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Deanery Overview
A deanery is defined by the Episcopal Dictionary of the Church as a geographical section or area within a diocese. The Diocese of California is organized into six deaneries (a group of congregations). The Alameda Deanery consists of 14 churches. They are:
All Souls, Berkeley
Christ Church, Alameda
Christ the Lord, Pinole
Good Shepherd, Berkeley
Holy Trinity/La Santisima Trinidad, Richmond
Our Saviour, Oakland
St. Alban's, Albany
St. Augustine's, Oakland
St. Clement's, Berkeley
St. Cuthbert's, Oakland
St. James'/Iglesia de Santiago, Oakland
St. John's, Oakland
St. Mark's, Berkeley
St. Paul's, Oakland
The Deanery consists of all clergy attached to member churches AND lay people elected by their congregations to represent them at both deanery meetings and the annual Diocesan convention. The representatives’ responsibility is primarily as a conduit for information from the home parish to other parishes and to the Diocese, and back again. Each church is allowed a specific number of representatives based on the size of their congregations.
Deanery meetings (also called convocations) are a forum where church representatives can discuss common concerns, learn about how other churches are handling issues like homelessness, aging congregations, maintaining older buildings, and how to keep our focus on doing the work of the church.
Among recent topics of discussion are Deanery grants to member churches. The Deanery collects dues from all member churches and receives funding from the Diocese. A small portion of this total is used to pay for expenses and the rest is available to be dispersed as grants to member churches.
Deanery meetings are held at member churches. We try to move them around so that every parish gets an opportunity to host and so that Deanery representatives get a chance to visit other churches.