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Peter Edward Gillquist (13 July 19381 July 2012) was an American
archpriest The ecclesiastical title of archpriest or archpresbyter belongs to certain priests with supervisory duties over a number of parishes. The term is most often used in Eastern Orthodoxy and the Eastern Catholic Churches and may be somewhat analogo ...
in the
Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America The Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America (AOCANA), often referred to in North America as simply the Antiochian Archdiocese, is the jurisdiction of the Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch in the United States and Canada. Origina ...
and retired chairman of the archdiocese's department of missions and evangelism. He was chairman of Conciliar Press (
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) and the author of numerous books, including ''Love Is Now'', ''The Physical Side of Being Spiritual'' and ''Becoming Orthodox.'' He also served as project director of the ''
Orthodox Study Bible The ''Orthodox Study Bible'' (OSB) is an Eastern Orthodox study Bible published by Thomas Nelson in 2008. It uses an English translation of the Septuagint by St. Athanasius Academy for the Old Testament and the New King James Version for the N ...
'' and, from , served as the National Chaplain of the
Sigma Alpha Epsilon Sigma Alpha Epsilon () is a North American Greek-letter social college fraternity. It was founded at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, on March 9, 1856.Baird, William Raimond, ed. (1905).Baird's Manual of American College Fratern ...
fraternity. Gillquist and his wife, Marilyn (married in ), were long-term residents of
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, but, in , they moved to
Bloomington, Indiana Bloomington is a city in Monroe County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. The population was 79,168 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is the List of municipalities in Indiana, seventh-most populous city in Indiana and ...
.


Upbringing and education

Born in
Minneapolis, Minnesota Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...
, Gillquist grew up nominally
Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...
. He attended the
University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota Twin Cities (historically known as University of Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint ...
where he received a BA degree in journalism and was active in the
Sigma Alpha Epsilon Sigma Alpha Epsilon () is a North American Greek-letter social college fraternity. It was founded at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, on March 9, 1856.Baird, William Raimond, ed. (1905).Baird's Manual of American College Fratern ...
fraternity. While at university, he became involved with the
Campus Crusade for Christ Cru (until 2011 known as Campus Crusade for Christ—informally "Campus Crusade" or simply "Crusade"—or CCC) is an interdenominational Christian parachurch organization. It was founded in 1951 at the University of California, Los Angeles by ...
evangelistic organization and became a
born-again Christian To be born again, or to experience the new birth, is a phrase, particularly in evangelical Christianity, that refers to a "spiritual rebirth", or a regeneration of the human spirit. In contrast to one's physical birth, being "born again" is d ...
. Gillquist pursued graduate studies at
Dallas Theological Seminary Dallas Theological Seminary (DTS) is an evangelical theological seminary in Dallas, Texas. It is known for popularizing the theological system of dispensationalism. DTS has campuses in Dallas, Houston, and Washington, D.C., as well as extension ...
and at Wheaton College. After graduating, he became a full-time staff member of
Campus Crusade for Christ Cru (until 2011 known as Campus Crusade for Christ—informally "Campus Crusade" or simply "Crusade"—or CCC) is an interdenominational Christian parachurch organization. It was founded in 1951 at the University of California, Los Angeles by ...
in the 1960s, starting a ministry at the
University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac (known simply as Notre Dame; ; ND) is a Private university, private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, United States. Founded in 1842 by members of the Congregation of Holy Cross, a Cathol ...
and ultimately becoming a regional director with the organization. After several years with Campus Crusade, Gillquist worked for three years at the
University of Memphis The University of Memphis (Memphis) is a public university, public research university in Memphis, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1912, the university has an enrollment of more than 20,000 students. The university maintains the Herff Col ...
, then for 11 years with Thomas Nelson Publishing in
Nashville Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...
, where he eventually became a senior editor. In , he served on the Overview Committee for Nelson's
New King James Version The New King James Version (NKJV) is a translation of the Bible in contemporary English, working as a revision of the King James Version. Published by Thomas Nelson, the complete NKJV was released in 1982. With regard to its textual basis, the ...
of the Bible. For many years, alongside
Episcopal Episcopal may refer to: *Of or relating to a bishop, an overseer in the Christian church *Episcopate, the see of a bishop – a diocese *Episcopal Church (disambiguation), any church with "Episcopal" in its name ** Episcopal Church (United States ...
priest Fr. Robert Hedges, Gillquist served as the official co-chaplain of the
Sigma Alpha Epsilon Sigma Alpha Epsilon () is a North American Greek-letter social college fraternity. It was founded at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, on March 9, 1856.Baird, William Raimond, ed. (1905).Baird's Manual of American College Fratern ...
fraternity, providing spiritual guidance and pastoral care to its membership. Gillquist was the father of six children and grandfather of 19 grandchildren.


