Nina Soto, Cuban missionary and first episcopal woman to graduate from the Episcopal Seminary in Cuba.

Nina Soto, a Cuban missionary who spent decades spreading the Gospel in Latin America and beyond, passed away peacefully on December 22, 2025, surrounded by love. She was born in Morón, in the Province of Camagüey, Cuba, the sixth of nine children of Ulpiano Ulloa and Carolina Companioni.

From an early age, Nina distinguished herself as an excellent student with a deep love of learning. Books were her lifelong companions and shaped the thoughtful, reflective spirit that defined her life. She studied philosophy at the University of Havana and later earned a master’s degree in Christian Education from the Episcopal Seminary of Matanzas, where she made history as the first Episcopal woman to graduate from the seminary. Following her graduation, she served as Director of Christian Education for the Episcopal Diocese of Cuba in Havana, beginning a life devoted to faith, education, and service.

In January 1956, Nina met the love of her life at a student retreat in Manicaragua. Onell Soto was preparing to represent Cuba at a world meeting of Christian students in Germany. When they met, he told her he hoped to see her again upon his return so he could show her photographs from his journey. That simple invitation marked the beginning of a love story that would span fifty-five years of marriage and a life lived across five countries: Cuba, the United States, Ecuador, El Salvador, and Venezuela.

Nina and Onell married on July 4, 1960, at the Church of the Holy Trinity in Morón, Cuba. They honeymooned in the colonial city of Trinidad while quietly making the difficult decision to leave their beloved Cuba, holding on to the hope that one day they might return.

They departed Cuba in late 1960 and began a life shaped by faith and church service. In 1965, the family moved to Quito, Ecuador, where Onell served as vicar of the Episcopal Church of San Nicolás. Nina supported the Spanish-speaking congregation and helped organize the city’s ecumenical movement. In mid-1971, the family relocated to El Salvador when Onell was appointed Executive Secretary of the Episcopal Church’s Ninth Province. Nina continued her ministry alongside him, working on ecumenical publications.

In December 1977, Nina and Onell moved to Montclair, New Jersey, following his appointment as Officer of Information and Education for the World Mission Unit of the Episcopal Church. There, they raised their four children. During these years, Nina’s leadership and faith extended far beyond her home. In 1985, she represented the Episcopal Church at the Third United Nations World Conference on Women in Nairobi, Kenya. She served for many years on the National Committee of the United Thank Offering, as a board trustee of the Episcopal Seminary in Puerto Rico, and for more than a decade as editor of Día a Día, the Spanish-language edition of Forward Movement Day by Day, offering daily devotions to Spanish-speaking Episcopalians.

In 1987, Nina and Onell moved to Venezuela after he was elected Bishop of the Anglican Church of Venezuela. They lived there until 1995, serving with devotion and humility. Onell later served as assistant bishop in the Episcopal dioceses of Atlanta and Alabama. In 2002, as they transitioned into retirement, he was appointed Interim Director of Communications for the Anglican Communion, leading them to spend several months living at St. Andrew’s House in London.

Nina and Onell eventually retired to Miami, Florida, where they lived together until Onell’s death in 2015, and where Nina remained until her own passing. They celebrated fifty-five years of marriage surrounded by their children and six grandchildren.

Above all, Nina was a devoted and loving mother, a lifelong partner to her husband, and a woman of quiet strength and compassion. She deeply loved Cuba and carried it in her heart always. She found joy in coloring mandalas, tending flowers, traveling, and surrounding herself with beauty. She had a true gift for gardening, a compassionate spirit, and a quiet elegance that drew admiration from all who knew her. Her faith was lived daily through action and kindness.

Nina Rosa Ulloa Soto leaves behind a legacy of love, service, and faith. She is survived by her daughter Ana María Soto and granddaughter Susana Cárdenas-Soto; her daughter Lidia Soto-Harmon and son-in-law Robert Harmon, and grandchildren Tomás Harmon (husband Brandon Rogers) and Nina María Harmon (fiancé Emory Nolte); her son Onell Robert Soto and daughter-in-law Robin Soto; and her daughter Elena Soto-Chapa and son-in-law Jimmy Chapa, and grandchildren Cristina Elena, Alicia Mía, and Lucero. She is also survived by two sisters, and many nieces, nephews, and extended family who loved her deeply.

May she rest in peace.

