Supporters of Venezuelan leader Nicholás Maduro gather Jan. 24 in Caracas, Venezuela’s city center to protest after U.S. President Donald Trump announced that the Venezuelan president had been captured and flown out of the country. Many Venezuelans are also celebrating Maduro’s removal from office. Photo: Jeampier Arguinzones/AP

[Episcopal News Service] Following last weekend’s U.S. military attack on Venezuela and the removal of President Nicholás Maduro from office, Episcopal leaders have released statements calling for prayers and peace in the South American country. They expressed both support for Venezuelans celebrating Maduro’s removal and concern over the legality of the attack. 

“The Episcopal Church’s General Convention has a long-standing policy that ‘condemn[s] in any nation the first use of armed force in the form of a preventive or pre-emptive strike that is aimed at disrupting a non-imminent, uncertain military threat,’” The Episcopal Church said in a Jan. 3 Action Alert released by the Episcopal Public Policy Network. “Even as we recognize that intervention in sovereign states can sometimes be necessary to prevent atrocities, we discourage ‘the abuse of this norm to rationalize military actions in sovereign states for political ends.’”

In the early hours of Jan. 3, the U.S. military attacked Venezuela, taking Maduro and his wife into custody. The attack followed months of strikes against so-called drug-carrying boats, the seizure of two oil tankers and a massive buildup of U.S. forces off Venezuela’s coast.

Before the attack, the Trump administration did not seek congressional approval, as required by the U.S. Constitution; legal experts suggest the strike also violated international law.

Maduro, an authoritarian ruler who has been accused of human rights abuses and other violations, has led Venezuela since the death of Hugo Chavez in 2013. In 2024, Maduro was declared the winner of an election declared fraudulent by independent monitors. He and his wife, Cilia Adela Flores de Maduro, have been charged by the United States with narco-terrorism and drug trafficking. They both pleaded not guilty during their federal court appearance on Jan. 5 in New York.

The Episcopal Diocese of Venezuela, based in the capital, Caracas, has 10 parishes, 14 missions and four preaching stations. Ecuador Litoral Bishop Cristóbal Olmedo León Lozana is the provisional bishop of the diocese, which is part of the church’s Province IX.

“Episcopalians in Venezuela carry out vital ministries in increasingly challenging conditions, and we fear for their well-being and their church community if these military interventions, and any form of U.S. occupation, lead to more instability and violence,” The Episcopal Church’s statement said.

Church leaders have been communicating with Lozano, standing committee leadership and Honduras Bishop Lloyd Allen, who serves as president of Province IX, according to the statement.

Los Angeles Bishop-elect Antonio Gallardo, who continues to serve as rector of St. Luke’s/San Lucas Episcopal Church in Long Beach, California, is from Venezuela and has family living there, including his mother, siblings and cousins. He said in a Jan. 3 Facebook post in English and Spanish that his “heart is experiencing mixed emotions” after Maduro’s capture.

“When the Venezuelan people celebrate the extraction of Maduro, they get a renewed sense of hope, a sense that they almost lost after these many years of trying to elect other leaders in elections that [were] very likely rigged,” Gallardo said in his Facebook post.

While Gallardo’s “heart is full of joy” for Venezuelans, his “heart is also afraid of what may come to them.” After Maduro’s capture, U.S. President Donald Trump said during a Jan. 3 news conference that the United States will “run the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition” to new leadership. Venezuela Vice President Delcy Rodríguez, who has served since 2018, was sworn in Jan. 5 as the country’s interim president.

“When the U.S. government says within a few hours of the operations, words like ‘We are going to run the country,’ and ‘We will rebuild the oil infrastructure before a transition,’ it makes me fear that the Venezuelan people may have shifted from one form of oppression to another,” Gallardo said. “I don’t think this military operation was about the people in Venezuela, when here in the U.S., we treat Venezuelans and other immigrants of color with cruelty.”

In its statement, The Episcopal Church urges Congress to call for an investigation of recent U.S. military operations in Venezuela, and for support of a “peaceful transition that respects the rule of law and the will of the Venezuelan people.”

El Camino Real Bishop Lucinda Ashby concurred. “As a church that spans many nations and cultures, we are mindful that decisions made by governments can have profound consequences far beyond their borders,” Ashby said in a Jan. 3 statement to the Salinas, California-based diocese. “Our faith calls us to witness to the dignity of every person and to seek paths that lead toward peace rather than further harm.”

When former Presiding Bishop Michael Curry was primate of The Episcopal Church from 2015-2024, he visited every diocese except Venezuela over safety concerns due to violence and civil unrest under the Maduro regime.

Following U.S. military operations and Maduro’s removal, Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Phoenix, Arizona, hosted a prayer vigil for Venezuela on Jan. 3.

“I bid your prayers for our nation, for the people of Venezuela, for the members of our military, for those who were killed or captured, for the Congress and for the uncertain future before us,” Arizona Bishop Jennifer Reddall said in a Facebook statement announcing the prayer vigil. “We pray for those good things which Jesus has taught us to pray for: for peace, for justice, for righteousness and mercy and for the healing of the world and the children of God.”

New York Bishop Matthew Heyd, in his Jan. 5 email newsletter, also called for prayers for Venezuela and for Venezuelans living in the Diocese of New York, as well as for members of the U.S. armed forces.

“As Christians, we proclaim an incarnational faith. We believe in human dignity and human possibility,” he said. “That’s the bright thread that we follow through disorienting times. We can at once denounce despots and affirm the rule of law.”

As of June 2025, roughly 1.1 million of the nearly 8 million forcibly displaced Venezuelan migrants have fled to the United States. About 600,000 of them legally entered the United States through a humanitarian program known as Temporary Protected Status. Tens of thousands of them have settled in New York, according to New York Times analysis.

Indianapolis Bishop Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows has been communicating with several diocesan members with family living in Venezuela, she said in a Jan. 4 statement.

“There is no question that we are living in turbulent times that will demand much of us as people of faith,” Baskerville-Burrows said. Regarding Venezuela, “there is a sense of both optimism and fear for the future.”

Gallardo, who is scheduled to be ordained and consecrated as Los Angeles bishop diocesan on July 11 at All Saints Episcopal Church in Pasadena, expressed gratitude for the support and prayers offered to Venezuelans after Maduro’s removal.

“I give thanks to God for giving me a heart capable of holding multiple, and at times conflicting, feelings, and more than anything, I give thanks for all the prayers that the people are offering to sustain the people of Venezuela during this time of transition,” Gallardo said.

