The Rt. Rev. Robert .O. Miller, Ninth Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Alabama, died Monday evening June 29, 2009, at Trinity Medical Center in Birmingham.

Bishop Miller served as spiritual head of the more than 30,000 member diocese for almost a decade from 1989 until his retirement in 1998. His ordained ministry spanned almost half a century.

“Bishop Miller was a much beloved bishop in our diocese. He was a devoted pastor to many, a champion of the church’s ministry among the poor and persons in special need, and a leader in expanding the ministry of the Episcopal Church in Alabama. He will be greatly missed,” said the Rt. Rev. Henry N. Parsley Jr., Bishop of the Diocese of Alabama.

Under Bishop Miller’s episcopacy, the diocese grew, with the addition of five new parishes and worshiping communities, and a significant expansion of Camp McDowell, its summer camp and conference center in Winston County.

Bishop Miller placed special emphasis on ministry to children and young adults, creating a full-time position at the diocese to develop youth ministries. He personally directed numerous summer camp sessions and attempted to make a visit to almost every camp session.

He was instrumental in supporting the development of Birmingham Campus Ministries. He was also instrumental in the formation of the Diocese of Alabama’s AIDS Task Force.

Bishop Miller served as a member of the Standing Liturgical Commission of the Episcopal Church, was a Nonalcoholic Trustee on the General Service Board of Alcoholics Anonymous, and was a trustee of the University of the South in Sewanee, Tenn.

He was elected and consecrated Suffragan Bishop of Alabama in 1986. In that role, he assisted the Rt. Rev. Furman Stough, until being elected to succeed him as Bishop of Alabama.

Bishop Miller began his ministry as a pastor in the Methodist Church in 1963, serving as Associate Minister for the First Methodist Church in Anniston, and Director of Wesley Foundation at Jacksonville State University, Jacksonville. He was ordained a deacon and priest in the Episcopal Church in 1968.

During his ministry in the Episcopal Church in Alabama he served as Rector of St. Wilfrid’s Church in Marion, Priest-in-Charge of Holy Cross Church in Uniontown, Rector of the Church of the Holy Comforter in Montgomery and Rector of St. Francis of Assisi Church in Indian Springs Village. He also served as Chaplain at Judson College and the Marion Military Institute in Marion.

Bishop Miller was born in Winnville, Ala., in 1935. He attended Phillips High School in Birmingham. He was graduated from Birmingham Southern College in 1960, with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology. He received his Bachelor of Divinity degree from Candler Theological Seminary at Emory University, Atlanta, in 1963, and did post-graduate work at the School of Theology at the University of the South.

Bishop Miller was awarded an honorary Doctor of Divinity from Sewanee, in 1988 and received the Distinguished Alumnus Award from Birmingham Southern College in 1991.

He was married to the former Margaret “Peggy” Fisher in 1964. He is survived by his wife, daughters Margaret Slater Miller and Vivian Miller Campagna, and granddaughter Lila Grace Campagna.

A funeral service is scheduled for 11 a.m. Friday, June 3, at the Cathedral Church of the Advent in Birmingham.