The Rt. Rev. J. Scott Mayer, bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Northwest Texas, is the nominee for the next bishop provisional of Fort Worth.
Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth:
The Standing Committee of the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth, a group of elected clergy and lay leaders, announced on April 10, 2015, that the Rt. Rev. J. Scott Mayer, bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Northwest Texas, is the nominee for the next provisional bishop of Fort Worth. The Rt. Rev. Rayford B. High, Jr., provisional bishop of Fort Worth, has called a special meeting of the convention at which the diocese’s clergy and lay representatives will vote on Bishop Mayer’s nomination at 10 am on Saturday, May 16, 2015, at Trinity Episcopal Church, 3401 Bellaire Drive S., Ft. Worth, TX 76109.
The Standing Committee selected Bishop Mayer in consultation with Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori and in accordance with Canon III.13.1 of The Episcopal Church.
In a letter to the diocese sent on April 10, 2015, Bishop High said he is stepping down five months before the planned date of November 2015 following the death of his wife, Pat, in March.
“I feel very good about this decision of the Standing Committee, and I am in full support of their recommendation,” Bishop High said in his letter.
Mayer will continue as bishop of Northwest Texas while also serving as bishop of Fort Worth under the proposed arrangement, which will continue until the Fort Worth diocese is positioned to elect a full time bishop. The plan calls for him to split his time between the two dioceses. The dioceses are not merging. This model of episcopacy is similar to the arrangement with the Rt. Rev. Edwin F. (Ted) Gulick, Jr., the diocese’s first provisional bishop who also was serving as the bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Kentucky at the time. A similar arrangement currently exists with the Rt. Rev. Sean Rowe, who serves as bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Northwestern Pennsylvania and as provisional bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Bethlehem (PA). The previous two provisional bishops of Fort Worth have been retired. The Rt. Rev. C. Wallis Ohl, Jr., the second provisional bishop, was the retired bishop of Northwest Texas when elected. Bishop High had retired as bishop suffragan of the Episcopal Diocese of Texas when he was elected.
Posted by Andrew Gerns.