A Service of Thanksgiving for the Life of Nina Soto will be held on Saturday, January 17, at 2:00 p.m. at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral, 464 NE 16th Street, Miami, Florida 33132.

The service will be livestreamed at:
https://youtu.be/HOVX4adphHI

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Hispanic Ministry of the Diocese of Southwest Florida.

Former Ohio Bishop J. Clark Grew II/ Facebook

[Episcopal News Service] The Rt. Rev. J. Clark Grew II, who was bishop of the Diocese of Ohio from 1994 to 2004, died Dec. 22, 2025, in Boston, Massachusetts. He was 86.

The diocese said in announcing his death on its Facebook page, “We in the Diocese of Ohio are grateful for his faithful ministry with and for us during his episcopacy. He will always be remembered and honored here.” It added, “In our prayers, we surround the family with love and commend Bishop Grew to God’s eternal care.”

Grew was born in New York City on Dec. 20, 1939, and was named after his great uncle, Joseph Clark Grew, who was the U.S. ambassador to Japan during World War II.

After graduating from Harvard in 1962, he served in the U.S. Navy for five years, including as the 52nd commander of the U.S.S. Constitution, which was first launched in 1797. He then taught in private schools until entering Episcopal Divinity School in Cambridge, Massachusetts, from which he graduated in 1978.

He served churches in Westwood, Massachusetts, and Lake Forest, Illinois, before his election as bishop of Ohio in 1993 and his consecration in 1994. During his tenure as bishop, he was known for his support for greater inclusion of women and LGBTQ+ people in the church.

He also served as head of Episcopal Divinity School’s board, and he received an honorary doctorate from the seminary in 1997 for his pastoral and prophetic leadership

In retirement, he returned to Boston and was involved with Epiphany School and with St. George’s School in Newport, Rhode Island.

He is survived by Wendy, his wife of nearly 53 years; three children; eight grandchildren; one great-grandchild; a sister and a brother.

His funeral service will take place at 11 a.m. on Jan. 31 at Emmanuel Church in Boston.

Survivors include his wife, April Grayson Talton, and his daughters, Kathy Talton-Wilson (Ray Wilson) and Linda Talton, and sons, Fred (Tamu Talton) and Ben (Janai Nelson), and eight grandchildren: Noemi, Quinton, Jacob, Kimathi, Jendaya, Karryne, Nandi, and Osei Talton. The bishop was preceded in death by his first wife, Karen Warren Talton, whom he married in 1963 and who died in 2003.

Memorial service arrangements are pending. Condolences may be sent to family members in care of the Bishop’s Office, 840 Echo Park Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90026, or bishopsoffice@ladiocese.org.

Bishop Chester Talton. Photo: Diocese of Los Angeles

“Chet Talton was a pioneer, a prophet and a pastor for the ages,” Los Angeles Bishop John Harvey Taylor said. “Being elected bishop was an act of justice; but he lived his whole life that way. Traveling around the diocese, I encounter so many who describe their pride at having been confirmed by Chet — the warm voice, the loving smile, the gentlest of old-school slaps,” added Taylor, whom Talton ordained to the priesthood in 2004.

“With April at his side, he navigated a rough year with calm and courage, first kept from their home by the wildfires, then a succession of health challenges,” Taylor said. “Thanks to April, his passing was as gentle as it possibly could have been.”

The Episcopal Church’s first African-American bishop in the western United States, Talton was elected bishop suffragan in 1990 and served Los Angeles from 1991 to 2010. Talton served from 2011 to 2014 as bishop provisional of San Joaquin as that diocese continued to reorganize after a large number of Episcopalians there had chosen to leave The Episcopal Church.

“Chet Talton Day” was celebrated in the Diocese of Los Angeles on May 18, 2024, with Eucharist at St. John’s Cathedral, co-sponsored by the diocesan Program Group on Black Ministries and the H. Belfield Hannibal Chapter of the Union of Black Episcopalians, highlighting Talton’s many gifts and ministries.

These included pastoral care and advocacy, especially after the 1992 Rodney King uprisings when Talton helped establish the Episcopal Community Federal Credit Union to provide loans to small businesses and others recovering from the crisis without access to traditional banking. He also oversaw diaconal ministries in the diocese for many years, guiding numerous deacons from discernment for ordination through placement in local ministries.

Talton co-edited the 2003 book “Race and Prayer: Collected Voices, Many Dreams” with the Rev. Malcolm Boyd, the late writer/poet-in-residence in the Diocese of Los Angeles, who died in 2015. The book is a collection of prayers and reflections from writers within the Diocese of Los Angeles and beyond.

