Mark Van Koevering is an American prelate of the Episcopal Church, who is the eighth and current Bishop of Lexington.

The Right Reverend

Mark Van Koevering
Bishop of Lexington
ChurchEpiscopal Church
DioceseLexington
ElectedNovember 1, 2019
In office2019–present
PredecessorDouglas Hahn
Previous post(s)Bishop of Niassa (2003-2015)
Assistant Bishop of West Virginia (2015-2018)
Provisional Bishop of Lexington (2018-2019)
Orders
ConsecrationSeptember 14, 2003
by Njongonkulu Ndungane
Personal details
Born
NationalityAmerican
DenominationAnglican (prev. Reformed Church)
SpouseHelen Van Koevering
Children3

Biography

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Van Koevering was consecrated as Bishop of Niassa, Mozambique, part of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa, in 2003, where he served until November 2015.

Van Koevering was raised in the Christian Reformed Church. He studied agriculture and plant breeding at university, working in Thailand, China and then as an agriculturist with DanChurchAid in Niassa, Mozambique. There he met and married Helen, who was working with the Christian Council of Mozambique, reuniting war orphans with their families. He was the diocesan director of development when he felt called to the ministry. He trained Trinity College, Bristol and was ordained in Wales, working under Rowan Williams, the then archbishop[clarification needed] in Newport when the people of Niassa elected him as their bishop. His wife Helen was ordained shortly before leaving Wales in 2003.

Until April 2011 the Van Koeverings' ministry in Niassa was supported through USPG. In April 2011 The Van Koevering Trust Fund was set up to secure funds for the furthering of the Van Koeverings' ministry in Niassa.

In November 2015, he moved back to the United States, to become the assistant bishop at the Episcopal Diocese of West Virginia.[1] In February 2018, he became the Bishop Provisional of the Episcopal Diocese of Lexington[2] On November 1, 2019, Bishop Van Koevering was elected the eighth diocesan bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Lexington.

See also

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Notes and references

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  1. ^ Niassa-Charleston, Living Church
  2. ^ "Episcopal Diocese of Lexington affirms bishop provisional | Lexington Herald Leader". Archived from the original on 9 February 2019. Retrieved 9 February 2019.
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Anglican Church of Southern Africa titles
Preceded by Bishop of Niassa
2003 - 2015
Succeeded by