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General Convention Report
The Episcopal News, Diocese of Los Angeles
Reporting from Salt Lake City, Utah
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Catherine Roskam, bishop-in-charge of St. James' Church, Los Angeles, and retired bishop suffragan of the Diocese of New York, joins the bishops' march against gun violence. Photo / Pat McCaughan
Bishops, other Episcopalians march against
gun violence before Sunday agenda begins
Dozens of bishops and others marching in the streets against gun violence and a joyous Eucharist were at the head of Sunday's schedule as General Convention continued its work.
The march was sponsored by Bishops United Against Gun Violence. Participants in the march from the Diocese of Los Angeles included Catherine Roskam, bishop-in-charge of St. James' Church, Los Angeles; Deputy Lester Mackenzie; Canon Randy Kimmler; Canon John and Sara Jane Thies, also of St. James' Church, Los Angeles; Mel Soriano of All Saints, Pasadena; Deacon Jamie Hammons of St. Barnabas' Church, Pasadena; Nancy Frausto, priest-in-charge of Trinity, Los Angeles and assistant at St. Mary's (Mariposa), Los Angeles; Deacon Margaret McCauley of St. John's ProCathedral, Los Angeles; Alternate Deputy Kirby Smith, vicar of St. Luke's Church, La Crescenta; vestment designer Clifford Chally; Susan Russell and Lori Kizzia of All Saints, Pasadena; Pat McCaughan, vicar of St. George's Church, Laguna Hills; and others. Bishop Eugene Sutton of the Diocese of Maryland said that an "unholy trinity" of poverty, racism and violence threatens people throughout the nation. Presiding Bishop-elect Michael Curry added, ""But we are really here because there is another Trinity," he said. "There is another trinity that is not an unholy trinity. There is another trinity that is a Holy Trinity. It is a life-giving trinity."  Presiding Bishop-elect Michael Curry addresses the anti-gun violence rally; Bishop Mark Beckwith of the Diocese of Newark is at right.
Photo / Nina Nicholson, Diocese of Newark
In the House of Deputies, the theme of gun violence prevention continued with discussion of Resolution C005, by the convention of The Diocese of Los Angeles for referral to General Convention, urges legislators at all levels of government to implement laws requiring criminal background checks and gun-safety training for gun purchases; banning certain types of assault weapons, high-capacity magazines and kits to convert guns into automatic weapons; cracking down on gun trafficking; and promoting funding for gun-violence research. The latest version of the resolution calls for recognizing "the impact of existing inheritance laws on the transfer of gun ownership" and eliminates the original resolution's call for taxes on sales of guns and ammunition, and a personal income tax credit for those surrendering firearms in gun-buyback programs. Deputy Gary Commins, rector of St. Luke's Church, Long Beach, spoke to the resolution on the floor of Convention, explaining that the resolution is intended to address changes that could be made at the state level within the next decade. "To me, the story of it is that we're just trying to limit gun violence," Commins said. "We're really not addressing the overall cultural issue of what a violent people we are."
The House also took up Resolution A011, which would "recommit the church to criminal justice reform, study and advocacy." Deputy Lester MacKenzie (pictured below), assistant priest at St. Matthew's Church, Pacific Palisades, spoke in favor of the resolution, referring to his own ministry as weekly chaplain at a Los Angeles-area jail through Prism, the Los Angeles diocese's restorative justice ministry. Other resolutions discussed by the deputies addressed the church's response to alcoholism and substance abuse.  |
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Worship at General Convention
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Liesel Friedrich of St. Matthew's Church, Pacific Palisades, gives other Los Angeles ECW representatives a thumbs-up after adding the diocese's offering to the UTO ingathering at the General Convention Eucharist on June 28. Below right: Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori in the procession at the beginning of the Eucharist.
 'Get up, girl!' Jefferts Schori tells convention at Sunday Eucharist "Talitha cum. Get up, girl. You're not dead yet! Jesus might just as well be speaking to this church," Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori told the capacity congregation at General Convention's Sunday Eucharist and United Thank Offering ingathering.
Drawing from the Gospel reading (Mark 5:21-43), in which Jesus raises the daughter of Jairus with the words talitha cum ("little girl, get up") and a woman who had been bleeding for 12 years touches his robe and is healed, Jefferts Schori asserted that the Episcopal Church also has bled, but trusts in Christ's healing power for new life and revival.
"Anger and anxiety over membership loss in this church has frequently prompted finger-waggers to use that image of unstoppable hemorrhage -- and it's been going on for almost exactly 12 years, since we began to tell the truth about who we were and are and are meant to be," she said. "We have consulted plenty of ecclesiastical doctors, without much relief -- until we began to find the temerity to reach out and touch Jesus' robe."
The full sermon text is here.
The service also included the traditional collection, or ingathering, of United Thank Offering money from the 109 dioceses of the Episcopal Church, including those outside the United States. UTO offerings are collected in the organization's blue mite boxes; in all, church members collected well over four million dollars to be used for ministry grants. In addition, the offering at the Eucharist will be devoted to UTO grants for young adult ministries. More about the UTO and recent grants is here.