Churchwide, Talton chaired the House of Bishops program committee during the administrations of Presiding Bishops Edmond L. Browning and Frank T. Griswold.

Talton was born Sept. 22, 1941, in Eldorado, Arkansas, to Mae Ola and Chester Talton and grew up in Oakland, California.

Ordained to the diaconate in 1970 and the priesthood in 1971 in the San Francisco-based Diocese of California, Talton received a Master of Divinity degree in 1970 from Berkeley’s Church Divinity School of the Pacific, which later awarded him an honorary doctorate of divinity. In 1965 he earned a Bachelor of Science degree from California State University, Hayward.

Talton’s parish ministry including service as rector of St. Philip’s Church, St. Paul, Minnesota (1976-1981); vicar of Holy Cross Church, Chicago, Illinois (1973-1976); vicar of St. Matthias Mission and curate of All Saints Church, Carmel, California (1971-1973); and vicar of Good Shepherd Church, Berkeley, California (1970-1971).

From 1981 to 1985, Talton was mission officer of Trinity Church, Wall Street in New York. He assisted in establishing a shelter and a feeding program that served 150 lunches daily. He helped open drop-in centers for teens residing in two housing developments in lower Manhattan, and during his tenure day care centers for infants and preschoolers were started on Wall Street to serve clerical workers paid low wages and in need of care for their small children.

Talton was at the time of his election to the episcopate rector of historic St. Philip’s Church in Harlem, New York, where he began ministry in 1985 serving the 900-member congregation with numerous community-outreach programs and a full-time staff of some 50 members. Notable members of the parish included U.S. Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, who served as a vestry member.

Former Nebraska Bishop Joe Goodwin Burnett. Photo: School of Theology at the University of the South/Facebook

[Episcopal News Service] The Rt. Rev. Joe Goodwin Burnett, who was bishop of Nebraska from 2003 to 2011, died on Nov. 14 in Atlanta, Georgia. He was 77.

“Bishop Burnett is remembered as a pastor who came to deeply love the people of Nebraska,” said Nebraska Bishop Scott Barker, in a Nov. 18 statement on the diocese’s Facebook page announcing Burnett’s death. “He was a tireless shepherd and champion for his clergy, beloved for his kind heart and caring.”

Burnett was born on May 15, 1948, the youngest son of a United Methodist minister, and raised in Mississippi. He earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from Millsaps College in Jackson in 1970. In 1974, he earned a Master of Divinity from the Perkins School of Theology at Southern Methodist University in University Park, Texas.

After graduating from Southern Methodist University, Burnett was ordained as an Episcopal deacon, then as a priest in 1975. He spent his first 25 years as a priest serving congregations throughout the Jackson-based Diocese of Mississippi. including St. James’ Episcopal Church in Jackson, Episcopal Church of the Creator in Clinton, St. Peter’s by-the-Sea Episcopal Church in Gulfport and Trinity Episcopal Church in Hattiesburg.

“The Episcopal Diocese of Mississippi gives profound thanks to God for the life and ministry of Bishop Joe Burnett, a Jackson, Mississippi native who has served the church faithfully since his ordination in 1974,” Mississippi Bishop Dorothy Dorothy Sanders Wells told Episcopal News Service in a written statement. “We commend his soul to our loving God, grateful for the ways in which he has shared his tremendous ministry gifts with us and with God’s people throughout our country.”

In 1999, Burnett moved to Sewanee, Tennessee, to serve as a professor of pastoral theology at the University of the South’s School of Theology.

“Bishop Burnett brought 25 years of parish experience to the seminary, teaching pastoral theology, pastoral care and congregational leadership in both the Master of Divinity and Doctor of Ministry degree programs,” the School of Theology said in a Nov. 17 Facebook post. “Please keep Joe and his family in your prayers.

Burnett was elected as the Omaha-based Diocese of Nebraska’s 10th bishop in 2003. He spent much of his episcopate committed to interfaith work and was an early supporter of the Tri-Faith Initiative, an interfaith center in Omaha that permanently houses a church, a mosque and a synagogue in one space. Burnett also helped establish missional partnerships with the Diocese of the Dominican Republic and the Episcopal Church of Sudan. As bishop, he also focused on clergy development, congregational growth, liturgical renewal, racial reconciliation and global mission.

