RIP: Former Northern California Bishop Jerry Lamb dies at 85
[Episcopal News Service] The Rt. Rev. Jerry Albam Lamb, who served the Diocese of Northern California as bishop for 14 years, died on July 25 at his residence in Southern California. He was 85.
In announcing his death in an email, the diocese said of Lamb, “We offer prayers of gratitude for his long life of faithful service. Please keep his family and friends in your prayers.”
Lamb was born on Sept. 4, 1940, in Denver, Colorado. He earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy in 1964 and a master’s degree in theology in 1966 from St. Thomas Seminary, a now-defunct Vincentian institution. He served as a Roman Catholic priest until 1971. In 1973, he earned a second master’s degree in counseling from the University of Oregon in Eugene.
Bishop Jerry Lamb. Photo: St. Mark’s Episcopal Parish Upland, California/Facebook
Lamb joined The Episcopal Church in 1977 and was ordained a priest in that same year in the Diocese of Oregon. He was elected and ordained bishop coadjutor of the Sacramento-based Diocese of Northern California in 1991, succeeding Bishop John Lester Thompson. Lamb became the sixth diocesan bishop in 1992.
He retired in 2006 when his successor, the Rt. Rev. Barry L. Beisner, became the diocese’s seventh bishop. Lamb then served as assisting bishop of the Diocese of Nevada after Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori stepped down to serve as The Episcopal Church’s presiding bishop.
In 2008, Lamb was appointed provisional bishop of the Diocese of San Joaquin in central California after former Bishop John David Schofield led many congregations out of The Episcopal Church. Under his leadership, as well as his successors Bishop Chester “Chet” Talton and Bishop David Rice, those who remained in the diocese re-engaged with the wider church.
The cause of death hasn’t been provided, but Lamb had experienced various health issues in recent years. While attending a House of Bishops meeting in 2012 at the 77th General Convention in Indianapolis, Indiana, he was hospitalized after suffering from two “small strokes.”
Lamb is preceded in death by his wife, Jane Mary Onstad Lamb, who died in 2023. He is survived by his daughter, Katherine “Kate” Lamb.
“[Jerry Lamb] meant a great deal to so many of us and his impact on the world is unmeasurable,” Kate Lamb said in a July 27 Instagram post. “To me, he was my dad who loved me, challenged me and believed in me. I will miss him forever and give thanks for his lifetime of service to others.”
Funeral services will be held for Lamb at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Sacramento and in Upland, California. The dates have not been announced.
