All posts tagged: Bishop

Presiding Bishop George R. Lucey, FCM, releases two new works exploring faith, inclusion, and the transformative power of Christ’s love

Presiding Bishop George R. Lucey, FCM, releases two new works exploring faith, inclusion, and the transformative power of Christ’s love

Published by Sam Flores

Catholic theology informed from Vatican Council II WEST ORANGE, N.J. — Bishop George R. Lucey, FCM, Presiding Bishop of the American National Catholic Church, has released two new books offering timely reflections on faith, community, and the healing presence of Christ in the lives of those often overlooked by institutional religion. Together, Where Else Shall We Go, Lord? Reflections on Christ’s Love and Compassion for Those at the Margin of the Church and Shepherding Peace present a compelling pastoral and theological vision for a Church rooted in mercy, justice, and authentic welcome. A Pilgrimage of Faith and Belonging: Where Else Shall We Go, Lord? In Where Else Shall We Go, Lord?, Bishop George R. Lucey, FCM, offers a deeply personal and spiritually rich exploration of God’s transformative love. Drawing from his decades of ministry as a priest, bishop, and theologian, Lucey reflects on the central question at the heart of Christian life: What difference does Jesus make? Part memoir, part theological meditation, the book invites readers into a journey through the joys and tensions of …

The Rev. Dr. Adam J. Shoemaker elected ninth bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Long Island

The Rev. Dr. Adam J. Shoemaker elected ninth bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Long Island

Published by Sam Flores

The Rev. Dr. Adam J. Shoemaker was elected ninth bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Long Island on April 18 by nearly 300 clergy and lay delegates, meeting at the Cathedral of the Incarnation in Garden City, New York.  Shoemaker was elected on the fourth ballot by 95 votes in the clergy order and 76 votes in the lay order. The election required a majority in both orders on the same ballot, in accordance with the diocesan constitution.   Shoemaker said, “I am deeply humbled by the trust this convention has placed in me and accept the call to serve as your next diocesan bishop with hope and faith in what God will do among us. I look forward to laboring together across the Diocese of Long Island as one body in Christ, and I ask your prayers as we begin this new chapter together.”  Shoemaker serves as rector of St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina. He has previously ministered in congregations in North Carolina and Massachusetts and served as a missionary in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.  An Egyptian American raised in Huntington, New York, he was formed in the …

Pope accepts resignation of Chaldean leaders after US bishop faces felony charges

Pope accepts resignation of Chaldean leaders after US bishop faces felony charges

Published by Sam Flores

(RNS) — Pope Leo XIV has accepted the resignation of Bishop Emanuel Hana Shaleta, the leader of Chaldean Catholics in the Western U.S., the Vatican announced Tuesday (March 10), after Shaleta was arrested at the San Diego International Airport on Thursday on charges of embezzlement and money laundering. The Chaldean church is one of 23 Eastern Rite churches that are in full communion with the Catholic Church and recognize the pope as their head. The Chaldean church, whose worship is conducted in Syriac, an Aramaic dialect, is based in Baghdad, but it has eparchies around the world. Shaleta headed the Eparchy of St. Peter the Apostle, which covers much of the western United States. The Vatican’s announcement on Tuesday said Leo had accepted Shaleta’s resignation in February but hadn’t made a formal announcement then. It also clarified that Bishop Saad Hanna Sirop will be apostolic administrator until a new bishop is appointed. After Shaleta’s arrest on Thursday, he spent four nights in jail before pleading not guilty to 15 felony counts on Monday. A local …

‘The Lost Bishop’ of South Sudan dies at 86

‘The Lost Bishop’ of South Sudan dies at 86

Published by Sam Flores

NAIROBI, Kenya (RNS) — A South Sudan bishop known in the Anglican Communion as a “lost bishop” because he went missing in the late 1980s during his country’s war against Sudan has died. The Very Rev. Nathaniel Garang, a retired bishop of Bor, died Feb. 24 while receiving treatment in Nairobi, where he has been since 2024. He was 86. The Diocese of Bor is located along the White Nile, about 200 kilometers north of South Sudan’s capital, Juba.  Sudan came apart in nearly continuous fighting from the early 1970s until the early 2000s, in a war that began in resistance to government policies that included forced Islamization for the southern region, where many inhabitants are Christian or followers of African traditional religions. Garang spent much of the conflict among the poorest residents, preaching hope, while traversing Africa seeking peace and protection for southern Sudan. He also brought the realities of the war to the international community, traveling to Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States.  He was consecrated the bishop of Bor in …