As bishop, Burnett was affectionately known as the “bishop of all outdoors,” according to his Legacy.com obituary.

After retiring as bishop of Nebraska in 2011, Burnett was appointed assisting bishop in the Diocese of Maryland. He also served as interim rector of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Meridian, Mississippi, All Saints Episcopal Church in Tupelo, Mississippi, St. Columba’s Episcopal Church in Washington, D.C., and St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church in Rapid City, South Dakota. He later served as an instructor in the advanced degrees program at Sewanee’s School of Theology.

“In my opinion, Bishop Joe provided me one of the finest examples of humility in a clergy person and was nothing but supportive to me personally in my ministry – a dear friend,” the Rev. J.D. Barnes, rector of Emmanuel Episcopal Church in Rapid City, said in a Nov. 15 statement on the church’s Facebook page. “While he is greatly missed in our earthly realm, we can be confident he is now present in the heavenly one to which we should all aspire.”

South Dakota Bishop Jonathan H. Folts called for prayers for Burnett and his family:

“I give thanks for Bishop Joe’s mentorship when I came on board in August 2019. His encouragement, wisdom and quiet support were gifts for which I remain profoundly grateful,” Folts said in a Nov. 14 statement to the diocese. “We join our prayers with those of the Diocese of Nebraska, the Burnett family and all who mourn his passing.”

Outside of clerical duties, Burnett was passionate about church music. He was chaplain for the Mississippi Conference on Church Music and Liturgy and served on the executive board of the Association of Diocesan Music and Liturgy Commissions.

In 2004, Burnett earned an honorary Doctor of Divinity degree from General Theological Seminary in New York, New York.

Burnett is survived by his three sons and four grandchildren.

Burnett’s livestreamed funeral will take place Jan. 9 at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Omaha.

“The prayers of all Nebraska are lifted to heaven this day in thanksgiving for Joe’s life and ministry,” Barker said. “May he rest in peace and rise in glory.”

The Rt. Rev. Catherine M. Waynick served the Diocese of Indianapolis for 20 years. Photo: Diocese of Indianapolis

[Episcopal News Service/Diocese of Indianapolis] The Rt. Rev. Catherine M. Waynick, who served as the 10th bishop of the Diocese of Indianapolis, died on Oct. 30 in Indianapolis, Indiana. She was 76. 

“On this Feast of All Saints, we give thanks for Bishop Cate’s faithful ministry and steadfast love for the Church. We ask your prayers for her husband, Larry, for their family, and for all who mourn her passing,” said Bishop Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows, in an email to the diocese announcing Waynick’s death. 

Waynick served as bishop of the Indianapolis diocese from 1997 to 2017, guiding it through two decades of growth, inclusion, and evolving mission in The Episcopal Church. She was the seventh woman to be consecrated bishop in The Episcopal Church and the 10th woman bishop in the Anglican Communion.



Her 20-year episcopate was marked by a commitment to inclusion, theological depth and steady leadership through times of transition. She encouraged the diocese to strengthen lay and clergy formation, expand community partnerships and embody a church that welcomed all people. She was especially committed to identifying, calling and forming deacons for ministry in the diocese and churchwide. She also initiated a unique three-way partnership in mission between the Diocese of Indianapolis, the Diocese of Bor in South Sudan and the Diocese of Brasília.

Upon her retirement in 2017, she was elected and served two years as provisional bishop, providing pastoral and administrative guidance during a period of transition and renewal, in what was then the Diocese of Eastern Michigan, now part of the Diocese of the Great Lakes. 

She began her ordained ministry in the Diocese of Michigan, serving Christ Church Cranbrook in Bloomfield Hills and All Saints in Pontiac before being elected bishop coadjutor in January 1997.  She was consecrated in June, and in September, she was installed as diocesan bishop. In addition to her ministry in Indianapolis, Waynick served on several General Convention legislative committees, on the abundance committee of the Church Pension Fund and on the task force to revise Title IV disciplinary canons. She served as president of the disciplinary board for bishops and as a governor of the Anglican Centre in Rome.

General Theological Seminary in New York awarded Waynick an honorary Doctor of Divinity in 1998 for her contributions to theological education and ecclesial leadership. She was known for her intellect, pastoral sensibility and clear-eyed commitment to the mission of the church. She cherished ecumenical and interfaith relationships, working closely with Christian and Jewish laity and clergy throughout her ministry. 