-Shireen Korkzan is a reporter and assistant editor for Episcopal News Service. She can be reached at skorkzan@episcopalchurch.org.

Members of St. John’s Episcopal Church in Chicago, Illinois, joined 75,000 other protesters in a nonviolent “No Kings” protest in downtown Chicago’s Grant Park on Oct. 18. Nearly 7 million people participated in more than 2,500 “No Kings” demonstrations in all 50 states, U.S. territories and other countries to oppose several of the Trump administration’s policies, including the slashing of federal education resources and environmental protections, and more. Photo: Courtesy of Mark McKelvey

[Episcopal News Service] Episcopal clergy and laity were among the nearly 7 million people who participated Oct. 18 in nation- and worldwide nonviolent “No Kings” marches in opposition to authoritarian leaders and here in the U.S., Trump administration policies aimed at cutting services to the poor, public education, health care, environmental protection and targeting immigrants.

“As a church, we are called to witness redemptive love and work together to speak truth to power,” Chicago Archdeacon Michael “Mike” Choquette told Episcopal News Service. He and about 10 Chicago-area Episcopal and Lutheran deacons wore their clerical collars and marched east from Grace Episcopal Church in the South Loop to Grant Park to take part in downtown Chicago’s “No Kings” event, while many other Episcopalians marched in Chicago-area suburbs.

Choquette said the deacons called out multiple injustices, including those specifically targeting immigrants. Chicago has been at the center of the Trump administration’s anti-immigrant policies, with Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers conducting raids. Since September, ICE has arrested at least 1,000 people in Chicago and hundreds more in neighboring states.

The Cathedral Church of St. Paul in Boston, Massachusetts, held an interfaith prayer service Oct. 18 ahead of a nearby “No Kings” rally, where more than 100,000 protesters demonstrated in Boston Common. Photo: David M. Rider

More than 2,700 “No Kings” events took place in all 50 states, U.S. territories and worldwide, where they’re called “No Dictators” or “No Tyrants. Saturday’s events were the second in a series, with the first in June drawing an estimated 5 million people in opposition to a military-style parade commemorating the U.S. Army’s 250th Anniversary and Trump’s 79th birthday. 

In Washington, D.C., more than 200,000 protestors, including members of St. Mark’s Episcopal Church on Capitol Hill, marched on the National Mall. Just outside the nation’s capital, the Falls Church, a historic Episcopal Church parish named for the city, held a gathering before at least 1,000 protesters formed a human chain.

The Interfaith Center of New York, led by the Rev. Chloe Breyer, an Episcopal priest, and the Interfaith Alliance organized an interfaith vigil in New York City’s Columbus Circle attended by New York Bishop Matt Heyd and the Very Rev. Winnie Varghese, dean of the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine, before they marched to Times Square.

During the vigil, Varghese prayed for those who didn’t participate in “No Kings” protests out of fear of being arrested, and for those who feel “defeated by the politics of today, by the real experience of their lives,” according to Religion News Service.

In San Diego, California, members of Resurrection Episcopal Church Ocean Beach joined members of nearby Westminster Presbyterian Church in protesting at the “No Kings” march at the city’s Waterfront Park. Their goal was “to speak out and stand up for justice, peace, and God’s all-inclusive love,” according to an Oct. 18 Facebook post.

Several priests in the Diocese of Pennsylvania also took time out of the diocesan convention in King of Prussia to participate in a nearby “No Kings” demonstration, according to an Oct. 18 Facebook post by the Rev. Stacey Carmody, a deacon at St. Andrews’s-in-the-Field Episcopal Church in Philadelphia and Redemption Episcopal Church in Southampton.

The Cathedral Church of St. Paul in Boston, Massachusetts, held an interfaith prayer service ahead of a nearby rally, where more than 100,000 protesters demonstrated on Boston Common. The service included prayer, music, readings of the Beatitudes and the Magnificat, meditation and more.

For Mark McKelvey, a parishioner at St. John’s Episcopal Church in Northwest Chicago, the increase in ICE raids over the last year have been his “biggest concern.”

“ICE is separating families, and people have gotten seriously hurt by their violent raids. It’s wrong,” he said. McKelvey and 25 other parishioners also took part in the protest in downtown Chicago.

“This is an essential time for The Episcopal Church to fulfill its longtime commitment to equity, inclusion and fairness,” he added.

-Shireen Korkzan is a reporter and assistant editor for Episcopal News Service. She can be reached at skorkzan@episcopalchurch.org.

A demonstrator holds a picture of Minnesota state Rep. Melissa Hortman, who was killed by a gunman hours before a “No Kings” protest at the Minnesota State Capitol in St. Paul on June 14, 2025. Photo: Steven Garcia/AP

[Episcopal News Service] Following a deadly incident early Saturday where a now-captured suspected gunman impersonating a law enforcement officer shot and killed one state Democratic legislator and her husband and injured another lawmaker and his wife, Minnesota Bishop Craig Loya asked Episcopalians not to respond to violence with violence. 

The June 14 shootings occurred just hours before nationwide anti-Trump “No Kings” protests were scheduled to take place in opposition to a parade commemorating the U.S. Army’s 250th anniversary and President Donald Trump’s 79th birthday. The American Civil Liberties Union, who co-sponsored the “No Kings” protests with Indivisible and other human rights organizations, estimates that 5 million protesters rallied at more than 2,100 events nationwide.

“As followers of the Lord of immovable love, his posture in the face of the empire of his day must be ours today. We, like Jesus, cannot remain silent in the face of the multivalent attacks on basic human dignity and society we are experiencing,” Loya said in a June 14 statement. “We must continue to show up, speak up, and witness to a better way than what the American empire offers in this moment. “

In the early hours of Saturday, June 14, the suspect, Vance Boelter, allegedly shot state Sen. John Hoffman, and his wife, Yvette, in their home in Champlin, a Minneapolis suburb, leaving them injured, before he then allegedly shot and killed state Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, in their home in nearby Brooklyn Park.

Authorities arrested Boelter on June 15 following a two-day manhunt. Federal officials said he will face federal murder charges, and Minnesota officials are expected to add state murder charges as well. 

The shootings followed a tense week of protests in Los Angeles, California, where demonstrators marched against Trump administration immigration policies and Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids on agricultural operations, restaurants and hotels. Trump called in the National Guard and the U.S. Marine Corps to silence protesters against the wishes of California Gov. Gavin Newsom. 

