BishopMathesGC06

June 18, 2006

In the midst of debate and resolutions, exhibitors and curious visitors to our proceedings, our General Convention began Sunday as we always do: we went to church. Needless to say, it was not your ordinary Sunday service. Thousands were present. The Presiding Bishop preached and celebrated. Music was provided by a jazz band who had been delayed into late in the night because of thunderstorms. If that wasn’t difficult enough, they had no suitcases or musical instruments. So, in the middle of the night instruments were rented and a quick trip to Walmart provided appropriate Sunday attire. The music was wonderful and almost miraculous considering the obstacles.

After the service, the bishops were transported by bus to Trinity Episcopal Church for the election of the 26th Presiding Bishop. As a recently ordained bishop, it was my privilege to be one of the five tellers for the election. I had the opportunity to watch the decision of the House of Bishops emerge as each individual ballot was counted. As we prayed, sang hymns, voted, and I retired with others to count, I found myself in what I can only describe as a holy experience. We were in a beautiful church, surrounded by a timeline of the history of women in the Episcopal Church. And there on the fifth ballot, my Province VIII colleague and friend, Katherine Jefferts Schori was elected. As is her way, she was a person of grace and wisdom as addressed her fellow bishops. She spoke in both English and Spanish. Her call us to engage in building the reign of Christ expressed her passion. After confirmation by the House of Deputies, Bishop Jefferts Schori addressed the House of Deputies and accepted the election.

As I left Trinity to see Bishop Jefferts Schori address the House of Deputies, I noticed that someone had taped a piece of paper on the wall where the timeline ended. It read “Katherine Jefferts Schori, elected 26th Presiding Bishop, June 18, 2006.” Today we made history. As with any election, there are some who are disappointed with the result. I invite everyone to come to know Bishop Jefferts Schori and bless her with the time to emerge as a great leader for our church. Let your offering be one of prayer and support. In our culture, we expect our leaders to be fully formed from the beginning, but this is never realistic. Great leaders are always growing and learning.

Our church made history today; Bishop Jefferts Schori made history today. But the real history is about to made as she works with her fellow bishops and all the people of our church to transform the Episcopal Church as a missional church for the Twenty-first Century. I, for one, am hooked!

Faithfully,

+Jim Mathes

June 15, 2006
Evelyn Underhill

Perhaps the most important event of yesterday was the hearing on four of the resolutions on the Windsor Report. Scores of individuals spoke about the resolutions that offer a statement of repentance, offer a call for “very considerable caution” in proceeding with ordination of bishops whose ordination might further break the bonds of communion, and a call for not proceeding with rites for same sex unions. While the speakers were self-selecting, they represented the breadth of perspective. It seems to me that the Windsor Report is itself a flexible and highly nuanced document. The offered resolves are equally nuanced and flexible. There is an open question as to whether the Episcopal Church would be better served by clarity.

While I appreciate the import of the issues around the 74th General Convention, I came away from the hearing perplexed that we were expending such a tremendous amount of energy on the questions of Windsor. I am reminded of Archbishop Eames preface to the Windsor Report where he wrote,

Perhaps the greatest tragedy of our current difficulties is the negative consequence it could have on the mission of the Church to a suffering and bewildered world. Even as the Commission prepared for its final meeting the cries of children in a school in southern Russia reminded us of our real witness and ministry in a world already confronted by poverty, violence, HIV/AIDS, famine and injustice.

The bulk of our energy is on issues of mission, in particular sharing the good news in Jesus Christ into a world of despair, pain and loss. Our call as a Church is to be the servant community in Jesus Name that assuages the brokenness of the world that Jesus so loves.

I pray that as we conclude this day we will hold our differences on sexuality gently so that the passion of Jesus will be our passion.

Faithfully,

+Jim Mathes

BishopMathesGC06

June 14, 2006

Yesterday was a full day with beginning for me with a 7:30 a.m. meeting of the Education Committee where we are working on resolutions ranging from HIV/AID’s prevention to Debt relief. One of the most exciting issues to come from our work is the possibility of a commission for life-long Christian formation, which has been my passion for my entire ordained ministry. I have seen what happens in congregations when there is effective, life-long Christian formation.

Tuesday's opening Eucharist was celebrated by Dean Werner, the president of the House of Deputies with our Presiding Bishop preaching. In his homily, he noted that it is indeed a dangerous thing to call upon the Holy Spirit, but that in our community life we should take that risk. This reminder resonated with me. I sense and see that the Holy Spirit is doing wonderful things in our community and calling us to the same.

