Steven Allen Breedlove (born 1950) is an American prelate of the

Anglican Church in North America The Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) is a Christian denomination in the Anglican tradition in the United States and Canada. It also includes ten congregations in Mexico, two mission churches in Guatemala, and a missionary diocese in Cuba. ...

. He was elected as the first Presider Bishop of PEARUSA, a missionary district that was formerly part of the

Anglican Church of Rwanda The Anglican Church of Rwanda (; ) is a province of the Anglican Communion, covering 13 dioceses in Rwanda. The Primate (bishop), primate of the province is Laurent Mbanda, consecrated on 10 June 2018. Official names The Province of the Anglican ...

, in 2012. From 2016 to 2024, Breedlove was the first diocesan bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Christ Our Hope.

Biography

Breedlove was born in Tyler,

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

to First Lieutenant James Robby Breedlove and Paula Kent. He graduated from Robert E. Lee High School and attended

Washington and Lee University Washington and Lee University (Washington and Lee or W&L) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Lexington, Virginia, United States. Established in 1749 as Augusta Academy, it is among ...

for undergraduate studies. He then obtained Master of Theology and Doctor of Ministry degrees from

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 ...

, writing a dissertation based on case studies in team ministry at Bethany Chapel in Calgary, Alberta, where he was the senior pastor from 1990 to 1997. He was a

non-denominational Christian Non-denominational Christianity (or nondenominational Christianity) consists of churches, and individual Christians, which typically distance themselves from the confessionalism or creedalism of other Christian communities by not formally aligni ...

pastor for 29 years prior to converting to

Anglicanism Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

in 2001. In 2005, Breedlove was ordained as a priest of the

and served as a pastor at the Church of the Apostles. Later that year, he founded All Saints Church in

Chapel Hill, North Carolina Chapel Hill is a town in Orange County, North Carolina, Orange and Durham County, North Carolina, Durham counties, North Carolina, United States. Its population was 61,960 in the 2020 United States census, making Chapel Hill the List of municipa ...

, serving as the church's rector. He was also the founder and director of the Anglican Missional Pastor leadership program developed for men and women entering ordained ministry. After the withdrawal of the

Anglican Mission in the Americas The Anglican Mission in the Americas (AMiA) or The Anglican Mission (AM) is a self-governing church inheriting its doctrine and form of worship from the Episcopal Church in the United States (TEC) and Anglican Church of Canada with members and ch ...

, Breedlove was unanimously elected the first Presider Bishop ''pro tem'' of PEARUSA, the new missionary district of the

in the United States, a dual church body of the Anglican Church of Rwanda and the

, and was appointed by Archbishop

Onesphore Rwaje Onesphore Rwaje (born June 6, 1953, in the Sector of Kinyababa, Burera District, Northern Province of Rwanda) is a Rwandan Anglican bishop. He was the Primate of the Anglican Church of Rwanda from 2011 to 2018. He is married and has five children ...

. He was installed on 11 June 2012. Bishop Breedlove's consecration took place on 29 October 2012, in

Denver, Colorado Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

, by Archbishop Robert Duncan.Steve Breedlove Consecrated First Bishop of PEARUSA, San Francisco Anglicans, 21 November 2012
/ref> Breedlove became the first diocesan bishop of the newly constituted Anglican Diocese of Christ Our Hope on 21 June 2016 upon the dissolution of PEARUSA resulting from its transfer from the

Province of the Anglican Church of Rwanda The Anglican Church of Rwanda (; ) is a province of the Anglican Communion, covering 13 dioceses in Rwanda. The primate of the province is Laurent Mbanda, consecrated on 10 June 2018. Official names The Province of the Anglican Church of Rwanda ...

to the

. On April 5, 2022, several people from the Anglican Diocese of Christ Our Hope came forward alleging abuse by Reverend Dan Claire at Church of the Resurrection. They claimed that diocesan leaders, including Breedlove, failed to adequately hold "Claire accountable and did not center the needs of he complainants" The complaints resulted in an investigation into Breedlove's handling of the abuse allegations, conducted by Grand River Solutions. Rev. Claire contested the investigations and petitioned the

Provincial Tribunal for an “end to all judicial proceedings related to the complaints raised in 2020 and 2021 or claims similar thereto” because the Diocese neglected to find anything over the course of the investigation that "constituted canonically actionable behavior or moral, ethical, or financial misdealings." On Thursday June 17, 2021 the College of Bishops of the Anglican Church in North America elected Alan Hawkins as Bishop Coadjutor of the Anglican Diocese of Christ Our Hope. Hawkins serve alongside Breedlove until Breedlove transitioned out of his role as bishop ordinary in 2024. He has been married to Sally Breedlove, a writer, since 1972 and they have five children and fourteen grandchildren. In 2009, Breedlove co-wrote the book ''The Shame Exchange - Trading Shame for God's Mercy and Freedom'' with his wife and Ralph and Jennifer Ennis.

References

External links

Steve Breedlove Biography
. , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Breedlove, Steve Living people 21st-century Anglican bishops in the United States Bishops of the Anglican Church in North America Christians from Texas Converts to Anglicanism from Congregationalism Dallas Theological Seminary alumni People from Tyler, Texas Religious leaders from Texas Washington and Lee University alumni 1950 births