Jane Alexander (born March 29, 1959) is a British-born Canadian
Anglican
Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...
bishop. She is a former
Bishop of Edmonton, a
bishop of the
Anglican Church of Canada
The Anglican Church of Canada (ACC or ACoC) is the Ecclesiastical province#Anglican Communion, province of the Anglican Communion in Canada. The official French-language name is ''l'Église anglicane du Canada''. In 2017, the Anglican Church co ...
.
[Anglican Diocese of Edmonton]
/ref> She was installed on May 11, 2008, at All Saints' Anglican Cathedral.[New Anglican bishop ‘will play by the rules’]
Until her consecration as a bishop, Alexander served as Dean of Edmonton
All Saints' Anglican Cathedral is a Canadian cathedral serving the Anglican Diocese of Edmonton, which covers central Alberta. It serves as the episcopal seat of the Bishop of Edmonton.
History
The Anglican Parish of All Saints was founded in ...
and Rector
Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to:
Style or title
*Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations
*Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...
of All Saints' Cathedral. She is the first female diocesan bishop to succeed another female diocesan bishop in the Anglican Communion.
On 26 January 2020, Alexander announced her resignation as Bishop of Edmonton effective 31 July 2020. However, on 17 March 2020, she postponed her resignation until 31 December 2020 citing the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Early life and teaching career
Alexander grew up in England and attended Brunts Grammar School in Mansfield. As a child, she was forbidden from attending any religious classes at school by her father.[Alexander elected Anglican bishop of Edmonton]
It was not until she was 25 that she was baptized with her eldest child in the Church of England.[
Alexander graduated from ]Newcastle University
Newcastle University (legally the University of Newcastle upon Tyne) is a UK public university, public research university based in Newcastle upon Tyne, North East England. It has overseas campuses in Singapore and Malaysia. The university is ...
in 1980 with a Bachelor of Arts degree with honours, having completed a thesis on English liturgical music from 1370 to 1430.[ She then worked as a music teacher, eventually specializing in special education.][
After moving to Canada with her family in 1990, Alexander earned a Master of Education degree in 1993, followed by a Ph.D. degree in educational psychology in 1996, both from the University of Alberta.][ She then worked as a professor in educational psychology at the University of Alberta.
]
Ministry
In 1998, Alexander was ordained as a deacon. She was ordained as a priest in 2001 after earning her Masters of Theological Studies from Newman Theological College, a private Roman Catholic college. She worked at a number of parishes in the Diocese of Edmonton.[ In 2006 she was appointed Dean of All Saints' Cathedral in Edmonton.][ Before her ordination to the episcopate, she was involved in a movement to eliminate poverty in Edmonton caused by inequality. According to statistical data, it is the most unequal province in the country. She took leadership in a Call To End Poverty in Edmonton leading to coming up with concrete proposals on many fronts, including early childhood education, daycare, living wage, affordable transit and job training.
]
Episcopate
In 2007, Bishop Victoria Matthews resigned as Bishop of Edmonton and Alexander became diocesan administrator in her capacity as dean of the diocese. She was elected to be the next bishop on 8 March 2008 on the third ballot.[
Alexander was consecrated as a bishop at All Saints' Cathedral and formally installed as Bishop of Edmonton on 11 May 2008, the feast of ]Pentecost
Pentecost (also called Whit Sunday, Whitsunday or Whitsun) is a Christianity, Christian holiday which takes place on the 50th day (the seventh Sunday) after Easter Sunday. It commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles in the Ne ...
.[
Alexander's succeeding of Matthews as Bishop of Edmonton was the first instance in the Anglican Communion in which a female diocesan bishop succeeded another. Matthews was Alexander's ordaining bishop for her diaconal and priestly ordinations and was a co-consecrator for her episcopal ordination.
Alexander was going to step down as Bishop of Edmonton on 31 December 2020.]Territory of the People
The Territory of the People (previously called the Anglican Parishes of the Central Interior until 2016) , after Lincoln Mckoen resigned the See following allegations of misconduct.
Consecrators
* The Most Reverend John Robert Clarke, 10th Archbishop of Athabasca and 15th Metropolitan of Rupert's Land
The Ecclesiastical Province of the Northern Lights, founded in 1875 as the Province of Rupert's Land, forms one of four ecclesiastical provinces in the Anglican Church of Canada.
Territorial evolution
The territory covered by the province is ro ...
* The Right Reverend Gregory Kerr-Wilson, 11th Bishop of Qu'Appelle
The Diocese of Qu'Appelle in the Anglican Church of Canada lies in the southern third of the civil province of Saskatchewan and contains within its geographical boundaries some 50 per cent of the province's population of one million.
Establishme ...
(Previously Dean of Edmonton and Rector of All Saints' Cathedral)
* The Right Reverend Victoria Matthews (9th Bishop of Edmonton; Bishop-Elect of Christchurch Diocese, New Zealand)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alexander, Jane
1959 births
Living people
Alumni of Newcastle University
Anglican bishops of Edmonton
Canadian Anglican priests
Women Anglican bishops
University of Alberta alumni