Who will be our
new Bishop?
Some Background
Your church is part of The Episcopal Church, which has churches all
over the world.
This is the shield of the
Episcopal Church.
It is like a history lesson
for our church. The
Episcopal Church in America
was founded in 1789, as a
separate group from The
Church of England.
However, this seal was not
adopted until 1940.
The shield is red, white and
blue, the same colors as our
American flag.
The whole background
(which is called the field) is white with a red St. George’s cross. St.
George is the patron saint of the Church of England (this helps us
remember our roots!).
Just like the American flag, the section in the top left corner is blue.
In that section, there are nine small crosses that symbolize the
original nine dioceses of the USA in 1789. The “X” formation is in
remembrance of St. Andrew, the patron saint of Scotland. This
reminds us that The Church of Scotland ordained Samuel Seabury to
be the first American BISHOP in 1784.
Color it in!
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But what is a Diocese?
The Unites States
is a big place, and
so The Episcopal
Church divides it
up into 9
provinces, and
these are further
divided into 99
dioceses.
Dioceses are to the national church like
what states are to the country.
Color each Province a different color!
Our Diocese is part of Province 3,
which includes all of Pennsylvania, Maryland,
Delaware, Virginia, West Virginia,
and Washington, DC.
Notice that there are five Dioceses
in Pennsylvania—
 The Diocese of Pennsylvania,
 The Diocese of Bethlehem
 The Diocese of Northwestern Pennsylvania
 The diocese of Pittsburgh
 and our diocese, The Diocese of Central Pennsylvania—you can see
how we got our name: Our diocese goes from the border of
Maryland all the way to the border of New York!
Color the Dioceses of Province 3 too!
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OUR Diocese
The Diocese of Central Pennsylvania is comprised of 12,827 people in
65 parishes.
Can you find your church?
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Harrisburg
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The Seal of Our Diocese
Just like The Episcopal Church has a shield
as a symbol, each diocese has a seal.
This is the Diocese of Central Pennsylvania Seal.
The overall shape is called a vesica;
it represents a fish,
an ancient Christian symbol.
The crest is a mitre, key and a crozier –
symbols for the Episcopacy.
On a Celtic cross
(a reminder of our ties with the
Church of England)
is a dove descending.
This is a symbol for God’s Holy Spirit.
The symbols above the cross are:
a crescent for John Harris
(founder of Harrisburg);
a white rose with a red center
(for Lancaster and York);
and a plate for William Penn
(founder of Pennsylvania).
On the edges is the motto of the Diocese – Spiritu Dum Spiro Spero –
which when translated means – In the Spirit, while I breathe I hope.
Ask for help to know what colors it should be!
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So what is a BISHOP?
The Bishop is a Priest especially ordained to lead the diocese. The
Bishop acts as the authority of Christ in our diocese. His or her role is
to teach and care for the spiritual needs of the Priests and people of
the diocese. Bishops visit each church regularly. They baptize and
confirm members, and ordain priests and deacons of the diocese.
Who picks the Bishop?
At a special meeting, the new Bishop will be elected.
Every priest and deacon gets a vote.
Most importantly, the laity (the people of the
church) vote. Each parish has at least one laity
vote; more are given according to how many
people there are in the parish.
Color this church full of people to look like your church friends!
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A Bishop can be
a WOMAN OR A MAN.
The Presiding
Bishop (the Bishop
of the entire
Episcopal Church)
is Katharine
Jefferts Schori.
She will be here to
help consecrate our
new bishop.
A Bishop has
special clothes that
they wear when
they visit.
These are called
VESTMENTS,
and the bishop has
two wardrobes for
services: formal,
and informal.
Color in Katharine
Jefferts Schori’s
formal vestments!
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The Formal Attire
A bishop wears a cope,
mitre, pectoral cross, and
carries a crozier at
formal occasions.
Mitre
Crozier
Cross
The outfit is usually in
the colors preferred for
the church season.
