Episcopal News Service

[Episcopal News Service] As part of its yearslong effort in reckoning with its history of racism and role in upholding slavery, the Diocese of Southern Virginia has hosted a series of events throughout 2026 centered around reconciliation and repentance. The next event will take place at 10 a.m. Eastern on Nov. 2, All Souls Day, called “Lament. Repent. Reconcile. Heal.” The day will start with a morning worship service at Bruton Parish Church in Colonial Williamsburg honoring three enslaved Africans whose corporeal remains are permanently returning to Virginia after spending decades stored by the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. Following the livestreamed service, they will be interred nearby at the Utopia Quarter, a site for enslaved laborers located within the Kingsmill resort area, which was previously a plantation. Presiding Bishop Sean Rowe will preside, former Presiding Bishop Michael Curry will preach, and Southern Virginia Bishop Susan Haynes is leading and directing the service. The Rev. Jan Brown, a deacon of 10 years who served Bruton Parish for nearly nine years and has co-led the research of the ancestral remains and planning their repatriation, describes centering the service around the descendants as acts of being “mindful and respectful,” and giving their ancestors the “dignity and reverence they deserve,” she said. “There are people who say things like, ‘This was 400 years ago. Why don’t you let it go?’ First and foremost, these are humans, and they weren’t treated as humans by the church when they were alive. We have never named that sin properly and lamented our responsibility for having done so,” Brown, who is scheduled to be ordained a priest on Oct. 30, told Episcopal News Service. “The truth has not been told before, and it’s being told now, and we’re reckoning with it.  “We always say we want to repent, but you can’t repent if you haven’t lamented first. So, this is our season of lament.” Brown is the founder and executive director of SpiritWorks Foundation Center for the Soul. With diocesan support, the nonprofit created The Long Way Home: A Season of Reckoning, a 49-day season of formation, lament and repair that launched Sept. 14, Holy Cross Day, and culminates with the All Souls Day service. The diocesan observance “takes its name from the long, often invisible road that leads a community back to the truth of its own history and from the ancestors themselves, whose long way home is only now, after centuries, ending.” Clergy and lay Episcopalians throughout the diocese observed the season. Many of the descendants still live in the Williamsburg area, though others live elsewhere. Loretta Burwell, for example, lives in Atlanta, Georgia. A descendant of the Burwell family, she is a lay Episcopal elder who has been involved with archival research and repatriation efforts. “[Burwell’s] been very faithful, and she has told us that she considers this work her gift to her ancestors,” Brown said. The service’s liturgy will acknowledge the injustices many generations of Africans suffered while enslaved in Williamsburg from its founding in 1632 until slavery formally ended in 1865, when the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was ratified. It will also acknowledge slavery’s enduring legacy in the form of systemic injustices. The service will include readings from Scripture, music, prayer and reflection. Southern Virginia’s racial reconciliation journey is more than a decade in the making. In 2010, the Newport News-based diocese passed a resolution that created the Repairers of the Breach Task Force. The task force was named in reference to the promise of restoration and renewal depicted in Isaiah 58:12: “Your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt; you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; you shall be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of streets to live in.” The task force regularly hosts racial healing workshops and other educational events that foster empathy and encourage Episcopalians to engage in racial and ethnic justice work in and out of church. Its website offers educational and liturgical resources for congregations and church leaders. In 2013, former Southern Virginia Bishop Herman Hollerith IV formally apologized for the diocese’s role in slavery and segregation in a service of repentance, reconciliation and healing. Haynes described the years-long work as “a really big deal,” especially when recognizing the harming of different groups of people “is not a very popular thing to do” outside of church. “It’s not just one diocese attempting to repair the relationship, but it’s the whole people, and it’s the whole church that is trying to stand against harming other groups of people,” Haynes told ENS in a phone interview. “This day of reckoning, at least for myself, is an act of love for my country, because I want my country to be whole and well and healthy. But in order to be whole and well and healthy, we’ve got to acknowledge past wrongdoings first.” The diocesan service comes as Colonial Williamsburg prepares to celebrate its centennial Nov. 14 and 16 as a living-history museum. Much of the museum’s own racial reconciliation work has included uncovering, restoring and centering the stories of the enslaved and free Black people who made up approximately half of Williamsburg’s population in the 18th century. The diocese’s reconciliation journey also included several years of archival research and working closely with the Let Freedom Ring Foundation, a Williamsburg-based nonprofit dedicated to preserving and protecting the site and artifacts of the First Baptist Church of Williamsburg, one of the oldest active congregations, founded in 1776, the birth year of the United States, by enslaved and free Black Americans. The researchers learned that additional 38 unknown enslaved Africans whose skeletal remains, at some point, were excavated from the nearby Pettus Plantation burial site and remain with the Smithsonian Institution. The names of their enslavers are known, though, because their names appear on the pews at Bruton Parish Church. The collaborators are working on repatriating their remains so they can be “properly” buried in Virginia, Brown said. […]

  [Episcopal News Service] Four Episcopal dioceses – Great Lakes, Kansas, New Hampshire and Tennessee – held bishop elections on Oct. 24 during their diocesan conventions. These four dioceses are among the 19 currently undergoing leadership transitions. The Grand Rapids-based Diocese of the Great Lakes, which formed in 2024 following the juncture of the dioceses of Eastern Michigan and Western Michigan, elected the Rev. Zachary “Zack” Nyein as its first bishop diocesan on the second ballot. Nyein, who serves as senior associate rector and pastor of Imagine Worship at St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church in New York, New York, is scheduled to be ordained and consecrated on May 8, 2027. “It is a rare and unique privilege to serve as the first bishop of a new diocese, and I am extraordinarily honored to accept the call,” Nyein said in the diocese’s election announcement. “The Holy Spirit is at work in the Great Lakes, and I look forward to our years of ministry together.” As bishop of the Diocese of the Great Lakes, Nyein will lead 98 congregations, including four seasonal chapels, across 58 counties in Michigan’s Lower Peninsula. Bishop Anne Hodges-Copple has been serving the diocese as an assisting bishop since 2025. The Rev. Whitney Rice, the Diocese of Missouri’s canon to the ordinary, was elected the 11th bishop of the Diocese of Kansas on the first ballot. Her ordination and consecration are scheduled for April 17, 2027, at Grace Episcopal Cathedral in Topeka. The diocese’s former bishop, the Rt. Rev. Cathleen Bascom, resigned on Jan. 31 to serve as a consultant to The Episcopal Church to help create eco-region networks in the United States and Province IX. On the second ballot, the Concord-based Diocese of New Hampshire elected the Rev. Ed Cardoza to be its 11th bishop, succeeding Bishop Robert Hirschfeld. Cardoza’s ordination and consecration are scheduled for March 6, 2027, at Rollins Chapel in Hanover.  Cardoza, who currently serves as priest-in-charge of Grace Episcopal Church in Manchester, New Hampshire, will lead some 10,000 Episcopalians in 46 congregations and eight seasonal chapels statewide.  “To be called to this ministry is a sacred privilege that I accept with a humbled heart, deeply aware of both the immense responsibility and the extraordinary work that lies ahead,” he said in the diocese’s bishop election announcement. “I look forward to ministering across our diocese, united in one Lord, one faith, one baptism.” The Rev. Colin Moore Ambrose, vice rector of St. George’s Episcopal Church in Nashville, Tennessee, was elected the 12th bishop of the Diocese of Tennessee on the third ballot. Upon his ordination and consecration, which are scheduled for April 10, he will succeed the current Tennessee Bishop John C. Bauerschmidt, who has led the diocese since 2007. “I look forward to sharing this life with all of you, being with you in your congregations, worshiping with you, praying with you, serving with you and discerning together what God is making possible among us,” Ambrose said in the diocese’s bishop election announcement. Last month, the Diocese of Florida elected the Rev. J. Randolph Alexander Jr. as its ninth bishop, nearly three years after its previous bishop, the Rt. Rev. John Howard, retired. In August, the dioceses of Northwestern Pennsylvania and Lexington also held bishop elections. -Shireen Korkzan is a reporter and assistant editor for Episcopal News Service. She can be reached at [email protected].

