General Convention chooses the next Presiding Bishop Saturday

General Convention chooses the next Presiding Bishop Saturday

Tomorrow – Saturday, June 27 – the House of Bishops will meet in a closed session at the Cathedral of St. Mark in Salt Lake City, Utah to elect the next Presiding Bishop of The Episcopal Church; the House of Deputies then has the decision whether to concur.

Follow details on the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth deputation’s blog, on social media under the hashtags #DioFW and #GC78, or through the General Convention Media Hub.

There are four nominees:

  • The Rt. Rev. Thomas E. Breidenthal, Bishop of the Diocese of Southern Ohio
  • The Rt. Rev. Michael B. Curry, Bishop of the Diocese of North Carolina
  • The Rt. Rev. Ian T. Douglas, Bishop of the Diocese of Connecticut
  • The Rt. Rev. Dabney T. Smith, Bishop of the Diocese of Southwest Florida

The nominees were introduced to the deputies and bishops in a session on Wednesday, before the start of General Convention. Each bishop had been asked to create a short informal video to introduce himself. Then, each gave an opening statement to the gathering. A question and answer period followed, with questions posed to each of the nominees by members of the Joint Nominating Committee on the Election of the Presiding Bishop and by members of the assembly. The questions had been submitted church-wide and were selected by the bishops at random to answer. This new introduction format was well-received.

“I will feel better about the part deputies play in confirmation thanks to this time.” – The Rev. Carlye Hughes, Deputy to General Convention

See video of the nominees’ presentations

Read about the election process that will be used.