Two Dioceses Announce Candidates For Bishop

The Episcopal Dioceses of Minnesota and Los Angeles announced their slate of candidates for bishop.

From the Episcopal Diocese of Minnesota:

On Saturday, August 1, the Search Committee of the Episcopal Diocese of Minnesota announced the names of three candidates for IX Bishop of Minnesota:

The Rev. Mariann Budde, Rector, St. John the Baptist Episcopal Church, Minneapolis, MN

The Rev. Bonnie Perry, Rector, All Saints’ Episcopal Church, Chicago, IL

The Rev. Brian Prior, Rector, Episcopal Church of the Resurrection, Spokane, WA

A full bio and resume for each candidate is available on the IX Bishop Search website. A pdf of a bulletin insert is available for download. A doc file is also available.

According to her bio, The Rev. Bonnie Perry is a partnered lesbian. All three candidates appear well-qualified for the post of bishop.

From the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles:

Six priests -- three from the Diocese of Los Angeles and one each from San Francisco; San Jose, California; and Baltimore, Maryland -- have been nominated for December's election of two bishops suffragan in the six-county Diocese of Los Angeles. The slate was announced August 2 by the Rev. Julian Bull, chair of the Search and Nominating Committee.

Within the Episcopal Church, bishops suffragan are elected to assist the bishop of a diocese. The nominees, listed here with links to ministry and biographical information, are:

The Rev. Canon Diane M. Jardine Bruce, rector, St. Clement's by-the-Sea Church in San Clemente, California;

The Rev. Canon Mary Douglas Glasspool, canon to the bishops in the Baltimore-based Diocese of Maryland;

The Rev. Zelda M. Kennedy, senior associate for pastoral care and spiritual growth, All Saints Church in Pasadena, California;

The Rev. John L. Kirkley, rector, St. John the Evangelist Church in San Francisco (Diocese of California);

The Rev. Silvestre E. Romero, rector, St Philip's Church in San Jose, California (Diocese of El Camino Real); and

The Rev. Irineo Martir Vasquez, vicar, St. George's Church in Hawthorne, California.
....

"I affirm each and every one of these candidates, and I am pleased with the wide diversity they offer this Diocese," Bishop Bruno said in a statement (full text follows).

The Rev. Canon Mary Douglas Glasspool is a partnered lesbian, and The Rev. John L. Kirkley is a married gay man with one adopted son.

Again, the bios of the candidates are all quite impressive.

The LA Times says:

The nominations of the Rev. John L. Kirkley of San Francisco and the Rev. Canon Mary Douglas Glasspool of a Baltimore-based diocese are likely to further inflame theological conservatives in the U.S. church and their global partners in the Anglican Communion, who have repeatedly warned about the repercussions of such action.

The Times is correct. The lists from the two dioceses will, no doubt, "further inflame theological conservatives". My prayer is that the power and wisdom of the Holy Spirit will inflame the minds and hearts of those who will choose the bishops for the dioceses and lead them to the candidates best suited for the positions.

Almighty God, giver of every good gift: Look graciously on your Church, and so guide the minds of those who shall choose bishops for the Diocese of Minnesota and the Diocese of Los Angeles that they may receive faithful pastors, who will care for your people and equip them for their ministries; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

(Book of Common Prayer, p. 818)