wfn.org | Chicago provides poignant moment on the transition journey for

[ENS.parti@ecunet.org (ENS)]

December 4, 1997
Episcopal News Service
Jim Solheim, Director
212-922-5385
ens@ecunet.org

97-2034
Chicago provides poignant moment on the transition journey for
Browning and Griswold

by James Solheim
     (ENS) In what turned out to be one of the most poignant diocesan
visits of his 12 years, Presiding Bishop Edmond Browning was warmly
welcomed to the Diocese of Chicago November 21 by the man who will
succeed him, Bishop Frank Tracy Griswold III.
     Griswold called the visit "a wonderful irony. Our intent was to
thank him for his ministry but I had no idea that it would also involve
my own transition."
     The visit, scheduled long before Griswold's election last summer
as the 25th presiding bishop, was the last for Browning and he held an
open dialogue with delegates to the convention, saying that he was
"delighted to join you in these very, very interesting days." 
     In a wide-ranging conversation that incorporated expressions of
deep feelings and flashes of humor, Browning said that his office in New
York "is looking strange. The photos and mementos are already on their
way to the retirement home in Oregon--the Japanese prints, Navajo rug,
photos of Desmond Tutu and Archbishop of Canterbury Runcie, even the
wedding photo with Patti," he said. "The office may be looking sad but it
is also exciting, empty, expectant. And Frank Griswold looks good in the
office."

Role of a presiding bishop
     Responding to questions, Browning said that the "most thrilling
moment of my time as presiding bishop was the consecration of Barbara
Harris" as the first woman bishop in the Anglican Communion. It didn't
take much time to identify the bruising events of 1995 as the most
stressful. He admitted that he was "almost immobilized" by the suicide of
the bishop of Massachusetts, the apparent embezzlement of several
million dollars by the church's former treasurer, formal heresy charges
against a retired bishop for ordaining an openly gay deacon, as well as
calls for his resignation. Yet he felt strong support from his staff and
others throughout the church.
     "There may not be much real power in the office but there is
substantial moral authority," Browning asserted. While a presiding
bishop can't expect everyone to follow his lead, he has "the right and
calling to speak when there are moral and ethical issues involved,
especially when he acts on what the church has said, when he speaks for
the community that has already spoken."
     He expressed excitement and encouragement over the "increasing
participation of youth" in the councils and conventions of the church, but
expressed deep concern for "the lack of partnership between the church
at the local level and the diocesan and national level--how we see each
other, live together and carry out our mission."
     Browning celebrated the Eucharist at Epiphany Church, greeted
students at the parish's St. Gregory's School and joined leaders of the 13
diocesan charitable organizations for a luncheon.

Signs of intimacy
     Presiding over his last diocesan convention, Griswold looked back
on his own dozen years and drew on a depth of feelings and humor. Like
Browning, he was also counting the days until a major transition in his
life, trying to finish his responsibilities in Chicago. 
     He admitted in the opening of his sermon at the diocesan
Eucharist that he had been thwarted by Windows 95 in trying to prepare
notes on his computer, entertaining it as a possible "sign from God."
     In an attempt to express his surprise and gratitude for "the amount
of affection that has passed between us over the years," Griswold had to
pause to compose himself, promising with a grin, "I'll be okay." He told
the story of an incident while on  personal retreat early in his tenure as
bishop in Chicago. Taking off his episcopal ring, it was suddenly caught
in the sunlight. He said that he suddenly realized that the ring was a
"powerful sign of our intimacy," much like the rings exchanged during a
wedding ceremony. "It was an expression of the reality of the last 12
years when that intimacy was forged, when we shared good moments and
bad. It's all about being the church." 
     He said that he had been "profoundly shaped by you, as I hope
you have been shaped by me. It has been a wonderful, grace-filled time."

     During the convention he publicly embraced two other clergy in
the diocese whose gifts have been recognized by the church. Griswold's
canon for pastoral care, Chilton Knudsen, was elected bishop of the
Diocese of Maine and Dean Mark Sisk of Seabury-Western Seminary
was elected bishop coadjutor of the Diocese of New York. During a
coffee break there were jokes about the sudden "brain drain" in the
diocese, accompanied by a few boasts about the high quality of
leadership in Chicago.

Celebrating a ministry
     The diocese is honoring Griswold with a fund for new
congregations. The goal of $1 million would be used "to provide seed
money to develop new congregations and to re-start existing
congregations where the community and circumstances have changed."
Fund chair Colin Silvester of Lake Forest told the convention that the
idea came from Griswold's response to a question on what kind of gift
could best honor his leadership. "This is a joyful and appropriate way to
celebrate his ministry," Silvester said. 
     At a banquet in their honor, Griswold praised Browning's
"absolutely consistent call for inclusivity" in the church, adding that he
had "never met anyone who has a more pastoral heart." In response,
Browning said that he was "deeply grateful to God for Frank's election."
Phoebe Griswold, who faces a transition of her own, thanked the diocese
for "allowing me to be myself."
     The Griswolds will move to New York some time after his
installation at the Washington National Cathedral January 10.

--James Solheim is the Episcopal Church's director of news and
information.