General Convention 2006 #3
June 18
Well I’ll be doggoned. The House of Bishops elected Katharine Jefferts Schori as the next Presiding Bishop. I hadn’t even considered her as electable. I thought that with all the nervousness about not offending third world Anglicans, they would have felt constrained about electing a woman. Besides, she is only 51, was only a priest 7 years before being elected bishop of Nevada (Nevada: can anything good come out of Nevada?), and has only served as a bishop for 5 years.
However. Everyone who knows her says she is a true reconciler, very intelligent, committed to ministry with the poor and marginalized, an effective bishop in a very diverse and rural diocese, possessed of a compassionate heart and a steel backbone, and very clear about where she stands as a progressive, modern Episcopalian. Even Bishop Jeffrey Steenson, who stands on the opposite side of the aisle from her in some ways, said she was the most impressive of all the candidates who spoke to the bishops some months ago.
And then there is the business of her being a PhD in oceanography, a pilot, married to a theoretical mathematician, a professor of religious studies, and former priest in charge of an Hispanic congregation.
Later, we’ll learn more much about her faith and her leadership abilities in these difficult times in our church. But here is a glimpse into her character, from a letter she wrote to her diocese after she voted to approve the consecration of Bishop Gene Robinson:
“I have long experience of living on the margin, from being a student who was ‘too young’, to being a woman in a traditionally male occupation, to being a ‘gringa’ trying to do Hispanic ministry. I believe that this election is an opportunity for the Episcopal Church to affirm Jesus' call to those on the margins of society, a call that says ALL are welcome at God's banquet table.
During our long afternoon in the House of Bishops, two images continued to rise in my mind: one of Jesus bending down to write in the sand when confronted with those who would have stoned the woman caught in adultery; and the other of Jesus sending the servants out to invite the passersby to the wedding feast, because others would not come.
I will continue to reach out to those who do not feel welcome at the feast, whether they are my aggrieved brothers and sisters this day, or those who have not yet heard the good news of God's love. I pray that you will do the same.”
What is encouraging to me about Schori’s election is that the Episcopal Church – even the House of Bishops, who have seemed so timid recently – elected the best candidate without regard for the fact that many in the Anglican Communion (especially those opposed to Gene Robinson) do not accept the ordination of women. It is also encouraging that we continue to move boldly in a progressive direction. Schori herself seems to understand that we can only be in communion and seek reconciliation with others who disagree with us by being very clear about who we are.
Since I was so far off on my prediction about the election of our Presiding Bishop, what follows is probably worth nothing. But my optimistic prediction of what this General Convention will end up communicating to the Anglican Communion is as follows. We’ll see how accurately I’ve been reading the signs of this convention.
“We’d like to be in communion with you, but we will not compromise who we are and where we believe God is calling us for the sake of unity. We regret the pain you have felt over Gene Robinson, and we apologize for not having anticipated the enormity of this pain ahead of time. We will be more sensitive in the future, but remember, we are an autonomous province. We are moving forward in the direction we’ve already set, and are not going backwards. We will elect any qualified candidate as bishop, including a woman as Presiding Bishop. We will not promise a church-wide moratorium on same-gender blessings. We will welcome your voice in some of our deliberative bodies, in a manner as yet to be determined. We will talk with you about the possibility of an Anglican Covenant that may develop in the years ahead, but make no promises. We expect the promised ‘dialog’ between different positions on human sexuality to actually take place now, and will participate in it. We want to be in a closer relationship with the global south, and as a sign of that, we commit ourselves to greater generosity in dealing with extreme poverty, HIV/AIDS, and other threats to your survival.”