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Presiding bishop nominating committee plans history-making presence at General Convention

January 27, 2022
Office of Public Affairs

For the first time in Episcopal Church history, the Joint Nominating Committee for the Election of the Presiding Bishop plans to be at General Convention in July to hear Episcopalians’ hopes and dreams for the church’s next presiding bishop, who will be elected in 2024.

The postponement of the 80th General Convention from 2021 to 2022 created the opportunity for the committee to attend convention to speak with bishops, deputies, and other participants. General Convention is scheduled for July 7-14 in Baltimore, Maryland.

“The committee members are committed to hearing from as many Episcopalians as possible as we prepare to write a profile and call for discernment for the 28th presiding bishop of The Episcopal Church,” said Canon Steven Nishibayashi, committee co-chair. “We feel blessed that we have this opportunity to visit with the part of the church that will be in Baltimore for convention this summer.”

This will not be the only chance for Episcopalians to speak to the committee, said Bishop Mark Lattime, the committee’s other co-chair. “We plan to offer a full range of opportunities for Episcopalians to communicate with the committee,” he said. “And we pray that people will make their voices heard about gifts and skills they believe the next presiding bishop will need to lead The Episcopal Church into its future.”

Details of the committee’s presence at General Convention will be announced when plans are complete.

During the committee’s Jan. 18-20 meeting, members mapped out what they must accomplish between now and the 81st meeting of General Convention, when The Episcopal Church’s 28th presiding bishop will be elected. That convention is scheduled for the summer of 2024 in Louisville, Kentucky.

The committee also reviewed the work of its predecessors leading up to the elections of 26th Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori in 2006 and Presiding Bishop Michael Curry in 2015. “We are grateful to follow the footsteps of those two committees, and we feel blessed to be able to learn from their work,” Lattime said.   

See past press releases about the committee’s work.