Ernest T. Dixon Jr
Encyclopedia
Ernest T. Dixon Jr. was an American
Bishop
of the United Methodist Church
, elected in 1972. He was born in San Antonio, Texas
.
degree from Samuel Huston College (now Huston-Tillotson University
) in Austin, Texas
. He earned his Bachelor of Divinity
degree from Drew Theological Seminary in Madison, New Jersey
. He received several honorary doctorates over the course of his ministry.
of churches in Texas
, New York
and New Jersey
. He then served as the Director of the Religious Extension Service at the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama
. He was the Executive Secretary of the West Texas
U.M.
Annual Conference
Board of Education. He also served as the President
of Philander Smith College
in Little Rock, Arkansas
. He also had the distinction of serving as a Staff Member of two U.M. churchwide agencies: the Board of Education of The Methodist Church, based in Nashville
; and the Program Council of the U.M. Church, based in Dayton, Ohio
.
elected by this Jurisdictional Conference. He was assigned to the Kansas
Episcopal Area, where he served for eight years. Then he was assigned to the San Antonio, serving twelve years before retiring in 1992. He maintained his home in San Antonio in retirement.
Bishop Dixon was President of the Council of Bishops of the U.M. Church, 1988-89. As President he joined other religious leaders for a meeting with President George H.W. Bush at the White House
. Bishop Dixon also visited Poland
where he preached in Warsaw
on Christmas Day.
Bishop Dixon's funeral service was held 3 July 1996 at the University U.M. Church, San Antonio, with burial in Edna, Texas
. He was survived by his wife Ernestine Gray Clark Dixon, and four children: the Rev. Freddie B. Dixon Sr. of Austin, Texas
; Leona Louise Thomas and Muriel Jean Dixon, both of San Antonio; and Sherryl Dianne Blue of Washington, D.C.
Bishop Dixon's first wife, Lois, died of cancer in 1977. A son, Ernest Reese Dixon, died in 1990.
The Rev. Smith, a former member of Bishop Dixon's Cabinet, remembered him as a "distinguished" and "dynamic" and "much loved" leader who rose from humble beginnings on the east side of San Antonio to become a religious leader of the entire city. "We are proud that he came to serve the place of his birth," Smith said.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Bishop
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
of the United Methodist Church
United Methodist Church
The United Methodist Church is a Methodist Christian denomination which is both mainline Protestant and evangelical. Founded in 1968 by the union of The Methodist Church and the Evangelical United Brethren Church, the UMC traces its roots back to the revival movement of John and Charles Wesley...
, elected in 1972. He was born in San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the United States of America and the second-largest city within the state of Texas, with a population of 1.33 million. Located in the American Southwest and the south–central part of Texas, the city serves as the seat of Bexar County. In 2011,...
.
Education
Ernest earned his B.A.Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
degree from Samuel Huston College (now Huston-Tillotson University
Huston-Tillotson University
Huston–Tillotson University is a historically black university in Austin, Texas, United States. The school is affiliated with the United Methodist Church, the United Church of Christ, and the United Negro College Fund....
) in Austin, Texas
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
. He earned his Bachelor of Divinity
Bachelor of Divinity
In Western universities, a Bachelor of Divinity is usually an undergraduate academic degree awarded for a course taken in the study of divinity or related disciplines, such as theology or, rarely, religious studies....
degree from Drew Theological Seminary in Madison, New Jersey
Madison, New Jersey
Madison is a borough in Morris County, New Jersey, in the United States. As of the 2000 United States Census, the population was 16,530. It also is known as "The Rose City".-Geography:Madison is located at ....
. He received several honorary doctorates over the course of his ministry.
Ordained and Educational Ministry
Prior to his election to the Episcopacy, Ernest served as a PastorPastor
The word pastor usually refers to an ordained leader of a Christian congregation. When used as an ecclesiastical styling or title, this role may be abbreviated to "Pr." or often "Ps"....
of churches in Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
and New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
. He then served as the Director of the Religious Extension Service at the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
. He was the Executive Secretary of the West Texas
West Texas
West Texas is a vernacular term applied to a region in the southwestern quadrant of the United States that primarily encompasses the arid and semi-arid lands in the western portion of the state of Texas....
U.M.
United Methodist Church
The United Methodist Church is a Methodist Christian denomination which is both mainline Protestant and evangelical. Founded in 1968 by the union of The Methodist Church and the Evangelical United Brethren Church, the UMC traces its roots back to the revival movement of John and Charles Wesley...
Annual Conference
Annual Conference
An Annual Conference in the United Methodist Church is a regional body that governs much of the life of the "Connectional Church." Annual conferences are composed primarily of the clergy members and a lay member or members from each charge . Each conference is a geographical division...
Board of Education. He also served as the President
President
A president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...
of Philander Smith College
Philander Smith College
Philander Smith College is a private, historically black college that is affiliated with the United Methodist Church. It is located in Little Rock, Arkansas. The student body averages around 850 attendees, with around 30% of that figure attending part time. Although known historically as a school...
in Little Rock, Arkansas
Little Rock, Arkansas
Little Rock is the capital and the largest city of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 699,757 people in the 2010 census...
. He also had the distinction of serving as a Staff Member of two U.M. churchwide agencies: the Board of Education of The Methodist Church, based in Nashville
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
; and the Program Council of the U.M. Church, based in Dayton, Ohio
Dayton, Ohio
Dayton is the 6th largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County, the fifth most populous county in the state. The population was 141,527 at the 2010 census. The Dayton Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 841,502 in the 2010 census...
.
Episcopal Ministry
Ernest was elected Bishop by the eight-state South Central Jurisdictional Conference of the U.M. Church, the first African AmericanAfrican American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
elected by this Jurisdictional Conference. He was assigned to the Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
Episcopal Area, where he served for eight years. Then he was assigned to the San Antonio, serving twelve years before retiring in 1992. He maintained his home in San Antonio in retirement.
Bishop Dixon was President of the Council of Bishops of the U.M. Church, 1988-89. As President he joined other religious leaders for a meeting with President George H.W. Bush at the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
. Bishop Dixon also visited Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
where he preached in Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
on Christmas Day.
Death and Funeral
Bishop Dixon died 29 June 1996 at the Methodist Hospital in San Antonio, where he had been a patient. He had been looking forward to being dischared, and a planned trip. "His death was sudden and unexpected," according to the Rev. Jerry J. Smith, Administrative Assistant to then-Bishop of the San Antonio Area, Bishop Roy Owen.Bishop Dixon's funeral service was held 3 July 1996 at the University U.M. Church, San Antonio, with burial in Edna, Texas
Edna, Texas
Edna is a city in Jackson County, Texas, United States. The population was 5,899 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Jackson County.Edna is the gateway to Lake Texana, which covers the site of Texana, Texas...
. He was survived by his wife Ernestine Gray Clark Dixon, and four children: the Rev. Freddie B. Dixon Sr. of Austin, Texas
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
; Leona Louise Thomas and Muriel Jean Dixon, both of San Antonio; and Sherryl Dianne Blue of Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
Bishop Dixon's first wife, Lois, died of cancer in 1977. A son, Ernest Reese Dixon, died in 1990.
The Rev. Smith, a former member of Bishop Dixon's Cabinet, remembered him as a "distinguished" and "dynamic" and "much loved" leader who rose from humble beginnings on the east side of San Antonio to become a religious leader of the entire city. "We are proud that he came to serve the place of his birth," Smith said.