On June 11, Presiding Bishop Sean Rowe issued a letter to the church responding to a series of Trump administration policies on migration and immigration, including the use of the military for crowd control at protests.

Also, last week, ICE agents raided a meat-processing facility in Omaha, Nebraska. The administration later abruptly paused some of its raids on workers in the food and hospitality industries. 

“This news comes against the backdrop in recent weeks of immigration raids being carried out by militarized law enforcement, and celebrated with cruel delight by government officials, the military being deployed in Los Angeles against U.S. citizens, to stop protests in that city, and on a day when the President of the United States has threatened to meet any protestors present at a military parade in the capitol with ‘heavy force,’” Loya said in the statement. “The tensions we have lived with for many years now are boiling over to new levels.  Those inclined to the kind of murderous violence that occurred in Minnesota today are surrounded by a national climate that encourages those impulses.”

The shootings also came in the backdrop of the House’s vote in favor of and Americans’ concerns over Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” which reduces taxes for the rich and cuts benefits, including Medicaid and food stamps, for the poor, and stands to increase the federal deficit by $3 trillion. (The June 14 parade cost taxpayers an estimated $45 million). 

“Human communities, from congregations to countries, always take on the energy of their leaders,” Loya said. “That’s true regardless of how popular the leader might be. The President of the United States, and the senior members of his administration, have, for nearly six months now, led with a chaotic, intentionally provocative, and vindictive energy against perceived critics and enemies, and that is eroding the foundations of our common life and order, and empowering anyone inclined to that same vindictive violence.”

Thousands of people protested peacefully in St. Paul after the shootings. 

Boelter, according to friends, is a religious conservative who supports Trump and opposes abortion and LGBTQ+ rights. 

Law enforcement found a stack of “No Kings” flyers, AK-47 assault-style weapons, a manifesto and a list of some 70 other potential targets, including “abortion providers, pro-abortion rights advocates and lawmakers in Minnesota and other states,” in Boelter’s vehicle. Other Democratic lawmakers named on the list were Gov. Tim Walz, U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison and others.

The shootings are the latest act of political violence, which is increasingly common in the U.S. 

“We must also, like so many disciples before us, refuse to meet violence with violence, dehumanizing rhetoric with dehumanizing rhetoric,” Loya said. “In the months and years to come, we must stand in the face of every threat, every act of violence, every cruel or threatening word, with Jesus’ immovable love, clinging to love’s power, which raised Jesus from the death empire subjected him to, until God’s full reign of peace is fully and gloriously done, on earth as it is in heaven.”

Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump gestures with a bloodied face as multiple shots rang out during a campaign rally at the Butler Farm Show in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13. Photo: Brendan McDermid/REUTERS

[Episcopal News Service] Bishops from across The Episcopal Church, including Presiding Bishop Michael Curry, have released statements condemning the July 13 assassination attempt of former President Donald Trump at a campaign rally near Butler, Pennsylvania.

“The way of love – not the way of violence – is the way we bind up our nation’s wounds. We decry political violence in any form, and our call as followers of Jesus of Nazareth is always to love. We pray for the families of those who were killed,” Curry said in a July 13 statement released by The Episcopal Church’s Office of Public Affairs. “We pray for former President Trump and his family and for all who were harmed or impacted by this incident. I pray that we as a nation and a world may see each other as the beloved children of God.”

A 20-year-old gunman opened fire, killing one person and critically injuring two others in the crowd. Trump was not critically injured, but his upper right ear was grazed. A member of the Secret Service Counter Assault Team later shot and killed Thomas Matthew Crooks, a resident of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, who had no prior criminal record.

“As more information emerges, we decry all violence that threatens human life, and certainly the lives of those who put themselves forward in our democratic, political processes,” California Bishop Marc Andrus and California Bishop Coadjutor Austin Rios said in a July 13 statement posted to the diocese’s Facebook page. “These processes must be safe, and the people who run for election, and those who surround them with their support, must be able to do so without fear.”

“We give thanks that former President Trump is safe and we pray for the repose of the souls of those who were shot in today’s incident,” Dallas Bishop George Sumner said in a statement posted to the diocese’s Facebook page. “We pray for the safety of all in public life. We give thanks for all those who protect us. We pray for the cessation of violence in our political life, as well as rhetoric on all media that promote it.”

Bishops United Against Gun Violence, a network of more than 100 Episcopal bishops working to reduce gun violence, also posted a statement responding to the shooting on its Facebook page:

“We pray for former President Trump, for those who have died and been injured at today’s rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, and for all victims of gun violence. In our democracy, political violence is never the answer.”

Michigan Bishop Bonnie Perry, a co-convener of Bishops United Against Gun Violence, said in a July 13 statement she was “aghast” that someone would fire shots at Trump.

“I am deeply grateful that he is in good condition with what appear to be only minor wounds. I am and I ask all of us to pray for his well-being, for healing of the trauma this has inflicted upon him, the people close to him and upon the people who were attending a political rally and then suddenly found themselves in the presence of an active shooter,” she said.  “Our country is in peril. We cannot settle our differences with violence. Gun violence is wreaking havoc on all of our communities, whether you are attending a block party in Detroit or speaking at a presidential rally in Western Pennsylvania. This is a sin. A grievous sin that we, as people of faith, must address.”

As of June 15, 298 mass shootings have occurred nationwide, according to the Gun Violence Archive, an American nonprofit that catalogs every gun-related death in the United States. A mass shooting is defined as one in which at least four people are shot, either fatally or non-fatally, excluding the shooter.

“We must stop this scourge in our communities, in our schools and neighborhoods and gathering places,” South Carolina Bishop Ruth Woodliff-Stanley said in a July 13 statement posted to the diocese’s Facebook page. “God have mercy upon us and strengthen our resolve for peace, at home and across the world.”

In a July 14 statement, New Hampshire Bishop Rob Hirschfeld said “only the most cynical among us” will be undisturbed by the assassination attempt. He referred to Mark 6:14-29 in the statement:

“The way the world settles its disputes and conflict is habitually by force and savagery, rather than by the means of peace and forbearance,” Hirschfeld said. “To follow Jesus entails being acutely aware that the way of the world’s power and the Way of Christ’s Kingdom will be in stark contrast to one another.”

