Gerald Nicholas McAllister
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Gerald Nicholas McAllister (February 16, 1923 – June 10, 2014) was an American Episcopal bishop. He was the third bishop of the
Episcopal Diocese of Oklahoma The Episcopal Diocese of Oklahoma dates back to 1837 as a Missionary District of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America. The General Convention of the Episcopal Church recognized the Diocese of Oklahoma in 1937. The diocese consist ...
from 1977 to 1989.


Early life and education

McAllister was born in
San Antonio, Texas San Antonio ( ; Spanish for "Anthony of Padua, Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the List of Texas metropolitan areas, third-largest metropolitan area in Texa ...
on February 16, 1923 to Walter Williams McAllister and Leonora Elizabeth Alexander. He was educated at the local public schools and graduated from Southern Arizona School of Boys and later attended the
University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public university, public research university in Austin, Texas, United States. Founded in 1883, it is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System. With 53,082 stud ...
between 1939 and 1942. In 1942, during
WWII World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, he left university to join the Merchant Marines as an ordinary seaman but later entered the
US Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...
. He served as a B-17 radar navigator-bombardier with the
Eighth Air Force The Eighth Air Force (Air Forces Strategic) is a numbered air force (NAF) of the United States Air Force's Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC). It is headquartered at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana. The command serves as Air Forces S ...
Pathfinder School in England from 1943 to 1945. After the war, he returned to the
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and ran a ranch between 1946 and 1948. He then enrolled at the
Virginia Theological Seminary Virginia Theological Seminary (VTS), formally the Protestant Episcopal Theological Seminary in Virginia, is an Episcopal Church (United States), Episcopal seminary in Alexandria, Virginia. It is the largest and second-oldest such accredited se ...
to study for the priesthood and graduated in 1951. He was also awarded an honorary
Doctor of Divinity A Doctor of Divinity (DD or DDiv; ) is the holder of an advanced academic degree in divinity (academic discipline), divinity (i.e., Christian theology and Christian ministry, ministry or other theologies. The term is more common in the Englis ...
by the seminary in 1977.


Ordained ministry

McAllister was ordained to the diaconate on September 30, 1953, and to the priesthood a year later, on September 24, 1954. He married Helen Earle Black on October 2, 1953 and together had four children. His initial post was as deacon, and later priest-in-charge of the Church of the Epiphany in
Raymondville, Texas Raymondville is a city in and the county seat of Willacy County, Texas, Willacy County, Texas, United States. The population was 10,236 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Willacy County is also the Raymondville micropolitan area. R ...
, the Church of the Incarnation in
Corpus Christi, Texas Corpus Christi ( ; ) is a Gulf Coast of the United States, coastal city in the South Texas region of the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat and largest city of Nueces County, Texas, Nueces County with portions extending into Aransas County, T ...
, and St Francis' Church in
Victoria, Texas Victoria is a city and the county seat of Victoria County, Texas, United States. The population was 65,534 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The three counties of the Victoria, Texas metropolitan area, Victoria Metropolitan Statis ...
from 1951 until 1963. In 1963, he became a
canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the material accepted as officially written by an author or an ascribed author * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western canon, th ...
to the ordinary in the
Episcopal Diocese of West Texas The Episcopal Diocese of West Texas is the diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America whose territory comprises the southernmost part of the state of Texas. Territory The see city is San Antonio, and the diocese includes the ...
while in 1970 he became rector St David's Church in
San Antonio, Texas San Antonio ( ; Spanish for "Anthony of Padua, Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the List of Texas metropolitan areas, third-largest metropolitan area in Texa ...
. In 1967, McAllister was celebrant at the White House wedding of
Lynda Bird Johnson Lynda Bird Johnson Robb (born March 19, 1944) is the elder daughter of the 36th U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson and former First Lady Lady Bird Johnson. She served as chairwoman of the Board of Reading is Fundamental, the nation's largest child ...
, daughter of president
Lyndon Baines Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), also known as LBJ, was the 36th president of the United States, serving from 1963 to 1969. He became president after assassination of John F. Kennedy, the assassination of John F. Ken ...
, to Marine Captain
Charles S. Robb Charles Spittal Robb (born June 26, 1939) is an American former U.S. Marine Corps officer and politician who served as the 64th governor of Virginia from 1982 to 1986 and a United States senator representing Virginia from 1989 until 2001. A mem ...
.


Bishop

On November 20, 1976, he was elected as the third Bishop of Oklahoma on the 10th ballot, and was consecrated bishop on April 15, 1977 in Oklahoma City by Presiding Bishop
John Allin John Maury Allin (April 22, 1921 – March 6, 1998) was an American Episcopal bishop who served as the 23rd Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church from 1974 to 1985. Early life Allin was born in Helena, Arkansas. He graduated from the Univ ...
. During the time of McAllister, outreach became a priority. The Venture in Mission program raised 2.3 million dollars and committed half of that to overseas missions. The concept of total ministry became a diocesan priority. Cluster ministries were instituted, hospital chaplains and college chaplains were added, two Episcopal schools flourished, and two residential facilities were opened for the elderly. At the end of McAllister's time as bishop, the diocese was more financially sound and had grown to 80 congregations, missions, parishes, and two conference centers. He retired in 1989. Later he served as a bishop-in-residence at the
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 ...
and chaplain to Clergy Families in the Diocese of West Texas from 1991 to 1993."RIP: Former Oklahoma Bishop Gerald Nicholas McAllister dies at 91"
''Episcopal News Service'', June 12, 2014. Retrieved on March 22, 2022.


Death

Bishop McAllister died in his native
San Antonio, Texas San Antonio ( ; Spanish for "Anthony of Padua, Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the List of Texas metropolitan areas, third-largest metropolitan area in Texa ...
on June 10, 2014, aged 91.


References

20th-century Anglican bishops in the United States 21st-century Anglican bishops in the United States Clergy from San Antonio 1923 births 2014 deaths Episcopal bishops of Oklahoma {{Oklahoma-stub