[Anglican Communion News Service] Members of the Compass Rose Society met Oct. 21-22 at One Whitehall Place in London for the annual general meeting. The society has supported the Anglican Communion Office since 1994. Pennsylvania Bishop Daniel Gutiérrez, president of the Compass Rose Society, hosted the event. During the meeting, attendees spent time praying together and reviewing reports from the society’s board and chapter. They also listened to speakers from throughout the Anglican Communion provide updates on their work in person and virtually. The speakers included several Episcopal leaders, including the Rev. Chuck Robertson, senior adviser to Presiding Bishop Sean Rowe; the Rt. Rev. Mark Edington, bishop of the Convocation of Episcopal Churches in Europe; Atlanta Bishop Robert Wright; and the Rev. David Madison, executive director of the National Association of Episcopal Schools. Read the full article here.

[Diocese of Tennessee] The Episcopal Diocese of Tennessee elected the Rev. Colin Moore Ambrose as its 12th bishop on Oct. 24 at Christ Church Cathedral, Nashville. Ambrose was elected on the third ballot, receiving the required two-thirds in both clergy and lay orders on the same ballot. With 67 clergy votes and 105 lay votes cast, he received 48 clergy votes and 73 lay votes. Ambrose greeted the convention via an audio message minutes after his election was announced, saying, “I am overwhelmed, incredibly overwhelmed and humbled by this call, and I accept it with great joy.” When ordained and consecrated bishop on April 10, 2027, Ambrose will succeed the Rt. Rev. John C. Bauerschmidt, who is retiring after leading the diocese since 2006. “Bishop Bauerschmidt, thank you for your faithful leadership and for all you’ve given to this diocese. It will be an honor to follow you and to build on all that you have begun,” Ambrose said. A native of Knoxville, Tennessee, Ambrose received his bachelor’s degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Following college, he worked with Lehman Brothers in New York as a financial analyst and then spent five years as managing partner of a construction and remodeling company he co-founded in Chapel Hill. After discerning a call to ministry, he earned his Master of Divinity degree, cum laude, from Nashotah House Theological Seminary in 2009. He began his ministry in the Diocese of Tennessee at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, where he served as priest associate and then interim priest before being called to St. George’s, Nashville, in 2019, where he currently serves as vice-rector and chief of staff. Ambrose is married to Trisha, and the Ambroses have three children. Reflecting on the future, Ambrose said, “This diocese is home. … I look forward to sharing this life with all of you, being with you in your congregations, worshiping with you, praying with you, serving with you and discerning together what God is making possible among us.” The other nominees were the Rev. Brian Cannaday, canon to the ordinary of the Diocese of Dallas, and the Rev. D. Andy Olivo, rector of St. Elizabeth’s Church, Ridgewood, New Jersey. The Episcopal Diocese of Tennessee encompasses 40 of the 41 counties in Middle Tennessee, serving 43 congregations and other mission outposts, comprising approximately 15,000 Episcopalians.

[Diocese of Kansas] The Rev. Whitney Rice, from the Diocese of Missouri, was elected Oct. 24 as the 11th bishop to lead the Episcopal Diocese of Kansas. Rice was elected on the first round of balloting during an election that took place in the worship space of Grace Cathedral in Topeka, receiving 61% of the lay delegate votes and 59% of the clergy votes. A majority of both clergy and lay votes in the same round was needed for election. Others on the ballot were the Rev. Grant Ambrose of the Diocese of the Susquehanna, the Rev. David Gortner of the Diocese of Spokane and the Rev. Lisa Senuta of the Diocese of Kansas. “I offer my heartfelt congratulations to our newly elected bishop, the Rev. Canon Whitney Rice,” said the Ven. Jim Cummins, president of the governing body that has overseen the diocese in the interim period between bishops. “I am grateful for the discernment, prayer and commitment of all who participated in this important process, and I look forward to the next chapter in the life of our diocese. “Although the selection process extended several months longer than anticipated, that additional time has brought us to this wonderful moment. The result is a truly outstanding bishop-elect, and I am confident that the gifts, faith, and leadership they bring will serve our diocese well. … May we now move forward together with renewed energy and a shared commitment to Christ’s mission, as we welcome our new bishop and embrace the opportunities that lie ahead.” Rice has been serving in the Diocese of Missouri for the past six years, as canon to the ordinary since 2026, and as canon for evangelism and discipleship development since 2020. She attended the University of Kansas and graduated in 2005 with a bachelor’s degree in religious studies and English. When the four candidates toured the diocese during the Meet and Greets, she emphasized how important the diocese’s Canterbury ministry was to her Christian formation and discerning her call to the priesthood. She went on to seminary at Yale Divinity School, where she graduated in 2008. After graduating from seminary, she served parishes in Indiana and Missouri. Rice has also served as the evangelism faculty member at Bishop Kemper School for Ministry and created the Requiem or Renaissance program, an 18-month skills-building and discernment program for congregations seeking revitalization. When not engaged in ministry, she enjoys swing dancing. The service of ordination and consecration by which Rice becomes a bishop and assumes responsibility for the pastoral and administrative work of the diocese, will take place on April 17, 2026, in Grace Cathedral, Topeka. The chief consecrator will be Presiding Bishop Sean Rowe.