The July 13 shooting wasn’t the first known incident where someone attempted to assassinate Trump – three separate incidents occurred in 2016 and 2017. Two other presidents have been injured in attempted assassination attempts: Ronald Reagan and Theodore Roosevelt. Four sitting U.S. presidents have been killed, all by gunshot: Abraham Lincoln, James A. Garfield, William McKinley and John F. Kennedy.

Mississippi Bishop Brian R. Seage said in a July 13 statement posted to the diocese’s Facebook page that the assassination attempt on Trump “reminds us of the fragility of life and the urgent need for healing in our society.”

“As a community guided by faith, let us remember the teachings of compassion, forgiveness, and unity,” Seage said “Let us reach out to those in need, offering support and comfort wherever possible. And let us reaffirm our commitment to building a world where peace and justice prevail.”

During the 81st General Convention held last month in Louisville, Kentucky, the House of Bishops and the House of Deputies voted to adopt various resolutions addressing gun violence, including D011, “The Prohibition of Assault Weapons,” which calls on The Episcopal Church’s Washington, D.C.-based Office of Government Relations to “strongly urge” Congress to ban the personal possession of all military-style assault weapons, bump stocks and high-capacity magazines. The weapon used to shoot trump at the campaign rally was a semiautomatic rifle legally purchased and registered to the suspect’s father.

“None of us is immune to the American epidemic of gun violence, and we condemn it in all its forms, and this day especially in the form of political violence,” North Carolina Bishop Sam Rodman and Assistant Bishop Jennifer Brooke-Davidson said in a July 14 statement. “The beloved community is a realm of peace that is the fruit of love, not of hatred nor violence.”

Bishops United Against Gun Violence joined members of the Youth Working to End Gun Violence delegation and in leading a march to pray and speak out in favor of gun safety during the 81st General Convention. The church’s history of passing gun-safety legislation dates to 1976. 

“Let us continue to work, advocate, and pray for an end to gun violence everywhere – that there may be justice and peace at home for all,” Indianapolis Bishop Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows said in a July 13 statement posted to the diocese’s Facebook page.

Springfield Bishop Brian K. Burgess called his diocese to intentional, intercessory prayer as a witness to the world.

“We have rights and privileges that are intended to mirror our theology so closely that they, too, bend time and space to their divinely orchestrated will,” he said in a July 13 statement. “However, with rights and privileges come responsibilities. It is time to temper the heat of political debate with common prayer, sacraments, and living into a scriptural rather than a social ethic. We don’t have a gun problem in this country, we have a sin problem … . Our children and grandchildren are watching.”

-Shireen Korkzan is a reporter and assistant editor for Episcopal News Service based in northern Indiana. She can be reached at skorkzan@episcopalchurch.org.

Washington Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde, right, recites prayers at the first Way of the Cross station March 21, 2013, in Lafayette Square in Washington, D.C. Budde, joined by Connecticut Bishop Suffragan James Curry, left, and Connecticut Bishop Ian Douglas, was part of a procession against violence months after the massacre of students and teachers at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. Photo: Mary Frances Schjonberg/Episcopal News Service

[Episcopal News Service] Many Episcopal bishops, priests and deacons feel called by faith to bear public witness on issues of the day, but few have been as prominent or outspoken in recent years as Diocese of Washington Bishop Mariann Budde. As the top Episcopal leader in the nation’s capital, Budde hasn’t been shy in calling for federal policies that reflect Jesus’ call to care “for the least of these.”

Budde, in an interview with Episcopal News Service, said she has tried to “lead with Jesus” rather than let politics guide her ordained ministry, going back to her 18 years as a parish priest in Minneapolis, Minnesota. “If your Jesus always agrees with your politics, you’re probably not reading deeply enough into Jesus,” she said. At the same time, “I don’t think justice and societal issues are optional for clergy. They are embedded in our faith.”

Since her consecration as Washington bishop in 2011, she said she has tried to focus on her primary role as chief pastor to the diocese’s Episcopalians. When engaging in advocacy, though, church leaders should “take a moral position and not a partisan position, to start somewhere we have authority,” Budde said.

Budde and other church leaders also are responding to calls for healing after the recent presidential campaign and its tense aftermath. ENS spoke with Budde on Jan. 13, one week after a deadly riot at the U.S. Capitol by supporters of then-President Donald Trump and a week before the inauguration of President Joe Biden.

The following questions and answers have been condensed and lightly edited for length and clarity.

ENS: The Diocese of Washington is like any other diocese in that it covers a geographic area and encompasses a number of congregations and members, but it also is home to the seat of the U.S. government. Does that shape how you see your role as bishop of the diocese?

The Rt. Rev. Mariann Budde was consecrated as bishop of the Diocese of Washington in 2011. Photo: Washington National Cathedral

BUDDE: The Diocese of Washington goes all the way down to southern Maryland. I wish it had a different name, actually – “The Diocese of Washington and Four Maryland Counties.” I mean, there are a lot of people whose profession is government in one form or another, and not just the political, elected side but the civil service side. The temptation is greater to focus on what’s happening on the federal side of the government, and that’s something that I’ve tried not to define my episcopate [by]. I’m not a chaplain to the government, I’m the pastor of pastors and a leader of congregations. I tend to pick my issues carefully.

ENS: If you look back at the examples of bishops before you, several of them also spoke out on issues of their time. I’m thinking of Bishop John Walker in the late 1970s and 1980s and Bishop John Chane in the 2000s.

BUDDE: Bishop Walker is a real model for me, and not simply his moral courage and his social justice leadership, which was iconic, but it was in the context of a very broad ministry. He loved children, he loved parish priests, he loved congregations. He was a man of tremendous grace, so I looked to him quite a bit. I think of him more than anyone, in terms of who has occupied this office.

ENS: It seems like Chane, your most recent predecessor, might have had a different approach?

BUDDE: This is no disrespect to Bishop Chane, because he had a phenomenal ministry, particularly on the world stage and in the Middle East and issues of Middle East peace, tremendous influence and importance. But I dare say that one of the reasons I was elected was I was not John Chane. It was a real pendulum swing for the diocese in the sense that they wanted somebody whose primary commitment was congregational life and vitality, and that the bishop was going to spend the majority of her time working to revitalize congregations. And that was my commitment to them. That’s what my passion, my sense of call, was.

ENS: Do you still feel that today?

BUDDE: I do. And I feel that the public witness is only as strong as we are strong. It doesn’t really matter how articulate a bishop is if she doesn’t have behind her strong, vibrant congregations who are making a difference in their communities and who can mobilize for the benefit of their neighborhoods and towns. And I also think the witness is stronger if there’s more than one voice.

