Shock

The Rev. Kevin T. Shock will be installed as bishop of the Allegheny Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America on Saturday, Feb. 7, at Mount Calvary Lutheran Church, 1000 Scalp Ave., Johnstown. Shock was elected on Nov. 1, 2025, to serve a six-year term as bishop.

Prelude music will begin at 1:45 p.m. with the service to begin at 2 p.m. The event will also be livestreamed. ELCA Presiding Bishop Yehiel Curry will preach and preside at the installation. A number of bishops from various faith denominations are expected to be in attendance.

Shock is a native of Altoona and previously served as pastor at St. Mark Lutheran Church, Pleasant Gap, before being called to serve as assistant to the Bishop of the Allegheny Synod. Shock and his spouse are residents of Howard, Centre County.

The Allegheny Synod of the ELCA is comprised of 97 congregations in seven counties across south central Pennsylvania, including Blair, Bedford, Cambria, Centre, Clearfield, Huntingdon and Somerset, and one congregation in Grantsville, Md.

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) is one of the largest Christian denominations in the United States, with nearly 2.7 million members in more than 8,400 worshiping communities across the 50 states and in the Caribbean region. The ELCA’s roots are in the writings of the German church reformer Martin Luther.