Do you know what the
church year colors are?
Cope
Fill in the grid with the
color for each season.
Advent
Christmas
Epiphany
Lent
Easter
Pentecost
Season after
Pentecost
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The Cope—A Shepherd’s Cloak
This is a long cape, worn when Holy Eucharist is celebrated.
It is like a shepherd’s cloak that could shelter a lamb.
The cope can be quite plain or very ornate—it’s up to the bishop who
wears it. Which would you like?
It can also be any of the colors of the church year, or white which can
be worn at any service at which the bishop presides. Finally, it can be
multicolored, with a design over the whole thing; this could also be
worn at any time.
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The Mitre—A Special Hat
The Mitre is a symbol of the bishop’s authority. It is a folding, pointed
hat with lappets that drape down the back of the neck. It generally
matches the cope. The top is shaped like the flames of Pentecost; we
don’t know where the lappets came from. Some people say it shows the
water of baptism flowing down. Like the cope, the mitre can be very
simple or quite fancy, with silver, gold and jewels!
Make yours as plain or fancy
as you want!
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The Informal Outfit
The informal wardrobe is
made up of several colorful
layers. First, they put on a
purple robe called a cassock.
This is covered by a gown
that looks like a nightgown,
which is called a rochet. It
has gathered sleeves that
have bands of either red of
black at the wrists. Over
the rochet, the bishop
wears a long red or black
vest that is called a
chimere.
Stole
To finish the outfit, the
bishop wears a stole draped
over the neck. The stole is
the proper color for the
church season.
Do you think bishops get hot
in all those clothes?
Rochet
Color your casual bishop in
either red or black as
described.
Cassock
A Bishop has some special things given to them as gifts
when they are consecrated. Let’s look
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Chimere
The Crozier—A Shepherd’s Staff
A Bishop carries a crozier to symbolize that he or she is the shepherd
of his or her flock. The crozier is a walking stick to show that the
bishop’s call is to travel near and far to preach the Gospel. The curved
end is like the crook a shepherd uses to lead lambs along, and the
pointed end symbolizes the bishop’s role in defending the faith.
Sometimes the bishop will use the crozier to knock on the door of a
church!
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The Pectoral Cross
The bishop’s pectoral cross is usually a large cross hanging from the
neck by a cord or chain that reaches far down on the chest, below the
heart. It is distinguished by its size—up to 6 inches!
Like all of the other bishop’s
signs of authority, the
bishop has the say over
whether this cross will be
plain or ornate.
This is the actual size of one
bishop’s pectoral cross!
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The Bishop’s Ring—A Signature Seal
A new bishop receives a very special ring as a gift when consecrated.
Sometimes it is handed down from the previous bishop, and sometimes
it is made new. Like a wedding ring, it is a symbol of commitment, the
bishop’s commitment to the Church and the people under his or her
care. Most bishops’ rings are often set with an amethyst stone, which
is purple—remember that purple is the bishop’s special color. The
stone, or the gold, if the ring has no stone, is usually engraved with the
seal of the diocese, or the new bishop’s personal design. He or she uses
it to mark a wax seal on ordination and other important documents. In
olden times, a bishop’s ring was smashed to bits so that no one could
use it before the rest of the world knew of the bishop’s death!
Design a ring that shows your commitment to the Church!
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The Cathedra—
A Special Seat for a Special Visitor
You may have a special chair or “throne” in your church that is
reserved for the bishop. It’s not that no one else can sit in it; but when
the bishop is at your church, he or she sits there. Having this chair in
your church symbolizes that the bishop, rather than the parish priest,
is the authority over the local church.
Do you have a cathedra in your church? Ask if you can sit in it (not
when the bishop is in town)!
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Follow the maze to get the new bishop
from Harrisburg to your church!
A publication of The Diocese of Central Pennsylvania Search Committee
With thanks to The Diocese of Alabama and The Diocese of Wyoming
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