Getting oriented: New bishops learn the ropes of the episcopacy Robin Russell, Oct 10, 2008
UMR PHOTOS BY ROBIN RUSSELL
Bishop James Swanson makes a point while new Bishop Jim Dorff listens in.
By Robin Russell Managing Editor
Becoming a bishop in the United Methodist Church is a split-second thing—when ballot results are announced at jurisdictional conferences every four years.
But what happens in a heartbeat can take a lifetime to grow into—or in church terminology, at least several quadrennia.
To help newly elected men and women step up to their episcopal role, the United Methodist Council of Bishops hosts a “new bishops orientation”—sort of a “boot camp,” if you will—where they gain insider tips to ease the transition into the church’s highest office.
The nine new bishops elected this summer attended a September orientation in Atlanta at the North Georgia Conference’s Simpsonwood Conference and Retreat Center. They arrived with their spouses—from Philadelphia to Seattle and Iowa to San Antonio—and even from Africa; among them was that continent’s first female episcopal leader, Bishop Joaquina Nhanala of Mozambique.
Some already had administrative experience as part of a bishop’s cabinet; others had been plucked directly from their pulpit. For most, there was still some trepidation over their new role, whether it’s learning the nuances of church law or finding their niche on the Council.
Their job description is a bit heady: “to guard the faith, order, liturgy, doctrine and discipline of the Church” and “lead all persons entrusted to their oversight in worship, in the celebration of the sacraments, and in their mission of witness and service in the world,” according to the Book of Discipline.
As if that weren’t enough, they are also charged “to be prophetic voices and courageous leaders in the cause of justice for all people.”
No small task, this.
With an average age of 56, the new bishops are already experienced leaders, having been recognized by delegates as suitable for the episcopacy. But the greater scope and size of their new duties can be overwhelming.
Bishop Nhanala, for instance, will leave her large church outside of Maputo, Mozambique, to oversee an area that has tripled in size in 13 years, with some 150,000 members in more than 170 congregations in 23 districts. She will also oversee 29 schools, a theological school, agricultural programs, Chicuque Rural Hospital, two clinics, a seminary and four Bible schools.
“It’s a great responsibility, not only in my country but the whole of the continent,” Bishop Nhanala said in an interview during the orientation. “I get calls even from other denominations.”
Each of them will perform new tasks in a new geographic area, working with a team they did not build themselves.
So how does one prepare for this?
Bishops had already been given a “Bishop’s Transition Manual” and many had been working with an executive coach—someone in a secular executive position who is a person of faith—to help them fine-tune their skills. At the orientation, they gained additional input from a leadership consultant, valuable insights from veteran bishops and details about financial and legal issues from a few general agency staff.
But the orientation gave “the class of 2008” something more: the reassurance that with God’s grace and the support of both retired and fellow active bishops, they will succeed in their new role.
Adjusting personally
At Simpsonwood, new bishops had the unique chance to pick the brains of veteran episcopal leaders, asking both personal and professional questions.
They expressed their need to cope with what was an unexpected sense of loss—even grief—that comes with their new assignment: leaving behind longtime relationships, moving away from their grown children, losing touch with ministries they’ve nurtured, no longer having a church home of their own, not being able to preach or administer the sacraments regularly, disrupting their spouse’s career and even missing hearing the sound of their first name.
Indeed, for Earl Bledsoe, Peggy Johnson, Jim Dorff, Grant Hagiya, Elaine Stanovsky, Paul Leeland, Mike Lowry, Julius Trimble and Joaquina Nhanala, being called “Bishop” now means things will never be the same.
Bishop Max Whitfield (Northwest Texas-New Mexico), organizer of the event, told the new bishops something he found “jarring” at his own orientation in 2000: “Your church is now the Council of Bishops.”
“I thought, ‘Wait a minute! What do you mean?’” Bishop Whitfield said. “But you will develop close relationships with both retired and active bishops around the world.”
“There’s a wonderful collegiality,” added Bishop Thomas Bickerton (Pittsburgh). “When you’re under the fire, we’re all in the decision together—whether you’re writing a Judicial Council brief or ruling in an annual conference.”
Bishops were encouraged to find a mentor soon from the other bishops in their jurisdiction, someone they could call up and say, “I haven’t dealt with this before.” They read advice sent in from bishops who had been elected in the last quadriennium: Anticipate the loneliness. Schedule time for family and rest. Reconnect with old friends, especially when homesickness for their former life sets in.
Because bishops have no “church” besides the Council, which only meets twice a year, they must learn to be attentive to the needs of their own soul. That can include acquiring a spiritual director or befriending leaders in other denominations.
Spouses’ track
Meanwhile, bishops’ spouses received encouragement regarding their own unique needs.
A “Thrival Kit” offered tips from experienced episcopal spouses on adjusting to the loss of “deep relationships and dependable rhythms.” Spouses asked about international travel and the protocol of giving gifts, especially when overseas, said organizer Valerie Whitfield.
Though the episcopal spouse has been called “the loneliest position in the church,” today’s spouses are often actively engaged in ministry or successful in their own careers, and many are also well-traveled, said Ken Ehrman, husband of Minnesota Bishop Sally Dyck.