[Episcopal Church of New Hampshire] The Rev. Ed Cardoza was elected the 11th bishop of Episcopal Church of New Hampshire on Oct. 24. Cardoza will succeed retiring Bishop Robert Hirschfeld. Lay delegates and clergy elected Cardoza at the diocese’s annual convention in Concord from a slate of three nominees on the second ballot, receiving 55 votes from clergy order and 76 votes from lay representatives. “It is with profound joy that I accept the call to serve as the 11th bishop of the Episcopal Church of New Hampshire. To be called to this ministry is a sacred privilege that I accept with a humbled heart, deeply aware of both the immense responsibility and the extraordinary work that lies ahead,” Cardoza said. “I look forward to ministering across our diocese, united in one Lord, one faith, one baptism. Together as lay and ordained siblings, we will continue to center Jesus and boldly live into New Hampshire’s prophetic tradition – bringing the courageous love of the gospel to all of our neighbors.” The Episcopal Church of New Hampshire serves approximately 10,000 members in 46 congregations and eight seasonal chapels across the state. The diocese describes itself as geographically diverse, spiritually resilient and committed to community-based ministry. Cardoza currently serves as priest-in-charge of Grace Episcopal Church in Manchester, N.H. His previous ministry includes extensive lay and ordained leadership in greater Boston and the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts. He also has experience in global health and outreach work in Haiti and Rwanda, and he served as vice president of development for Partners in Health. A Portuguese-American and native of East Boston, Mass., Cardoza’s faith was formed in Boston’s inner-city parishes. He holds a Master of Arts degree in ministry from Saint John’s Seminary in Brighton, Massachusetts. He has also completed theological training as an auditor in Anglican Studies at the Episcopal Divinity School and as a Canterbury Scholar at Canterbury Cathedral. Cardoza’s ministry and formation work focused on liberation theology, young adult spiritual development and innovative approaches to property stewardship. He co-founded the Contemplative Action Network, an Episcopal-Lutheran collaboration addressing housing instability, recovery support and immigration support. Cardoza and his spouse, Albert, a retired carpenter, live in Peterborough, N.H. They share a strong interest in historic preservation and recently saved a historic home from demolition. “With the election of Rev. Ed, the Episcopal Church of New Hampshire can look forward to an exciting and rewarding mutual ministry,” said Margaret Porter, president of the Standing Committee. “I anticipate that the hopes and dreams expressed in our diocesan profile will help us discover together how we will serve God in these challenging yet promising times. Our diocese has greatly benefitted from the thorough work of our dedicated Search and Transition Committees, their chaplain and our consultant. We are also grateful to each of our nominees for joining us in the holy discernment that has resulted in this joyful outcome.” The other two nominees were the Rev. Kristofer Lindh-Payne and the Rev. Fran Gardner-Smith. Hirschfeld, who has served for 14 years, said he is looking forward to working with Cardoza over the next four months during the transition period. “I am confident that Rev. Ed will lead the Episcopal Church of New Hampshire into its next chapter of witness to God in Christ,” Hirschfeld said. “The Holy Spirit knows this diocese deeply and has clearly shown us God’s wisdom. It will be a joy to walk with Rev. Ed in the months ahead and share the many gifts of this remarkable diocese as he prepares for consecration as bishop. I have found serving God’s people here to be the honor and privilege of my life, and I believe Rev. Ed will, too.” The ordination and consecration of the 11th bishop of New Hampshire will take place March 6, 2027, at Rollins Chapel in Hanover, with the Most Rev. Sean Rowe, presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church, officiating.

[Diocese of the Great Lakes] The Episcopal Diocese of the Great Lakes on Oct. 24 elected the Rev. Zachary Nyein as its first bishop diocesan. Nyein currently serves as senior associate rector and pastor of Imagine Worship at St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church in New York City. Pending completion of the consent process, the bishop-elect will be ordained and consecrated bishop on the Feast of Julian of Norwich, May 8, 2027. “It is a rare and unique privilege to serve as the first bishop of a new diocese, and I am extraordinarily honored to accept the call,” Nyein said. “The Holy Spirit is at work in the Great Lakes, and I look forward to our years of ministry together.” Nyein was elected on the second ballot at the third annual convention of the diocese on Oct. 24. Election required a simple majority of votes in both the lay and clergy orders on the same ballot. On the second ballot, Nyein received 102 of 181 lay votes cast (56%) and 65 of 114 clergy votes cast (57%). The other nominees were the Rev. Terri Bays, missioner to the ordinary in the Diocese of Northern Indiana; the Rev. Nurya Love Parish, director for mission and community engagement in the Diocese of the Great Lakes; and the Rev. Holly Rankin Zaher, rector of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Evansville, Indiana. The Episcopal Diocese of the Great Lakes was formed in 2024 through the juncture of the legacy dioceses of Eastern and Western Michigan. The young diocese comprises 98 congregations, including four seasonal chapels, and spans 58 counties across the Lower Peninsula of Michigan.

[Episcopal News Service] The Rt. Rev. Calvin “Cal” Onderdonk Schofield Jr., who served the Diocese of Southeast Florida as bishop for 20 years, died on Oct. 5 in Denver, Colorado. He was 93. Schofield Jr. “was known for his remarkable sense of humor and his strong, warm pastoral leadership,” St. Gregory’s Episcopal Church in Boca Raton, Florida, posted on its website. Schofield Jr. was born Jan. 6, 1933, in Delhi, New York. He was a member of the Onderdonk family, which produced two Episcopal bishops in the 19th century: the Rt. Rev. Henry Ustick Onderdonk, the second bishop of the Diocese of Pennsylvania, and the Rt. Rev. Benjamin Treadwell Onderdonk, the fourth bishop of the Diocese of New York. Schofield Jr. earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Hobart College in 1959 and a Master of Divinity degree from Berkeley Divinity School at Yale University in 1962, and he was ordained later that year. Schofield Jr. served as curate of St. Peter’s Episcopal Church in St. Petersburg. Florida – now the Cathedral Church of St. Peter and the seat of the Diocese of Southwest Florida – from 1962-1964. He also served vicar of St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Miami from 1964-1979. He additionally served as chaplain of Florida Presbyterian College, now known as Eckerd College, in St. Petersburg, and as a chaplain of the U.S. Navy Reserve. In November 1978, Schofield Jr. was elected bishop coadjutor of the Diocese of Southeast Florida. He was consecrated on March 23, 1979, and became the diocese’s second bishop on Jan. 1, 1980, succeeding Bishop James L. Duncan. Under Schofield Jr.’s episcopacy, Southeast Florida became the first Episcopal diocese to establish a mission for Hispanic ministry and the church’s first Spanish-language Cursillo program. He also ordained the diocese’s first woman priest, the Rev. Winnie Bolle. Schofield Jr. additionally served on Executive Council, The Episcopal Church’s Standing Commission on Human Affairs and Health, and the board of General Theological Seminary. In 1997, he also served as co-chair of the election committee of The Episcopal Church’s 25th presiding bishop, the Most Rev. Frank Griswold. Schofield Jr. retired in 2000 and was succeeded by Bishop Leopold Frade. Schofield Jr. assisted the diocese after retirement until he moved to Colorado. He is survived by his wife, Elaine Schofield, two children and grandchildren. Schofield Jr.’s funeral is scheduled for Nov. 7 at Good Shepherd Episcopal Church in Centennial, Colorado. “Please keep the bishop, his wife Elaine and their family in your prayers,” the Diocese of Southeast Florida said in an Oct. 5 announcement.