Spiritual journey

While still on staff at Campus Crusade, Gillquist and some of his colleagues began studying church history and came to the conclusion that the
Orthodox Church Orthodox Church may refer to: * Eastern Orthodox Church, the second-largest Christian church in the world * Oriental Orthodox Churches, a branch of Eastern Christianity * Orthodox Presbyterian Church, a confessional Presbyterian denomination loc ...
was the only unchanged church in history. In , Gillquist and his colleagues in Chicago established a network of
house church A house church or home church is a label used to describe a group of Christians who regularly gather for worship in private homes. The group may be part of a larger Christian body, such as a parish, but some have been independent groups that se ...
es throughout the United States, aiming to restore a primitive form of Christianity, which was called the New Covenant Apostolic Order. Researching the historical basis of the Christian faith, Gillquist and his colleagues found sources for this restoration in the writings of the early
Church Fathers The Church Fathers, Early Church Fathers, Christian Fathers, or Fathers of the Church were ancient and influential Christian theologians and writers who established the intellectual and doctrinal foundations of Christianity. The historical peri ...
. This led the group to practice a more
liturgical Liturgy is the customary public ritual of worship performed by a religious group. As a religious phenomenon, liturgy represents a communal response to and participation in the sacred through activities reflecting praise, thanksgiving, remembra ...
form of
worship Worship is an act of religious devotion usually directed towards a deity or God. For many, worship is not about an emotion, it is more about a recognition of a God. An act of worship may be performed individually, in an informal or formal group, ...
than in their previous evangelical background. Originally known as the Christian World Liberation Front, and then the New Covenant Apostolic Order, in the Evangelical Orthodox Church (EOC) was organized. A desire for
apostolic succession Apostolic succession is the method whereby the Christian ministry, ministry of the Christian Church is considered by some Christian denominations to be derived from the Twelve Apostles, apostles by a continuous succession, which has usually been ...
led most members of the EOC to join the
Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America The Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America (AOCANA), often referred to in North America as simply the Antiochian Archdiocese, is the jurisdiction of the Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch in the United States and Canada. Origina ...
in after first investigating the Episcopal Church, the
Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
, the
Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America (GOArch; ), headquartered in New York City, is an eparchy of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople. Its current Primate (bishop), primate is Archbishop Elpidophoros of America. The Greek Orthodox ...
, and the
Orthodox Church in America The Orthodox Church in America (OCA) is an Eastern Orthodox Christian church based in North America. The OCA consists of more than 700 parishes, missions, communities, monasteries and institutions in the United States, Canada and Mexico. In ...
(OCA). Gillquist and other EOC leaders traveled to
Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...
to meet with Patriarch Demetrios I of Constantinople but were unable to complete any substantial progress toward their goal. However, they were able to meet with
Patriarch The highest-ranking bishops in Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy, the Roman Catholic Church (above major archbishop and primate), the Hussite Church, Church of the East, and some Independent Catholic Churches are termed patriarchs (and ...
Ignatius IV of Antioch Patriarch Ignatius IV ( ; born Ḥabīb Hazīm ; April 17, 1920 – December 5, 2012) was the Patriarch of the Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch and All The East from 1979 to 2012. Life Habib Hazim was born on April 4, 1920, in the village o ...
during his historic visit to
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that year. After further discussions, Gillquist led 17
parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...
es with around 2,000 members into the Antiochian archdiocese in . This group became known as the Antiochian Evangelical Orthodox Mission, lasting until when its parishes were absorbed into the standard
diocesan In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associated ...
framework of the archdiocese. On 31 December 2011, he retired as the head of the Archdiocese Department of Missions and Evangelism.


Death

Gillquist died on 1 July 2012, in Bloomington, Indiana, after suffering from
melanoma Melanoma is the most dangerous type of skin cancer; it develops from the melanin-producing cells known as melanocytes. It typically occurs in the skin, but may rarely occur in the mouth, intestines, or eye (uveal melanoma). In very rare case ...
. After services in Bloomington and
Carmel, Indiana Carmel () is a suburban city in Hamilton County, Indiana, United States, immediately north of Indianapolis. With a population of 99,757 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city spans across Clay Township, Hamilton County, Indi ...
, he was buried at the cemetery at Bloomington's All Saints' Orthodox Church, where his son, the Very Rev. Fr. Peter Jon Gillquist, serves as the priest.


Selected works

* * *


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gillquist, Peter E. 1938 births 2012 deaths 20th-century American clergy 20th-century Eastern Orthodox priests 21st-century American clergy 21st-century Eastern Orthodox priests American Eastern Orthodox priests American people of Swedish descent Clergy from Minneapolis Converts to Eastern Orthodoxy from Protestantism Eastern Orthodox priests in the United States Members of the Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch People from Bloomington, Indiana University of Minnesota School of Journalism and Mass Communication alumni Wheaton College (Illinois) alumni Writers from Indiana Writers from Minneapolis Writers from Santa Barbara, California