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People at General Convention
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A bevy of bishops
Bishops line for for the processional at the General Convention Sunday Eucharist.  Above: Bishop Jon Bruno; above right: Bishops Diane Jardine Bruce and Catherine Roskam; at right: Bishops Nick Knisley of Rhode Island, Mary Glasspool of Los Angeles, Barbara Harris, retired bishop suffragan of New York, and Carolyn Tanner Irish, retired bishop of Utah. Glasspool, as a young rector in the Diocese of New York, nominated Harris for bishop suffragan there in 1989; Harris attended Glasspool and Bruce's consecration as bishops in 2010. Harris returned to the Diocese of Los Angeles to deliver the Margaret Parker Memorial Lecture at Diocesan Convention in 2013. (A story about that lecture is here.) Below: A rare photo of all 18 women bishops of the Episcopal Church. Photo / Bishop Porter Taylor
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ECW 5k raises funds for homeless teens
Participants in the Episcopal Church Women's 5k run on Sunday included Martha Estes of Church of the Transfiguration, Arcadia; Barbara Harris of St. Mark's Church, Upland; Linda Amerault of Trinity Church, Redlands; and Aiyana Harris of St. Mark's, Upland. Aiyana, 10, not only took part in the 5k, but designed the logo for the Los Angeles delegation's tee shirts. Proceeds from 5k sponsorships will benefit the Homeless Youth Resource Center in Salt Lake City, which the ECW chose for its "Community Connection" project, in which members support a charity in the city hosting the General Convention.
Peter Bergstrom receives "Hero of Camping" award
The House of Bishops paused in its deliberations on June 28 to honor Peter Bergstrom, retired director of Camp Stevens in Julian, and Bishop Gary Lillibridge of the Diocese of West Texas as Episcopal Camps & Conference Centers (ECCC) "Heroes of Camping." Bergstrom retired from Camp Stevens in 2012, and will retire this year as director of ECCC. His "Hero of Camping" award cited his "compassion, integrity, vision and committed leadership." The honorees are pictured above with Bergstrom's wife, Vicki. Photo / Mary Glasspool
 More L.A. people at General Convention
Above: Canon John and Sara Jane Thies of St. James' Church, Los Angeles, pay a visit to General Convention. They took part in the anti-gun violence march on Sunday, then returned for the Eucharist. They also are assisting in the Exhibit Hall. At right: Kate Lewis, assistant at St. Columba's, Camarillo, keeps a watchful eye during Sunday Eucharist as part of the public safety team at General Convention. Below: Canon Dan Ade of St. John's Procathedral, Los Angeles helps to staff the General Seminary booth Ade is a trustee of the seminary, which is located in New York City.
Presiding bishop-elect watch
Newly elected presiding bishop-to-be Michael Curry seemed to be everywhere on Sunday, posing good-naturedly for endless photos and selfies.
Bishop Curry meets with Emily Shelton, Johnna Dominguez (of the Diocese of Los Angeles) and Eva Ortez of Episcopal Peace Fellowship's young adult delegation. Photo / Charles S. Graves IV
Bishop Curry has a conversation with 10-year-old Aiyana Harris of St. Mark's Church, Upland, a Girls Friendly Society representative from the Diocese of Los Angeles. Photo / Margaret Nolde
 Above: Bishop Curry holds the daughters of a clergy member after he blessed both children. Bishop Diane Bruce caught the moment with her camera. At left: Deputy Kathryn Nishibayashi of the Diocese of Los Angeles got a selfie with the man of the hour at a Sunday evening meeting of deputies of color.
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Today at General Convention
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On the schedule for Monday, June 29:
- Legislative committee hearings
- Community Eucharist, honoring Saints Peter and Paul. Bishop Mike Klusmeyer of West Virginia will celebrate; Archbishop Vicken Aykazian of the Eastern Diocese of the Armenian Church in America will preach.
- Legislative sessions
- Integrity Eucharist. Bishop Mary Glasspool, preacher
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Reports from Episcopal News Service
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The House of Deputies on June 28 elected 13 trustees of the Church Pension Fund and two clergy members of Executive Council.
While 1,500 General Convention participants joined a Bishops United Against Gun Violence procession here the morning of June 28, several resolutions targeting gun violence are making their way through the legislative process.
"Talitha, cum. Get up, girl - and boy, and woman, and man - get up and dance!" Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori told the gathering in her June 28 sermon to the 78th General Convention of The Episcopal Church.
Carolyn Tuft speaks about her pain and horror as a victim of a 2007 mass shooting at Trolley Square Mall in Salt Lake City. Although Tuft survived the shooting, her daughter Kirsten died from a gunshot wound to the head. Addressing the Claiming Common Ground Against Gun Violence march on the morning of June 28 in Salt Lake City, Tuft explains why the United States needs fewer guns and calls for stronger action to combat gun violence.
Chuck Wynder, Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society missioner for social justice and advocacy engagement, speaks following the June 28 march against gun violence in Salt Lake City.
It feels good to be 75, Robert Radtke, the president of Episcopal Relief & Development, said in an interview earlier this week as General Convention was getting underway. He was referring to his organization's 75th anniversary, marked over the course of the past year by an online weekly storytelling project and a traveling photo exhibit depicting the people and places around the world touched by Episcopal Relief & Development's disaster relief, public health and economic development ministries.
More General Convention-related stories from Episcopal News Service may be found here.
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The Report will be emailed each day from the 78th meeting of General Convention in Salt Lake City, Utah, June 25 - July 3.
Photos, except as noted, by Janet Kawamoto.
To subscribe to the Update list, click on the link below, or send a request to news@ladiocese.org
Janet Kawamoto, editor
The Rev. Pat McCaughan, correspondent
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