BISHOP MICHAEL B. CURRY

The Most Rev. Michael Bruce Curry is Presiding Bishop and Primate of The Episcopal Church.  He is the Chief Pastor and serves as President and Chief Executive Officer, and as Chair of the Executive Council of The Episcopal Church.

Presiding Bishop Curry was installed as the 27th Presiding Bishop and Primate of The Episcopal Church on November 1, 2015.  Presiding Bishop Curry was ordained to the diaconate in June 1978, at St. Paul’s Cathedral, Buffalo, NY, and to the priesthood in December 1978, at St. Stephen’s, Winston-Salem, NC. He began his ministry as deacon-in-charge at St. Stephen’s, Winston-Salem, in 1978 and was rector from 1979-1982. He next accepted a call as rector at St. Simon of Cyrene, Lincoln Heights, OH, serving from 1982-1988. In 1988 he was called to become rector of St. James’, Baltimore, MD, where he served until his election as the 11th Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina in February 2000.

Throughout his ministry, Presiding Bishop Curry has been active in issues of social justice, reconciliation, speaking out on immigration policy and marriage equality. In his three parish ministries in North Carolina, Ohio, and Maryland, Presiding Bishop Curry had extensive involvement in preaching missions; Crisis Control Ministry; the founding of ecumenical summer day camps for children; preaching missions; the Absalom Jones initiative; creation of networks of family day care providers; creation of educational centers; and the brokering of millions of dollars of investment in inner-city neighborhoods.

Presiding Bishop Curry has served on the boards of a large number of organizations, including the Task Force for Reimagining The Episcopal Church (TREC) and as Chair and now Honorary Chair of Episcopal Relief & Development.  He was a member of the Commission on Ministry in each of the three dioceses where he has served.

Presiding Bishop Curry maintains a national preaching and teaching ministry, having been featured on The Protestant Hour and as a frequent speaker at churches, cathedrals, and conferences around the country and internationally. He has authored four books: The Power of Love (2018); Following the Way of Jesus: Church’s Teachings in a Changing World (2017); Songs My Grandma Sang (2015); and Crazy Christians:  A Call to Follow Jesus (2013). He was one of the subjects of In Conversation: Michael Curry and Barbara Harris by Fredrica Harris Thompsett (2017).He has authored numerous publications including columns for the Huffington Post and the Baltimore Times.

In 2018, Religion News Association named Presiding Bishop Curry religion newsmaker of the year.