The official slate of candidates for the 11th Bishop of Louisiana consists of the following names:
* The Rev. Kurt Dunkle, rector, Grace Episcopal Church, Jacksonville, Florida
* The Rev. Paul A. Elliott, rector, St. Michael & All Angels Church, Stone Mountain, Georgia
* The Rev. Paul A. Johnson, rector, Christ Church, Glen Allen, Virginia
* The Rev. Ken Ritter, rector, Trinity Church, Baton Rouge, Louisiana
* The Rt. Rev. Michael G. Smith, bishop, Diocese of North Dakota
* The Very Rev. Morris K. Thompson, dean, Christ Church Cathedral, Lexington, Kentucky
is there precedent for a sitting Bishop to try to become Bishop elsewhere?
Yes, sometime back the national canons were changed to allow a sitting bishop of a diocese to be called to another. As far as I can remember, one bishop has switched dioceses since the canonical change.
+Leo Frade was translated from Honduras to Southeastern Florida.
The only canonical requirement is that the bishop must have been in his/her present cure for five years before being elected to serve in another diocese
This is a horse race between Ritter and +Smith. Big churches vs. small churches. The rest are just for show.
A slightly different situation, but Don Wimberly had been diocesan in the Diocese of Lexington before becoming diocesan in Texas.
Well, I’m not so sure it’s just a two man race between Ritter and +Smith. Anything can happen in an episcopal election, when so much of it is decided by superficial appearances.
FWIW, I know Paul Johnson+, who planted one of the most successful “mainline” churches in the Richmond area. About 15 years ago, he started Christ Church from scratch in a booming suburban area, and the parish now has an ASA over 500 (I haven’t checked lately, it might be over 600). He is broadly evangelical, with a real heart for the Lord. But alas, he’s also an institutionalist when it comes to the “recent unpleasantness” over homosexuality, where he’s tried really hard to ride the fence and not offend anyone. Which naturally has cost him some of his most committed conservative members. Paul also has a heart for the persecuted Anglican Church in Sudan and has sponsored (and gone on) mission trips there.
Sadly, I’d have to admit that Paul’s the kind of guy who strikes me as having positioned himself to run for bishop for years, and carefully avoided anything that might sabotage that. In fact, the only thing that surprises me is that Paul hasn’t been nominated for bishop earlier somewhere else. (Of course, I might be wrong, maybe he has been somewhere and I just missed it). There aren’t many guys who run for bishop who can boast of starting a highly successful new church like Paul can.
The Diocese of Louisiana could do much, much worse than Paul Johnson. Of course, it could also do a lot better too. But I’m not sure any of the other candidates here fit the bill.
David Handy+
Well, I take that last part back. I think +Michael Smith of ND, who is solidly orthodox theologically and a stauch CP bishop, would probably do better. The trouble is that while +Smith is more conservative theologically, he’d also be more conservative in a lot of other ways too. As a church planter, Paul is much more open to real innovation (in the best sense) than most priests. His Saturday night service uses contemporary music and is deliberately “seeker-sensitive.” He’s also relatively young and quite a dynamic, polished speaker.
I didn’t mean to put down +Smith, who has been a brave, staunch defender of orthodoxy. He’s definitely to the right of the incumbent, +Charles Jenkins. I’d be delighted to see +Smith elected.
I guess I just wanted to say that Paul Johnson+ shouldn’t be dismissed. I think he’ll be a formidable candidate. Anything can happen in an election like this.
David Handy+
As a former member of the Diocese of Gerogia, I agree that anything can happen. Folks in LA need to get informed and be heard. Our process in GA appeared to be open and scientific,but turned out to be a dog and pony show (no live questions) with a surprise result to many.