorian
Valedictorian is an academic title conferred upon the student who delivers the closing or farewell statement at a graduation ceremony. Usually, the valedictorian is the highest ranked student among those graduating from an educational institution...
. He then entered Trinity College
Trinity College (Connecticut)
Trinity College is a private, liberal arts college in Hartford, Connecticut. Founded in 1823, it is the second-oldest college in the state of Connecticut after Yale University. The college enrolls 2,300 students and has been coeducational since 1969. Trinity offers 38 majors and 26 minors, and has...
(A.B.
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
cum laude) in Hartford, Connecticut
Hartford, Connecticut
Hartford is the capital of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960, it is the second most populous city on New England's largest river, the Connecticut River. As of the 2010 Census, Hartford's population was 124,775, making...
. After graduating from Trinity in 1970, he enrolled at the General Theological Seminary of the Episcopal Church (MDiv.
Master of Divinity
In the academic study of theology, the Master of Divinity is the first professional degree of the pastoral profession in North America...
, DD
Doctor of Divinity
Doctor of Divinity is an advanced academic degree in divinity. Historically, it identified one who had been licensed by a university to teach Christian theology or related religious subjects....
honoris causa) in New York. During his time at seminary, he also studied Scottish history
History of Scotland
The history of Scotland begins around 10,000 years ago, when humans first began to inhabit what is now Scotland after the end of the Devensian glaciation, the last ice age...
at Edinburgh University.
Duncan was ordained
Holy Orders
The term Holy Orders is used by many Christian churches to refer to ordination or to those individuals ordained for a special role or ministry....
as a deacon
Deacon
Deacon is a ministry in the Christian Church that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions...
on April 22, 1972, and as a priest
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
on October 28, 1973, the feast of Saints Simon and Jude. His first assignments were at the Chapel of the Intercession in New York City; at Grace Church in Merchantville, New Jersey
Merchantville, New Jersey
Merchantville is a borough in Camden County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2010 Census, the borough population was 3,821....
; and a short period at Christ Church in Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
. From 1974 to 1978, he served as assistant dean at the General Seminary. He spent the next four years in campus ministries in the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a public research university located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States...
, serving as assistant rector
Rector
The word rector has a number of different meanings; it is widely used to refer to an academic, religious or political administrator...
for campus ministries at the Chapel of the Cross in Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Chapel Hill is a town in Orange County, North Carolina, United States and the home of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and UNC Health Care...
. In 1982, he was called to be rector of St. Thomas' parish
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
in Newark, Delaware
Newark, Delaware
Newark is an American city in New Castle County, Delaware, west-southwest of Wilmington. According to the 2010 Census, the population of the city is 31,454. Newark is the home of the University of Delaware.- History :...
, where he served for 10 years.
Election as bishop
Duncan was a candidate for Bishop of ColoradoColorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
in 1990. In 1992, Alden M. Hathaway, then Bishop of Pittsburgh and a noted theological conservative, named Duncan his canon
Canon (priest)
A canon is a priest or minister who is a member of certain bodies of the Christian clergy subject to an ecclesiastical rule ....
to the ordinary
Ordinary
In those hierarchically organised churches of Western Christianity which have an ecclesiastical law system, an ordinary is an officer of the church who by reason of office has ordinary power to execute the church's laws...
. He also served as bishop coadjutor of the diocese.
Duncan was not nominated by the committee that picked candidates for Bishop Hathaway’s successor. He was nominated from the floor of the convention, however, and was eventually elected. On September 13, 1997, he was consecrated Bishop of Pittsburgh. The Diocese of Pittsburgh was at that time considered by many in the Episcopal Church to be one of the most conservative and evangelical dioceses in the Episcopal Church. Duncan served on the programme committee of the Network for Anglicans in Mission and Evangelism, an agency created at the 1998 Lambeth Conference.
Conservative leadership
Duncan quickly became the head of a group of Episcopal leaders hoping to maintain conservatism within the denomination. When openly homosexual priest Gene RobinsonGene Robinson
Vicki Gene Robinson is the ninth bishop of the Diocese of New Hampshire in the Episcopal Church in the United States of America. Robinson was elected bishop in 2003 and entered office in March 2004...
was elected Bishop of New Hampshire
Episcopal Diocese of New Hampshire
The Episcopal Diocese of New Hampshire, a diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America , covers the entire state of New Hampshire. It was originally part of the Diocese of Massachusetts, but became independent in 1841. The see city is Concord...
