Episcopal Diocese of Louisiana

Diocese of Louisiana
Christ Church Cathedral
Location
Ecclesiastical province	Province IV
Statistics
Congregations	48 (2014)
Members	17,461 (2014)
Information
Rite	Episcopal
Cathedral	Christ Church Cathedral
Current leadership
Bishop	Morris King Thompson
Map
Location of the Diocese of Louisiana
Website
www.edola.org

The Episcopal Diocese of Louisiana is the diocese of the Episcopal Church in the eastern part of the state of Louisiana. The see city is New Orleans.

Christ Church, New Orleans, (now the Cathedral Church of the Diocese of Louisiana) was the first non-Roman Catholic congregation organized in the Louisiana Purchase when it was established in 1805. When religious freedom came to the newly purchased American territory, the non-Roman Catholics in New Orleans organized to form a congregation in New Orleans. Although the names of only 36 subscribers are recorded for that initial meeting, there were 53 votes cast in the decision as to what denomination of church this would be. There were 45 votes for Episcopal, seven for Presbyterian and one for Methodist. In 1805 Philander Chase came to New Orleans (later Bishop of Ohio, Illinois and Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church). He organized Christ Church and began worship in the Cabildo on November 17 of that year. The support of philanthropist Judah Touro made possible the founding of Christ Church.

In 1838 the Diocese of Louisiana was organized and in 1841 Leonidas Polk was appointed by the General Convention of the Episcopal Church in the United States as the first Bishop of the new Diocese. Polk had been a Missionary Bishop of the Southwest and was responsible for the founding and consecration of many congregations in Louisiana. He was also the first foreign missionary Bishop of the Episcopal Church as his oversight extended also to the Republic of Texas. Polk, a graduate of West Point, was to serve the Confederacy during the American Civil War as a General in the Army. He also was the leading founder of the University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee.