The Right Reverend Mark A. Bourlakas
Consecrated the Sixth Bishop of the Diocese of Southwestern Virginia in 2013, Bishop Mark Allen Bourlakas was elected to serve Southwestern Virginia from Christ Church Cathedral in Louisville, KY, where he served as the Dean for seven years.
Prior to becoming Dean of Christ Church Cathedral, he served parishes in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee.
Bishop Bourlakas studied at Vanderbilt Divinity School before attending seminary at Seabury-Western Theological Seminary, where he earned his Master of Divinity in 1997. In 2012, he received the Doctor of Ministry degree from the School of Theology at The University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee. His doctoral thesis, titled Holding the Place of Christ: Leadership in the Divine Household, focuses on the ways in which the Benedictine monastic tradition offers insights for the organization and functioning of communities committed to prayer and work in the service of the Gospel. Bishop Bourlakas also received his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1985 from Sewanee majoring in Fine Arts.
He holds honorary doctors of divinity from The School of Theology, Sewanee, TN and the Virginia Theological Seminary, Alexandria, VA.
Currently the Vice President and a faculty member of the Episcopal Church’s College for Bishops, Bishop Bourlakas also serves on the Disciplinary Board for Bishops and the board of St. Vincent’s School for Children with Disabilities in Haiti.
Bishop Mark and his wife Martha have three young adult daughters and spend time walking their dachshund and beagle. He maintains a studio where he paints and sculpts and is also an avid motorsports enthusiast.