In our House of Bishops, legislative session we handled routine legislation. I was particularly interested in the lack of debate on a resolution that we forwarded to the House of Deputies on evolution. In the Education Committee from which it originated, it was seen as a potentially debatable resolution as it was positing that evolutionary theories are not incompatible with Holy Scripture. In other denominations, this would obviously not happen.

My evening included a delightful, if brief, dinner with my beloved bishop, Bill Persell, and his wife Nancy. What a gift to the church he is! After committee hearings in the evening, I returned to our hospitality room where our deputation gathered for our debriefing and fellowship. Tonight we were joined by Michael Angell and Jim Greer, from St. Paul’s Cathedral, Vicki and Peter Bergstrom, Camp Stevens, and Alex and Nancy Nagy, St. Barnabas, Borrego Springs.

Tomorrow is another full day at which we will hold important hearings on the resolutions offered pertaining to the Windsor Report. I was heartened today by the presence of the Archbishop of York and his greetings to the General Convention from the Archbishop of Canterbury. I hope and pray that a spirit of gentle and civil engagement will move us forward in our work, which will get more pointed and challenging in the days ahead.

Faithfully,

+Jim Mathes

BishopMathesGC06

June 13, 2006

After registering on Monday morning, I had an opportunity to visit the Exhibitor’s Hall. Imagine a shopping mall for Episcopalians and that is what you have, including our own St. James, La Jolla Bookstore and David Mooney, an artist from St. Dunstan’s.

In the afternoon, all deputies and bishops attended the opening session of the Convention and were greeted by the presidents of our respective houses, the Very Rev. George Werner and the Most Rev. Frank Griswold. Dean Werner reminded us of the stories of ministry that abounded in our church, stories that he had encountered and was able to celebrate in his travels over his six years of being president of the House of Deputies. After receiving a standing ovation in recognition of his nine years of service as our presiding bishop, Bishop Griswold reminded us that our General Convention is “an opportunity for God’s love to break loose among us” and that we are a church “always under construction and always working to maturity.” As I pondered these words and reflected on the theme of the convention, “Come and Grow,” I sensed that our real challenge is to return to San Diego with seeds, fertilizer, and wisdom from master gardeners to do our work of ministry together.

In the later afternoon, the House of Bishop’s met briefly for orientation. Like most orientation sessions, this one was mostly nuts and bolts. It turns out that I have two ancillary responsibilities. I am chair of the committee for certification of minutes for the House of Bishops and I am a teller for elections in the house. Among other elections, I will be tabulating the ballots for the election of the 26th Presiding Bishop. I attended the legislative hearings of the Education Committee on which I serve.

We ended the day with a gathering of our deputation in our hospitality room. Canon Howard Smith arrived in Columbus in the late afternoon and will be assisting the deputation in their work as well as receiving press briefings for the diocese.

Faithfully,

+Jim Mathes

BishopMathesGC06

June 12, 2006
Barnabas, Apostle

I arrived in Columbus on Sunday afternoon having flown throughout the day from San Diego via Las Vegas. As I arrived at the baggage area, I was greeted by a volunteer of the Diocese of Southern Ohio, and before leaving the baggage area had meet a priest from the Diocese of Los Angeles, Nevada, and connected with my colleague, Katharine Jefferts Schori, Bishop of Nevada—the Family Reunion has begun.

After getting to my hotel, the Hyatt—Capital Square, I took a walk where I ran into Bishop George Councell, a dear friend from our days as rectors in Chicago. George is now Bishop of New Jersey. George later joined me for dinner with Andrew Green, Robert Certain, Jamie Wood, Carol Levien, and Jarvis NolanWe were later joined by Terry White, and Fred Mann both from the Diocese of West Missouri. Terry, like George, is an old Chicago friend—the Family Reunion continues. . The restaurant was packed with other friends from around the country.

This morning I have had my first Columbus morning run. It is a beautiful morning which I pray brings equal beauty when it comes to the Diocese of San Diego in just a few minutes. Today, will be filled with hearings and orientation. I will try to report to you as often as possible, but at least daily. For now, I am grateful for your prayers for me, our deputation, and this amazing gathering of our church.

Faithfully,

+Jim Mathes

This will be my first General Convention as your Bishop. My hopes are that you will keep the deputation and me in your prayers.