Women are joining the House of Bishops at unprecedented rate

From ENS-

The first day of June was a historic, if somewhat distracting, day in the life of The Episcopal Church.

While the Rev. Kathryn McCrossen Ryan was being ordained and consecrated as a bishop suffragan in the Diocese of Texas, many people in attendance were surreptitiously checking on the outcomes of two bishop elections happening that day. In both cases, laity and clergy elected women: the Rev. Bonnie Perry in the Diocese of Michigan and the Rev. Lucinda Ashby in the Diocese of El Camino Real.

Perry and Ashby are the seventh and eighth bishops elected in The Episcopal Church this year, and the fifth and sixth women, the most ever elected in one year in the church’s history.

More here-

https://www.episcopalnewsservice.org/2019/07/01/women-are-joining-the-house-of-bishops-at-unprecedented-rate/

Diocese of Northern California notified of successful canonical consent process

From The Episcopal Church-

The Episcopal Diocese of Northern California has received notification from Presiding Bishop and Primate Michael B. Curry and registrar of General Convention, the Rev. Canon Michael Barlowe, that Bishop-Elect Megan Traquair has received the required majority of consents in the canonical consent process detailed in Canon III.11.3.

In giving consent to her ordination and consecration, Standing Committees and bishops with jurisdiction attest to knowing of “no impediment on account of which” Bishop-Elect Traquair ought not to be ordained as bishop, and that her election was conducted in accordance with the Canons.

More here-

https://www.episcopalchurch.org/posts/publicaffairs/diocese-northern-california-notified-successful-canonical-consent-process?fbclid=IwAR35EtemC3Gt4r6HCKH1MdWoau6IqvQrv1iUaPTb5jEDxpicF_dwMGU5g1Y

A Field Guide to Bishop-Spotting

From The Living Church-

 I haven’t assembled data to back this up, but it surely feels that there is a rising and nearly cresting wave of diocesan bishops in the Episcopal Church who have, within the last year or so, announced their retirement or resignation and called for the election of a successor. This means that several dozen priests across the church — doubtless a number expressed in triple digits — are busy answering essay questions, recording videos, making plans to attend discernment retreats, and preparing to answer questions at walkabout events. And in the affected dioceses, clergy and lay delegates are in discernment, reading essays and making notes, watching videos and forming impressions, talking with their colleagues, all in an effort to decide how they will vote at the electing convention.

I am long past being a rookie bishop, but not yet, I hope, grizzled and wizened to the point of acerbic cynicism. So, from this putative sweet spot of seven-plus years of experience not yet singed by burnout, I offer these observations for the benefit of electors and candidates trying to discern their possible vocation to the episcopate. They are predicated on the assumption that, inside several priests in the church at this moment, there is a future bishop waiting to be discovered and liberated to act according to that vocation, just as within some blocks of marble or wood, an artistic masterpiece lies waiting to be discovered and liberated by the right tools in the hands of a skilled sculptor. What are some of the characteristics that might help identify a bishop in the making? What might the lay and clergy electors of a diocese in transition look for as they prepare to vote?

More here-

https://livingchurch.org/covenant/2018/09/26/a-field-guide-to-bishop-spotting/

Four Nominees in Europe

From Europe-

The Convocation of Episcopal Churches in Europe has announced four nominees in its search for the next bishop in charge:

• The Rev. Canon Paul-Gordon Chandler, president and CEO of CARAVAN, an international ministry of building peace through the arts, based in metropolitan Chicago
• The Rev. Mark D.W. Edington, rector of St. John’s Church, Newtonville, Massachusetts, and director of Amherst College Press
• The Rev. Steven Paulikas, rector of All Saints’ Church, Brooklyn
• The Very Rev. Benjamin Shambaugh, dean of the Cathedral Church of St. Luke, Portland, Maine

The election is scheduled for the convocation’s convention, scheduled for Oct. 18-21 at All Saints’ Church in Waterloo, Belgium.

More here-

https://livingchurch.org/2018/06/25/four-nominees-in-europe/

Diocese of Puerto Rico notified of successful canonical consent process

From ENS-

Episcopal Church Presiding Bishop and Primate Michael B. Curry and Registrar of General Convention, the Rev. Canon Michael Barlowe, have notified the Diocese of Puerto Rico that Bishop-Elect Rafael Luis Morales has received the required majority of consents in the canonical consent process.

The Rev. Canon Rafael Luis Morales was elected Bishop on December 10, 2016.  His ordination and consecration service is slated for July 22; Presiding Bishop Curry will officiate.