Waynick was born in Jackson, Michigan, on Nov. 13, 1948. She met her husband, Larry Waynick, when they were both students at Central Michigan University. They sang in a folk trio together that performed in coffee houses and even opened once for Joni Mitchell in her early days. 

She is survived by her husband, their two children and grandchildren. 

A service will be held at St. Paul’s in Indianapolis at noon on Friday, Dec. 12. Private internment will follow at St. Paul’s columbarium.

“Margo was a pioneer in the field of clergy wellness and a prime mover in the Episcopal Church’s efforts to address clergy misconduct and come to terms with its effects,” Presiding Bishop Sean Rowe said. “Her powerful voice for the Gospel imperatives of reconciliation and forgiveness helped shape our disciplinary canons and our approach to ministry with both victims and abusers, and her legacy continues to guide us today.”

Maris served the church in Wyoming, Minnesota, and Oregon, including as canon to the ordinary in the Diocese of Minnesota from 1981 to 1994. She graduated from Church Divinity School of the Pacific in 1978, and was ordained in 1979–three years after General Convention approved the ordination of women. She was the first woman to serve as rector in the Diocese of Minnesota and, in that diocese in 1988, became the second woman in church history to stand for election as bishop suffragan.

Maris’s ministry in the area of clergy sexual misconduct began in 1984 when a hospital chaplain in Minnesota called her for assistance.

“A patient had requested Holy Communion only from a woman priest, a patient who had been the victim of clergy sexual abuse,” reads a citation by Seabury-Western Theological Seminary, which in 1994 granted her its Distinguished Christian Service Award.

The citation continues: “In the decade which has followed that telephone call, Margo has become a recognized authority in the field of clergy sexual misconduct. . . .Out of her vision for clergy and institutional wellness has grown her commitment to intervene into clergy misconduct and to assist in the healing of their victims. In Margo’s vision for wellness, there is the possi­bility of redemption for abused and abuser alike.”

“She was a force of nature — visionary, tenacious, fearless, disciplined, focused, compassionate, resilient, and resolute,” said the Rev. Gay Clark Jennings, president of the House of Deputies from 2012 to 2022. “She changed the face of the church to make justice for victims more important than protection of offenders.”

Maris served as co-chair of the Committee on Sexual Exploitation, which was established in 1991 by General Convention Resolution B052. Under the auspices of this committee, she co-authored a series of booklets, including a 1996  booklet titled “For Persons with Complaints: Information on Episcopal Church Discipline,” which helped victims and complainants learn to navigate church disciplinary processes.

She also served as a personal advocate for scores of victims and complainants and urged the church to include their voices in the disciplinary process and provide them with pastoral care.

In 1997, when Virginia Theological Seminary granted her an honorary doctorate, the citation read, “You became advocate, counselor, and healer to many. Often without compensation and unknown to all but a few, you selflessly gave and still give of yourself, spending your time and energy to help these wounded persons regain emotional health and restored faith in God and in the Church.”

“Margo’s persistence and commitment to justice was legendary,” Sally Johnson, advisor to Presiding Bishop Rowe and former House of Deputies chancellor , said. “Her vision was a church that was a safe and healing place for both ordained and lay people. Her influence reached far beyond the places she served, impacting lives across the Episcopal Church and ecumenical communities. The Episcopal Church is a safer place because of her leadership.”

Maris was preceded in death by her husband, John Pearce, in 2015, and is survived by her daughter, grandson, great-grandchildren, brother, niece, and nephew.

— Sally Johnson is advisor to Presiding Bishop Sean Rowe and trustee of the Margo Elaine Maris Trust.

The Rt. Rev. Thomas Ely, who served as bishop of Vermont from 2001 to 2019 and as bishop provisional of North Dakota from 2021 to 2024, died Aug. 30.

[Episcopal News Service] The Rt. Rev. Thomas C. Ely, who served as bishop of Vermont from 2001 to 2019 and as bishop provisional of North Dakota from 2021 to 2024, died Aug. 30. He was 73.

Since September 2023 he had been treated for cancer of the esophagus, according to a CaringBridge page he created.

A graduate of the University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee, Ely was ordained as a deacon and a priest in 1980 in the Diocese of Connecticut, where he served in a variety of ministry capacities, including as head of the diocesan youth ministry and its retreat center, before his bishop election in Vermont.

