Keith L. Ackerman
Encyclopedia
Keith Lynn Ackerman is the retired American bishop
of the Episcopal Church
Diocese of Quincy
(based in Peoria, Illinois
). Prior to becoming Bishop, he served as Rector of St. Mary's Church in Charleroi, Pennsylvania
, as well as Rector of St. Mark's Church in Arlington, Texas
.
on August 3, 1946. On August 19, 1967 he married Joann Bevacqua. They have three children: Keith, Renée and Lynne Mary.
He graduated with a Bachelor of Science
from Marymount College
in Salina, Kansas
in 1971, while working at the St. Francis Boys Home in nearby Ellsworth
. He later received his Master of Divinity
from Nashotah House
seminary in 1974, and a Doctor of Divinity
from the same institution in 1994.
in 1974, and was ordained to the priesthood the same year in Long Island, Kansas
by Bishop William Davidson
of the Diocese of Western Kansas
. He served as a curate
at the Church of the Transfiguration in Freeport, New York
from 1974 to 1976, when he was called to be Rector of St. Mary's Church, Charleroi, Pennsylvania
, in the Diocese of Pittsburgh.
As rector in Charleroi, Ackerman served as president of the Charleroi Clergy Association and founded St. Elizabeth Chapel in nearby Bentleyville
. He was also a recipient in 1988 of the Bishop of Pittsburgh's award for extraordinary service to the church. Much of his ministry work was directed at assisting the unemployed and otherwise advancing the interests of local workers. He established five outreach ministries and a Christian counseling
service for the unemployed, and also received the Ecumenical Award from Christian Associates of Southwest Pennsylvania in 1984 for his mediation in a labor dispute between union members and management at a local steel-related business. He was active in diocesan life, serving as President of the Standing Committee and as Deputy to General Convention, and was also an active instructor, teaching in several institutions including Chichester Theological College in Chichester, England
and Duquesne University
in Pittsburgh.
In 1989, Ackerman was called to be rector of St. Mark's Church in Arlington, Texas, in the Diocese of Fort Worth. While there, he served as president of the Ministerial Association and was presented the "Minister of the Year" award. He also served as a member of several diocesan committees, including President of the Standing Committee.
on January 8, 1994, and was consecrated June 24, 1994, at St. Paul's Cathedral in the see city of Peoria, Illinois
. He retired as Bishop of Quincy on November 1, 2008.
, and is currently serving as President of Forward in Faith North America
, a traditionalist Anglo-Catholic
movement operating in a number of provinces of the Anglican Communion
. Forward in Faith is noted for its opposition to the ordination of women to the priesthood and episcopate as well as to liberal Anglican views of homosexuality
. Ackerman's term of office is due to expire in 2012.
Ackerman resigned as superior-general of the American branch of the Confraternity of the Blessed Sacrament
in 2010: "I have recently been informed by the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church that I am not longer a Bishop in the Episcopal Church, thus making me ineligible to be a member of or to serve as an officer of the Confraternity of the Blessed Sacrament in the Episcopal Church in the United States of America."
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 Church
Episcopal Church (United States)
The Episcopal Church is a mainline Anglican Christian church found mainly in the United States , but also in Honduras, Taiwan, Colombia, Ecuador, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, the British Virgin Islands and parts of Europe...
Diocese of Quincy
Episcopal Diocese of Quincy
The Diocese of Quincy is an Anglican diocese in western Illinois, United States. It is a founding member of the Anglican Church in North America...
(based in Peoria, Illinois
Peoria, Illinois
Peoria is the largest city on the Illinois River and the county seat of Peoria County, Illinois, in the United States. It is named after the Peoria tribe. As of the 2010 census, the city was the seventh-most populated in Illinois, with a population of 115,007, and is the third-most populated...
). Prior to becoming Bishop, he served as Rector of St. Mary's Church in Charleroi, Pennsylvania
Charleroi, Pennsylvania
Charleroi is a borough in Washington County, Pennsylvania, along the Monongahela River, 25 miles south of Pittsburgh. Charleroi was settled in 1890 and incorporated in 1891. The population in 1900 stood at 5,930; in 1910, 9,615; in 1920, 11,516, and in 1940, 10,784...
, as well as Rector of St. Mark's Church in Arlington, Texas
Arlington, Texas
Arlington is a city in Tarrant County, Texas within the Dallas–Fort Worth metropolitan area. According to the 2010 census results, the city had a population of 365,438, making it the third largest municipality in the Metroplex...
.