ENS: Do you provide any guidance to clergy in the diocese about how to approach political issues and when it is or isn’t appropriate to speak out from the pulpit or in public?

BUDDE: In the context of our orientation for clergy new to the diocese and those newly ordained, I discuss the spiritual practice and vocation of preaching and stewardship of the pulpit. In that context, I share my approach and philosophy about speaking into politics and other topics of social concern, but that is only one dimension of preaching that I discuss. Stewardship of the pulpit is essential for good pastoral leadership.

ENS: Is there an expectation for the bishop of Washington to speak out a little bit more? That U.S. politics is part of your mission field?

BUDDE: Yep, happens all the time. And sometimes I answer to that, and sometimes I take a pass. And I try to do it based on the issues that the constituency I serve has some real expertise or experience with, or issues that are absolutely representative of who they are. Issues of racial justice, for example, are embedded in the life of this diocese, so if I were not committed to that, I’d be the wrong bishop. Immigration reform is an issue that affects not only the moral fabric of our country but the lives of people who are in our congregations.

The Rt. Rev. Mariann Budde, bishop of Washington, raises her hand in prayer outside St. John’s Episcopal Church in Washington, D.C., on June 14, 2020. Photo: Jack Jenkins/RNS

ENS: Certainly, there is a risk that Episcopal leaders may be seen as being too political. People use the term “political,” but what I think they mean is “partisan.” A lot of the policy positions that the church has taken seem to be aligned with Democratic positions. I suppose you can’t be blamed for which party takes which position, but you must think about that. How do you respond?

BUDDE: I think it’s a fair critique, let me just say that. Some leadership of The Episcopal Church, we tend to be more Matthew 25 Christians. We tend to be ones who talk about how we treat our fellow human beings and how we care for the poor and how we clothe the naked – all of those things that Jesus talks about in Matthew 25, as opposed to John 3:16 Christians, “for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, to the end that all who believe in him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” Those are the two classic definitions of what it means to follow Jesus. My public stance is more in line with the former because it seems to be the more universally compassionate position that aligns itself with the common good. And I am concerned about a very distorted view of Christianity that has the nation’s attention, and I do feel some responsibility to say there’s more than one way to live a public life as a Christian. I actually spend a lot of my time studying, reading and learning from Christian evangelicals, because many of them are way better than we are on some of the things that build healthy congregations. And I’ve learned that there’s a very broad swath of people and leadership styles and public leadership perspective within the white evangelical world. It’s not some big monolithic bloc. But all Christians must reject what we saw on Jan. 6 [at the U.S. Capitol].

ENS: Do you think that faith can be a healing force in this time of extreme polarization? It could be a dividing force, but what are the ways you think that it can be a healing force?

BUDDE: One of the things about religion is it can be all those things. It can be in service to our highest aspirations and to our most base behaviors. Of course religion can be a healing force. It’s the strongest of healing forces. One of my colleagues says, “There ought to be space for grace.” Religion, at its best, gives a way to talk about how we fail and how we start again and how we can be drawn back from behaviors that we regret and how we can find a place of healing, sometimes not by dealing with the conflict directly but coming at it indirectly. That’s what I see Joe Biden trying to do. I think he’s trying to say, “I’m going to do my best to find a way to bring us together according to the things that we really do value as a people.” I don’t think he’s perfect, but I hear him trying to do that and I pray for his success.

ENS: Looking forward, how do you balance the desire to let your faith lead you toward that place of healing and at the same time look back on what has happened and say, “That’s not what I think we should be”? Is that in conflict?

BUDDE: It’s somewhat in conflict, but I also feel there’s a process of reconciliation. You don’t just pick yourself up from pummeling someone and then say, “Let’s make peace.” There are consequences and accountability that do need to take place before we can have kind of a deep reconciliation. And I think that we’re learning that with our generational struggle with racial inequity. I feel that in some way we have to allow the people who have been most grievously wounded a chance to heal and to make sure that there’s safety and restitution. Healing is a byproduct of work and time. It can’t be decreed by a person saying, “It’s time for healing.” You actually have to work at it.

– David Paulsen is an editor and reporter for Episcopal News Service. He can be reached at dpaulsen@episcopalchurch.org.

The coming days are a critical moment for national security. At least 20,000 members of the National Guard are being deployed to Washington, D.C., to protect the Capitol from further violence and prepare for President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration on Jan. 20.

The FBI has also warned that armed protests by Trump supporters may occur in all 50 states, and some governors are activating their states’ National Guard divisions to protect state capitols.

Perry, who initiated the letter, says she feared the danger that armed right-wing protesters present long before the attack on the U.S. Capitol last week. In April, gun-toting demonstrators swarmed the Michigan State Capitol in Lansing, directly across the street from St. Paul’s Episcopal Church. At least two of those people were among 14 people later charged in a thwarted plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and bomb the state Capitol, The New York Times reported.

“Our state Capitol has had an inordinate number of armed protesters there, inside and out,” Perry told Episcopal News Service. “And I know the reports of people with long guns and assault rifles looking down on legislators. That has been playing out continuously through the pandemic.”

After seeing the attack on the U.S. Capitol and hearing of additional threats to state capitols, Perry said she worried that places like St. Paul’s might be in danger too.

“For me, the daughter of a Marine lieutenant colonel, to watch our Capitol desecrated … I cannot begin to express to you my outrage at that,” she said, adding that St. Paul’s, a “progressive and inclusive” parish, had gotten “pushback from the protesters who see their signs and then send impolite, nasty emails to them.”

Perry says she wants to make sure people are out of harm’s way and do not try to join any demonstrations in the coming days, regardless of political intent.

“I do not want anyone counter-protesting. I don’t want folks getting hurt. And I don’t want anyone from the extreme-right groups to have anyone to react against.”

Perry said she reached out to bishops in Province V and others she knows personally, and all enthusiastically signed on.

Jan. 13, 2021

Dear people of God:

Earlier this week, the FBI warned that armed protests are being planned for Washington, D.C., and all 50 state capitals sometime between Saturday, Jan. 16, and the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden on Jan. 20. As your bishops, we write today imploring you to stay away from these protests and any counter-protests that might occur.