In announcing his death to the diocese, Vermont Bishop Shannon MacVean-Brown described Ely as “a champion of LGBTQ+ inclusion in the church, as well as lay leadership churchwide.” She added that the solar array that powers the diocesan office is named in honor of Ely and his wife Ann.

A history section on the diocese’s website said of him, “Bishop Gene Robinson, the church’s first openly gay bishop, said Ely had done more to advance the full inclusion of all baptized people in the life of the church than any other bishop, including himself.”

The Rev. Susan Russell, canon for engagement across difference for the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles and an advocate for LGBTQ+ rights, said Ely’s legacy “includes his leadership in the work to end gun violence, his commitment to the challenging work of communion across difference and his tireless support for the LGBTQ community.”

Ely is survived by his wife Ann, daughters Jennifer and Katherine, and several grandchildren. Ann said on CaringBridge that he would be buried soon at historic Christ Church in Guilford, Vermont, in keeping with his wishes for a green burial. Planning is underway for a celebration of life service, according to the diocesan announcement.

Right: The Rt. Rev. Jeffery Rowthorn, who served as bishop suffragan in Connecticut from 1987 to 1993 and then as bishop of the Convocation of Episcopal Churches in Europe through 2001, right, and his wife, Anne Long Wheeler Rowthorn, left. Photo: Yale University Institute of Sacred Music

[Episcopal News Service] The Rt. Rev. Jeffery Rowthorn, who served as bishop suffragan in Connecticut from 1987 to 1993 and then as bishop of the Convocation of Episcopal Churches in Europe through 2001, died on July 23. He was 91.

His death was announced by the Episcopal Church in Connecticut.

“Bishop Rowthorn is remembered by many in Connecticut for his wisdom, humor, kindness, and grace,” the diocese said in its announcement.

The Convocation of Episcopal Churches in Europe also posted a statement marking Rowthorn’s death. “We give thanks to God for Jeffery’s passionate service to our church; for his graceful manner and poetic life; and most of all for his wise guidance that leads us still on the path toward the future into which God is calling us,” the convocation said. 

Rowthorn was born April 9, 1934, in Newport, Gwen, Wales. After graduating from Cambridge University in England with a degree in modern languages, he earned his Master of Divinity degree from Union Theological Seminary in 1961, graduating magna cum laude. He was ordained to the diaconate in 1962 and to the priesthood in 1963 in the Church of England’s Diocese of Southwark.

After ordination, he served his curacy at St. Mary Magdalene, Woolwich, from 1962 to 1965. He then served as rector of the Benefice of Garsington in the Diocese of Oxford until 1968. While in parish ministry, Rowthorn was a lecturer at Ripon College Cuddeston, a theological college in Oxford.

In 1968, Rowthorn moved to New York City to serve as chaplain and dean of Union Theological Seminary’s Master of Divinity ministerial training program. He then became the first Bishop Goddard Chair in Pastoral Theology at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, and served in that position for 14 years. While at Yale, he served as a founding faculty member of Yale’s Institute for Sacred Music.

Rowthorn was consecrated as Connecticut’s bishop suffragan in 1987. Six years later, he was appointed by the House of Bishops as bishop of the Paris, France-based Convocation of Episcopal Churches in Europe. He also served as assistant bishop of the Church of England’s Diocese in Europe from 1995 until retiring in 2001.

As bishop in Europe, he led the diocesan pilgrimage to Canterbury in 1997 to celebrate the 1,400th anniversary of St. Augustine’s arrival there, starting the diocese’s Canterbury Cross tradition. He also prioritized providing resources for baptisms and elevating young Christians to serve in the church and worldwide.

After retiring, Rowthorn moved back to Connecticut.

Rowthorn also served on the advisory board of “Weavings: A Journal of the Christian Spiritual Life,” a journal that included the voices of Christian leaders worldwide that remained in publication until 2017.

Rowthorn was married to his wife, Ann Long Wheeler Rowthorn, for 60 years until she died in 2023. They married in 1963 in Salem, Massachusetts. The Rowthorns, both passionate about environmental justice, co-wrote a book of prayers for the environment, “God’s Good Earth: Praise and Prayer for Creation,” in 2018.

In his spare time, Rowthorn wrote many hymns, most notably “Lord, You Give the Great Commission.”

Rowthorn died in Bloomfield, Connecticut. He is survived by three children and seven grandchildren. His burial service is scheduled for Aug. 9 at Christ Church Cathedral in Hartford, Connecticut.