Background
Ackerman was born in McKeesport, PennsylvaniaMcKeesport, Pennsylvania
McKeesport is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, in the United States; it is located at the confluence of the Monongahela and Youghiogheny rivers and is part of the Pittsburgh Metro Area. The population was 19,731 at the 2010 census...
on August 3, 1946. On August 19, 1967 he married Joann Bevacqua. They have three children: Keith, Renée and Lynne Mary.
He graduated with a Bachelor of Science
Bachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for completed courses that generally last three to five years .-Australia:In Australia, the BSc is a 3 year degree, offered from 1st year on...
from Marymount College
Marymount College (Kansas)
Marymount College was a four-year liberal arts college located in Salina, Kansas. Originally opened in 1922 as a women's college, Marymount was the first Catholic liberal arts college to open in the state....
in Salina, Kansas
Salina, Kansas
Salina is a city in and the county seat of Saline County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 47,707. Located in one of the world's largest wheat-producing areas, Salina is a regional trade center for north-central Kansas...
in 1971, while working at the St. Francis Boys Home in nearby Ellsworth
Ellsworth, Kansas
Ellsworth is a city in and the county seat of Ellsworth County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 3,120.-19th century:...
. He later received his Master of Divinity
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...
from 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...
seminary in 1974, and a Doctor of Divinity
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....
from the same institution in 1994.
Priesthood
Ackerman was ordained as a deaconDeacon
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...
in 1974, and was ordained to the priesthood the same year in Long Island, Kansas
Long Island, Kansas
Long Island is a city in Phillips County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 134.-Geography:Long Island is located at...
by Bishop William Davidson
William Davidson
William Morse "Bill" Davidson, J. D. was an American businessman who was President, Chairman and CEO of Guardian Industries, one of the world's largest manufacturers of architectural and automotive glass...
of the Diocese of Western Kansas
Episcopal Diocese of Western Kansas
The Episcopal Diocese of Western Kansas, created in 1971, is the diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America with jurisdiction over western Kansas. It was formerly the Episcopal Diocese of Salina and is in Province 7...
. He served as a curate
Curate
A curate is a person who is invested with the care or cure of souls of a parish. In this sense "curate" correctly means a parish priest but in English-speaking countries a curate is an assistant to the parish priest...
at the Church of the Transfiguration in Freeport, New York
Freeport, New York
Freeport is a village in the town of Hempstead, Nassau County, New York, USA, on the South Shore of Long Island. The population was 42,860 at the 2010 census. A settlement since the 1640s, it was once an oystering community and later a resort popular with the New York City theater community...
from 1974 to 1976, when he was called to be Rector of St. Mary's Church, Charleroi, Pennsylvania
Charleroi, Pennsylvania
Charleroi is a borough in Washington County, Pennsylvania, along the Monongahela River, 25 miles south of Pittsburgh. Charleroi was settled in 1890 and incorporated in 1891. The population in 1900 stood at 5,930; in 1910, 9,615; in 1920, 11,516, and in 1940, 10,784...
, in the Diocese of Pittsburgh.
As rector in Charleroi, Ackerman served as president of the Charleroi Clergy Association and founded St. Elizabeth Chapel in nearby Bentleyville
Bentleyville, Pennsylvania
Bentleyville is a borough in Washington County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 2,502 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Bentleyville is located at . U.S...
. He was also a recipient in 1988 of the Bishop of Pittsburgh's award for extraordinary service to the church. Much of his ministry work was directed at assisting the unemployed and otherwise advancing the interests of local workers. He established five outreach ministries and a Christian counseling
Christian counseling
Christian counseling is counseling which draws upon psychology and Christian teaching. Efforts to combine counseling with Christian or other religious perspectives or approaches are sometimes called "integration."...
service for the unemployed, and also received the Ecumenical Award from Christian Associates of Southwest Pennsylvania in 1984 for his mediation in a labor dispute between union members and management at a local steel-related business. He was active in diocesan life, serving as President of the Standing Committee and as Deputy to General Convention, and was also an active instructor, teaching in several institutions including Chichester Theological College in Chichester, England
Chichester
Chichester is a cathedral city in West Sussex, within the historic County of Sussex, South-East England. It has a long history as a settlement; its Roman past and its subsequent importance in Anglo-Saxon times are only its beginnings...
and Duquesne University
Duquesne University
Duquesne University of the Holy Spirit is a private Catholic university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded by members of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit, Duquesne first opened its doors as the Pittsburgh Catholic College of the Holy Ghost in October 1878 with an enrollment of...
in Pittsburgh.
