Cristóbal León Lozano was elected bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Ecuador Litoral on August 4, 2018. He was elected provisional bishop of Venezuela on Aug. 19, 2023. Photo: Glenda McQueen

[Episcopal News Service] The Episcopal Diocese of Venezuela met Aug. 19 for a special, online electing convention to elect a provisional bishop. The Rt. Rev. Cristóbal Olmedo León Lozano, bishop of Ecuador Litoral, who has served Venezuela as visiting bishop for several years, was elected.

The “sinodo extraordinario,” as it is called in Spanish, was chaired by the Rev. Ana Graciela Anthony, the president of the Standing Committee. Clergy and lay representatives from congregations across the diocese attended the virtual meeting.

León was elected bishop of Ecuador Litoral in 2018. In Venezuela, he succeeds the Rt. Rev. Orlando Guerrero Torres, who retired in 2017. 

Plans for León‘s installation are underway, with a tentative date set for Sept. 30 at the Church of the Reconciliation located at the diocesan center in Caracas.