In these perilous times, when public demonstrations carry a significant risk of both violence and exposure to COVID-19, we believe that God calls us to exercise both our Christian witness and our civic responsibility in ways that promote peace and safety. Between now and Inauguration Day, we can best follow our vocation to be peacemakers by staying away from places where harm could come to God’s people.

Staying home does not, however, mean staying silent. We hope that all people of goodwill will join us in raising our voices to support our country’s democracy, letting our elected officials know that we are praying for them, particularly in the aftermath of last week’s siege of the U.S. Capitol. Whether you consider yourself a Republican, a Democrat or an independent, please let your elected officials know that you cherish our representative democracy and our pursuit of a more perfect union, and that you expect that those who are found responsible for last week’s violence to be held accountable. The Episcopal Church has a robust witness in Washington, D.C., and the Episcopal Public Policy Network provides all of us with opportunities to advocate for peace, justice and the dignity of every human being. You can join the network online.

Most of all, in the coming days, we ask you to pray. This collect from the Book of Common Prayer holds particular meaning as we seek to face the days ahead with courage, wisdom, and grace:

Grant, O God, that your holy and life-giving Spirit may so move every human heart, and especially the hearts of the people of this land, that barriers which divide us may crumble, suspicions disappear, and hatreds cease; that our divisions being healed, we may live in justice and peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Faithfully,

The Rt. Rev. Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows, Bishop, Episcopal Diocese of Indianapolis

The Rt. Rev. Matt Gunter, Bishop, Episcopal Diocese of Fond du Lac and Bishop Provisional, Diocese of Eau Claire

The Rt. Rev. Mark Hollingsworth, Bishop, Episcopal Diocese of Ohio

The Rt. Rev. Deon Johnson, Bishop, Episcopal Diocese of Missouri

The Rt. Rev. Shannon MacVean-Brown, Bishop, Episcopal Diocese of Vermont

The Rt. Rev. Kevin D. Nichols, Bishop, Episcopal Diocese of Bethlehem

The Rt. Rev. Dr. Bonnie Perry, Bishop, Episcopal Diocese of Michigan

The Rt. Rev. William D. Persell, Assisting Bishop, Episcopal Diocese of Ohio

The Rt. Rev. Ken Price, Bishop in the Episcopal Diocese of Southern Ohio

The Rt. Rev. Rayford Ray, Bishop, Episcopal Diocese of Northern Michigan

The Rt. Rev. Sean Rowe, Bishop, Episcopal Dioceses of Western New York and Northwestern Pennsylvania

The Rt. Rev. Dr. Douglas E. Sparks, Bishop, Episcopal Diocese of Northern Indiana

The Rt. Rev. Arthur B. Williams, Jr., Assisting Bishop, Episcopal Diocese of Ohio

The Rt. Rev. Dr. Audrey Scanlan, Bishop, Episcopal Diocese of Central Pennsylvania

Voters wait in line to enter a polling place and vote early in Durham, North Carolina, on Oct. 15, 2020. Photo: Jonathan Drake/Reuters

[Episcopal News Service] With the threat of voter intimidation and suppression hanging over the United States general election, which concludes Nov. 3, The Episcopal Church has organized training for clergy and lay chaplains to serve as “poll chaplains” on Election Day. The effort, a partnership with the nonprofit group Lawyers and Collars, recruits volunteers to “provide a calm and loving presence in the way of love, peace, justice and reconciliation” at polling places during one of the most turbulent moments in recent memory.

Unlike poll workers, volunteers who serve as poll chaplains won’t have any formal capacity or specific duties, but will serve as a nonpartisan “peaceful and prayerful presence” and be on the lookout for any potential voter intimidation, said the Rev. Stephanie Spellers, the presiding bishop’s canon for evangelism, reconciliation and creation care, during an Oct. 20 training webinar.

“I really believe that protecting every single voter and every single vote is not only essential for the health and integrity of our democracy – I really see it as an act of Christian discipleship,” said the Rev. Adam Taylor, interim president of Sojourners, who helped lead the training. “If we truly believe that every person has been made the image of God … then that means any person that is intimidated or is dissuaded or suppressed from voting – that that is an assault on the very image of God.”

During the webinar, volunteers learned about what voter intimidation or suppression can look like and what makes this election different from previous ones. Motivated by false claims of voter fraud, election officials around the country have made voting more difficult in recent years through tactics like requiring more stringent forms of identification, limiting the number of polling places and purging massive numbers of voters from the rolls. And in recent weeks, some people have caused problems near early voting locations by harassing volunteers, yelling through megaphones and holding armed militia demonstrations. Though such behavior is generally not illegal if the actions taken are done beyond the legally defined distance for electioneering (which varies by jurisdiction), some voters have reported that they felt intimidated.

“Voter suppression is real,” Taylor told volunteers during the training. “But voter fraud is an exaggerated myth. And we have seen in this election an effort by the president and other allies of his to sow chaos, fear and confusion into our election system and to – without any real shred of evidence – allege that the election is already rigged. That is dangerous rhetoric. And we have been working for over two years to try to sound the alarm about the real threat, the real legitimate threat of voter suppression.”

Taylor told volunteers that they should stand outside the polling place, let election workers know who they are and why they are there, and be calm and unobtrusive but ready to respond to an incident of potential voter intimidation – a term that has a broad interpretation but could look like some of the examples Taylor provided.

“It could be, in an extreme form, an armed militia member harassing voters while waiting in line,” Taylor said. “It could be an overly aggressive poll monitor who’s following voters to the polls and taking photographs of voters’ license plates in the parking lot. It could be people falsely telling voters that if they vote, someone will check if they have outstanding warrants or debts. It could be someone threatening to call ICE because a voter ‘looks illegal.’ It could be displaying false signs about voter fraud that threaten criminal penalties. It could be harassing or aggressively questioning voters who are speaking another language.”

If they see behavior like that, the poll chaplains have been trained to notify election officials, go to the aid of the person being harassed and de-escalate the situation. They should not try to argue with someone who is being belligerent or intimidating, Taylor said, and instead ask how the potential victim is feeling and how they can help. In the nine states Lawyers and Collars is focusing its efforts on, the group has set up a special hotline, staffed by lawyers, for poll chaplains to report problems. It also has a general hotline – 866-OUR-VOTE – that anyone can call. But Taylor stressed that poll chaplains should not put themselves in danger if they feel unsafe.

“We are not asking, nor are we recommending, that any of you intervene directly in a violent situation or try to confront directly the people that are instigating violence,” Taylor said. Instead, poll chaplains should “come alongside those who are being harassed or intimidated and be their ally in that moment, to try to deflect attention from the aggressor.”

