Former Lawyer Becomes First Black Female Episcopal Bishop In The South

By Carol Kuruvilla via https://www.huffpost.com

The Episcopal Church has ordained an African American woman to serve as a bishop in the South for the very first time.

The Rev. Phoebe Roaf, 55, was officially consecrated as bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of West Tennessee on Saturday. She is the fifth black female bishop in the history of the Episcopal Church.

Born in Arkansas, Roaf is a fourth-generation Episcopalian. Her brother is former New Orleans Saints player Willie Roaf.

The bishop told HuffPost that growing up, she never saw anyone who looked like her behind the altar.

“As someone who grew up in the Episcopal Diocese of Arkansas in the late 1970s when there were no female priests and no African-American priests in that diocese, I never…

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