The Standing Committee of the Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh announces the appointment of 15 individuals who will serve on the committee that will guide the search for and nomination of the next Bishop of Pittsburgh.
A 15-member Nominating Committee was chosen from a wide cross-section of the Diocese. Its charge is to develop a diocesan profile and to prepare a slate of candidates, both those it selects as well as those placed in nomination by petition. Fourteen parishes are represented on the Committee.
The Nominating Committee will be chaired by Michael Braxton, a member of Calvary Episcopal Church in East Liberty. Michael has served the Diocese as Secretary and President of the Committee on Constitution and Canons and has served Calvary as a member of vestry, parish council and the most recent rector search committee. Michael will be a deputy to the 80th General Convention of the Episcopal Church and has been a deputy to the 79th General Convention as well as an alternate deputy to the 78th and 77th General Conventions. He is also a trustee of the General Theological Seminary.
The Nominating Committee will begin its work with an all-day retreat on Saturday, March 14. Later in the spring, the Committee will reach out to all of the parishes of the Diocese to gather information for the diocesan profile.
The Rev. Don Youse will serve as Chaplain to the Nominating Committee, a post which he held during the last bishop search in 2011 – 12. His responsibility will be to help Committee members keep their focus on the spiritual nature of the search process during meetings, public events and in private conversations.
The Standing Committee has also named Judy Stark as the consultant to the Nominating Committee. Judy is a lay leader in the Diocese of Southwest Florida and has consulted on 19 bishop searches over the past two decades. She was recently a consultant to our Project CREED.
Later in the year, the Standing Committee will appoint a Transition Committee to handle planning, logistics and hospitality for the slate of candidates, including the “walkabouts” prior to the electing convention in January 2021, farewell gifts and celebrations for Bishop McConnell and Betsy, and the consecration of the new Bishop in June 2021, pending consent from a majority of the Bishops and Standing Committees of the Episcopal Church. The Rev. Youse will serve as Chaplain, and Judy Stark will serve as consultant, to the Transition Committee.
The Nominating Committee:
Michael Braxton, Chair, Calvary Episcopal Church, East Liberty
Shahnaz Alam-Denlinger, St. Thomas, Oakmont
The Rev. Nancy Chalfant-Walker, retired (formerly St. Stephen’s, Wilkinsburg)
The Rev. Laura DiPanfilo, St. Paul’s, Mt. Lebanon
Elizabeth Gassler, Calvary Episcopal Church, East Liberty
The Rev. William Geiger, Christ Church, Indiana
Kevin Hipolit, Emmanuel Episcopal Church, North Side
Joseph M. Macklin II, St. Brendan’s, Franklin Park
Richard Peden, St. David’s, Peters Township
The Rev. Canon James Shoucair, Christ Church, North Hills
The Rev. Aidan Smith, Trinity Cathedral
Gloria Trevino-Frye, St. James, Penn Hills
Daryl Walker, All Saints, Brighton Heights
The Rev. Linda Tardy Wilson, retired (formerly All Souls, North Versailles)
Dr. George Zitnay, St. Michaels of the Valley, Ligonier
Chaplain:
The Rev. Don Youse, Jr., M.D., Emmanuel Episcopal Church, North Side
Consultant:
Judy Stark, Cathedral Church of St. Peter, Diocese of Southwest Florida
Prayers requested
At our meetings this year, the Standing Committee has offered up the following prayer, taken from the Book of Common Prayer (p. 818, with slight modification), and we ask that all of the congregations of the Diocese incorporate this prayer into their regular worship through the period of search and discernment up to the Special Convention in January 2021:
Almighty God, giver of every good gift: Look graciously on your Church, and so guide the minds of those who shall choose a bishop for this Diocese, and those who offer themselves as candidates, that we may receive a faithful pastor who will care for your people and equip us for our ministries; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Faithfully yours in Christ,
The Standing Committee
Russell Ayres, President
Lisa Brown, Secretary
The Rev. Noah Evans
The Rev. Jonathon Jensen
Robert A. Johnston
The Rev. Eric McIntosh
The Rev. Annis Rogers
Stephen Stagnitta