“May God – whom Jeffery was certain spoke Welsh as a first language – receive him into the chorus of eternal praise that rings across the ages,” the convocation’s statement said.

The Very Rev. Dr. William Petersen

The Very Rev. Dr. William H. Petersen of Fairport, NY, died June 5, 2025, at Rochester General Hospital, Rochester, NY. He was born in Davenport, IA, on February 13, 1941, to William A. and Dorothea (Schultz) Petersen. He was married to Priscilla (Eide) on July 20, 1963, in San Mateo, CA. He is survived by his wife, their children Erik of Fairport and Daphne Petersen of Penfield, grandson Fletcher Brown, and several cousins. He was preceded in death by his parents and a younger sister, Kathleen, who died at age two.

He received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Grinnell College, Grinnell, IA, in 1963; a Master of Divinity degree from Church Divinity School of the Pacific (CDSP), Berkeley, CA, 1966; a PhD from Graduate Theological Union, Berkeley, CA, 1976; was a Fellow at the Case-Study Institute, Cambridge, MA, 1977; a Diplomate at the Warren Deem Institute for Theological Education Management, Harriman, NY, 1985; did further graduate work at the Graduate School of Ecumenical Studies, World Council of Churches, Geneva, Switzerland, 1989; and did Archival Research on Bishop Brent, at the World Council of Churches Library, Geneva, Switzerland, Winter 1995.

Fr. Petersen served locally as Dean of Bexley Hall Seminary, Rochester (1983-1996), and was named Dean Emeritus (2002) and Professor Emeritus (2009) of Ecclesiastical and Ecumenical History when Bexley Hall was in partnership with Trinity Lutheran Seminary, Columbus, Ohio. He retired in June 2009.

Dr. Petersen’s pastoral experiences as an Episcopal priest were extensive. In recent years, he served in the Diocese of Rochester as Interim Associate, Interim Rector, or Interim Pastor at St. Paul’s, Rochester; Christ Church, Pittsford; St. Luke’s, Fairport; and All Saints, Irondequoit. He was also an assisting priest at Trinity Church on Capitol Square, Columbus, OH, Priest Associate at Church of the Good Shepherd, New York City, NY, and served in other priestly positions in Wisconsin, California, and Iowa.

He was active in seminary education for his entire vocation, serving a decade as the Professor of Church History at Nashotah House, Nashotah, WI (tenured 1977) before moving to Rochester. In addition to his many years as Dean, he was also active in the administration as Provost at Colgate Rochester Divinity School (CRDS) from 1985-1987, Provost at Bexley Hall Seminary with responsibility for the campus in Columbus, OH, 1999- 2009, and Interim Director of the Anglican Studies Program at Colgate Rochester/Crozer Divinity School (CRCDS) from 2011-2012.

He served the international church as a visiting professor in Hong Kong, lectured in the Czech Republic, was the American Council of Churches appointment as member of the Anglican-Lutheran International Commission, and served on the International Anglican Liturgical Consultation.

Nationally, he was on the Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music, was appointed by the Presiding Bishop (PB) to represent the Episcopal Church to the Consultation on Common Texts, served on the PB’s Select Committee of Bishops and Deans, and the Theology Committee of the Standing Commission on Ecumenical Relations. He also served on the Board for Theological Education, the PB’s Ecclesiological Advisory Group, was Alternate or Deputy for five successive triennial General Conventions, was on the General Board of Examining Chaplains, the Council of Episcopal Seminary Deans, the Standing Commission on Ecumenical Relations, a delegate for the Consultation on Church Union, and was on the board of the Anglican Theological Review and the Council of Associated Parishes for Liturgy and Mission. He was a regular speaker/teacher at the annual National Workshops on Christian Unity.

One of his most rewarding undertakings was his work on the Lutheran-Episcopal Dialogues II and III (1978-1991). Those conversations and complex proceedings resulted in Inter-Eucharistic fellowship between the Episcopal Church and the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America (ELCA). He was a leader/keynoter/teacher at innumerable diocesan and/or synodal ecumenical conferences in the Anglican-Lutheran reception process. His booklet, Traditions Transplanted: The Story of Anglican and Lutheran Churches in America (with Robert Goeser), (Forward Movement Publications ©1981), summarizes the history of these “two traditions, as they were transplanted from state church environments in England and Europe to the religious pluralism and frontier conditions of North America.” The two articles in the booklet were “an experiment in mutual storytelling, by two well-known professors of Church History.”