[Anglican Communion News Service] With King Charles III’s approval, Pope Leo XIV is now Papal Confrater of the College of St. George at St. George’s Chapel, Windsor. This act of confraternity represents a visible sign of spiritual fellowship, ecumenical friendship and Christian fraternity. It recognizes both the centuries-old relationship between the College and Chapel of St. George, Windsor, and the Holy See, and the progress in relations between the Church of England, the Anglican Communion and the Roman Catholic Church. It also reflects the deep mutual esteem between the king and the pope and their shared desire for Christian unity. Read the full article here.

[Episcopal News Service – Stevens Point, Wisconsin] Barb Bowers and Sue Sachs are both longtime residents of this college town in the center of the state. And both are active in their church, Beloved Community, on the east end of Stevens Point. On a recent Sunday morning before the congregation’s 8:15 a.m. service, both were in the church’s kitchen area assembling finger food for post-worship coffee hour. What may set the two women apart are their denominational roots — Bowers comes from the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, while Sachs is Episcopalian — yet they and their congregation now blend both traditions. The former Redeemer Lutheran Church and the former Intercession Episcopal Church joined in October 2024 to become one Beloved Community. The congregation is officially Episcopal and Lutheran, part of both the Episcopal Diocese of Wisconsin and the ELCA’s East Central Synod of Wisconsin. As Sachs removed grapes from stems and placed them in a bowl, she recalled the financial challenges at Intercession Episcopal Church that prompted the two congregations’ initial partnership. “We could not afford to maintain our church,” Sachs told Episcopal News Service, and at that time, in 2017, Redeemer Lutheran Church was looking for a new pastor. “Redeemer needed some help, and we needed some help,” Sachs said. Intercession’s rector, the Rev. Jane Johnson, agreed to serve both congregations, and Redeemer invited Intercession to worship in Redeemer’s building. Combining their congregations was possible because of The Episcopal Church’s 26-year-old full communion relationship with the ELCA, in which congregations from the two denominations are able to share clergy and worship together. Beloved Community also is one of a growing number of blended congregations, sometimes referred to as “Lutherpalian,” that are finding ways to survive and even thrive by drawing on both churches’ traditions. “I was comfortable with pews and kneeling and all of that good stuff,” Sachs said of her past experience attending Episcopal services. Beloved Community now offers an early service that is mostly based in The Episcopal Church’s Book of Common Prayer Rite II for Holy Eucharist, followed by a late-morning service that is more Lutheran and more contemporary. Total Sunday attendance averages about 80 a week. The initial transition was “very difficult” for Sachs, but “I’ve totally settled in now,” she said. She has made friends with members of the former Redeemer congregation. There is no precise record of all the Episcopal and Lutheran congregations engaged in various levels of collaboration under full communion, though the number of combined congregations is a more defined and much smaller subset. The most recent list maintained by the ELCA on cooperative agreements, as of 2025, counts 16 “federated” Lutheran-Episcopal congregations and eight “union” Lutheran-Episcopal congregations. Federated is defined as two congregations that remain separate entities but function as one church for worship and to conduct other activities together, while union congregations are single entities and members of both denominations. The breadth of these joint congregations likely is not fully represented even by the ELCA’s 2025 list. Beloved Community, for example, is not yet listed there. The number, however, appears to be growing — up from 14 federated and union Lutheran-Episcopal congregations listed in 2017. Episcopal News Service spoke with the leaders of other merged congregations. They said the decisions to combine often were rooted in practical concerns about both congregations’ viability, and now they happily identify as both Episcopal and Lutheran. “We’re coming to a point where we can do so much more together than we can separately, and I think we’re better when we can learn from each other,” the Rev. Joyce Partyka Staib told ENS. Staib is the pastor of Spirit of Grace Church in the Detroit suburb of West Bloomfield, Michigan. Like Beloved Community in Wisconsin, Spirit of Grace Church has a foot in both denominations, as a member of the Episcopal Diocese of Michigan and the ELCA’s Southeast Michigan Synod. Spirit of Grace was created about a decade ago when an Episcopal congregation needed a new worship space and arranged to share the facilities of a Lutheran congregation. After initially worshipping separately at different times on Sundays, the two decided to try worshipping together. They discovered they enjoyed the joint services, and “at the end of the summer, they didn’t want to separate,” said Staib, who was ordained in the ELCA and has led the combined congregation for the past three years. Spirit of Grace is listed as a federated congregation and makes decisions as one body. “I am their first jointly called pastor,” Staib said. There are some differences in the polity and governance of the two denominations, but their theologies are quite similar, she said. Spirit of Grace worships at one Sunday service that combines the two traditions. “In my experience, it’s really not difficult to do that because they’re really not that different from each other,” Staib said. Other joint Episcopal-Lutheran congregations still try to offer members elements familiar from both traditions. One example is the Church of the Nativity and Holy Comforter in Baltimore, Maryland, which describes itself as “an Episcopal-Lutheran community.” The Episcopal Church of the Nativity and Lutheran Church of the Holy Comforter became a federated congregation of both denominations in 2018, and since then, they have worshiped as one. The 8 a.m. Sunday service mostly follows The Episcopal Church Book of Common Prayer’s Rite I for Holy Eucharist “with a few Lutheran embellishments,” the Rev. Annette Chappelle told ENS. The 10:30 a.m. service is larger and follows a liturgy that is about half Episcopal and half Lutheran. Blended liturgies are just right for this blended congregation. “I think many of the people in the congregation by now pretty much regard themselves as ‘Lutherpalians,’” Chappelle said. Diverse Christians unite in new spiritual homes, ‘wild’ and ‘beautiful’ Sachs and Bowers credit Johnson for her leadership in bringing the two congregations in Stevens Point together as Beloved Community. “She has done an amazing job,” Sachs said. For a merger like this […]

