{{Short description|American Anglican bishop}} {{Infobox Christian leader | type = Bishop | honorific_prefix = The Right Reverend | name = Phil Ashey | title = Bishop of Western Anglicans | image = Phil Ashey AU.png | alt = | caption = Ashey interviewed on ''Anglican Unscripted'' in October 2025. | church = Anglican Church in North America | archdiocese = | diocese = Western Anglicans | see = | term = 2025–present | predecessor = Keith Andrews | successor = |<!-- Orders --> | ordination = | ordained_by = | consecration = March 29, 2025 | consecrated_by = Steve Wood | rank = <!-- Personal details --> | birth_name = | birth_date = {{birth based on age as of date|29|1985|09}} | birth_place = | death_date = | death_place = | other_post = President, American Anglican Council | spouse = {{marriage|Julie Einarsson|1981}} | education = Stanford University (B.A.)<br/>Loyola Law School (J.D.) General Theological Seminary (M.Div.)<br/>Cardiff University (LL.M.) | children = 5 }}
'''John Philip Ashey III''' is an American Anglican bishop and attorney. Since 2025, he has been the third bishop of the Diocese of Western Anglicans in the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA). Ordained in the Episcopal Church, he was a key figure in the Anglican realignment as the first of a wave of Virginia Episcopal priests to disaffiliate. As a canon lawyer and head of the American Anglican Council (AAC), he was involved in the founding of the ACNA and the development of the Global Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans (Gafcon) and the Global South Fellowship of Anglican Churches (GSFA) as counterweights to the Anglican Communion structures.
==Early life, education and ordination== Ashey's father was an Episcopal priest who served as rector of St. James Episcopal Church in Newport Beach, California.<ref name="WaPo-2005">{{cite news |last1=Helderman |first1=Rosalind S. |title=Episcopal Church Leaves Va. Diocese |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/2005/11/20/episcopal-church-leaves-va-diocese/62e0dcfb-e012-4958-a1df-68a73dee21e9/ |access-date=24 March 2025 |newspaper=Washington Post |date=November 19, 2005}}</ref> Ashey was raised in Southern California, attended Phillips Exeter Academy and graduated from Stanford University in 1978. In 1981, he married Julie Einarsson, and a year later, he graduated from Loyola Law School<ref name="Wedding-Announcement">{{cite news |title=Einarsson-Ashey troth announced |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/monrovia-news-post/92827910/ |access-date=21 October 2024 |work=Monrovia News-Post |date=August 10, 1980}}</ref> The Asheys had five children, one of whom died in infancy.<ref name="Ashey-SA">{{cite web |last1=Ashey |first1=Phil |title=Life, Family and Faith Journey and call to Ordained Ministry |url=https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/tevvp4jogj6evvym202j3/Ashey-SA.pdf?e=1 |publisher=Diocese of Western Anglicans |access-date=24 March 2025}}</ref>
Ashey began his career as a prosecutor in Orange County, but at age 29, he followed a longtime call to ministry and entered the General Theological Seminary, graduating in 1988.<ref name="WaPo-2005" /> Ashey initially served in churches in the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles. From 1992 to 1999, Ashey was a priest at Church of the Apostles in Fairfax, Virginia. The Asheys moved to McKeesport, Pennsylvania, where Ashey was rector of St. Stephen's Church from 1999 to 2002. In 2002, he returned to Virginia to lead South Riding Episcopal Church, a two-year-old church plant in the Diocese of Virginia.<ref name="WaPo-2002">{{cite news |title=RELIGION NEWS |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/2002/08/08/religion-news/9d7ef389-f175-4812-8e91-2f4121d48566/ |access-date=24 March 2025 |newspaper=Washington Post |date=August 7, 2002}}</ref>