Bishop of Lincoln arrested on suspicion of sexual assault | UK News

Bishop of Lincoln arrested on suspicion of sexual assault | UK News

Published by Sam Flores

The Bishop of Lincoln, the Right Reverend Stephen Conway, has been arrested on suspicion of sexual assault. Lincolnshire Police confirmed a 68-year-old man had been arrested as part of an “ongoing investigation following an allegation that a man was sexually assaulted between 2018 and 2025”. Bishop Conway has been released on conditional bail. Earlier, a statement shared on the Diocese of Lincoln website confirmed the bishop had been “suspended from ministry” following a complaint to the Church of England’s national safeguarding team. The statement said “support is in place for those affected”, and a referral had been made to the “appropriate statutory authorities”. No details of the complaint were given. The statement added: “We understand that this will be a deeply unsettling time”. More on Church Of England The Bishop of Grantham, the Right Reverend Dr Nicholas Chamberlain, will be standing in during the suspension. Bishop Conway has been Bishop of Lincoln since 2023, and has previously served as Bishop of Ramsbury and Bishop of Ely. He has been a member of the House of …

Inspired by Catholic nuns, Kenyan Lutheran pastor becomes church’s first female presiding bishop

Inspired by Catholic nuns, Kenyan Lutheran pastor becomes church’s first female presiding bishop

Published by Sam Flores

NAIROBI, Kenya (RNS) — A Lutheran pastor inspired in her youth by a Catholic priest and nuns is set to become the first female presiding bishop of the Kenya Evangelical Lutheran Church. The Rev. Catherine Ngina Musau, a 55-year-old mother of two adult children, was elected on Nov. 28 at the church’s general assembly in Malindi and will be installed in June. “This was by the grace of God because it came at the time God needed me to serve his church in this capacity,” Musau told Religion News Service. RELATED: Women ministers resist misogyny with mentors, training, resilience, study finds The bishop-elect will lead the 50,000-member Kenya Evangelical Lutheran Church, a Bible-based Protestant denomination with missions in eastern and southern Kenya, where it has a strong following among the Masai ethnic community, near the Tanzania border. It’s known for its relief work, especially flood, hunger and poverty response, care of orphans, HIV and AIDS interventions and the fight for gender justice. The first female pastor in the Kenya Evangelical Lutheran Church when she was …

Bishop Dwayne Royster’s Call to Justice

Bishop Dwayne Royster’s Call to Justice

Published by Sam Flores

 In a time of mounting division and injustice, faith isn’t just a personal refuge—it’s a call to step up and speak out. This week, host Rev. Paul Brandeis Raushenbush is joined by Bishop Duayne Royster, Executive Director of Faith in Action. Talk about action—Bishop Dwayne and partners organized a massive, diverse, faith-inspired gathering in Washington, D.C. just days after a series of ICE-related deaths. 450 clergy mobilized in 72 hours, with multiple faith traditions coming together to oppose policies rooted in hate and fear—and almost 60 faith leaders arrested during the peaceful protest. As the bishop describes his own motivation, he subjected himself to arrest “for all my neighbors that don’t deserve to be arrested, detained, or deported.” Others visited individual senators’ offices, making over 50 Hill visits to challenge funding for the extremist practices of ICE. It’s all a reminder that faith, when truly grounded, can be a revolutionary force. With the 250th anniversary of the country this year, Bishop Dwayne has a powerful vision for faith-inspired organizing for the occasion: “We all …

Vatican warns SSPX bishop ordinations without papal approval would cause schism

Vatican warns SSPX bishop ordinations without papal approval would cause schism

Published by Sam Flores

VATICAN CITY (RNS) — After an organization of traditionalist Catholic priests announced plans earlier this month to appoint new bishops without the approval of the pope, the Vatican’s doctrine department met with the head of the group on Thursday (Feb. 12) and later issued a statement warning against schism. The appointment of bishops has long been a point of friction between the Vatican and the Society of St. Pius X, which was founded in 1970 by the conservative Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, a conservative French prelate who objected to the reforms of the Second Vatican Council. In 1988, the society consecrated four bishops without the approval of the Vatican, which then declared them automatically excommunicated. Pope Benedict XVI lifted the excommunications in 2009, and dialogue has been ongoing with the Vatican since then. Today, the society, with nearly 1,500 members, is not in full communion with the church, but its priests’ ability to hear confessions and conduct marriages was recognized in 2017. According to the society, its following is growing, particularly in France, where most of …

Pope Leo XIV faces crisis as a traditionalist group plans bishop consecrations without consent

Pope Leo XIV faces crisis as a traditionalist group plans bishop consecrations without consent

Published by Sam Flores

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Leo XIV is facing his first major crisis with traditionalist Catholics: A breakaway group attached to the traditional Latin Mass announced plans to consecrate new bishops without papal consent in a threatened revival of schism. The Swiss-based Society of St. Pius X, which has schools, chapels and seminaries around the world, has been a thorn in the side of the Holy See for four decades, founded in opposition to the modernizing reforms of the 1960s Second Vatican Council. In 1988, the group’s founder, Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, consecrated four bishops without papal consent, arguing that it was necessary for the survival of the church’s tradition. The Vatican promptly excommunicated Lefebvre and the four other bishops, and the group today still has no legal status in the Catholic Church. But in the decades since that original break with Rome, the group has continued to grow, with branches of priests, nuns and lay Catholics who are attached to the pre-Vatican II traditional Latin Mass. For the Vatican, papal consent for the consecration of …