At the diocesan level, he served on various committees (liturgical, pastoral, or theological) and led retreats, quiet days, and ecumenical conferences in dioceses in fifteen states as well as Canada.

Fr. Petersen wrote numerous articles and reviews in professional journals and was the author of What Are We Waiting For? Reclaiming Advent for Time to Come. In his article, “Re-Writing Wesley: An Advent Intervention,” published in Proceedings—Journal of the North American Academy of Liturgy (October 4, 2024), Petersen modified verse two of Hymn #57, “Lo, He comes, with clouds descending,” (The Hymnal 1982) to replace anti- Semitic phrasing with more inclusive lyrics.

He was a distinguished historian, theologian, liturgist, and ecumenist in the Episcopal Church and the greater Anglican Communion. Dr. Petersen was a mentor to seminarians fulfilling their vocations in the church, and was noted for supporting inclusivity within his community, the church, and the world. He was a strong influence on the formation of generations of Episcopal clergy.

Special honors included having a private audience with His Holiness, Pope John Paul II, at the Vatican in 1989, where he was invested with the coveted award for extraordinary service in the Ecumenical Movement: Santissimo Ordo del Cordoncino Verdi (al Dente); receiving an Honorary Doctorate from his alma mater, CDSP, in 1997; and receiving an Honorary Doctorate from the Most Rev. Peter Kwong, Bishop of Hong Kong, in 1998. He attended the World Council of Churches assemblies in France, Zimbabwe, and Australia. Bill was a delightful and witty conversationalist who freely referenced authors from Dante to J.K. Rowling. He enriched his life with cultural experiences of repertory theatre, art museums, symphonic, organ, and choral music, and reading. He deeply loved his wife, children, and grandson, Fletcher, and was richly blessed with an immense circle of beloved friends.

Calling hours will be at Keenan Funeral Home, 7501 Pittsford-Palmyra Rd, Fairport NY, Sunday, June 22, 12-2 PM, and a Requiem Eucharist will be on Thursday, June 26, at 2 PM at Christ Episcopal Church, 141 East Avenue, Rochester, the Rt. Rev. Kara Wagner Sherer presiding. He will be interred into the columbarium of St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, Fairport. The family will provide flowers. Memorial gifts can be made in his memory to WXXI Public Media, https://www.wxxi.org, or Episcopal Relief and Development, https://www.episcopalrelief.org.

David Graylan Sherwood, born on July 27, 1960, in Borger, Texas, passed away peacefully on February 16, 2025. He was 64 years old.

David’s journey of academic excellence began early; he was confirmed in the Episcopal Church in 1980, marking the beginning of a lifetime devoted to his faith and service. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Baylor University in 1981, followed by a Master of Arts in English in 1986. His passion for learning led him to obtain a Master of Library and Information Science from the University of Texas in 1993, and he subsequently pursued theological education at Nashotah House, where he earned a Master of Theological Studies cum laude in 2005. David capped his impressive educational journey with a Doctor of Ministry degree from Nashotah House in 2012. He was not only an exemplary librarian but also shared his wisdom and insights as a Professor of Ascetical Theology at Nashotah House after the retirement of Fr. Arnold Klukas. His contributions to the seminary community were profound, and he dedicated his life to helping others grow in faith and knowledge. Before coming to Nashotah House he worked for 12 years at the Reinert Library of Crieghton University in Omaha, Nebraska.

Beyond his professional achievements, David had a love for all things British, and his evenings were often spent delighting in an array of films.

David is survived by his parents Alvia (AG) and Charlene; brother Darin (Loretta); his nieces and nephews Jacob, Kirrie, Dylan, D.J., Leah, Sierra, Kaisen, Kaiden, Kaidence and Lily; god-children Tassha, Osie and Erykah; and best friend Nick Behrens.

David is preceded in death by his grandparents; aunts and uncles; and beloved dogs Trevor, Lucy and Linus.

The family would like to extend their heartfelt gratitude to the staff at Froedtert ICU for the compassionate care they provided during his final days. Your dedication did not go unnoticed and gave solace during a difficult time.

In honor of David’s impactful life, memorial contributions may be made to Nashotah House and to St. John the Baptist Anglican Church in Omaha.

A service to honor David’s life will take place on Saturday, February 22, 2025 at 10:00am at Chapel of St. Mary the Virgin, Nashotah House (2777 Mission Rd, Nashotah, WI 53058).