==Anglican realignment== In November 2005, South Riding became the first of several churches in the Diocese of Virginia to seek to disaffiliate with the Episcopal Church as part of the broader Anglican Realignment. Ashey resigned as missioner and all but two of the congregation voted to affiliate with the Anglican Diocese of Rwenzori of the Church of Uganda. While the church plant did not own a building, Ashey turned over the congregation's personal property to the diocese.<ref name="WaPo-2005" /> The bishop of Virginia rejected Ashey's claim to be under the canonical authority of the Ugandan bishop<ref name="ENS-2005">{{cite news |title=Diocesan Digest |url=https://www.episcopalarchives.org/cgi-bin/ENS/ENSpress_release.pl?pr_number=111705-05 |access-date=24 March 2025 |agency=Episcopal News Service |date=November 17, 2005}}</ref> and interpreted his resignation as a "renunciation of ordained ministry" under the Episcopal Church's canons.<ref name="ENS-2006">{{cite news |title=Diocesan Digest |url=https://www.episcopalarchives.org/cgi-bin/ENS/ENSpress_release.pl?pr_number=011206-2-A |access-date=24 March 2025 |agency=Episcopal News Service |date=January 12, 2006}}</ref>
In 2008, Ashey joined the American Anglican Council as chief operating and development officer.<ref name="Ashey-CV">{{cite web |title=The Rev. Canon Dr. Phil Ashey CV |url=https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/pzx6r478ezteql5igubvv/Ashey-CV.pdf?rlkey=gs8n0fshpb8siicw5mjqbkftw&e=4&dl=0 |publisher=Diocese of Western Anglicans |access-date=24 March 2025 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20250228151105/https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/pzx6r478ezteql5igubvv/Ashey-CV.pdf?rlkey=gs8n0fshpb8siicw5mjqbkftw&e=4&dl=0 |archive-date=2025-02-28}}</ref> As a priest then canonically resident in Uganda, he was appointed by the Church of Uganda to represent the church at the 2009 Anglican Consultative Council meeting in Kingston, Jamaica. However, ACC leadership refused to recognize Ashey's canonical status in Uganda and blocked him from participating.<ref name="ENS-2009">{{cite news |last1=Davies |first1=Matthew |last2=Schjonberg |first2=Mary Frances |title=Church of Uganda nominee denied participation in Anglican Consultative Council |url=https://www.episcopalarchives.org/cgi-bin/ENS/ENSpress_release.pl?pr_number=050409-02 |access-date=24 March 2025 |agency=Episcopal News Service |date=May 4, 2009}}</ref> Ugandan bishops later said that it was the Church of Uganda's "prerogative to choose who should represent us," describing the denial of Ashey's participation in the ACC as "a profound violation of our rights by the Joint Standing Committee and the ACC."<ref name="ENS-2009-June">{{cite news |last1=Davies |first1=Matthew |title=UGANDA: Bishops declare full communion with Anglican Church in North America |url=https://www.episcopalarchives.org/cgi-bin/ENS/ENSpress_release.pl?pr_number=062509-05 |access-date=24 March 2025 |agency=Episcopal News Service |date=June 25, 2009}}</ref>
==ACNA career== Ashey was named CEO of AAC in 2014 and succeeded David Anderson as president in 2016. Under his leadership, the AAC pivoted from its role in supporting theologically conservative congregations and clergy within the Episcopal Church to developing the newly formed Anglican Church in North America.<ref name="AAC-2014">{{cite web |title=American Anglican Council names Canon Phil Ashey Chief Executive |date=3 January 2014 |url=https://americananglican.org/american-anglican-council-names-canon-phil-ashey-chief-executive/ |publisher=American Anglican Council |access-date=24 March 2025}}</ref> Alongside three fellow future ACNA bishops―Paul Donison, Chip Edgar and Jim Hobby―Ashey was one of eight candidates for the role of bishop of Pittsburgh in 2016.<ref name="TLC-2016">{{cite news |title=Anglican Pittsburgh Nominates 8 |url=https://livingchurch.org/news/anglican-pittsburgh-nominates-8/ |access-date=21 October 2024 |work=The Living Church |date=March 7, 2016}}</ref>