In 1989, Ackerman was called to be rector of St. Mark's Church in Arlington, Texas, in the Diocese of Fort Worth. While there, he served as president of the Ministerial Association and was presented the "Minister of the Year" award. He also served as a member of several diocesan committees, including President of the Standing Committee.
Election as bishop
Ackerman was elected as the eighth Bishop of QuincyEpiscopal Diocese of Quincy
The Diocese of Quincy is an Anglican diocese in western Illinois, United States. It is a founding member of the Anglican Church in North America...
on January 8, 1994, and was consecrated June 24, 1994, at St. Paul's Cathedral in the see city of Peoria, Illinois
Peoria, Illinois
Peoria is the largest city on the Illinois River and the county seat of Peoria County, Illinois, in the United States. It is named after the Peoria tribe. As of the 2010 census, the city was the seventh-most populated in Illinois, with a population of 115,007, and is the third-most populated...
. He retired as Bishop of Quincy on November 1, 2008.
Post-retirement
Ackerman currently lives in Keller, TexasKeller, Texas
Keller is a city located in Tarrant County, Texas, in the United States. In 2011, it was ranked 93rd in Money Magazine's list of best cities to live in the United States. It is a northern suburb of the city of Fort Worth and is part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex...
, and is currently serving as President of Forward in Faith North America
Forward in Faith
Forward in Faith is a movement operating in a number of provinces of the Anglican Communion. It represents a traditionalist strand of Anglo-Catholicism and is characterised by its opposition to the ordination of women to the priesthood and episcopate and, more recently, to more liberal Anglican...
, a traditionalist Anglo-Catholic
Anglo-Catholicism
The terms Anglo-Catholic and Anglo-Catholicism describe people, beliefs and practices within Anglicanism that affirm the Catholic, rather than Protestant, heritage and identity of the Anglican churches....
movement operating in a number of provinces of the Anglican Communion
Anglican Communion
The Anglican Communion is an international association of national and regional Anglican churches in full communion with the Church of England and specifically with its principal primate, the Archbishop of Canterbury...
. Forward in Faith is noted for its opposition to the ordination of women to the priesthood and episcopate as well as to liberal Anglican views of homosexuality
Anglican views of homosexuality
Since the 1990s, the Anglican Communion has struggled with controversy regarding homosexuality in the church. In 1998, the 13th Lambeth Conference of Anglican bishops passed a resolution stating that homosexual acts are "incompatible with Scripture". In 2002, the Diocese of New Westminster, in the...
. Ackerman's term of office is due to expire in 2012.
Ackerman resigned as superior-general of the American branch of the Confraternity of the Blessed Sacrament
Confraternity of the Blessed Sacrament
The Confraternity of the Blessed Sacrament is a devotional society in the Anglican Communion dedicated to venerating the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist...
in 2010: "I have recently been informed by the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church that I am not longer a Bishop in the Episcopal Church, thus making me ineligible to be a member of or to serve as an officer of the Confraternity of the Blessed Sacrament in the Episcopal Church in the United States of America."
Writings
Ackerman has been a prolific writer, penning weekly columns for the Bentleyville Courier (1979–1985) and Benworth Times (1983–1985), a monthly column for the Arlington Daily News (1990–1994), and numerous articles for the The Harvest Plain (1994–present), the newspaper of the Diocese of Quincy. He has also written several books, including To God be the Glory, a book co-written with his wife Joann, which was published in 2001.Published books
- Why We Do What We Do: A Manual on the Eucharist, 1992, Dovetracts Publications
- The Work of the People: A Guide to the Eucharist, 1993, DoveTracts Publications
- To God be the Glory: Growing Towards a Healthy Church (with Joann Ackerman), 2001, Dovetracts Publications
See also
- List of Succession of Bishops for the Episcopal Church, USASuccession of Bishops of the Episcopal Church in the United StatesThis list consists of the bishops in the Episcopal Church in the United States of America, an independent province of the Anglican Communion. This shows the historic succession of the episcopate within this denomination.-Key to chart:...
- Episcopal Diocese of QuincyEpiscopal Diocese of QuincyThe Diocese of Quincy is an Anglican diocese in western Illinois, United States. It is a founding member of the Anglican Church in North America...
- Diocese of Quincy (Southern Cone)
- Anglican realignmentAnglican realignmentThe term Anglican realignment refers to a movement among some Anglicans to align themselves under new or alternative oversight within or outside the Anglican Communion. This movement is primarily active in parts of the Episcopal Church in the United States and the Anglican Church of Canada...