Америкалық епископ Барбара Клементина Харрис

American bishop (1930–2020)

Barbara Clementine Harris (June 12, 1930 – March 13, 2020) was an American bishop of the Episcopal Church in the United States. She was the first woman consecrated a bishop in the Anglican Communion. She was elected suffragan bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts, on September 24, 1988, and was consecrated on February 11, 1989. Eight thousand people attended the service, which was held at the Hynes Convention Center in Boston, Massachusetts. She served in the role of suffragan bishop for 13 years, retiring in 2003.

Barbara Clementine Harris was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on June 12, 1930. She was the daughter of Walter Harris and Beatrice Waneidah Price. Harris attended the Philadelphia High School for Girls (class of 1948). There, she excelled in music and wrote a weekly column for the Philadelphia version of the Pittsburgh Courier called "High School Notes by Bobbi". The alumnae association of the school recognized her as an outstanding alumna for her professional work and she was installed in its court of honor. After graduation from high school, Harris attended the Charles Morris Price School of Advertising and Journalism in Philadelphia, where she earned a certificate in 1950. She later attended Villanova University, the Urban Theology Unit in Sheffield, England, and also graduated from the Pennsylvania Foundation for Pastoral Counseling.

Prior to her ordination to the priesthood, Harris served as head of public relations for the Sun Oil Company. Harris was long active in civil rights issues, participating in Freedom Rides and marches in the 1960s, including the Selma to Montgomery marches led by Martin Luther King Jr. She spent summer vacations registering black voters in Greenville, Mississippi. She dismissed the risks she took, saying only, "Everyone was in danger." Throughout her various careers, Harris was noted for her liberal views and her outspokenness. As early as 1989 she was reported as arguing for gay rights and lambasting the Episcopal Church for racism and sexism.

Harris was elected bishop suffragan of the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts, on September 24, 1988, at a special convention of diocesan delegates. Her election was controversial, in part because she was divorced and had not attended seminary. She was also the first woman to be elected to the position of bishop not only in the Episcopal Church, but in all of the Anglican Communion. Some members of the church felt it was inappropriate to elevate a woman to the position of bishop, and others were concerned that her election would strain relations with the wider Anglican Communion. Nevertheless, Harris had many supporters and her election was successful. Harris was consecrated on February 11, 1989. Eight thousand people attended the service, which was held at the Hynes Convention Center in Boston, Massachusetts. Sixty bishops participated in the laying on of hands. There were 1,200 dignitaries and clergy in the opening procession, and four choirs participating in the service. The service was televised live and lasted three hours. A contingent of the Boston police were assigned to her consecration. Her comment was merely, "I don't take this in a personal way."

In 2010, Harris suffered a stroke at her home in Massachusetts. She appeared to have made a full recovery and preached at an ecumenical worship service in the historic Tabernacle in Oak Bluffs, Massachusetts, on September 5, 2010. Her sermon was entitled "It Isn't Easy Being Green". Harris died at a hospice in Lincoln, Massachusetts, on March 13, 2020, at age 89. The Barbara C. Harris Camp & Conference Center is a ministry of the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts located in Greenfield, New Hampshire. The center is named in honor of Harris. A task force was convened in 1997 to explore the potential of the center and their recommendation to proceed with the development of the center was approved by the diocesan council in 1998. From 1999 to 2002, the development of the center was under the direction of diocesan staff. In addition, over 200 lay and clergy volunteers lent their time, energy, and expertise to the project, working in a variety of roles. An extensive fund raising campaign took place in order to finance the construction and to fund a scholarship endowment and an operating endowment. The center welcomed its first summer campers in July 2003. Three months after her death, Harris was commemorated at the consecration and installation of Deon Kevin Johnson, eleventh bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Missouri on June 13, 2020. The collect and readings for her commemoration were written and selected by Johnson and the Rev. Canon Sandye Wilson. The Episcopal Church added, on a trial basis, the observance of the consecration of Bishop Barbara Clementine Harris to the church liturgical calendar on 11 February for 2023 2024.