The 81st General Convention of The Episcopal Church will take place from June 23 to 28 at the Kentucky International Convention Center in Louisville, Kentucky, but convention activities begin in earnest on June 21. On that day, nominees for presiding bishop will participate in a forum hosted by the Joint Nominating Committee for the Election of the Presiding Bishop at 4 p.m. The event will be livestreamed; check the General Convention Media Hub for more details. Nominees for president of the House of Deputies will take part in a General Convention Office-hosted forum earlier on the same afternoon at 2 p.m.
The 28th Presiding Bishop will be elected from among five nominees by the House of Bishops in a closed session at Christ Church Cathedral, Louisville, on June 26. After a successful confirmation vote in the House of Deputies, the new presiding bishop-elect will be introduced to the House of Deputies in a livestreamed session.
The Diocese of Southern Ohio will be represented at General Convention by Bishop White and eight deputies — four laypeople and four clergy — who were elected by diocesan convention in 2022. Four deputies serve on House of Deputies legislative committees, including the Rev. Gia Hayes-Martin on the Committee on Agencies and Boards; the Rev. Lynn Carter-Edmands on the Committee on the Title IV Disciplinary Canons; Deborah Stokes-Wayne on the Committee on Racial Truth-Telling, Reckoning, and Healing; and Harold Patrick on the House of Deputies Committee on the Confirmation of the Election of a Presiding Bishop.
Canon Julie Murray, a long-time volunteer in the General Convention secretariat, will also attend General Convention, as will Kathy Mank, a delegate to the triennial meeting of the Episcopal Church Women which meets during General Convention.
The convention’s legislative business will get underway on June 23 after an opening Eucharist. The Rev. Canon Scott Gunn, a six-time deputy, chairs Southern Ohio’s deputation and is preparing for the work ahead by blogging about each of the resolutions — currently 257 — that the convention will consider on his blog, “Seven Whole Days.”
His criteria for determining whether he will support a resolution, he writes, is simple. “I’m going to take a hard pass on any legislation that cannot be tied back to making disciples. If we are not proclaiming and sharing the grace and mercy of God, what are we even doing?” Read the blog series, titled Resolutionpalooza, which Gunn emphasizes is a personal project and does not reflect the policies of the diocese or the opinions of Forward Movement, where he serves as executive director.
On June 22 from 7 to 9 p.m., Presiding Bishop Michael Curry will preach the final revival of his term in office, which ends on October 31. The revival will take place in Louisville’s KFC Yum! Center, and registration is free. The Diocese of Southern Ohio is a sponsor of the event.
Learn more about the 81st General Convention.
image: Southern Ohio deputies and Bishop White met at Procter Center on May 4.
