Episcopal diocese elects Jenifer Chatfield as ninth bishop

The Rev. Jenifer Chatfield was elected the ninth bishop of the Diocese of Northwestern Pennsylvania on August 8 during a special electing convention at the Cathedral of St. Paul in Erie, Pennsylvania. Chatfield, who has served as rector of St. Edmund's Episcopal Church in San Marino, California, since 2019, was elected on the third ballot with 24 clergy votes and 31 lay votes, exceeding the required majorities of 18 and 31 respectively. Pending churchwide consent, she will be ordained and consecrated as bishop diocesan on December 12 at the Cathedral of St. Paul. The Rev. Martha Ishman, president of the diocesan Standing Committee, praised Chatfield's election and her willingness to serve, noting she is grounded in her relationship to God and eager to explore what it means to be the church in the diocese. Chatfield holds a doctor of ministry degree from Virginia Theological Seminary and a master of divinity from Yale Divinity School. She previously served as priest-in-charge at St. Wilfrid of York Episcopal Church in Huntington Beach, California, and as interim rector at St. James' in-the-City in Los Angeles. She succeeds Presiding Bishop Sean Rowe, who resigned from the position in 2024 after being elected primate of The Episcopal Church.

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Source: Episcopal News Service — https://episcopalnewsservice.org/2026/08/10/northwestern-pennsylvania-diocese-elects-jenifer-chatfield-as-its-ninth-bishop/