Our Bishops Will Meet in Phoenix, as Scheduled

Good on Them!

Episcopal News Service carried the story today that the House of Bishops will meet in Phoenix this fall, as previously scheduled. Some will go despite the “Breathing While Brown” legislation, and some surely will go in support of it.

I have abstained from urging our bishops one way or the other. I believed the Bishop of Arizona was in a better position to make that call. And make it he did, according to the ENS story. Arizona Bishop Kirk Smith said:

"It's an opportunity to be educated, to be informed and to make a public statement about solidarity with people that are victims in this, and there are victims on both sides, which is important to emphasize," said Arizona Bishop Kirk Smith in a telephone interview. "We will accomplish a lot more by being here, learning, hearing and responding about it and standing in solidarity with people suffering instead of taking the easy way out by saying 'Let's go meet someplace else.'”

If Bishop Smith thinks this is best, I trust him. He best understands the local situation.

I do hope our bishops will take the opportunity to learn more about the complexities of the immigration situation, as Bishop Kirk Smith suggests in the ENS story.

Of course, I would also encourage them to wear some of the garb I recommended here.

I hope our bishops will listen deeply and exercise their prophetic ministries.