Part of the intention of the poll chaplain program is that their mere presence at polling places – especially ordained chaplains wearing clerical robes or collars – may serve as a deterrent against intimidating behavior in the first place. Although one volunteer asked during the training whether some voters might be upset by seeing people in clerical garb during a pointedly secular event, Taylor said he wasn’t aware of any such complaints in the past.

“We won’t know entirely how much your presence deterred others from taking nefarious action, so we hope that most of you are very bored at your polling sites,” Taylor said.

The Rev. Melanie Mullen, The Episcopal Church’s director of reconciliation, justice and creation care, and Rebecca Linder Blachly, director of the church’s Office of Government Relations, directed trainees to the church’s comprehensive array of election-related resources, including a similar training for “protest chaplains.”

The Rev. Charles Robertson, the presiding bishop’s canon for ministry beyond The Episcopal Church, reminded trainees of Presiding Bishop Michael Curry’s call to partisan neutrality but not moral neutrality, and stressed that participating in activities like this is a way to bring people together.

“Poll chaplains can help to remind us that we are fellow Americans first,” Robertson said. “Our identity as people of faith – and our commitment to each other’s dignity – matters more than our commitment to a political party.”

– Egan Millard is an assistant editor and reporter for Episcopal News Service. He can be reached at emillard@episcopalchurch.org.

U.S. President Donald Trump waves to reporters as he departs with first lady Melania Trump to travel to Cleveland, Ohio, on Sept. 29, 2020. Trump tweeted late on Oct.1 that he and the first lady have both tested positive for COVID-19. Photo: REUTERS

[Episcopal News Service] Presiding Bishop Michael Curry issued a call to prayer Oct. 2 following President Donald Trump’s and first lady Melania Trump’s positive COVID-19 tests: 

During this time of the COVID-19 pandemic, I continue to pray for all affected by this virus in any way. At this particular moment, I ask that all Episcopalians also pray for the president and first lady, and all in the White House or government who have been infected by this virus.

O God of heavenly powers, by the might of your command you drive away from our bodies all sickness and all infirmity: Be present in your goodness with your children, the president and first lady, and all in the White House or government who have been infected by this virus, that their weakness may be banished and their strength restored; and that, their health being renewed, they may bless your holy name; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. — For Recovery from Sickness, Book of Common Prayer, p. 458

The Most Rev. Michael B. Curry
Presiding Bishop and Primate
The Episcopal Church

Obispo Presidente pide oración por el Presidente y la Primera Dama
[2 de octubre de 2020] El Obispo Presidente de la Iglesia Episcopal Michael Curry ha emitido la siguiente declaración:

Durante este tiempo de la pandemia COVID-19 yo sigo rezando por todos los que han sido afectados de cualquier manera por este virus.

En este momento en particular pido que todos los episcopales también oren por el Presidente y la Primera Dama, y por todos los que en la Casa Blanca o en el gobierno han sido infectados por este virus.

Oh Dios de poder celestial, que por la fuerza de tu mandato ahuyentas de nuestro cuerpo toda dolencia y enfermedad: Hazte presente, por tu bondad, con tus hijos, el Presidente y la Primera Dama, y todos los que en la Casa Blanca o en el gobierno han sido infectados por este virus, para que sus debilidades sean desvanecidas y su vigor restaurado; y que, recuperada su salud, puedan bendecir tu Santo Nombre; por Jesucristo nuestro Señor, Amén.

– Por el Restablecimiento de la Salud, El Libro de Oración Común, p. 380

Protesters stand with their hands up on Black Lives Matter Plaza in front of St. John’s Episcopal Church in Washington, D.C., on June 22, 2020. Photo: Tom Brenner/Reuters

[Episcopal News Service] St. John’s Episcopal Church, the “church of presidents” in Washington, D.C., that has become a major flashpoint during weeks of unrest related to systemic racism and police brutality, was vandalized again on June 22 during another night of clashes between police and protesters in front of the White House.

“BHAZ” was spray-painted on the 204-year-old church’s columns, The Washington Post reported. The acronym was also spray-painted on a piece of plywood nearby, accompanied by “Black House Autonomous Zone,” an apparent take on the Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone in Seattle, Washington. That area, also called the Capitol Hill Organized Protest, is comprised of several blocks that were taken over by protesters and abandoned by police on June 8. One person was killed and two were injured in shootings there this past weekend.

BHAZ — Black House Autonomous Zone — has been spray painted on the columns of the historic St. John’s church outside the White House. pic.twitter.com/or2C2myVSX

— Kaitlan Collins (@kaitlancollins) June 23, 2020

In a series of tweets, President Donald Trump lashed out at the spray-painted messages outside the White House and another incident the same evening when protesters tried to take down a statue of Andrew Jackson, the seventh U.S. president and a slave owner, in Lafayette Square, where St. John’s is located.

Numerous people arrested in D.C. for the disgraceful vandalism, in Lafayette Park, of the magnificent Statue of Andrew Jackson, in addition to the exterior defacing of St. John’s Church across the street. 10 years in prison under the Veteran’s Memorial Preservation Act. Beware!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 23, 2020

Police responded to that incident by sending over 150 officers and a low-flying helicopter into the area and spraying protesters with pepper spray as they forced them back, The Post reported.

Apparently referring to the graffiti at St. John’s, Trump said any attempt to establish a Seattle-style “autonomous zone” near the White House would be stopped.

There will never be an “Autonomous Zone” in Washington, D.C., as long as I’m your President. If they try they will be met with serious force!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 23, 2020

St. John’s, a national historic landmark where one of the pews is reserved for the president, has taken on a new symbolic status in recent weeks, becoming the backdrop for escalating conflicts in American society. During riots that followed peaceful protests against racial violence and police brutality on the night of May 31, someone set a fire in the basement of the parish hall, destroying one room but leaving the rest of the property unharmed, except for some graffiti.

The next day, police violently forced peaceful protesters and clergy out of the area in front of St. John’s so that Trump could pose for photos holding a Bible in front of the church, an action harshly condemned by Episcopal leaders.

The church has since been the site of further protests and prayer vigils focusing on racial justice.

Leaders from St. John’s could not immediately be reached for comment on the new graffiti.

– Egan Millard is an assistant editor and reporter for Episcopal News Service. He can be reached at emillard@episcopalchurch.org.

