August 9, 2021
Dear Companions in Christ,
As co-chairs of the Bishop Transition Committee (BTC), we write to inform you about our on-going work as a committee. Our transition process is a spiritual one and is anchored in prayer as we discern God’s call to those candidates who will be led to discern with us. Thank you for trusting us with this vital work as we discern together our next bishop and where God is calling the Episcopal Church in Connecticut (ECCT). Our committee is passionate and will soon call upon each of you to help us in this process. We are also grateful to Bishop Ian for his ministry and all he has taught us. We continue to hold him in prayer as he approaches his retirement in October 2022.
We have organized ourselves into five subcommittees. Each subcommittee has chosen chair/s who work to prepare meeting agendas and coordinate meeting dates with their subcommittee members. The Discernment/Information-gathering subcommittee will be conducting listening sessions throughout ECCT in order to hear from you. Working in concert with the Discernment/Information-gathering subcommittee are the Profile, Interview/Screening, Education/Communication, and Discernment Retreat subcommittees. The Executive Committee of the BTC consists of the chairs of each subcommittee and serves to oversee the communication between subcommittees. Other subcommittees will be formed as needed.
To facilitate information sharing, both across ECCT and with those exploring a call to Connecticut as our next bishop, we have created a website which will launch in the coming days. In addition, we encourage you sign up to receive the BTC eNews. Both will provide helpful information and be the platform for you to share your questions and wonderings with the BTC. Knowing our work is highly confidential, we still strive for transparency. The BTC website and eNews will allow us to provide updates on a regular basis while still maintaining appropriate confidentiality for those exploring a call to be our next bishop diocesan. We are excited to partner in this work with you and will be including a brief bio and photo of each member of our team on the new BTC website. Working alongside the BTC in this process is a consultant from The Episcopal Church’s Office of Pastoral Development, Blanca Silvestrini. We are also served by chaplains from Bethany House, under the direction of Julia Slayton, Executive Director of Bethany House. With God’s help and these guides, we move forward.
As we look toward the future, we remind you to save two dates on your calendar:
May 21, 2022:
Special Convention to elect the
XVI Bishop Diocesan of the Episcopal Church of Connecticut
October 8, 2022:
Ordination/Consecration of the
XVI Bishop Diocesan of the Episcopal Church of Connecticut.
As we noted earlier, the process of discerning ECCT’s next bishop diocesan is one anchored in prayer. We invite you to join us in “A Prayer for the Election of our XVI Diocesan Bishop,” found below, in your personal devotions and in your parish or worshipping community’s “Prayers of the People.” We thank you for your prayers, and we need them.
With blessings,
Marsha Adell and the Rev. Linda Spiers
Bishop Transition Committee Co-Chairs
A Prayer for the Election of our XVI Diocesan Bishop
God our Creator, Redeemer and Sustainer, without you nothing can be done. Send your Holy Spirit to guide the Episcopal Church in Connecticut, especially the Bishop Transition Committee, during this time of transition. Bless and continue the good work begun in your name. Open the committee’s ears to the hurts and hopes expressed to them and broaden our vision to see where you lead. Enliven their hearts with honesty and compassion to do the work that lies ahead, within our church and beyond its walls. Grant us the gifts of wisdom, humility, and empathy. Guide the committee as they discern your will for a new shepherd, inspirational leader, and willing advocate as we further your work in the Episcopal Church in Connecticut. Bless and be with our bishop, Ian, as he transitions to a new life serving you. Bless our candidates. Bestow them with the abilities to lead and serve. Let us learn from them and they from us, so we may live your word serving all. All this we pray through Jesus Christ our Savior, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, One God now and forever. Amen