More here-

http://www.episcopalchurch.org/posts/publicaffairs/diocese-puerto-rico-notified-successful-canonical-consent-process

Called to be one with the Apsotles

From Episcopal Cafe-

In 2015 General Convention created a Task Force on the Episcopacy.  Some of the Task Force’s ideas were presented at the recently concluded House of Bishops meeting.  Among ideas offered were the creation of a list of pre-vetted candidates for election to bishop.  Frederick Schmidt offered an opinion piece, A Nursery for Ambition, outlining ways he thought such a list was a bad idea.  The overwhelming response here at the Cafe and elsewhere has been a loud rejection of the idea.  In this essay, Andrew Gerns offers another way of looking at how we select bishops that might be improved with a potential for discernment prior to entering into the election process.

by Andrew Gerns

Do we want a formed and prepared episcopate?
 Dr. Frederick Schmidt’s reaction to the interim report of the Task Force on the Episcopate at this week’s House of Bishops meeting seems be to that only people previously vetted by a select group would be considered for the episcopate—giving way to the sin of excess ambition; and that this process might both diminish the role of the laity in the councils of the church thereby hindering the work of the Holy Spirit.



More here-


https://www.episcopalcafe.com/42207-2/

Pre-approved Bishops: A Nursery for Ambition

From Patheos-

In a report from the meeting at the House of Bishops for The Episcopal Church, Bishop Daniel Martins notes that the bishops are considering creating a pool of prospective candidates for the episcopacy.

As Martins describes it, this pool of would-be bishops would be a list of prospects who are vetted ahead of time, and dioceses electing a new bishop would be encouraged to use that list. Martins also infers that dioceses choosing to look beyond the list provided them would run the risk of failing to receive approval for their bishop-elect.

As a priest and a theologian, I view this development with a considerable amount of dismay and I
hope that – after further reflection – the House will abandon their plans to create a pool of candidates in this fashion.

More here-

http://www.patheos.com/blogs/whatgodwantsforyourlife/2017/03/pre-approved-bishops-nursery-ambition/?repeat=w3tc

North Carolina adds two bishop candidates by petition

From ENS-

The Standing Committee of the Diocese of North Carolina is pleased to announce the addition of two petition candidates to the slate of nominees for the 12th bishop diocesan of the diocese.
The additional nominees are:

The Rev. George Adamik – St. Paul’s, Cary, North Carolina
The Rev. Canon Michael Buerkel Hunn – The Episcopal Church, New York, New York

The petition process is allowed per Resolution 201-1 of the 200th Annual Convention, as amended by the 201st Annual Convention, and provides that following the announcement of nominees for the 12th bishop chosen by the Nominating Committee, the Standing Committee accepts nominations by petition for a two-week period.

“Two petition nominations were received,” said Joe Ferrell, president of the Standing Committee. “The Standing Committee certifies these nominees have had the same background checks as were done with respect to the nominees of the Nominating Committee and that each nominee passed the same.”

More here-

http://episcopaldigitalnetwork.com/ens/2017/01/05/north-carolina-adds-two-bishop-candidates-by-petition/

Spokane’s new Episcopal bishop brings varied experiences to her role in the church

From Spokane-

After 16 years leading the Episcopal Diocese of Spokane, this spring Bishop James Waggoner will pass the crozier to the Rev. Gretchen Rehberg.

Rehberg, 52, will be the first female bishop in the diocese’s 52-year history, although she says her gender is irrelevant. She’s simply been elected as the ninth bishop of the diocese she grew up in, she said.

“My family all lives here, this is where I’m called to be,” she said. “I’m really looking forward to getting to know the community better and the people better.”

She grew up on a small farm in Pullman, where her mother still lives, and has family scattered throughout Eastern Washington.

More here-

http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2016/nov/18/spokanes-new-episcopal-bishop-brings-varied-experi/

One nominee added to Los Angeles bishop coadjutor slate

From Los Angeles-

The Rev. Canon John Taylor, vicar of St. John Chrysostom Church and School in Rancho Santa Margarita, California, has been nominated by petition as a candidate for bishop coadjutor in the Diocese of Los Angeles. Taylor’s nomination was approved by the diocesan Standing Committee in keeping with procedures set by the Bishop Coadjutor Search Committee.

Taylor is the sixth nominee, joining previously announced candidates the Rev. Paul Fromberg, rector of St. Gregory of Nyssa Church, San Francisco; the Rev. Rachel Nyback, rector of St. Cross Church, Hermosa Beach; the Rev. Anna Olson, rector of St. Mary’s Church (Mariposa Avenue), Los Angeles; the Rt. Rev. Pierre Whalon, bishop of the Paris-based Convocation of Episcopal Churches in Europe; and the Rev. Mauricio Wilson, rector of St. Paul’s, Oakland, California. More about the candidates is here.