[World Council of Churches] Three United Nations conventions were born at the 1992 Rio Earth Summit, and in 2026 all three hold their Conference of the Parties (COP). After the desertification COP17 in August in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, the biodiversity COP17 opened Oct. 19 in Yerevan, Armenia. From Mongolia to Armenia, the World Council of Churches brings the same case: the crises of land, biodiversity and climate are bound together, and none can be solved without the communities who live with them. “In Ulaanbaatar, we said that land will not be restored without the communities who hold it. Indigenous peoples are rights holders, and young people are partners, not guests. The biodiversity framework will move from promises to action only if their voices shape it,” said Athena Peralta, director of the World Council of Churches’ Commission on Climate Justice and Sustainable Development. COP17 is the first global review of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, the plan adopted in 2022 with 23 targets for 2030. The ecumenical delegation has 20 members from 16 countries. They are traveling with the World Council of Churches, Lutheran World Federation and Anglican Communion. The Armenian Apostolic Church’s Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin is hosting the World Council of Churches’ delegation. Read the full article here.

[Anglican Taonga] The Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia has committed to developing a strategic response to artificial intelligence, which will consider the impact of AI technologies on physical, intellectual and spiritual aspects of human life. “Many people are writing and researching on the current impact of AI from environmental and social perspectives, but I think there’s a space for us to approach it through the dual lenses of theology and the three-tikanga church,” Dunedin Bishop Anne van Gend said. The Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia has a unique three-person primacy, reflecting the three Tikangas, or cultural streams (Pākehā, Māori and Polynesia), within the church. Read the full article here.

[Episcopal News Service] The United Nations is four days into its biennial Conference of the Parties on the Convention on Biological Diversity, and the Rt. Rev. Cathleen Bascom, The Episcopal Church’s eco-region networks coordinator and former bishop of Kansas, is there representing Presiding Bishop Sean Rowe. Bascom is in Yerevan, Armenia, Oct. 19-30 for the 17th U.N. biodiversity conference, or COP17, as part of a five-person Anglican delegation. While in Yerevan, the delegation is acknowledging Indigenous wisdom as they advocate for protecting oceans, for just finance for at-risk communities and for a cleaner agricultural system. “I come to COP17 ready to share some innovative practices and positive impacts reported from our networks,” Bascom told Anglican Communion News Service. “Above all, I travel to Armenia to learn.” This is The Episcopal Church’s second time participating in the U.N. biodiversity conference. In 2024, Bascom was part of the church’s three-person delegation as an observer organization. That conference, which was held in Santiago de Cali, Colombia, concluded with no clear agreement on key topics. Negotiations later continued in Rome, Italy. Representatives from nearly 200 countries are attending COP17. The United States is not an official voting party to the Convention on Biological Diversity, but representatives from Native American tribal nations and other groups are participating. The U.S. Council for International Business also sent a multisectoral business group to present private-sector solutions to biodiversity issues. The biodiversity conference is different from the U.N.’s annual climate change conference, which will take place in November in Antalya, Turkey. Bascom will also represent The Episcopal Church and participate in the climate change conference as part of the Anglican Communion delegation. The biodiversity conference focuses on protecting and preserving all life on earth, including animals, plants and microorganisms. The climate change conference, on the other hand, focuses on limiting the rise of Earth’s surface temperature to reduce the frequency of extreme weather events, including hurricanes, wildfires, severe rain events, increased flooding and heatwaves. Climate change is among several factors leading to the rapid decline of Earth’s biodiversity. Overfishing, poaching and habitat loss when land is taken for agriculture are other factors, which have left more than 1 million animals on the brink of extinction. Human population growth is a central factor because of the increased need for infrastructure and converting natural habitats for agriculture, which have significantly reduced space for wildlife to thrive. Under this year’s theme, “Taking Action for Nature,” the conference is assessing progress in implementing the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, which was adopted in 2022 by 196 countries. The framework lists 23 targets to be met by 2030 to halt and reverse biodiversity loss. One of those targets, called the 30×30 target, is to ensure that 30% of land and water are conserved by 2030. At The Episcopal Church’s 81st General Convention in 2024 in Louisville, Kentucky, the House of Bishops and House of Deputies passed D029, “Commit to the 30×30 Initiative for Biodiversity,” which directs all Episcopal institutions to adopt, support and promote the 30×30 target. As of 2024, 8.4% of marine and coastal areas were protected or conserved, compared with 17.6% of land and inland waters, according to the Protected Planet Report 2024, the first official review of global progress towards implementing the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. The conference is also addressing issues related to climate change, agriculture and health. The Anglican delegation is focusing on four priorities at COP17: Share generational wisdom to secure nature and communities; ensure that governments’ finances are channeled towards those who need it most; call on governments to restore and protect the oceans as one of the “Lungs of the Earth”; and show that balancing food security and sustainability is possible. Built around relationship, restoration and resilience, the Anglican Communion’s “Lungs of the Earth” initiative describes how Anglicans can be involved in working to restore and protect three vital ecosystems: forests, oceans and frozen landscapes. This includes participation in reforestation initiatives like the Communion Forest, and also amplifies environmental and advocacy work from Anglican provinces around the world and celebrates the work of Anglican environmental activists, including Green Anglicans and the Anglican Communion Environmental Network. While in Yerevan, Bascom said she hopes to gain ideas in strengthening The Episcopal Church’s 12 eco-region networks, which address region-specific biodiversity and climate issues. “From our own Anglican delegation members and the many scientists, faith groups and government actors, I hope to glean best practices and spiritual insights that will empower efforts in our Episcopal eco-region networks.” -Shireen Korkzan is a reporter and assistant editor for Episcopal News Service. She can be reached at [email protected].

[Anglican Communion News Service] The Anglo-Roman Catholic International Commission held a virtual plenary meeting concluding the second phase of its latest work, which began in 2019. The commission is the principal theological dialogue between the Anglican Communion and the Roman Catholic Church. It brings together theologians and church leaders to deepen their shared understanding of Christian faith, with the goal of restoring full, visible unity. During the meeting, commission members approved the final draft of the agreed upon statement for this phase of their work, called “While They Were Talking and Discussing: Learning to Do Moral Discernment in Communion.” Read the full article here.

