In a letter to the diocese on March 14, 2024, Bishop Kristin White announced that she has called the Rev. Canon Jodi Baron to serve as canon to the ordinary. Baron currently serves as canon and senior associate to the dean at Christ Church Cathedral, Indianapolis. She will join the bishop’s staff on April 16. The text of the letter and a message from Canon Baron follow below.
Dear Friends,
I am delighted to share with you that I have called the Rev. Canon Jodi Baron to serve as our diocese’s next canon to the ordinary. She will join our diocesan staff on April 16.
Jodi currently serves as canon and senior associate to the dean of Christ Church Cathedral, Indianapolis. In that role, she has oversight of staff, volunteers, and ministry development; she serves as advisor to the dean; and she ensures the cathedral’s day-to-day implementation of its mission and vision.
Prior to her ministry at Christ Church Cathedral, Jodi served two small rural parishes in the Diocese of Western Michigan as co-rector with her spouse, the Rev. Christian Baron. Before that, as a newly ordained priest, she was curate/associate of Grace Church in Holland, Michigan.
Jodi has served as a member of Diocesan Council in the Episcopal Diocese of Western Michigan and was a member of the Standing Committee in that diocese during a time when the committee assumed ecclesiastical authority of the diocese. She currently serves, by appointment of Bishop Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows, on the Reunification Discernment Team that is considering the possibility of reunion between the Dioceses of Northern Indiana and Indianapolis.
Jodi’s faithfulness as a disciple of Jesus is evident in her deep love for the church, both in small, rural settings, and in large, urban contexts. I know her to be prayerful and caring, trustworthy and steadfast, and I believe that she is particularly suited to this role at this time. I am excited for you to get to know her.
Jodi grew up in Traverse City, Michigan and earned a Master of Divinity from the Seminary of the Southwest with a concentration in Hispanic Ministry. She and her husband have three high school-aged children. Their family delights in sharing Family Fridays, traveling together, spending time with extended family and friends, and playing with their beloved dog, Daisy.
As we prepare to welcome Jodi to the Diocese of Southern Ohio, I continue to give thanks for the ministry of the Rev. Canon John Johanssen throughout these past four years. John has been profoundly generous in welcoming me as bishop, and equally gracious as we have discerned Jodi’s call to this role. John will overlap in ministry with Jodi through the last two weeks of April to help ensure a smooth transition, and I am grateful to John for agreeing to serve after that from time to time with special diocesan projects.
In Christ,
The Rt. Rev. Kristin Uffelman White
Bishop
A message from Canon Baron
Dear people of God in Southern Ohio,
I am filled with gratitude to have the opportunity to join you in this important time in your life and mission as disciples of Jesus; living, working, and exploring the wonders of the Diocese of Southern Ohio alongside you.
As a rector, some of the most exciting aspects of my ministry were empowering leaders and staff to work together in faithful and effective ways. That meant helping them to discover, sometimes for the first time, how their voices and experiences could help further the mission of God in this time and in this place. I found Jesus in the people of Christ’s church and in their desire to be a part of what the Holy Spirit was doing among them.
When the dean invited me to join Christ Church Cathedral in Indianapolis as canon and senior associate, I found every aspect of this new work to be exciting, challenging, and fulfilling. I loved the ministry of connecting the cathedral’s vision with its day-to-day ministries. My work helped our staff and leaders to function more effectively. Together, we helped to equip our members as faithful disciples of Jesus.
When Bishop White began her search for the next canon to the ordinary, I felt drawn to the work that she described in your midst, which echoed the ministry I have loved, but at the wider diocesan level. I love working collaboratively, with both lay and ordained leaders, to build connections and develop relationships. I feel particularly called to cultivate a culture of faithful discipleship that builds up the Body of Christ, that is the church, which I love with all that I am.
I bring a commitment to relationship, a prayerful spirit, and a passion for connecting mission and vision with action. I am excited to get to know you. I look forward to imagining together what this next phase of our common life might look like, from near the beginning, with your new bishop, and then to helping bring those dreams into being, with God’s help.
In Peace,
The Rev. Canon Jodi Baron