More here-

http://episcopaldigitalnetwork.com/ens/2016/10/03/one-nominee-added-to-los-angeles-bishop-coadjutor-slate/

Bishop Coadjutor candidates named

From Los Angeles-

The Bishop Coadjutor Search Committee of the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles has named five candidates for nomination preceding election by Diocesan Convention meeting Dec. 2 - 3 in Ontario, Calif.

The candidates are the Rev. Paul Fromberg, rector of St. Gregory of Nyssa, San Francisco; the Rev. Rachel Nyback, rector of St. Cross, Hermosa Beach, Calif.; the Rev. Anna Olson, rector of St. Mary's, (Mariposa Avenue) Los Angeles; the Rt. Rev. Pierre Whalon, Bishop of the Paris-based Convocation of Episcopal Churches in Europe; and the Rev. Mauricio Wilson, rector of St. Paul's, Oakland, Calif.

The coadjutor-elect will succeed Los Angeles Bishop Diocesan J. Jon Bruno upon his retirement.

"I give thanks for the members and work of the search committee, and for all the people who have offered themselves as candidates," said Bruno, who was elected bishop coadjutor in 1999.

More here-

http://campaign.r20.constantcontact.com/render?m=1101307179673&ca=a7cc4a16-a5b2-4ac8-bf1d-15e31dcce7d9

Daniel Gutierrez elected to be next bishop of Diocese of Pennsylvania

From PA-

The Rev. Canon Daniel G. P. Gutierrez, canon to the ordinary in the Episcopal Diocese of the Rio Grande, was elected March 12 to be the next bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania.

Gutierrez was elected on the fourth ballot, receiving 100 votes in the lay order and 133 in the clergy order. On that ballot, 84 lay votes and 130 clergy votes were need for an election. The electing convention met at Philadelphia Episcopal Cathedral.

Gutierrez is the first U.S.-born Latino to be elected as a bishop diocesan in the Episcopal Church.
Pending the canonically required confirmation by a majority of the church’s House of Bishops and by a majority of the Diocesan Standing Committees in the church, Gutierrez will be ordained and consecrated July 16 at New Covenant Church in the Germantown area of Philadelphia.

More here-

http://episcopaldigitalnetwork.com/ens/2016/03/14/daniel-gutierrez-elected-to-be-next-bishop-of-diocese-of-pennsylvania/

New bishop takes the helm at Episcopal Diocese of Southeast Florida

From Miami-

Peter Eaton stood in the courtyard of Trinity Cathedral in downtown Miami on Saturday morning, taking selfies, and hugging and kissing those who came to see him become recognized and seated as the fourth bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Southeast Florida.

“You want a selfie?” he quipped with a 15-year-old guest. “That’ll be $5.”

Eaton’s witty and down-to-Earth personality helped put those around him in good spirits as they prepared for the ceremony.

Among those in attendance for the occasion were clergy from across the world including the Right Reverend Lord Rowan Williams, who is the former Archbishop of Canterbury, members of South Florida’s interfaith community, and political figures such as Miami Mayor Tomás Regalado.
Read more here:

http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/article57515843.html#storylink=cpy

Pennsylvania Announces Slate

From The Living Church-

The Diocese of Pennsylvania has announced a five-member slate in the election of its 16th bishop:

The Rev. W. Frank Allen, rector, St. David’s Church, Wayne, Pennsylvania

The Rev. Canon Daniel G.P. Gutierrez, canon to the ordinary, chief operating officer, and chief of staff, Diocese of the Rio Grande, Albuquerque

The Rev. Canon John T.W. Harmon, rector, Trinity Church, Washington, D.C.

The Rev. Martha N. Macgill, rector, Emmanuel Parish, Cumberland, Maryland

The Rt. Rev. Dean E. Wolfe, Bishop of Kansas and vice president of the House of Bishops

Provisional bishops have led the diocese since the retirement of the Rt. Rev. Charles E. Bennison, Jr., in December 2012.

The Rt. Rev. Clifton Daniel III has served as provisional bishop since 2013. The Rt. Rev. Rodney R. Michel became assisting bishop in 2008.

The diocese will accept nominees by petition until Feb. 3. A special convention will meet March 12 to elect the bishop.

http://www.livingchurch.org/pennsylvania-announces-slate

Episcopal diocese elects new bishop

From Eastern Oregon-

The Rev. Patrick Bell was elected the seventh bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Eastern Oregon Dec. 12 at Church of the Redeemer in Pendleton.

Bell was one of three finalist from a pool of 16.

The new bishop is a seventh-generation Eastern Washingtonian and comes from a long farming tradition.