, Duncan voiced strong opposition to the election. After Robinson's election was confirmed by the church's general convention on August 5, 2003, Duncan acted as spokesman for a group of conservative bishops and lay leaders at a press conference expressing disappointment at Robinson's election. Duncan denounced the election claiming that the Episcopal Church had "departed from the historic faith and order of the Church of Jesus Christ". Duncan and Robinson were members of the same GTS class, both having taken their MDiv degrees in 1973.
In January 2004, Duncan became the leader of the newly formed Network of Anglican Communion Dioceses and Parishes
Anglican Communion Network
The Anglican Communion Network is a theologically conservative network of dioceses and parishes working toward Anglican realignment.-Goals and structure:...
, a conservative action group whose stated mission was to allow "Episcopalians to remain in communion with the vast majority of the worldwide Anglican Communion who have declared either impaired or broken communion with the Episcopal Church USA."
At the March 17, 2005, meeting of Episcopal Church's House of Bishops, Duncan read a speech in which he admitted that the rift between the two sides may be "irreconcilable". In a possible sign of schism
Schism (religion)
A schism , from Greek σχίσμα, skhísma , is a division between people, usually belonging to an organization or movement religious denomination. The word is most frequently applied to a break of communion between two sections of Christianity that were previously a single body, or to a division within...
, St. Brendan's, a liberal parish in Franklin Park, Pennsylvania
Franklin Park, Pennsylvania
Franklin Park is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 13,470 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Franklin Park is located at ....
, announced in February 2005 that it no longer wished to be under Duncan's oversight.
In July 2007, Duncan made remarks criticizing Rowan Williams
Rowan Williams
Rowan Douglas Williams FRSL, FBA, FLSW is an Anglican bishop, poet and theologian. He is the 104th and current Archbishop of Canterbury, Metropolitan of the Province of Canterbury and Primate of All England, offices he has held since early 2003.Williams was previously Bishop of Monmouth and...
, the Archbishop of Canterbury
Archbishop of Canterbury
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...
, for inadequately supporting "orthodox" breakaways from ECUSA, declaring, "The cost is his office... To lose that historic office is a cost of such magnitude that God must be doing a new thing." The statement critical of the Anglican Communion's worldwide leader led the Rev. Dr. Ephraim Radner to resign from the Anglican Communion Network
Anglican Communion Network
The Anglican Communion Network is a theologically conservative network of dioceses and parishes working toward Anglican realignment.-Goals and structure:...
, which he had assisted in founding, out of the concern that "Bishop Duncan has, in the end, decided to start a new church." Radner explained, "Bishop Duncan has now declared the See of Canterbury and the Lambeth Conference — two of the four Instruments of Communion within our tradition — to be 'lost'."
Deposition
On January 15, 2008, the Title IV Review Committee of the Episcopal Church certified that, in its opinion, Duncan had "abandoned the Communion of this Church". Pending completion of this process, the three most senior bishops in the Episcopal Church had the option to inhibit Duncan from ministry but chose not to. In her letter to Duncan, the Presiding Bishop stated that she "would welcome a statement by you within the next two months providing evidence that you once more consider yourself fully subject to the doctrine, discipline and worship of this Church."Duncan replied by letter on March 14, 2008. In his response he denied all charges levelled against him.
On September 18, 2008, the House of Bishops voted that Duncan be deposed from ordained ministry on charges of "abandoning the communion of the Episcopal Church". Immediately following the vote, Duncan was named a bishop-at-large of the Anglican Province of the Southern Cone.
Following the vote in ECUSA's House of Bishops, Jefferts Schori formally deposed Duncan. In the sentence Jefferts Schori declares that "from and after 12:01 a.m., Saturday, 20 September 2008, Bishop Duncan shall be deprived of the right to exercise the gifts and spiritual authority of God's word and sacraments conferred at ordination in this Church and further declare[s] that all ecclesiastical and related secular offices held by Bishop Duncan shall be terminated and vacated at that time." The legal validity of the decree of deposition was questioned by Bishop Duncan's attorney.