Ashey completed an LL.M. in canon law at Cardiff University in 2016. As a canon lawyer, he has been counsel to the ACNA College of Bishops, chair of the ACNA's Governance Task Force from 2014 to 2023 and a member of the ACNA's Provincial Tribunal.<ref name="Ashey-CV" /> He has also been an adviser to the Gafcon Primates Council<ref name="AAC-leadership">{{cite web |title=AAC Leadership |url=https://americananglican.org/our-leaders/ |publisher=American Anglican Council |access-date=24 March 2025}}</ref> and the GSFA, serving as the drafter of GSFA's covenantal structure.<ref name="TLC-2024-B">{{cite news |last1=Michael |first1=Mark |title=GSFA, ACNA, and the Future of Conservative Anglicanism |url=https://livingchurch.org/news/news-anglican-communion/gsfa-acna-and-the-future-of-conservative-anglicanism/ |access-date=24 March 2025 |work=The Living Church |date=June 19, 2024}}</ref><ref name="Ashey-CV" /> In 2024. Ashey was elected to the board of the GSFA Assembly.<ref name="TLC-2024-A">{{cite news |last1=Michael |first1=Mark |title=GSFA Meets with Coptic Pope, Elects New Leaders |url=https://livingchurch.org/news/news-anglican-communion/gsfa-meets-with-coptic-pope-elects-new-leaders/ |access-date=21 October 2024 |work=The Living Church |date=June 14, 2024}}</ref> In addition to his formal roles with Anglican bodies, Ashey has taught Anglican canon law in Uganda.<ref name="NilePost">{{cite news |last1=Kagoro |first1=Joshua |title=Church of Uganda organises three day retreat on Canon law |url=https://nilepost.co.ug/kaziimba/189921/church-of-uganda-organises-three-day-retreat-on-canon-law |access-date=21 October 2024 |work=NilePost |date=February 27, 2024}}</ref> Ashey is the author of the 2017 book ''Anglican Conciliarism: The Church Meeting to Decide Together''.<ref name="Ashey-book">{{cite book |last1=Ashey |first1=Phil |title=Anglican Conciliarism: The Church Meeting to Decide Together |date=2017 |publisher=Anglican House Publishers |location=Huntington Beach, California |isbn=9780997921199 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XFqAswEACAAJ |access-date=21 October 2024}}</ref>
In 2021, Ashey moved to St. Simon's Island, Georgia, to plant an Anglican church there.<ref name="Brunswick News-2022">{{cite news |last1=Cooper |first1=Taylor |title=Anglican church opens doors on St. Simons |url=https://thebrunswicknews.com/life/anglican-church-opens-doors-on-st-simons/article_e291c2ba-0678-5978-9959-4aabedcd8088.html |access-date=21 October 2024 |work=Brunswick News |date=August 27, 2022}}</ref> In 2024, the Diocese of Western Anglicans elected him to succeed Keith Andrews as the diocese's third bishop. Ashey was consecrated to the episcopacy in March 2025.<ref name="ACNA-election">{{cite web |title=Bishops-Elect Consented to by College of Bishops |url=https://anglicanchurch.net/bishops-elect-consented-to-by-college-of-bishops/ |publisher=Anglican Church in North America |access-date=24 March 2025 |date=January 16, 2025}}</ref> He relinquished his role as AAC CEO but continued on as the council's president.<ref name="AAC-leadership" />
==References== {{reflist}}
{{S-start}} {{S-rel}} {{S-bef|before=David Anderson}} {{S-ttl|title=President of the American Anglican Council|years=2016–present}} {{S-inc|rows=2}} {{S-bef|before=Keith Andrews}} {{S-ttl|title=Bishop of Western Anglicans|years=2025–present}} {{S-end}}
{{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ashey, Philip}} Category:Living people Category:Bishops of the Anglican Church in North America Category:General Theological Seminary alumni Category:Anglican realignment people Category:Loyola Law School alumni Category:Stanford University alumni Category:Phillips Exeter Academy alumni Category:Alumni of Cardiff University Category:Canon law jurists Category:Year of birth missing (living people)