[Religion News Service] Growing numbers of people in Britain are defining themselves as Christian nationalists, according to a new survey — but the majority of them are not churchgoing Christians.   The report, “Beyond Christian Nationalism — Measuring Attitudes to Christianity and Britishness Today,” published by the reputable think tank Theos, surveyed 1,765 people. It shows that more than 10% of those surveyed identify as Christian nationalists.   The movement is relatively new in Britain but has caused concern, including among bishops who have tried to disassociate the established Church of England from it following large demonstrations and some well-known far-right, anti-migrant activists saying that they have become Christians. According to the Theos study, about 11% of those surveyed — more than 1 in 10 Britons — have views that resemble those of Christian nationalists. These people embody an ideology that merges national identity with their idea of Christianity and believe that it should be central to British culture and given prominence over other faiths and secular views.   The 11%, termed “identity integrationists” by the study, had a strong identification with Christianity, yet just 13% reported attending church weekly, only slightly above the 11% average for church attendance across the whole survey. There was much more enthusiasm from them, however, for the Bible — just under half of them expressed an interest in it — and just under a third said they prayed every week.   This group showed hostility to Islam and were disinclined to follow church doctrine on welcoming the stranger: Only 19% agreed that Christianity requires supporting asylum seekers. The report shows that their Christianity is cultural rather than doctrinal and that they are “deeply, indeed viscerally, culturally Christian.”  They are overwhelmingly white, and although not poor, they tend not to be highly skilled and more likely to live in rural areas.   Another group, termed “belief integrationists,” holds stronger religious beliefs in the nationalism-Christianity equation and are considerably less hostile to immigration. Almost half (48%) agreed that Christian values require welcoming and supporting asylum seekers. These “belief integrationists” made up 13% of those surveyed. Among this group, 31% attend church every week, 46% pray weekly and 62% expressed an interest in the Bible. They are more likely to be younger, male, poorer, urban and non-white, with conservative moral values and traditional ideas about masculinity.   Despite being less hostile to asylum seekers, the report says that “a remarkable two-thirds of this group hold to the Great Replacement Theory (of white people being replaced by immigrants).”  Nick Spencer, a senior fellow at Theos and one of the report’s authors, said: “Until now there has been little research done in Britain on whether Christian nationalists go to church. This shows that the keenest nationalists don’t go to church very often.  “When we asked these people about the white population being deliberately replaced, it’s off the scale among Christian nationalists.”   In the past two years, demonstrations put on by the Unite the Kingdom organization have drawn thousands of people, with wooden crosses and the English flag (called the flag of St. George, with a red cross on a white background) being carried by the large crowds. Tommy Robinson, one of Britain’s most well-known anti-Islam, anti-migrant activists, spoke at a Christmas concert last season after he converted to Christianity in prison. Robinson told concertgoers, “Something great is happening. I’ve seen it at each one of our Unite the Kingdom events as I saw the cross start being prevalent.” Bishops in the Church of England have warned about the co-opting of Christian symbols and rhetoric to support anti-migrant views. In July a working group of the Church of England’s bishops urged its General Synod to focus on national unity. The group, led by the Bishop of Leicester, Martyn Snow, urged Christians to model a healthy sense of patriotism and reclaim symbols like the St. George’s flag as a sign of unity rather than division. The flag has traditionally been strongly associated with the Church of England as it flies from its churches’ towers.   The Theos report has been welcomed as one of the first major studies delving into Christian nationalism in Britain. John Heathershaw, professor of international relations at the University of Exeter and research associate at the Centre for the Study of Bible and Violence, said that until now there has been little robust research into the topic. “The survey is useful because Christian nationalism is not a coherent ideology, and not a social and political movement but a cluster of attitudes,” he said.   Heathershaw called “belief integrationists” the most interesting group identified by the survey. In a recent Substack, he wrote:   “My guess is that many of them are charismatic evangelicals, the largest growing group in the UK and across much of the world. Forgive the caricature, but one typical belief integrationist may be a Nigerian Pentecostal man in his 30s or 40s. While they may be a small minority nationally, they are an increasingly significant part of the Christian faith. Although 54% of this group say they are proud that Britain “is predominantly white” (p.118), they are by far the least white group of all five identified by Theos. Of course, racialized views are not exclusively held by the racial majority.”  The most worrying aspect found by the survey, Heathershaw told RNS, is the sizable number of people who believe that there is a concerted effort to replace Britain’s population with another group.   “It shows right across the survey that 37% of people support the Great Replacement Theory. That is remarkable and troubling,” he said. The report also highlights how divided Britain is over the role of Christianity. Sizable numbers of people want it to have no public role — despite the nation having an established church, with 26 Church of England bishops sitting in the Parliament’s second chamber, the House of Lords. About half the population wants to keep Christianity out of politics, with 34% of those surveyed saying […]

[Episcopal News Service] The Diocese of Easton, which includes congregations in eastern Maryland, mostly on the Chesapeake Bay’s Eastern Shore, announced Oct. 21 that the standing committee had nominated Delaware Bishop Kevin Brown to serve Easton as bishop provisional during its leadership transition. An election with Brown as the sole nominee is scheduled for the Easton Diocesan Convnention on Feb. 26 and 27 in Cambridge, Maryland. The standing committee expects to provide additional details soon. Brown has served as bishop of the neighboring Diocese of Delaware since 2017. He will continue to serve as Delaware’s bishop diocesan if elected bishop provisional of Easton. “The Diocese of Easton is in a season of transition and discernment, considering what its future may hold and how best to move forward,” Brown said in a letter to his diocese that was shared by the Easton standing committee. “During this time, its leaders are asking for stability, pastoral care and episcopal leadership that will allow them to continue their ministry while thoughtfully discerning their next steps.” Easton has been without a bishop diocesan for about a year, after former Easton Bishop Santosh Marray stepped down at the end of October 2025 to take three months of vacation and sabbatical and then retiring at the beginning of February 2026. During the transition, the standing committee formed a steering committee to work with the Rt. Rev. Mary Gray-Reeves, a trained conflict mediator, to plan listening gatherings across the diocese to support reconciliation and healing. In July 2023, Marray was the subject of a disciplinary complaint alleging inappropriate behavior, according to information posted in May 2024 to The Episcopal Church’s website. Few details have been released publicly about the allegations, other than that “multiple complainants” made allegations of “inappropriate public statements and behavior” by Marray. A separate complaint was filed in February 2024 by a single complainant alleging “inappropriate public statements and misrepresentations.” Under the church’s Title IV disciplinary canons, a reference panel issued determinations in January 2025 concluding both matters with pastoral responses. No other information was provided about the cases’ resolution. The Diocese of Easton also has said previously it would consider engaging with other dioceses as it navigates its leadership transition, to “determine whether our participation in God’s mission could be strengthened by collaborating or partnering with another nearby diocese.” Brown, in his letter to the Diocese of Delaware, said he remained committed to leading his home diocese. “At the same time, I believe there are moments when we are called to look beyond our own borders and consider how we might serve the wider church,” he said. “Easton is our neighbor and our sister diocese. When our neighbors need help, we have an opportunity to respond with generosity, compassion, and faith. “I believe this is one of those moments. … I ask that you keep the people of Easton, our own diocesan community, and me in your prayers as we move forward.” The Diocese of Easton separated from the Baltimore-based Diocese of Maryland in 1868. Today, the Diocese of Maryland, at 26,000 members, is nearly four times as large as the Diocese of Easton, with fewer than 7,000 members, according to the church’s most recently released diocesan totals from 2023. The Diocese of Washington, with about 31,000 members, also includes some congregations in Maryland just north and south of the U.S. capital. Delaware reported just under 7,000 members. The Diocese of Easton engaged in a previous period of discernment a decade ago. At that time, it considered partnering with another diocese but decided to remain independent. It elected Marray as its bishop in 2016. – David Paulsen is a senior reporter and editor for Episcopal News Service based in Wisconsin. He can be reached at [email protected].

