Benedict Churchill
Orthodox bishop of New England (born 1947)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bishop Benedict (secular name William Joseph Churchill; born April 19, 1947) is the bishop of the Orthodox Church in America Diocese of New England since 2023.[1]
Benedict The Right Reverend | |
|---|---|
| Bishop of Hartford and New England | |
| Archdiocese | Orthodox Church in America Diocese of New England |
| See | Boston |
| Elected | November 7, 2023 |
| Installed | December 2, 2023 |
| Predecessor | Nikon (Liolin) |
| Successor | Incumbent |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | 2009 (diaconate) 2010 (priesthood) |
| Consecration | December 3, 2023 |
| Personal details | |
| Born | William Churchill April 19, 1947 |
| Denomination | Eastern Orthodox |
| Alma mater | St. John's University of Minnesota Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies University of Toronto St Vladimir's Seminary |
Early life and education
Benedict was born as William Churchill on April 19, 1947, the eldest of six in an Irish Roman Catholic household in Pottsville, Pennsylvania.[1] He was baptized in St. Joseph's Roman Catholic Church in Locust Gap, Pennsylvania. He briefly became a benedictine monk while studying Byzantine and medieval history at St. John's University of Minnesota in 1969, where he received a Bachelors of Arts. He also obtained a licentiate of Mediaeval Studies from the Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies in Toronto in 1975, a Ph.D. at the University of Toronto in 1979, and a Masters in Divinity from St Vladimir's Seminary in Yonkers, New York in 2010.[2]
Benedict became interested in Eastern Orthodoxy during his studies as a student. He was received into the Orthodox Church on September 17, 1983 at St Mary's Orthodox Church in Stamford, Connecticut after the insistence of an orthodox friend.[1]
Before becoming a priest, Benedict worked as an adjunct at Fordham University and New York University, and for Xerox Corporation from 1983 to 2006.[3]