The diocesan bishop is The Rt. Rev. Peter
James Lee, 12th Bishop of Virginia. He was elected Bishop Coadjutor
February 11, 1984, to succeed the Rt. Rev. Robert Bruce Hall. Bishop Lee
was consecrated May 19, 1984, at the Washington
National Cathedral and became diocesan upon the death of Bishop Hall
in May 1985. He was formally installed during a service held at St. Paul's,
Richmond in January 1986.
The suffragan bishop is The Rt. Rev. David Colin Jones.
Bishop Jones was elected on January 27, 1995, and consecrated in the Washington National
Cathedral on June 24, 1995. He lives in Burke and keeps office hours in Alexandria and
Richmond.
The assistant bishop is The Rt. Rev. Francis Campbell Gray, effective January 1, 1999.
Since 1987, Bishop Frank Gray has been Bishop of the Diocese of Northern Indiana. He was
consecrated Bishop Coadjutor in 1986. He has wide experience with the world mission of the
Episcopal Church, as well as experience as a seasoned parish priest.
Click here for Bp. Gray's theological essay: Jesus and the Ethic of Inclusion.
A diocesan bishop is the ecclesiastical authority in a diocese, elected by the diocese to serve until he or she retires or dies. A suffragan bishop is elected by a diocese to assist the diocesan bishop. Neither an assistant nor a suffragan has the right of succession. A bishop coadjutor is elected to succeed a diocesan bishop and traditionally assists the diocesan for a specified period of time before being installed as the diocesan. An assistant bishop is an already- consecrated bishop appointed to serve a diocese, often for a specified period of time.