Derek Jones (bishop)

Derek L. S. Jones (born 1961) is an American Anglican bishop in the College of Bishops of the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) and the Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion), previously serving also in the Convocation of Anglicans in North America (CANA). As the first Bishop of the Special Jurisdiction of the Armed Forces and Chaplaincy, he trains, educates, ordains and directs the activities of all Anglican Chaplains who require formal ecclesiastical endorsement for the ACNA, CANA, and other Anglican bodies.[1][2]

Responsibilities

Chaplains under Bishop Jones' oversight serve in the United States Armed Forces, Veteran’s Administration, Department of Justice, and other Federal and State agencies; as well as chaplains serving Hospitals, Hospices, Industry, Education, Law Enforcement and as Community Chaplains.[3] Bishop Jones works with and through a variety of professional organizations such as the International Conference of Police Chaplains (ICPC), the Association of Clinical Pastoral Education, and the Professional Chaplains Association.

Bishop Jones has served as an endorsing official since his consecration in January 2007 and is the founding bishop of the chaplain ministry. The Deanery for the Chaplaincy (CANA) and the Office of Chaplain Ministry (ACNA) as a joint office was created in 2010. The Deanery for the Chaplaincy was designated a Diocese of CANA in March 2012. As the ministry has continued to grow, the need to modify the Canons of the ACNA became clear and a new canon was adopted in June 2014 whereby the "Special Jurisdiction" was created. In a letter of agreement between the Church of Nigeria (CANA) and the ACNA, the Diocese of the Armed Forces and Chaplaincy became the Jurisdiction of the Armed Forces and Chaplaincy (JAFC) and fulfills the role of the "Special" Jurisdiction. While the CANA diocese still exists (primarily to continue to allow chaplains to be connected to the Anglican Communion through the Church of Nigeria), the Jurisdiction of the Armed Forces and Chaplaincy is the functional chaplain ministry. In the 2019 separation of CANA from the ACNA, Bishop Jones elected to remain connected with the College of Bishops of both the ACNA and the Church of Nigeria.[4]

Military career

Bishop Jones is a retired Air Force Colonel, and combat veteran fighter pilot having flown the F-16, CF-18, and F-111 fighter aircraft and the T-37 trainer as an Instructor Pilot.[5] His awards include the Combat Air Medal, the Meritorious Service Medal with four oak leaf clusters, and many other individual and unit citations. Bishop Jones has also won numerous “Top Gun” awards.[6] He was one of the last Top Gun award winners in the F-111 before its retirement in 1996. Bishop Jones was the pictorial subject for the book Superbase 11: RAF Upper Heyford by Jon Davison.[7][8] He also was the Wing Top Gun for the 27th Fighter Wing while a member of the 524 Fighter Squadron flying F-16s in his last year of flying fighters on active duty in 1998. From 1998 to 2005, he served as an Instructor Pilot with the Air Force Reserve. His final assignment before retiring in 2009 was as the Reserve Advisor to the Commander and Director of Staff for the Air Force Doctrine Center, collocated at Maxwell AFB and the Pentagon. In this role, he directed the activities of over 100 geographically separated military personnel in the writing of Air Force and Joint Military Doctrine to include work on Joint Publication 1-05 on Religious Affairs in the DoD.[9]

Civic and National Involvement

Bishop Jones was elected by his peers to serve on the Executive Committee for the National Conference on Ministry to the Armed Forces (NCMAF) in 2012. In January 2017, he was elected to serve as Chair-elect of that organization. He began his current roll as the Chairperson on January 6, 2019.[10] Bishop Jones is also a charter member, and serves on the Executive Board, of the Chaplain Alliance for Religious Liberty (CALL). In January 2020, Bishop Jones was elected to begin serving as the Executive Director of the Chaplain Alliance for Religious Liberty (CALL) beginning in January of 2021. [11]

Bishop Jones is considered a key leader on Religious Liberty issues. He has appeared on television, radio, and at conferences as a subject matter expert.[12] He has presented Amicus Briefs on several Religious Liberty court cases, the most significant being the compelling argument of "conscientious objection" that was cited by the SCOTUS and Becket Fund as having helped move to a unanimous decision in the Zubik vs Burwell ("Little Sisters of the Poor") case in 2016.[13] Most recently, he is a key contributor in the Amicus presented through Becket Fund attorneys in Fulton vs. the City of Philadelphia currently before the SCOTUS. [14]

In civic areas, Bishop Jones was selected to serve on the Board of Advisors to the Anglian Institute in 2016. Bishop Jones continues to advocate for Air Power and served from 2011-2013 as the President of the Birmingham, AL Chapter of the Air Force Association.[15][16] Bishop Jones is an adjudicator for the United States Pony Club (USPC) and served on the National Quiz Committee for that organization from 1999 to 2011.[17] In January 2010, he was awarded a Presidential Service Citation for his community service and volunteer endeavors; and in 2012, he was named a Distinguished Honorary Alumni of Nashotah House Seminary in Wisconsin. In his off-time, Bishop Jones enjoys working with his horses and outdoor activities. An accomplished musician and a member of Phi Mu Alpha, he also enjoys vocal performance and little theater. He is an 'in demand' speaker on topics related to Religious Liberty, and as an academic teaching on Eucharistic Theology.[18]

Citations and References
  1. http://prhome.defense.gov/rfm/mpp/CHAPLAINS%20BOARD/endorsements.aspx
  2. http://anglicanchaplains.org/wp/mor/biography-of-bishop-jones/
  3. http://www.americananglican.org/new-bishops-elected-for-north-america
  4. http://anglicanchaplains.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/chapnewsletter0713.pdf
  5. http://anglicanchaplains.org/wp/bishop-of-the-armed-forces-chaplaincy/
  6. USAF Official Biography - Derek Jones available at http://birmingham-afa.org Archived 2013-07-03 at the Wayback Machine
  7. ISBN 9780850459135, Osprey Publishing Ltd. 1990
  8. fr:Osprey Publishing
  9. Retirement Program - Colonel Derek Jones, Maxwell AFB, AL/August 2009/TSgt Sita Daniel, ed./MGen James F. Jackson, Moderator and Officiant
  10. http://www.ncmaf.net
  11. https://www.chaplainalliance.org
  12. https://americanwarriorradio.com/awr_shows/bishop-top-gun-derek-jones/
  13. https://s3.amazonaws.com/becketpdf/Anglican-Chaplains-and-Ave-Maria-University-LSP-Amicus.pdf
  14. https://www.scotusblog.com/case-files/cases/fulton-v-city-of-philadelphia-pennsylvania/
  15. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2013-01-24. Retrieved 2012-12-30.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  16. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2013-07-03. Retrieved 2019-11-26.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  17. http://www.quiz.ponyclub.org/contact%20list.htm
  18. http://www.AnglicanChaplains.org "Biography of Bishop Jones"
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