What is a Diocese?

In the Anglican Church a diocese is a collection of congregations under authority of a bishop within a certain geographical area. From denomination to denomination, or from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, those boundaries may overlap. The diocese is the fundamental unit of structure of the Anglican Church. Every diocese is the seat of a bishop. In general, a diocese contains many parishes and churches, and normally dioceses are combined into larger administrative units called Provinces and National Churches.

What do we believe?

For a detailed description of what Anglicans believe please read An Outline of the Faith, commonly called the Catechism. Every week Anglicans profess the Nicene Creed as a statement of faith taken from the Book of Common Prayer (BCP)

WE BELIEVE in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen. We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, of one Being with the Father. Through him all things were made. For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven: by the power of the Holy Spirit he became incarnate from the Virgin Mary, and was made man. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered death and was buried. On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures; he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end. We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son. With the Father and the Son he is worshiped and glorified. He has spoken through the Prophets. We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church. We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come.

Diocesan History

As with all dioceses in the state of California, the Diocese of San Joaquin was carved out of the original Diocese of California. Bishop Kip had taken a couple of trips through the San Joaquin Valley, with stops for baptisms, marriages, and Holy Communion, in the 1870's. The Rev. D.O.Kelly was very active and visible in the beginnings of quite a few congregations south of Fresno.

In 1911, the new diocese was given it's official charter as a "Missionary Diocese", dependent upon the General Convention budget for its fiscal well being. Bishop Louis Sanford guided the missionary diocese of San Joaquin through its early years, giving it a firm foundation. Bishop Sumner Walters further expanded the number of congregations in the valley.

Bp. Victor Rivera, formerly rector of St. Paul's, Visalia, saw the diocese drop its "missionary" status and become fiscally independent. Bp. Rivera also helped keep the diocese biblically and traditionally "orthodox" through years of great upheaval in the Episcopal Church with the struggle of civil rights (including the area's implosion concerning the rights of field workers), the ordination of women to the priesthood, and a change in the official Book of Common Prayer.

The Rt. Rev. John-David Schofield, formerly rector of St. Columba's, Inverness, Diocese of California, became the 4th bishop of San Joaquin in 1989 as Bishop John-David Schofield, continuing the scriptural, liturgical and theological heritage. He continues to serve the Diocese to this day.

Recent History

There are currently congregations all over California and one in Nevada serving a world-mix of races and ethnicities, striving to be true to the Good News of Jesus Christ, and to His mission, especially as defined in the Catechism of the Book of Common Prayer (BCP). St. John's, Stockton, the oldest congregation, was founded in 1850, the third oldest congregation in the west (the Diocese of California was officially organized in 1858).

On December 8th, 2007 at its annual convention, the Diocese of San Joaquin took an historic step and voted to disassociate from The Episcopal Church. The convention also accepted an invitation from Archbishop Gregory Venables and the bishops of the Province of the Southern Cone of South America to be welcomed into their membership.

On June 22-24, 2009 the Diocese of San Joaquin joined many other Orthodox Anglicans and became a part of the Anglican Church in North America (ANCA). ACNA Inaugural Meeting information.