The Rt. Rev. Paul V. Marshall
Bishop, Diocese of Bethlehem

Elected by clergy and lay representatives of the 68 Episcopal congregations of eastern and northeastern PA on Dec. 2, 1995, the Rt. Rev. Paul V. Marshall was consecrated as eighth bishop of the 14-county Diocese of Bethlehem on June 29, 1996. He had been a professor at Yale University Divinity School and director of the Yale Institute of Sacred Music.

He has written extensively both for scholars and clergy and for the general reader. His scholarly works have been described as “readable” and his popular works as “learned.”

Recently, The Bishop is Coming! A Practical Guide for Bishop and Congregations (Church Publishing, 2007) is the first new ceremonial guide for bishops in more than 25 years and the first book of its kind aimed at helping congregations prepare for a bishop’s visit.

One, Catholic and Apostolic: Samuel Seabury and the Early Episcopal Church (Church Publishing, 2004) explores the complex personalities, motivations, loyalties and prejudices that went into the formation of the Episcopal Church and the creation of its liturgy.

A 90-minute video on Reading the Bible Today, produced during a live presentation in the fall of 2003 in response to General Convention decisions related to homosexuality, is being distributed by the Episcopal Media Center, Same-Sex Unions: Stories and Rites is a collection and analysis of representative rites in use in the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Church of Canada. It begins with a focus on the lives of two deeply committed Christian couples. Also published by Church Publishing, it is an expanded version of Same Sex Union An Inquiry, written initially for bishops on their way to General Convention 2003.

Bishop Marshall’s earlier books include: Leaps and Boundaries: The Prayer Book in the 21st Century (Co-edited with Dr. Lesley Northup, Morehouse, 1997), The Voice of a Stranger: On the Lay Origins of Anglican Liturgics (Church Publishing Incorporated, New York 1993) and Anglican Liturgy in America: Prayer Book Parallels (CPI, 1989, 1991, 1996), a three-volume set that compares texts of different versions of The Book of Common Prayer.

He has also written a book on preaching (Preaching for the Church Today (CPI, 1991) and some 50 articles and reviews for periodicals. “I have a rather pragmatic view of preaching” he says. “If it doesn’t help people live, then it’s probably a waste of their time.” Many people beyond the Episcopal Church know him through a monthly column he writes for the secular press. The column is carried by newspapers that circulate to some 400,000 homes in northeastern Pennsylvania.

Bishop Marshall has served the Episcopal Church USA as a member of the Standing Commission on Communication and the Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music.

Born 1947 in New York City and raised in Lancaster County (PA), he was ordained a priest in 1978 and earned a doctorate in theology at General Theological Seminary, NYC (1982), where he was a Fellow and Lecturer in Homiletics, Latin and Liturgics, 1979-82.­ He received certification in Neuro-Linguistic Programming from the NLP Institute (1992). Having begun his pastoral ministry as a Lutheran, he served in parish ministry for some 20 years in Connecticut, New York, Wisconsin and Minnesota. He served Lutheran congregations in Minnesota and Wisconsin, 1972-77, and as chair of the religion department at Minneapolis Lutheran High School, 1973-75. He received a B.A. degree from Concordia College in Indiana (1969) and an M.Div. degree from Concordia Seminary in Missouri (1973).

After his ordination as an Episcopal priest, he served as priest in charge of English language ministry at Trinity Church, Long Island City, New York, 1979-82, rector at Christ Church, Bablyon, New York, 1982-89, professor of Liturgics and Homiletics and chaplain at the George Mercer School of Theology, Garden City, New York, 1982-89, and part-time vicar in New Haven, CT, 1990-93. He served as assistant professor (1988-93) and associate professor (1993-96) at Yale.

He married Diana S. Hilty in 1969. She is an attorney and a registered nurse. They have two grown children, Hilary and Nicholas.  His parents (Victor and Frances), sister (Frances Leone), and sister-in-law (Nancy, wife of his deceased brother, Ronald) live in Lancaster.

“Through many experiences,” he has said, “I have come to believe that God will see the church through, and that I may not always have the details in advance. Because I believe God wants us to trust that history is in safer hands than our own, I am less worried about having to make things come out right.”

“I believe that discipleship in Jesus Christ pleasantly surprises us with answers to who we are and why we’re here. I believe that is one of the most exciting things about the Christian gospel for people in our society today. The church is my first love because the power of the gospel is the most real thing I know…

“I don’t believe moral and ethical change can come from or be led by people who are not themselves deeply morally and ethically committed in their own lives. Christianity makes its major contribution here in teaching us how to be people, what it really means to be human beings.”