Radical Inclusion in the Episcopal Church.
With a community of over 1.5 million members, the Episcopal Church is committed to fully welcoming and affirming all people at every level of faith and leadership. No one shall be denied rights, status, or access to an equal place in the life, worship, governance, or employment of this Church because of race, color, ethnic origin, national origin, marital or family status (including pregnancy or child care plans), sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, disabilities, or age. (Canon I.17.5)
We don't always get it right, but this is the path we have intentionally chosen to walk.
Come and see...
Sexual Orientation & Gender Identity
Photo courtesy of the Episcopal Diocese of New York.
The church's commitment to inclusion began decades ago. In 1976, both the House of Deputies and House of Bishops voted for a fully inclusive Episcopal Church, stating, “Homosexual persons are children of God who have a full and equal claim with all other persons upon the love, acceptance, and pastoral concern and care of the church.”
Today, church canon law explicitly protects "gender identity or expression" to guarantee universal access to ministry. Furthermore, rules mandate that official documentation accommodate preferred and legal names alongside personal pronouns and gender identity.
Race & Ethnicity
The Episcopal Church’s commitment to racial justice is codified in Canon I.17.5, which mandates that no person shall be denied equal access to the worship, sacraments, or parish membership of the church on the basis of race, color, or ethnic origin.
Beyond membership protections, the church's governing canons prohibit race-based discrimination in access to holy orders and church governance. Emphasizing its identity as an anti-racist institution, the church mandates anti-racism and racial competency training for its clergy and lay leadership as an extension of its foundational Baptismal Covenant to respect the dignity of every human being.
Photo courtesy of the Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society.
Photo courtesy of the Episcopal Diocese of New York.
Reparations Work in the
Episcopal Diocese of New York
The Episcopal Diocese of New York has undertaken a dedicated effort to acknowledge, document, and repair our historical involvement in the transatlantic slave trade and subsequent eras of systemic segregation.
Spearheaded by our Reparations Commission and the Moses Commission, the diocese established a dedicated reparations fund—now totaling nearly $1.2 million—sustained in part by directing 1% of the proceeds from diocesan property sales.
This initiative focuses on educating congregations about our church’s history of complicity, forgiving property debts for historic congregations of color, and investing directly in Black communities both within and outside the church.
We know that in no way is this enough, however, we hope it is a start to true reconciliation.
Ordination Equality
Equality in holy orders reflects an evolving history of overcoming structural barriers across race, gender, and sexual orientation:
-
Racial & Ethnic Milestones: Absalom Jones became the first African American ordained as an Episcopal priest in 1802. Over the centuries, the episcopate expanded to include historically marginalized voices: James Theodore Holly (first Black bishop, 1874), Henry Beard Delany (first Black bishop in a U.S. diocese, 1918), Demetrio Maza (first Latino bishop consecrated in the U.S., 1979), and Steven Charleston (Choctaw, consecrated in 1990 as a pioneer Native American bishop). AAPI leadership was elevated through milestones like the consecration of Gordon Scruton (the church's first bishop of Asian descent) and the election of leaders serving Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) ministries.
-
Women in Clergy: Women have served as ordained priests and consecrated bishops since 1974. In 1989, the Rt. Rev. Barbara Clementine Harris made Anglican history as the first woman—and the first Black woman—consecrated as a bishop.
-
Diocese of New York & LGBTQIA+ Leadership: The Diocese of New York played a groundbreaking role in normalizing LGBTQIA+ ordinations. In January 1977, Bishop Paul Moore ordained the Rev. Ellen Barrett, making her the first openly lesbian priest ordained in the Episcopal Church. This set the stage for the church to add sexual orientation to non-discrimination ordination canons in 1994 and officially open ordination to openly transgender candidates in 2012. Following that canonical change, openly transgender priests and deacons—such as the Rev. Dr. Cameron Partridge—have served, preached, and led within the Diocese of New York and across the national church.
Photo courtesy of the Episcopal Diocese of New York.
Expanding the Circle of Marriage
The Episcopal Church’s theology of marriage reflects a continuous movement toward universal inclusion, affirming that love and covenantal commitment transcend barriers of race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and gender identity.
While church canon law never explicitly prohibited interracial unions, local customs and civil anti-miscegenation laws historically created barriers for multi-racial couples. During the Civil Rights Era, many Episcopal leaders actively opposed these state-imposed restrictions. Following the Supreme Court’s landmark 1967 Loving v. Virginia decision, the church affirmed that no canonical or racial impediment could prevent multi-racial couples from receiving the sacrament of Holy Matrimony.
Decades later, our church expanded this theological understanding of marriage to encompass same-sex couples. At our 2015 General Convention, we codified formal support for marriage equality through two landmark resolutions:
-
Resolution A054: Authorized gender-neutral and same-sex wedding ceremonies across the church.
-
Resolution A036: Updated the marriage canons to permit clergy to officiate same-sex unions using either a trial liturgy or an adapted rite from the Book of Common Prayer.
Today, our commitment to inclusive matrimony is matched by efforts to make liturgies culturally and linguistically accessible. By developing and translating resources into languages such as Spanish, Cantonese, Mandarin, Creole, and Tagalog, the church ensures that Black, Latinx, AAPI, Indigenous, LGBTQIA+, and multi-racial Episcopalians can celebrate their wedding vows fully within their native traditions.
