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Gordon Paul Scruton (born March 8, 1947) is a former Bishop of Western Massachusetts from 1996 to 2012.

Early life, education and career

Scruton was born in 1947 in Rochester, New Hampshire. According to his official biography he received a master's degree in English, magna cum laude, from Barrington College, then studied at the Boston University School of Theology, receiving a master's degree in theology in 1971. Scruton married Rebecca S. Polley in 1968. He was ordained a deacon in 1971, a priest in 1972, and served as an assistant rector at St. Mark's Church in Riverside, Rhode Island and at St. Paul's Church in Kingston, Rhode Island in the mid-1970s. Scruton was rector of Grace Church in Dalton, Massachusetts from 1977 to 1981, and St. Francis Church in Holden, Massachusetts thereafter.

Bishop of Western Massachusetts

Scruton was elected the eighth Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Western Massachusetts on June 29, 1996. He was consecrated bishop on October 12, 1996, in Springfield, Massachusetts. He was consecrated by the following current or retired bishops: Alexander Stewart, Andrew Wissemann, M. Thomas Shaw, Barbara Clementine Harris, and Emmanuel Kolini (Bishop of the Diocese of Shaba in Zaire). Presiding Bishop Edmond Lee Browning was also a consecrator.

Likewise, Scruton was a co-consecrator of George Edward Councell as eleventh bishop of New Jersey.

He has been very active in the House of Bishops since 2001. Scruton has been on the court for the trial of a bishop. He has acted as a mediator in the dispute between the Bishop of Connecticut and some priests in that state in 2007. In 2009, he also served on a committee to assist the Diocese of Southern Virginia in their internal conflicts. He retired on December 1, 2012.

References

1. ^ Diocese of Western Massachusetts Official website Bishop Gordon Paul Scruton Biography Archived 2009-03-14 at the Wayback Machine. Accessed March 10, 2009.
2. ^ ECUSA Church Publishing website Official Listing. Accessed March 10, 2009.
3. Ship of Fools website. Accessed March 10, 2009.
4. Official Booklet of the Consecration, found at New Jersey Diocese website (.pdf). Accessed March 10, 2009.
5. Church Publishing website Archived 2007-09-27 at the Wayback Machine. Accessed March 10, 2009.
6. Diocese of Pennsylvania website Archived 2008-05-11 at archive.today. Accessed March 10, 2009.
7. Episcopal Cafe website. Accessed March 10, 2009.
8. Outside the Doors website Archived 2011-07-15 at the Wayback Machine. Accessed March 10, 2009.
9. "Episcopal priests opposed to Robinson's election to meet with Bishop Smith," The Advocate, April 19, 2005, found at The Advocate website. Accessed March 10, 2009.
10. Lisa Hamilton, "SOUTHERN VIRGINIA: New bishop proclaims diocese has 'come a very long way'," Episcopal Life, February 17, 2009, found at Episcopal Life Online website Archived 2009-02-21 at the Wayback Machine. Accessed March 10, 2009.
11. Mirabelli, Manon (October 7, 2012). "Worshipers offer heartfelt goodbye as Springfield Episcopal Bishop Gordon P. Scruton retires". masslive.com. Retrieved January 11, 2013.

See also

• List of bishops of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America
• Episcopal Diocese of Western Massachusetts

• 1947 births
• Boston University School of Theology alumni
• Living people
• American Anglo-Catholics
• People from Rochester, New Hampshire
• Anglo-Catholic bishops
• People from Holden, Massachusetts
• Barrington College alumni
• Episcopal bishops of Western Massachusetts