The Rt. Rev. Edwin F. Gulick Jr.
The Rt. Rev. Edwin F. "Ted" Gulick Jr., the seventh bishop of Kentucky, was ordained and consecrated as bishop on April 17, 1994 at St. Stephen Baptist Church in Louisville,
Ky.
A native of northern Virginia, he is 60 years old. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Lynchburg College in 1970 and a Master of Divinity degree from Virginia Theological Seminary in 1973. He also holds honorary Doctor of Divinity degrees from Virginia Seminary and the University of the South and received an honorary doctorate degree from Bellarmine University in 2008.
Gulick served as a parish priest for 20 years before his election as a bishop. Ordained to the diaconate in 1973 and the priesthood in 1974, he became assistant rector of Trinity Church, Towson, Md., in 1973 and rector of Grace Church, Elkridge, Md., in 1976. In 1982, he was called to serve St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in Newport News, Va., where he was rector for 11 years until elected bishop.
Bishop Gulick was born July 27, 1948, in Washington, D.C. and has been married to Barbara Lichtfuss, who teaches middle school students at the Anchorage Public School, since 1970. They have three adult children, Jennifer Gulick Amos; Robin K. Gulick, a seminarian at Virginia Theological Seminary; and a son, John E. Gulick. They have three grandchildren: Sam, Lilly and Owen.
As the Diocese of Kentucky's bishop, Gulick is chief pastor to its clergy and 36 congregations. The diocese, its seat located in Louisville, covers the western half of Kentucky, consisting of urban and rural congregations located in communities as far east as Shelbyville and as far west as Hickman. It has about 10,600 active members.
In September, Gulick announced his plans to leave his position as the bishop of Kentucky in two years, and he has asked that a search for his successor begin. Whenever he explains this decision, he always notes that if his family lived in Kentucky, he and Barbara would not be making plans to leave Kentucky for several years. They need to return to Virginia, he explains, so they can live near their children and grandchildren (three under the age of three and a half, and a fourth due in March) and their aging parents (his father will be 89 in December, his mother-in-law will be 82).
Whenever he speaks of his tenure in Kentucky, Gulick notes in particular that he is proud of the caliber of clergy in the diocese. Because of the excellence of their leadership, he says, the attendance in the diocese's churches has grown more than 30 percent since 1993. He also highlights the diocese's commitment to youth and young adults ministries and the formation of seminarians. Finally, he speaks of the commitment in the diocese for community outreach, which has resulted in eight programs that are designated as Jubilee Centers.
As a bishop, Gulick has been an active servant of the church beyond the Diocese of Kentucky and the Episcopal denomination. Last year he was appointed by the Presiding Bishop to co-chair the Episcopal Church’s Standing Committee on Ecumenical and Inter Religious Relations, a committee of which he had been a member for at least two prior terms. He also has co-chaired the Anglican Roman Catholic Dialog USA, and he served as one of the Episcopal Church's representatives on the Consultation on Church Union 1995-2000. In 2001, he was appointed by then Archbishop George Carey to serve on IARCCUM (International Anglican Roman Catholic Commission on Unity and Mission), an ongoing commitment.
In addition, Gulick has willingly served The Episcopal Church in other capacities at the request of its presiding bishops, including appointments to serve with other two other bishops investigating bishop misconduct and on committees dealing with sexuality issues and ecumenical concerns. For the General Convention of The Episcopal Church, he has co-chaired a committee on ecumenical concerns. He has also served the Church as a member of its Member Advisory Committee for the College of Bishops and has worked with the Staff College of Bishops conference for new bishops and spouses/partners. He is currently mentoring new bishops in Ottawa, Canada, and Oklahoma.
In our diocese, he is a strong advocate for the UN’s Millennial Development Goals and has encouraged our diocese and its members to support that campaign, which asks governments and individuals to dedicate .7 percent of their income to programs that will help alleviate the ravages of world poverty. To that end, Gulick has urged the diocese to dedicate that percentage of its budget to MDG projects and he has provided the vision and voice behind the diocese’s Alleluia Fund, a fund being created to raise money for mission and ministry in our communities and world. Its first focus is on raising funds to help build a much needed medical clinic in our companion diocese in Byumba, Rwanda, and to help support another of its programs, Hannah Ministries, which provides help to young people who have become heads of their household after being orphaned because of the AIDS epidemic.
As this sketch of his vita should show, Bishop Gulick’s service to his church and the wider Christian community is extensive. His service in the Louisville community is also distinguished. As a bishop, for example, he serves on various boards (the board of directors of the Episcopal Church Home, the Home of the Innocents, and Norton Healthcare—all nonprofit organizations with an Episcopal Church affiliation).
Not so public, however, is his non-official service. Bishop Gulick, for example, is a longtime supporter Kentucky Refugee Ministries, and he has strong ties to the Sudanese community in Louisville. He has been not only a pastor but also what might be considered a father to many of the young Sudanese men (often referred to as the “Lost Boys”) who arrived in Louisville in the late 1990s.
Helping young people, however, has long been his passion, and to that end he has been a strong supporter of programs like St. George’s that are devoted to helping our youth grow and develop their potential. Not only has he raised thousands of dollars to help expand programs offered at St. George’s such its Freedom School, but he has also taken part in St. George’s programs such as reading to youth.
Perhaps one of his most lasting contributions will be the influence he has personally had on the young people who have encountered him through these church and community programs. Just ask the campers, counselors or alumni of the All Saints’ summer camp program, many of them with ties to St. George’s and Our Merciful churches in western Louisville, who can tell you stories about this bishop who canoed with them on Rough River, performed full-immersion baptisms in its muddy waters, participated in a rave worship services, and just sat on the porch and spent time talking with them.
One measure, but not the only measure, of his success as a mentor and role model to young people can be clearly seen in many Episcopal churches in our state that are being served by younger (20 or 30 something) clergy who were raised up or recruited by him. The Diocese of Kentucky now has, he will tell you, one of the largest percentages of young clergy leading congregations in the Episcopal Church, and they are serving churches in far western Kentucky and in Louisville.
Selected Resources:
- 2009, June. Interview: Bishop reflects on dual episcopacies, General Convention
- 2009, Jan. Interview: Looking Back, Looking Ahead
- 2008 Interview about the Lambeth Conference
- 2007 Convention Address
- Interview (Audio)
- Sermon (Audio)
- Selected Talks and Writings (Written Transcripts)
- Selected Sermons (Written Transcripts)