Duncan was elected the bishop of the now Anglican Diocese of Pittsburgh 50 days after his deposition by the Episcopal Church.
Archbishop of ACNA
On June 21, 2009 the bishops of the Anglican Church in North America elected Duncan the Archbishop and Primate of North America. He was installed on June 25, 2009 at Christ Church in Plano, TexasPlano, Texas
Plano is a city in the state of Texas, located mostly within Collin County. The city's population was 259,841 at the 2010 census, making it the ninth-largest city in Texas and the 71st most populous city in the United States. Plano is located within the metropolitan area commonly referred to as...
. At the ceremony, conservative Anglicans in the developing world were represented by the Most Rev. Benjamin Nzimbi, the Archbishop of the African Anglican Province of Kenya
Anglican Church of Kenya
The Anglican Church of Kenya is part of the Anglican Communion, and includes 30 dioceses. The Primate of the Church is the Archbishop of Kenya.-Official name:...
. Kenya was one of nine provinces of the Anglican Communion the sent representatives to the ACNA conference. Duncan stated that his role as archbishop was to "reunite a significant portion of our Anglican Church family here in North America" and indicated that he intended to serve for five years before stepping down.
In October 2009, Duncan reacted to the Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
's proposed creation of personal ordinariate
Personal Ordinariate
A personal ordinariate is a canonical structure within the Catholic Church enabling former Anglicans to maintain some degree of corporate identity and autonomy with regard to the bishops of the geographical dioceses of the Catholic Church and to preserve elements of their distinctive Anglican...
s for disaffected traditionalist Anglicans by saying that although he felt that this provision would probably not be utilized by the great majority of ACNA's affiliated laity and clergy, he would happily bless those who were drawn to participate in this historic offer.
At the Provincial Council of the ACNA, held at Long Beach
Long Beach, California
Long Beach is a city situated in Los Angeles County in Southern California, on the Pacific coast of the United States. The city is the 36th-largest city in the nation and the seventh-largest in California. As of 2010, its population was 462,257...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, on 21 June 2011, Archbishop Duncan made a positive balance of the first two years of the church: "According to the data submitted in the Annual Parochial Reports there were, in the year 2010, 987 baptisms of adults over thirty, 424 baptisms of young people aged sixteen to thirty, and 1647 baptisms of children in the ACNA dioceses, not including the congregations of our Ministry Partners. What is so stunning about this data is that the number of baptisms of those 16 and older is almost equal to the number of children baptized. What this says is that we are reaching adolescents and adults who have never known Christ, never been part of a church. This is to reach North America with the transforming love of Jesus Christ, one sign among many that something quite extraordinary is unfolding."
Other functions
Duncan holds a number of ecclesiastical and civic duties.- He is a board member of Trinity Episcopal School for MinistryTrinity Episcopal School for MinistryTrinity School for Ministry is an evangelical seminary in the Anglican tradition, located in Ambridge, Pennsylvania, a suburb of Pittsburgh...
in Ambridge, Pennsylvania, a notable conservative Episcopalian seminary in the United States. - He is the president of the Anglican Relief and Development Fund, a charity that reported funding projects worth $724,279 in 2007.
- At the request of the Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan WilliamsRowan WilliamsRowan Douglas Williams FRSL, FBA, FLSW is an Anglican bishop, poet and theologian. He is the 104th and current Archbishop of Canterbury, Metropolitan of the Province of Canterbury and Primate of All England, offices he has held since early 2003.Williams was previously Bishop of Monmouth and...
, Duncan attended the 2007 Primates' Meeting in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania. - He has hosted and coordinated many national and international conferences, including the Global Anglican Future ConferenceGlobal Anglican Future ConferenceThe Global Anglican Future Conference was a seven day conference of conservative Anglican bishops and leaders held in Jerusalem in June 2008 to address the rise of secularism in the Church, HIV/AIDS and poverty. As a result of the Conference, the Jerusalem Declaration was issued, and the...
in Jerusalem. - He serves as president of the south-west Pennsylvanian Christian Associates group, an ecumenical organization that binds together Christians of various denominations.