Chilton Abbie Richardson Knudsen (born September 29, 1946) is a

bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

of the Episcopal Church. Knudsen served as the diocesan bishop of Maine for a decade (1997–2008). Upon retiring from that position, she then served as interim bishop in the Diocese of Lexington (2011–2012) and as assistant bishop in the Diocese of New York (2013–2014), and the Diocese of Long Island (2014–2015). In May 2015, she began serving as assistant bishop in the Diocese of Maryland. On December 6, 2018, Knudsen announced her resignation from that temporary position after accepting a position as assisting bishop of the

Episcopal Diocese of Washington The Episcopal Diocese of Washington is a diocese of the Episcopal Church covering Washington, D.C., and nearby counties of Maryland in the United States. With a membership of over 38,000, the diocese is led by the bishop of Washington, Mariann ...

as of February 20, 2019. In August 2021 she was appointed assisting bishop of the

Episcopal Diocese of Chicago The Episcopal Diocese of Chicago is the official organization of the Episcopal Church in Chicago and Northern Illinois, USA. The diocese is served by The Right Reverend Paula Clark, who serves as Bishop of the diocese. The cathedral of the dioce ...

due to Bishop

Paula Clark Paula E. Clark is the thirteenth bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Chicago, serving since September 2022. At the time of her election on December 12, 2020, she was Canon to the Ordinary and Chief of Staff in the Episcopal Diocese of Washington. ...

having to delay her consecration for health reasons.

Early life and education

Knudsen is the eldest of four siblings. Growing up in a

U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest displacement, at 4.5 million tons in 2021. It has the world's largest aircraft ...

family, she spent a large part of her childhood overseas, including

Guam Guam ( ; ) is an island that is an Territories of the United States, organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. Guam's capital is Hagåtña, Guam, Hagåtña, and the most ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

, and the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

. She studied biology and ecology at

Chatham College Chatham University is a private university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Originally founded as a women's college, it began enrolling men in undergraduate programs in 2015. It enrolls about 2,110 students, including 1,002 undergraduate students and ...

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

, and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1968. She then attended the

University of Pittsburgh The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The university is composed of seventeen undergraduate and graduate schools and colle ...

for graduate studies and taught at her alma mater. Knudsen then taught in a nursing program at a community college and worked as a counselor at women's health clinics in Pennsylvania and Illinois.

Ministry

As a young woman, Knudsen felt a calling to the priesthood, but at that time the Episcopal Church was not ordaining women. Following the decision of the church to ordain women, Knudsen attended

Seabury-Western Theological Seminary Seabury-Western Theological Seminary (SWTS) was a seminary of the Episcopal Church, located in Evanston, Illinois. It ceased offering the Master of Divinity degree in May 2010, and in January 2012 it moved from Evanston to the Evangelical Luth ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

, earning an M. Div. Degree in 1980. She was ordained a

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian denominations, such as the Cathol ...

on June 9, 1980, and ordained to the priesthood on February 24, 1981. She first served in

Bolingbrook Bolingbrook is a village in Will and DuPage counties in the U.S. state of Illinois. It is a southwest suburb of Chicago on I-55 and Historic Route 66 (Frontage Road). The village was a new town built on the Gateway Wetlands west of the Des Plai ...

, working to establish a new mission there. She later worked as Pastoral Care Officer/Canon for Pastoral Care in the Diocese of Chicago. Knudsen was elected the 8th Bishop of Maine in 1997 and remained in that post until retiring in September 2008. Presiding bishop Frank T. Griswold, former Maine bishop Frederick Wolf, and bishop Geralyn Wolf of the

Episcopal Diocese of Rhode Island The Episcopal Diocese of Rhode Island is a diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America, encompassing the state of Rhode Island. It is one of seven New England dioceses that make up Province 1 of the Episcopal Church in the Unit ...

were among the bishops consecrating Knudsen as the 938th bishop consecrated in the Episcopal Church. Following her retirement, she served as a missionary in

Haiti Haiti, officially the Republic of Haiti, is a country on the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and south of the Bahamas. It occupies the western three-eighths of the island, which it shares with the Dominican ...

, as well as interim bishop in

Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city coterminous with and the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census the city's population was 322,570, making it the List of ...

and assisting bishop in the dioceses of

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

and

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated continental island in southeastern New York (state), New York state, extending into the Atlantic Ocean. It constitutes a significant share of the New York metropolitan area in both population and land are ...

. Following the resignation of Heather Cook as suffragan bishop to the Bishop of Maryland, the diocesan convention authorized diocesan bishop Eugene Sutton and the standing committee to hire an assisting bishop until a suffragan bishop could be nominated and elected. Following the convention, the diocese announced that Knudsen had been hired as assisting bishop. The choice was seen as bold in that, like Cook, Knudsen also struggled with

alcohol addiction Alcoholism is the continued drinking of alcohol despite it causing problems. Some definitions require evidence of dependence and withdrawal. Problematic use of alcohol has been mentioned in the earliest historical records. The World Hea ...

and is a recovering alcoholic. Knudsen became known for her expertise in conflict resolution and congregational development, as well as addiction and recovery, having worked as an addiction recovery counselor and also written two books. Knudsen assumed her post as Maryland's assistant bishop in late 2015, expecting to serve for one to two and a half years until a suffragan bishop was named. In fact, her ministry in Maryland lasted three years before her "hail and farewell" notice (following Navy tradition) on December 6, 2018. Bishop Knudsen served the Episcopal Church as one of the trustees of the Church Pension Fund, as well as a delegate to several General Conventions. During the General Convention of the Episcopal Church in July 2018, Chilton announced the readmission of the Episcopal Diocese of Cuba. On February 20, 2019, Knudsen began serving as the Assisting Bishop for the

Personal life

Knudsen lived with her husband, retired computer scientist Michael J. Knudsen, in

Catonsville, Maryland Catonsville () is a census-designated place (CDP) in Baltimore County, Maryland, Baltimore County, Maryland. The population was 44,701 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 US Census. The community is a streetcar suburb of Baltimore along the cit ...

. Michael died on March 9, 2021. Their adult son lives in

Portland, Maine Portland is the List of municipalities in Maine, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine and the county seat, seat of Cumberland County, Maine, Cumberland County. Portland's population was 68,408 at the 2020 census. The Portland metropolit ...

.http://episcopaldiocesemaryland.myworshiptimes22.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2016/03/CK-Long-Bio.pdf

References

External links

Biography from the diocesan website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Knudsen, Chilton Abbie Richardson 1946 births Living people People from Bath, Maine Episcopal bishops of Maryland Women Anglican bishops Chatham University alumni University of Pittsburgh alumni Seabury-Western Theological Seminary alumni Episcopal bishops of Maine Episcopal bishops of Lexington

Early life and education

Ministry

Personal life

See also

References

External links