Around Our Diocese

Issue #166

The Diocese of Northern Indiana

A Passion for the Gospel of Jesus Christ

A Willingness to do Whatever it Takes

April 2015

A Heart for the Lost

A Commitment to One Another

A Letter from the Bishop

Dear brothers and sisters,
This past Tuesday I presented a letter to the Standing
Committee, announcing my retirement as of June 30,
2016. At the time, I will have served as bishop of this
wonderful diocese for 16 years. My ministry as your
bishop, however, will actually conclude three months
earlier March 31, 2016 when I begin a threemonth sabbatical to write a long-planned book.
Palm Sunday marks the first day of a new visitation
cycle. In my closing cycle, I will have the
opportunity to visit all 36 churches of our diocese and
to thank you for your witness to Jesus, for your
faithfulness in mission and ministry, and for your
kindness and encouragement to Sylvia and to me.
I have said many times and in many settings that if I
had the opportunity to choose any diocese in the
Episcopal Church to serve as bishop, I would without
hesitation select Northern Indiana. Our diocese is a
profoundly Christ-centered community, a place where
Jesus is known, loved, worshiped, and followed. Our
relationships are deep. Indeed, the small size of our
diocese is a blessing, because it has given me the gift
of knowing people and parishes in a way that my
colleague bishops envy. March 18, 2000, the day of
my consecration in the Basilica of the Sacred Heart
on the campus of Notre Dame, marked a turning point
in my life for which I will always give thanks. You
have touched Sylvias life and mine, welcomed us
into your hearts, and drawn us ever more deeply into
the heart of Jesus himself.
Sunday is the high point of my week. Worshiping
with you, hearing the Word and sharing the Eucharist,
and seeing Jesus at work in a glorious variety of ways
have planted memories that I will forever cherish. I
offer thanks to God for the gift of walking with you as
fellow disciples, and am humbled by the expressions
of love and support that Sylvia and I have received

during a decade and a half of ministry in Northern

Indiana.
In the coming months, I ask for your prayers for the
Standing Committee, under the leadership of its
president, Fr. Matthew Cowden. Their task is to
discern the next steps for the diocese and to oversee
the process of electing the 8th Bishop of Northern
Indiana. This challenging and exciting work will be
an opportunity for the entire diocese to walk in faith
into the future that God has planned.
St. Pauls words seem especially apt, and express
something of what I feel as I write this letter: I
thank my God every time I remember you. In all my
prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy, because
of your partnership in the gospel from the first day
until now, being confident of this, that he who began
a good work in you will carry it on to completion
until the day of Christ Jesus (Philippians 1:3-5).
I lean on St. Pauls words because I am overwhelmed
with gratitude, beyond my ability fully to articulate,
for the privilege of serving as Bishop of Northern
Indiana. With love and blessings I am

Yours in Christ,