American Civic Life

In a Queen’s Grand Funeral, an American Bishop Finds a Larger Story

September 20, 2022

Bishop Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows, Episcopal Bishop Indianapolis, left, with the Rev. Cathrine Ngangira of Zimbabwe in England this summer at the Lambeth Conference, a gathering of Anglican Communion bishops from around the world.

Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Reverend Justin Welby, speaking during the State Funeral of Queen Elizabeth II, held at Westminster Abbey on September 19, 2022 in London, England. (Photo by Gareth Fuller – WPA Pool/Getty Images)

At the Lambeth Conference in England this summer, Bishop Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows with (l-r) Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby; her husband, Harrison Burrows; and Bishop Keith Riglin of Argyll & The Isles in the Scottish Episcopal Church. Archbishop Welby officiated at Queen Elizabeth’s state funeral in Westminster Abbey in London on Sept. 19, 2022.

Bishop Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows

Bishop Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows

Bishop Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows serves as the bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Indianapolis. She is the first Black woman to lead a diocese in the Episcopal Church.

A native of New York City, she holds a bachelor’s degree in architecture with a minor in urban studies from Smith College, an M.A. in historic preservation planning from Cornell University, and an M.Div. degree from Church Divinity School of the Pacific (CDSP) in 1997. Before being elected bishop in 2016, she served in the Dioceses of Newark, Central New York and Chicago.