He was raised Episcopalian and attended Whitworth College, a Presbyterian school in Spokane. He received a master’s in theology from Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California, and served as a Pentecostal minister. In time, he returned to the Episcopal Church.

“I realized I wasn’t a fundamentalist,” Bell said.

More here-

http://www.bluemountaineagle.com/People/20151218/episcopal-diocese-elects-new-bishop

Utah priest a finalist for Episcopal post in Indiana

From Utah-

It is not often that an Episcopal priest in Utah is nominated to be a bishop somewhere else, but it is even rarer for one who was trained as a journalist and hosted his own gourmet cooking show while wearing his clerical collar.

But that's exactly what has happened to the Rev. Raymond Joe Waldon, dean of the Cathedral Church of St. Mark in Salt Lake City.

Waldon was named last week as one of five finalists for bishop of the Diocese of Northern Indiana, which covers 31 counties in two time zones and includes 36 parishes and missions.

More here-

http://www.sltrib.com/home/3219112-155/utah-priest-a-finalist-for-episcopal

Searching for Transparency

From The Living Church-

Questions are swirling about methods used for vetting bishop candidates in the wake of a fatal incident in Baltimore involving a newly consecrated bishop with a drunken-driving record.

But consultants who advise search committees remain confident in the processes that dioceses use to select top leaders. Risk-assessment protocols are robust, they said, and give committees the latitude they need to make wise, case-by-case judgments.

Online conversation boards lit up soon after reports spread that the Rt. Rev. Heather Cook, Bishop Suffragan of Maryland, had been driving a car that hit a bicyclist, who later died from injuries. She initially left the scene of the December 27 incident in Baltimore, according to the diocese, but then returned to accept responsibility. The Baltimore Sun reported on one bicyclist, Moncure Lyon, who followed Cook home to an apartment complex before she returned to the accident scene.

More here-

http://www.livingchurch.org/searching-transparency

New York elects Allen K. Shin bishop suffragan

From ENS-

On Dec. 7, at a special election convention held at Manhattan’s Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine, the Rev. Allen K. Shin was declared the bishop suffragan-elect of the Episcopal Diocese of New York. The new bishop suffragan will replace Bishop Catherine Roskam, who retired at the end of 2011, and will work alongside the diocesan bishop, the Rt. Rev. Andrew M.L. Dietsche.

Shin, who is currently rector of St. John’s Church, Huntington, Long Island, NY was elected on the 4th round of balloting by a majority of the active clergy who participated in the election AND by a majority of the lay delegates who participated in the election. A brief biography of the bishop elect may be found here (where you will also find information on the other nominees and videos of all).

More here-

http://episcopaldigitalnetwork.com/ens/2013/12/09/new-york-elects-allen-k-shin-bishop-suffragan/

Four women running to be next Vancouver Anglican bishop

From Vancouver-

Four female priests with strong resumes are running for election to be the next Vancouver-area Anglican bishop.

The women are among eight candidates seeking to replace outgoing Bishop Michael Ingham, who became the focus of a storm in the 60-million-member global Anglican communion when he approved the blessing of homosexual relationships.

The women who have been nominated to run for bishop are Rev. Ellen Clark-King, vicar of Vancouver’s Christ Church Cathedral; Rev. Dawn Davis, who is based in Toronto; Rev. Lynne McNaughton, a former Vancouver School of Theology instructor now at St. Clement’s Church in North Vancouver and Rev. Melissa Skelton, an Episcopalian priest and church educator in Seattle, Wash.

More here-

http://www.vancouversun.com/life/Four+women+running+next+Vancouver+Anglican+bishop/9172721/story.html

Western Michigan: Whayne M. Hougland ordained as ninth bishop

From ENS-

The Episcopal Diocese of Western Michigan consecrated its ninth bishop, the Rt. Rev. Whayne M. Hougland, Jr., a Kentucky native, on Saturday, Sept. 28. He succeeds the Rt. Rev. Robert Gepert, who retired in August after serving the diocese for 12 years.

An estimated 1,000 people filled Van Noord Arena at Calvin College in Grand Rapids as Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori ordained and consecrated Hougland as the 1077th bishop in the Episcopal Church succession. Co-consecrators were the Rt. Rev. Stacy Sauls, chief operating officer of the Episcopal Church, Bishop Donald Kreiss of the Southeast Michigan Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, and Bishop Michael Curry of North Carolina, who preached a message about witness and discipleship. In addition to those in attendance, 569 people watched the event online through the new diocesan website.

More here-

http://episcopaldigitalnetwork.com/ens/2013/10/02/western-michigan-whayne-m-hougland-ordained-as-ninth-bishop/