Joseph Fons, holding a pride flag, runs in front of the U.S. Supreme Court building June 15 after the court ruled that a federal law banning workplace discrimination also covers sexual orientation. Photo: Reuters

[Episcopal News Service] Episcopalians and church leaders are cheering the U.S. Supreme Court’s June 15 ruling that protects gay and transgender Americans from workplace discrimination, a groundbreaking decision that follows decades of church advocacy for greater LGBTQ rights.

“The Supreme Court has spoken again for the equality of all God’s children,” Presiding Bishop Michael Curry said on June 16, praising the court’s 6-3 decision in remarks to church employees at the start of their two-day annual staff meeting.

In July 2019, Curry and the Rev. Gay Clark Jennings, president of the House of Deputies, signed a friend of the court brief supporting the plaintiffs in the case.

Speaking to employees via Zoom, Curry put yesterday’s ruling in the context of the court’s June 2015 ruling that upheld same-sex marriage nationwide. That earlier decision was handed down just as The Episcopal Church’s General Convention was getting underway in Salt Lake City, Utah, spurring bishops and deputies to approve trial-use marriage rites for same-sex couples.

Jennings posted the news on Facebook, quoting from a July 2019 statement she made when she and Curry filed their legal brief on behalf of more than 700 interfaith leaders.

“As Christians, we bear a particular responsibility to speak out, because attempts to deny LGBTQ people their dignity and humanity as children of God are too often made in the name of God,” Jennings said. “This way of fear is not the way of Jesus Christ, who teaches us to cast out fear.”

The Supreme Court’s majority opinion was written by Justice Neil Gorsuch, the court’s sole Episcopalian. “An employer who fires an individual merely for being gay or transgender defies the law,” he declared.

The court’s ruling this week expands job protections under the 1964 Civil Rights Act to include sexual orientation and gender identity. Gorsuch was joined in the majority by Chief Justice John Roberts and the four members of the court’s liberal bloc.

The decision settled a series of lawsuits brought against employers by former employees who said they had been fired after revealing they were gay or transgender. The plaintiff in one of the lawsuits, Gerald Bostock, was working as coordinator of a program monitoring children placed in foster care in Clayton County, Georgia, near Atlanta, when he was fired in 2013. He had joined a gay softball league six months earlier.

“I’m elated, and words cannot fully express the gratitude I have for the justices,” said Bostock, 56, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s report on his post-ruling news conference.

Atlanta Bishop Robert Wright also praised the ruling and highlighted The Episcopal Church’s ongoing work toward greater LGBTQ inclusion in the church and society.

“Our joy flows primarily from the fact that this ruling affirms what God has ordained and what we already know, that every human being is made in the image of God and has inherent, dignity, value and worth,” Wright said June 16 in a written statement. “And that prejudice in every form is incompatible with faith in God and with a nation whose goal is greatness.”

TransEpiscopal, a group that connects transgender and nonbinary Episcopalians and advocates for their full inclusion in the church, celebrated the decision and thanked Curry and Jennings for their part in it.

“We feel the support of our wider church, particularly from Presiding Bishop Michael Curry and President of the House of Deputies Gay Clark Jennings, who were lead signers on an amicus brief,” the group wrote. “Thank you.”

However, the group tempered its celebration of the ruling by noting that just a few days before, the Trump administration eliminated an Obama-era regulation that banned discrimination against transgender people in health care, part of a broader effort by the administration to remove protections for transgender people throughout the federal government. Health care in particular, the group wrote, continues to be a major vector of inequality in America, made visible in recent months by the disproportionate effect of COVID-19 on African Americans.

The group also lamented what it called a “horrific systemic pattern” of killings of transgender people of color in America.

Some Episcopal bishops joined Wright in celebrating the Supreme Court ruling. Washington Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde expressed gratitude for the years of advocacy work that led up to the decision. “What once seemed impossible happened today,” she said.

What once seemed impossible happened today. What some Christians wanted to happen today didn’t. What many Christians prayed and worked for, alongside many others, happened. I’m giving thanks tonight and celebrating with my GLBTQ friends and family.

— Mariann Budde (@Mebudde) June 16, 2020

Curry echoed their sentiments in a statement released to Episcopal News Service later June 16.

“The fundamental equality of humanity is God-given. It is enshrined in the Bible in the first chapter of Genesis when it says human beings are created in the image and likeness of God,” Curry said. “There is no hierarchy of that image, we equally bear it. Later in Genesis, in the ninth chapter, verse six, the text picks up the theme of the image of God in human beings as conferring value so great that human life should not be taken.

“This decision is another one of those moments when our nation is living up to the ideals of America.”

In recent years, some of the most intense debate within The Episcopal Church over greater inclusion of LGBTQ Christians has focused on same-sex marriage, though the church’s opposition to anti-gay discrimination dates back even further. In 1976, General Convention passed a resolution affirming that “homosexual persons are entitled to equal protection of the laws with all other citizens.”

Expanding that position to include gender identity, a 2009 resolution called for “enactment of laws at the local, state and federal level that prohibit discrimination.” It also sought prosecution of violence against people for their gender identity as hate crimes.

And in 2017, the church’s stance against discrimination nearly prompted Episcopal leaders to move the 79th General Convention rather than hold it as planned in Austin, Texas. At that time, the Texas Legislature was considering a “bathroom bill” that would have required anyone using a public restroom in Texas to use the facility labeled with the gender that matched the sex stated on the person’s birth certificate or driver’s license.

Curry and Jennings sent a letter to the speaker of the Texas House of Representatives in February 2017 saying if the bill became law, The Episcopal Church would face the “difficult choice” of moving General Convention to a different state rather than support legalized discrimination.

The bill was defeated in August 2017, and Episcopal leaders kept Austin as host city for the church’s triennial gathering.

“We give thanks for all of the Texan Episcopalians, elected officials, business leaders, and advocates who raised their voices publicly against this proposed law and the physical, spiritual and emotional damage it threatened to do to transgender people,” Curry and Jennings said at the time.

When General Convention met in Austin in July 2018, it passed a resolution reaffirming its support for transgender rights and pledged to support “legislative, educational, pastoral, liturgical, and broader communal efforts” to oppose violence and discrimination against transgender people.

– David Paulsen is an editor and reporter for Episcopal News Service. He can be reached at dpaulsen@episcopalchurch.org. Egan Millard is an assistant editor and reporter for Episcopal News Service. He can be reached at emillard@episcopalchurch.org.