Felix Orji
Felix Orji | |
|---|---|
| Bishop of All Nations | |
| Church | Anglican Church in North America |
| Diocese | All Nations |
| In office | 2013–present |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | 1996 (priesthood) by Michael Ingham |
| Consecration | September 25, 2011 by Nicholas Okoh |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Felix Clarence Orji 1962 (age 62–63) |
| Nationality | American[1] |
| Alma mater | |
Felix Clarence Orji OSB (born 1962) is a Nigerian-born American Anglican bishop. A former Episcopal priest who left the Episcopal Church as part of the Anglican realignment, Orji was consecrated a bishop in Nigeria in 2011 to serve the Convocation of Anglicans in North America. Since 2013, he has been the diocesan bishop of the Anglican Diocese of All Nations (formerly the Anglican Diocese of the West), which was a dual member of both the Church of Nigeria and the Anglican Church in North America from 2013 to 2019, a member of the Church of Nigeria North American Mission from 2019 to 2022, and a sole member of the ACNA since 2022.
Early life, family, and education
Orji became a Christian as a teenager growing up in Nigeria.[2] He received a B.A. from the University of Ife in Ile-Ife, Nigeria, and a master's degree from the University of Lagos. Orji moved to Vancouver to study for ordained ministry, earning an M.Div. from the Vancouver School of Theology and a diploma in Christian studies from Regent College.[2] In 2004, Orji received a D.Min. from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary.[3] While in Canada, in 1996, Orji was ordained in the Anglican Diocese of New Westminster. He served a curacy at All Saints Anglican Church in Burnaby and then became associate rector of St. John's Shaughnessy in Vancouver. Orji also married Lilian Siew Yee; they have four children.[2]
Ordained ministry
In 2004, after the General Synod met, Orji accepted a call as associate rector of St. Francis on the Hill Episcopal Church in El Paso, Texas.[4] In 2008, Orji was appointed rector of St. Francis, serving until 2015.[2] Under Orji's leadership, the 400-member church voted in 2008 to leave the Diocese of the Rio Grande and affiliate with the Convocation of Anglicans in North America.[5] In 2011, Orji and Episcopal Bishop Michael Vono settled litigation over ownership of the property, with St. Francis Anglican Church vacating its property and moving to a new location.[6] Until 2010, Orji was coordinator of the Anglican Fellowship of the Southwest, which was the forerunner organization of the Diocese of the Southwest.[2]
Episcopacy
In 2011, Orji was elected a suffragan bishop for CANA. He was consecrated by Church of Nigeria Primate Nicholas Okoh alongside fellow CANA Bishop Julian Dobbs on September 25, 2011, at the Archbishop Vining Memorial Church Cathedral in Lagos.[7] In 2013, churches remaining in CANA were divided into three dioceses, with Orji becoming diocesan bishop of CANA West.[2] St. Francis became the diocese's cathedral, and Orji stepped down as dean in 2016 so that he could focus full-time on his episcopal ministry.[8] Orji is also bishop protector of the Society of St. Benedict, a dispersed Benedictine order in the Diocese of All Nations.[2] In 2019, conflict arose between the CON and ACNA leadership. That January, the CON bishops elected four suffragan bishops to serve in the Missionary Diocese of the Trinity, but this election was not submitted to the ACNA college of bishops for consent according to ACNA's canons, with the result that the four bishops, upon consecration, would not be seated in the ACNA.[9] The election of the bishops was also not done in consultation with CANA's missionary bishop, Julian Dobbs, or Orji. Dobbs and Orji commented at the time: "This does not directly affect the mission and ministry of the other CANA dioceses. While we are disappointed by the way this election process has unfolded, this is not a situation that affects our local parishes and their commitment to making disciples and followers of Jesus."[9] Amid the controversy, the dual ACNA-CON jurisdiction came to an end.[10] CANA West, which was composed of a mixture of Nigerian and Anglo-American adherents, and the Missionary Diocese of the Trinity, which was primarily composed of Nigerian immigrants, remained in the Church of Nigeria.[11] In October 2020, CANA was replaced as a corporate entity by CONNAM (with the two constituent dioceses of the West and the Trinity), and Orji was designated CONNAM's coordinating bishop.[12] CON Primate Henry Ndukuba joined Orji to dedicate the diocese's new cathedral in Houston in 2021.[13] ACNA received Orji and Diocese of All Nations Suffragan Bishop Scott Seely into the college of bishops, and the diocese voted to affiliate with ACNA, although some congregations elected to remain in CONNAM.[14] Two months after his suspension, Ndukuba lifted the suspension and released Orji for service in the ACNA.[15]
Bibliography
- Orji, Felix Clarence (2013). Moral Leadership in the Church: A Normative Approach. Bloomington, Indiana: WestBow Press. ISBN 9781449794712.
References
- ↑ "Bishop Felix Orji Gets 'Honor of a Kentucky Colonel' From Its Governor". USAfricaOnline. June 18, 2022. Retrieved December 8, 2022.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 "Bishop Felix Orji". Anglican Diocese of the West. Retrieved December 8, 2022.
- ↑ "Alumni Notes". GCTS Contact. No. Fall/Winter 2010. Retrieved December 8, 2022.
- ↑ "People – Around the Diocese". Diocese of New Westminster. August 9, 2004. Retrieved December 8, 2022.
- ↑ Roberts, Timothy (March 9, 2010). "What would St. Francis do?". El Paso Inc. Retrieved September 16, 2022.
- ↑ "Rio Grande diocese, Episcopal Church and El Paso parish agree to property settlement". July 6, 2011. Retrieved December 8, 2022.
- ↑ "ANGLICAN CHURCH CELEBRATES CANA BISHOP CONSECRATIONS". Anglican Church in North America. September 14, 2011. Retrieved December 8, 2022.
- ↑ "St. Francis Cathedral Welcomes New Pastor". El Paso Herald-Post. November 21, 2016. Retrieved December 8, 2022.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Virtue, David (January 18, 2019). "Church of Nigeria Appoints Four Bishops to Minister in the US, Bypassing ACNA". Virtue Online. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
- ↑ "ACNA – Church of Nigeria sign agreement on future of CANA". Anglican Ink. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
- ↑ Orji, Felix (May 23, 2019). "CANA West leaves ACNA". Anglican Ink. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
- ↑ "CofN Appoints Bishop Felix Orji As The Coordinating Bishop Of The CONNAM, Terminates CANA As An Incorporated Entity". ACNN News. October 17, 2022. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
- ↑ Virtue, David (June 28, 2021). "Nigerian Anglicans Dedicate New Cathedral in Houston". Virtue Online. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
- ↑ "ANGLICAN DIOCESE OF THE WEST RETURNING". Retrieved November 1, 2022.
- ↑ "Primate Ndukuba Lifts Suspension of Bishop Felix Orji, Released to ACNA". Advent Cable News Network. December 27, 2022. Retrieved 29 December 2022.