[Episcopal News Service] A federal appeals court panel has ruled in favor of The Episcopal Church and 26 ecumenical and interfaith partners in a lawsuit contesting the Trump administration’s removal of “sensitive locations” protections for houses of worship in immigration enforcement. The three-judge panel of the Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ruled, 2-1, that a lower court judge erred in finding that the faith-based plaintiffs lacked standing to file their lawsuit. The plaintiffs have argued that the Trump administration’s intensified immigration enforcement actions have driven some worshippers to stay home. The lower court judge ruled in April 2025 that The Episcopal Church and other plaintiffs had not sufficiently demonstrated an imminent threat. The Court of Appeals reversed that decision, sending the case back to the U.S. District Court to rule on the merits of the plaintiff’s arguments. “Plaintiffs’ members likely face imminent harm from increased enforcement at their houses of worship,” the Court of Appeals opinion says. “That harm is traceable to the new enforcement policy.” Presiding Bishop Sean Rowe and House of Deputies President Julia Ayala Harris issued a joint statement Oct. 20 after the appellate court ruling was handed down. “As faith leaders who have borne witness to the harm of ICE enforcement on our congregations — and the impact of immigration in one of our families — we give thanks to God for today’s milestone in our multifaith effort to protect religious freedom,” the presiding officers said. “In The Episcopal Church, we cannot truly be ourselves when some cannot freely worship with us. Civic engagement is an important way Christians can demonstrate love for our neighbors, and with this litigation, we are challenging unjust policies that fall short of respecting the dignity of all people.” The interfaith group of religious denominations and organizations sued the Department of Homeland Security in February 2025 after the Trump administration rescinded a policy that had protected houses of worship, schools and hospitals. Since then, the Trump administration has escalated its campaign of immigrant detentions and deportations to include aggressive enforcement operations in targeted cities across the country. The deployment of Immigrations and Custom Enforcement officers, as well as Customs and Border Protection agents, has rattled communities, sparked protests and sometimes resulted in violent and deadly confrontations with both immigrants and U.S. citizens. There have not been widespread reports of raids inside houses of worship, though in cities with a large federal presence, some churches have been joining efforts to assist immigrant families who are afraid to leave their homes to go to work or school or even to get groceries. One Episcopal church in Minnesota also was on a list of houses of worship where Homeland Security was reported to have spied on activists holding meetings there. The Episcopal Church is one of 12 denominations that have signed onto the federal lawsuit, which also includes the Disciples of Christ, Mennonite, Methodist, Presbyterian and AME Zion churches. Other plaintiffs include regional denominational bodies and other religious associations. The plaintiffs, represented by the nonpartisan Georgetown University Law Center, have argued the Trump administration is violating religious freedom protections in the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993. – David Paulsen is a senior reporter and editor for Episcopal News Service based in Wisconsin. He can be reached at [email protected].

[Anglican Journal] Nov. 30 marks the 50th anniversary of the ordination of women as priests in the Anglican Church of Canada. Dioceses and parishes across Canada are holding events to commemorate the occasion, ranging from themed Sunday Eucharist services to a two-day event in Victoria. Ontario Archbishop Anne Germond formerly served as acting primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, the second female primate after Archbishop Linda Nicholls. Germond calls women’s ordination a “significant historic event for our church” and says women’s leadership gifts, though present before 1976, have flourished and enriched the church since that milestone. She said parents have approached her on parish visits to say their daughters were inspired by seeing her in a leadership role. Ordained in 2002, Germond said she has been welcomed both at the parish level and in the national church. Still, she said, there are challenges women in ordained ministry face, including the balance between family expectations and a career in the church. Read the full article here.

