Carl Saxton, seminarian and postulant for Holy Orders sponsored by St. Francis of Assisi Episcopal Church, Willow Park, graduated from the School of Theology at the University of the South, Sewanee on May 9, 2014. The Rt. Rev. Rayford B. High and Mrs. High attended the graduation — and to his surprise, Bishop High participated in the graduation. Sharon and Dennis Lasater and Louis and Cynthia Eichenberger from St. Francis, Willow Park, also attended.
The Rt. Rev. Samuel Johnson (John) Howard, Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Florida, and chancellor of the University of the South, was presiding at graduation when he became ill. Bishop High, as the senior bishop of an owning diocese on the Sewanee board of trustees, was drafted to take his place. Among his responsibilities as presider was to respond in Latin to the conferring of honorary doctorates to the Most Rev. David Chillingworth, primate of the Scottish Episcopal Church; the Rt. Rev. Mark Allen Bourlakas, bishop of the Diocese of Southwestern Virginia; and Dr. David J. Hurd, Jr., professor of church music and organist and music director at the seminary’s Chapel of the Shepherd.
Bishop High studied Greek, not Latin, at seminary. Pat High laughingly observed that the Latin was delivered with a Texas accent with an undertone of Spanish.
Saxton will be ordained deacon by Bishop High at 7 pm on Thursday, May 22, 2014, at St. Christopher Episcopal Church, Fort Worth. The Very Rev. Katherine B. (Kate) Moorehead, the 10th Dean of St. John’s Cathedral and Dean of the Diocese of Florida, will preach.
See more photos of Saxton’s graduation at the diocesan Flickr page.
