Yesterday, the House of Bishops meeting at General Convention elected the Rt. Rev. Sean Rowe, Bishop of Northwest Pennsylvania and Western New York, to serve as the 28th Presiding Bishop and Primate of the Episcopal Church. Presiding Bishop-Elect Rowe will be seated at the Washington National Cathedral on November 2.
You can read more information about him here:
https://livingchurch.org/news/news-episcopal-church/sean-w-rowe-elected-as-28th-presiding-bishop/
On a more personal note, I’m particularly excited because he’s the first Presiding Bishop from my generation - he’s only 49 years old. Bishop Rowe is known as a steady bishop with expertise in fixing broken church structures. He isn’t a larger-than-life presence like Presiding Bishop Curry, but I think his expertise in administration makes him the right choice for our particular moment as a Church. He’s a theological moderate, and I wouldn’t expect him to make any shocking statements to either the left or the right. His election on the first ballot was overwhelming, which shows that the bishops who know him best thought he was the man for the moment.
Here’s a fun church fact. For most of the Episcopal Church’s history, the Presiding Bishop wasn’t a national figure; it wasn’t even a separate job. The democratizing impulse of the Revolutionary War period very intentionally moved away from archbishops as much as it rejected kings. The Presiding Bishop was the senior bishop in the Church who presided at General Convention and participated in the consecrations of other bishops - and that was it. In the 20th century, with the advent of radio, television, and faster travel, the Presiding Bishop became a spokesman for the Episcopal Church on the national and global stage. In addition, as the Anglican Communion took on structural shape in the 20th century, the Presiding Bishop was called upon to represent us at meetings of Archbishops and Presiding Bishops from other countries.
I ask you to join me in praying for Presiding Bishop-Elect Rowe and his family, and in giving thanks for the ministry of Presiding Bishop Curry and his wife Sharon.
Yours in Christ,
Kara