[Episcopal News Service] The Episcopal Church’s Office of Indigenous Ministries and the faith-based nonprofit Soul Shop Movement held the first “train the trainers” program at Calvary Episcopal Cathedral in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, teaching future trainers how to teach suicide prevention workshops for Indigenous communities. The early October five-day training, which was funded by a United Thank Offering grant, stems from the successful pilot training at the annual Winter Talk conference for Indigenous Episcopalians in February in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Most of the 10 future trainers were Indigenous, representing tribes and groups throughout the continental United States and Hawai‘i. “Everyone who was there talked about how meaningful this training was, and they all shared how their lives have been touched by suicide in some way, which is such a big problem in Indian country,” the Rev. Shaneequa Brokenleg, the church’s staff officer for racial reconciliation and interim missioner for Indigenous ministry and an enrolled member of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe (Sicangu Nation), told Episcopal News Service. In the United States, Indigenous people die by suicide at higher rates than any other racial or ethnic group, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Suicide is the second leading cause of death among Indigenous youth ages 8 to 24. Systemic injustices, attempts by the U.S. government and big businesses to seize sacred Indigenous lands for natural resource extraction, the intergenerational trauma caused by the legacy of Indigenous boarding schools and colonialism, and the high rate of missing and murdered Indigenous people, especially women and girls, are major drivers in the Indigenous communities’ high suicide rates. These issues are increasingly being recognized as acts of literal and cultural genocide. James White, a member of the Winnebago tribe of Nebraska Ho-Chunk and junior warden at St. Paul’s Indian Mission Episcopal Church in Sioux City, Iowa, told ENS that he registered for the Oct. 5-9 training because suicide is a personal issue for him, and learning about different resources can help people “try and save a life.” “When I was 17, my best friend died by suicide, and later, in my 20s, I was addicted to drugs and alcohol. Through that time, I had seen suicide, and I myself had suicidal thoughts,” White said. “Now in my sobriety, I feel my call from God to help people, and becoming a trainer for Soul Shop is just another way to answer my call.” Soul Shop offers in-person suicide prevention workshops nationwide led by trained professionals in partnership with organizations like the Episcopal Parish Network and the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. The program also offers specialized training for Black and Hispanic churches, youth leaders and more. For the training, Soul Shop used a new curriculum designed specifically for Indigenous communities in collaboration with Indigenous Ministries and Indigenous leaders representing multiple tribes, including several members of The Episcopal Church’s Truth, Justice and Healing Commission on Native Schools. Like other curricula, the Indigenous curriculum addresses what Soul Shop calls the “seven Cs,” or causes, for suicidal desperation: Sickness, stuck, shunning, systemic situations, stress and shame. The program also gives an overview of suicidal desperation in Scripture, such as Job 7:13-15 and Acts 16:23-34. “The core messaging reminded me so much of The Episcopal Church in general, which is a really good thing,” Ui Stark, a Kānaka Maoli (Native Hawaiian) lay leader at St. John the Baptist Episcopal Church in Waianae, Oahu, Hawai‘i, told ENS. “What I like about being Episcopalian in particular is that I can go to a church service in the Midwest, in the South, in Hawai‘i, and the bones of it are the same, but every congregation is unique. Soul Shop is the same in that the bones of the message are the same and the principles are the same. That’s why I loved this training.” The Indigenous curriculum incorporates various Indigenous imagery and symbolism, which vary by tribe and region. One metaphor that spoke to everyone was “life-giving, living water.” “Looking at suicidal desperation as different things ‘taking water away,’ it might be trauma; it might be job loss; it might be anything, but it’s taking away the water that you need to survive. That’s something everyone could relate to,” Brokenleg said. “There’s not one Indigenous symbol for everybody, but water as being life-giving is a symbol we can all believe.” Like every other Soul Shop workshop, the Indigenous “train the trainers” program had experienced “lifeguards” who observed trainees throughout the training and checked with anyone showing signs of distress. “There were some tears at different points in time, but that was to be expected,” Brokenleg said. “But I think what I really saw from people was, while there’s pain in that our lives have been touched by suicide, there’s also a lot of hope. … And that’s one of the key pieces of this curriculum, that there’s a sharing of hope like there’s a sharing of peace at church.” The Rev. Bradley Hauff, a Lakota and a member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe, is an endowed professor of Indigenous congregational studies with the Indigenous Theological Circle at Bexley Seabury Seminary and The Episcopal Church’s former Indigenous Ministries missioner. As a priest, he believes Episcopalians can help prevent suicide, “but we have to find ways to be able to do it and engage with those who are contemplating suicide or have thoughts of suicidal ideation or despair.” “[Soul Shop] identified two significant causes or contributors to suicidal ideation, or suicidal despair: loss of hope and loss of social connections. The church can certainly provide both,” Hauff told ENS. “Church programming and clergy and pastoral visitors reaching out to people so that nobody’s alone, keeping track of our members and those who visited the congregation and newcomers … the church has been doing that all along, but we can do better. It would be a blessing if people who don’t go to church could at least identify the church as a source […]

[Episcopal News Service] The Episcopal Church has found a prospective buyer for its 12-story office building in New York, New York, and is finalizing a tentative plan to move out of the longtime church headquarters, based on sale negotiations authorized on Oct. 19 by Executive Council, the church’s governing body between General Conventions. The buyer has not been named and the price has not been revealed, but the impending sale, if completed, would mark the culmination of decades of discussions about whether to maintain the current denominational headquarters or downsize in another location. The Episcopal Church Center in Midtown Manhattan is commonly referred to as “815” because of its street address, 815 Second Ave. A quarter of the proceeds from its sale will be set aside to pay for temporary offices in Manhattan and, eventually, to “fund costs associated with a new permanent location for the Church Center in a metropolitan area or state to be determined,” according to the resolution adopted by Executive Council. The rest of the proceeds, 75%, is to be placed in a new trust fund that will distribute grants for church planting, redevelopment and revitalization as part of Presiding Bishop Sean Rowe’s strategic framework for the church’s future, which also was adopted by Executive Council during a one-day meeting in the headquarters building. “I think it’s really the opportunity to put our money where our mouth is, and say we’re going to repurpose an asset that we have that has been given to us as a legacy, and we’re going to use it to plant seeds for the future,” Rowe told Episcopal News Service after Executive Council’s votes. “This is essentially saying we’re going to sell the house in order to plant new churches and revitalize our congregations, and I think it sends a great message to the church.” The Episcopal Church Center includes 146,000 square feet of space, but in recent years, much of the churchwide staff has worked remotely in locations across the United States and Europe. Less than half the building is now occupied by church operations or affiliated organizations. In 2012, bishops and deputies at General Convention voted in favor of pursuing a new headquarters. The resolution said simply: “It is the will of this Convention to move the Church Center headquarters away from the Church Center building at 815 2nd Avenue, New York City.” Despite the 2012 resolution, planning for such a relocation never got off the ground. Chief Financial Officer Christopher Lacovara researched what it has cost the church to keep the building in the years since that vote. “If we had sold 815 Second Ave. following the 2012 General Convention resolution, invested the proceeds in the endowment and avoided the losses incurred by operating the building since then, we would now have $85 million in additional funds,” Lacovara said in a written statement to ENS. In June 2026, Executive Council voted to hire New York-based Denham Wolf Real Estate Services to market the 63-year-old building for a possible sale. “In July through September 2026, the DFMS conducted a broad marketing process and received numerous offers to sell the building for cash,” the council said in documentation supporting the vote, referring to the church’s corporate entity, the Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society. Under the pending sale, the church would have access to one floor of the current headquarters through 2027 while it arranges to relocate to new offices. House of Deputies President Julia Ayala Harris, in her opening remarks to Executive Council, said the building’s sale raises the question, “what are we called to sustain?” “Our faithfulness will not be measured by whether we preserved a certain address, but by whether our decisions have enabled the church to serve God’s Mission, and that question … goes well beyond the matter of this building,” Ayala Harris said.