Austin Keith Rios is the ninth bishop of the

Episcopal Diocese of California The Episcopal Diocese of California is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America (ECUSA) in Northern California. History The founding Episcopal diocese in the state, once encompassing all of ...

. He was elected bishop coadjutor on December 2, 2023, and was ordained and consecrated on May 4, 2024. As

bishop coadjutor A coadjutor bishop (or bishop coadjutor) ("co-assister" in Latin) is a bishop in the Latin Catholic, Anglican and (historically) Eastern Orthodox churches whose main role is to assist the diocesan bishop in administering the diocese. The coa ...

, Rios served alongside the Rt. Rev. Dr. Marc Handley Andrus until Andrus' retirement on July 31, 2024, at which point Rios succeeded him as diocesan bishop. Rios was formally installed at Grace Cathedral, the seat of the Episcopal Diocese of California, on August 11, 2024.

Career

Rios is the first Latino to lead the Diocese of California. His father's family is

Mexican American Mexican Americans are Americans of full or partial Mexico, Mexican descent. In 2022, Mexican Americans comprised 11.2% of the US population and 58.9% of all Hispanic and Latino Americans. In 2019, 71% of Mexican Americans were born in the Unite ...

, and his mother's ancestry is Scottish and English. He speaks Spanish and Italian fluently. Before his election, Rios served for 12 years as rector of St. Paul's Within the Walls Episcopal Church in Rome, Italy, which houses the Joel Nafuma Refugee Center. He previously served as rector of La Capilla de Santa Maria, a Spanish-speaking congregation in

Hendersonville, North Carolina Hendersonville is a city in and the county seat of Henderson County, North Carolina, United States, located south of Asheville, North Carolina, Asheville. Like the county, the city is named for 19th-century North Carolina Supreme Court Chief Jus ...

, while also working as canon for Spanish-speaking ministries in the Diocese of Western North Carolina. He has served the Episcopal Church in various roles, including multiple terms as a deputy to the

General Convention The General Convention is the primary governing and legislative body of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America. With the exception of the Bible, the ''Book of Common Prayer'', and the Constitution and Canons, it is the ultimate autho ...

. In 2018, he was elected a trustee of the Church Pension Fund and later became vice chair of its investment committee. He was re-elected as a trustee and named vice chair of the fund in 2024.

Personal life

Rios considers many places home, including Texas, where he was born; North Carolina, where he began his ministry; Rome, where he spent more than a decade in service; and now the

San Francisco Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a List of regions of California, region of California surrounding and including San Francisco Bay, and anchored by the cities of Oakland, San Francisco, and San Jose, California, S ...

. He earned a Bachelor of Arts from

Davidson College Davidson College is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Davidson, North Carolina, United States. It was established in 1837 by the Concord Presbytery and named after American Revolutiona ...

, and a

Master of Divinity For graduate-level theological institutions, the Master of Divinity (MDiv, ''magister divinitatis'' in Latin) is the first professional degree of the pastoral profession in North America. It is the most common academic degree in seminaries and ...

from the

Episcopal Theological Seminary of the Southwest Seminary of the Southwest (formally the Episcopal Theological Seminary of the Southwest and informally SSW) is an Episcopal seminary in Austin, Texas. It is one of nine accredited seminaries of the Episcopal Church in the United States. Semina ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rios, Austin Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Davidson College alumni Seminary of the Southwest alumni Episcopal bishops of California Bishops of the Episcopal Church (United States) American people of Mexican descent American people of Scottish descent American people of English descent

Career

Personal life

See also

References