The Crozier Society of the Bishop of Maryland


A “crozier” (crosier) is a staff in the shape of a shepherd’s crook that symbolizes the offices of bishops and abbots. Shepherds use a crook to help guide and rescue sheep, and so the crozier symbolizes Jesus as the Good Shepherd as well as the shepherding responsibilities of the bishop.

The Crozier Society of the Diocese of Maryland honors those who have made generous annual gifts to the ministries of the Bishop’s Appeal. Each giving level of the Society makes a progressively greater impact on behalf of those we serve, and is appreciated and honored with special recognition.

Through the Bishop’s Annual Ministries Appeal, we spread Christ’s love, hope and mercy to a hurting world. Especially because of the gifts of Crozier Society members, we are able to support chaplaincy at Johns Hopkins Hospital; continue the work of racial reconciliation and our fight against poverty and violence; assist our Latinx community in their worship and neighborhood outreach ministries; offer legal referrals and direct help to refugees and asylum seekers; give Baltimore City high school students an opportunity to learn life skills essential to academic, work and personal success; and offer children who are at-risk the chance to deepen their love of and skills for reading.

These are just a few of the diocesan ministries that are engaged in vital work as we keep people connected and continue to build a Community of Love in the face of some of the most challenging conditions the Church has ever faced.

To see how you are helping improve the lives of those whom we serve, please read the descriptions of all the ministries supported by the Bishop’s Appeal at:

 https://episcopalmaryland.org/bishops-annual-appeal/

 Thank you for your support of the mission of Jesus Christ as lived out through the ministries of the Diocese of Maryland

The Crozier Society of the Bishop of Maryland

ANNUAL DONOR LEVELS

Crozier Society Giving Levels

Chasuble Level – $1,000

  • Is recognized with a Crozier Society Pin
  • Includes an invitation to an annual Service of Recognition and Luncheon
    Chasuble Level Example Impact [1]: $1,000 could provide 15 families with food for a week


Miter Level – $2,500

  • All Chasuble Level benefits plus
  • A Book of Common Prayer signed by the Bishops
    Mitre Level Example Impact [1]$2,500 can reunify a family of asylum seekers, paying for air fares and supplies


Pectoral Cross Level – $5,000

  • All Miter Level benefits plus
  • An Annual Donor Dinner with Recognition at the Claggett Center
    Pectoral Cross Level Example Impact [1]$5,000 could send 25 children to a Reading Camp


Episcopal Ring Level – $10,000

  • All Pectoral Cross Level benefits plus
  • A Private Lunch with the Bishop
    Episcopal Ring Example Impact [1]$10,000 could pay for a young person to be a part of the Sutton Scholars program for all four years

Chasubles are outer vestments worn by the celebrant during the Eucharist. The chasuble may be oval or oblong with an opening for the head. It typically reflects the liturgical color of the day. The chasuble is derived from the outdoor cloak worn during the early days of the Church in the Greco-Roman world. Chasubles vary widely in fabric and style.

Miters are hats, usually white, gold, or red, sometimes quite beautifully embroidered. The triangular shape is supposed to represent the tongues of fire that rested on the heads of the disciples on the Day of Pentecost, when God sent the Holy Spirit to them. A bishop receives a miter during his or her ordination, when the Holy Spirit comes to the new bishop in the same way that the Holy Spirit came to the first disciples. 

The Pectoral Cross, typically made of silver or gold, was used by the bishop of Rome in the 13th century and came into general use by all bishops in the 16th century. The cross is suspended by a chain around the neck and usually hangs at about the breastbone or pectoral muscles of the wearer. Some pectoral crosses are adorned with jewels.

The Episcopal Ring has been received by new bishops since the Middle Ages at their ordination as a sign of the office. It can be a signet ring, with the seal of the diocese inscribed in the metal or stone of the ring. The ring then can be used on official documents that call for the bishop to affix a seal in sealing wax. Modern Episcopal rings are often made of gold and ornamented with the purple gem, amethyst. The Episcopal ring is usually worn on the ring finger of the bishop’s right hand.

[1] This and all giving level Impacts are examples only. They give an idea of what a gift at that level could provide. They are not intended to state or imply the actual provision of that impact with every gift at that level.