Spouses shared their personal stories and received help processing stages of grief as they move through drastic changes that come with being married to a bishop: Could they still be themselves in this new role? What kind of ministry would they have now?
New Bishop Elaine Stanovsky’s (Denver) three sons were at the jurisdictional conference where their mother was elected. “They have a rooting interest for their mom, and that helped them make a transition,” said her husband, Clint. “They were impressed at how it’s a calling.”
Racelder Grandberry-Trimble, wife of new Bishop Julius Trimble (Iowa), said the orientation provided her with a model of transition. “I’ve given myself permission to give the voice to those moments of ‘Wait a minute—what?’ so my anger is not what it could have been,” she said.
She has grieved, for instance, that she can no longer be a jurisdictional delegate or coordinate programs for the needy in her former community. But she clearly heard throughout the orientation, “You can do what you want to do.”
Leadership tips
The Rev. Janice Virtue, co-executive director of the Leadership Education at Duke Divinity School, gave bishops some leadership principles for the “hundreds of situations each week where you will be expected to have an answer.”
“There is no one-size-fits-all way of leading. You will be the leader God has made you to be,” she said. “You hold the hope of many... the one who has the possibility to make things better. Sometimes we forget how much hope is invested in your leadership.”
Bishops were reminded of best practices in leadership studies: Set direction by creating a sense of vision and communicating about it. Get alignment by getting people on board with your vision. Manage change—“and with change comes resistance, on a very large scale for you now,” Ms. Virtue said.
Thinking like an executive means giving up some of the things they are already good at, she said, so they have time for planning and building a team.
“This job will show you what real delegation means. No longer do you get the luxury of doing what you dream up. That means you have to develop people who are ready to catch,” Ms. Virtue said. “How can we think in ways that will empower the whole organization to do what God calls us to be about?”
Bishops also need team members who will provide honest feedback, she said, and communicating their expectations will help. “If they’re guessing, they’ll only get it right some of the time.”
Bishop James Swanson (Holston) said he often reminds himself that, “No matter what I’m doing, I’m modeling something. I’m always asking myself, ‘Is that the kind of pastoral leadership I want to model?’ A lot of clergy are trying to get their clue from you.”
Bishops were also given tips on how to start out well their first few months. Often, a bishop will best be able to evaluate a new area during the first year, so they should trust their instincts, they were told. “You see things with fresh eyes that those in the landscape don’t see,” said Bishop Swanson.
Packed schedule
New bishops are often surprised at the sense that their life is no longer their own, said Bishop Bickerton, elected in 2004. “In my naiveté,” he said, “I somehow thought that when I became a bishop, that now, ‘I’m in charge of my schedule.’ But you are pulled and tugged. How you dance through that with joy is the real challenge.”
A bishop’s schedule includes traveling to meet with clergy, district superintendents and cabinet members; setting a vision for their episcopal area; handling a multitude of clergy complaints; processing legal concerns; serving on general boards and agencies; and participating in their jurisdiction’s College of Bishops gatherings and the global Council of Bishops meetings.
Bishops were encouraged to let an assistant manage their calendar so they don’t overcommit themselves, and to build in time for family, rest and play.
Bishop Dyck said she works from home a couple of days a month to have undivided time. “My office days are packed with people,” she said.
She also encouraged bishops to consider their physical as well as mental and spiritual health. “This is a marathon,” she said. “It can be fun, if you’re ready for it.”
Legal counsel
Retired Bishop Joe Pennel, an expert in church law, and Rick Rettenberg, corporate counsel for the General Board on Finance and Administration, explained a checklist for handling complaints from the bishops’ Administrative and Judicial Procedural Handbook.
Common complaints that reach a bishop’s desk include sexual misconduct by clergy, sexual harassment charges, embezzlement of church funds, immigration issues—including offering sanctuary—and clergy ineffectiveness.
Not every problem is handled in the church’s Book of Discipline, Mr. Rettenberg told the group. So finding a mentor and calling legal experts within the denomination is essential, he added.
What complicates matters for a bishop, Bishop Pennel said, is that “clergy know each other and love each other, and they find it very, very difficult to render a guilty verdict. And afterward, they have to live together in their annual conference. That complicates these decisions on every level.”
Mr. Rettenberg talked about another growing concern: when a church decides that it wants to break away from the denomination. Citing the Discipline’s trust clause in Par. 2501, Mr. Rettenberg said church property belongs to the denomination, not a local church. But too often, members don’t realize that; sometimes they do not even know about connectionalism of the UMC.
New Bishop Grant Hagiya (Seattle) said he’s finding another common occurrence: churches that want to take United Methodist off the church sign. “That is a concern for a bishop when that happens,” said Mr. Rettenberg.
Bishop Swanson said he points out surveys that show that UMC has a high name recognition and approval rating. “That has changed a lot of minds in my area,” he said.
‘Inner sanctum’
Veteran bishops encouraged their new colleagues to jump right in when they begin attending the Council of Bishops meetings.
“If there’s an issue on the floor you want to speak on, find a mic and speak,” Bishop Dyck said.
With a third of the Council’s bishops having been elected since 2000, there’s a new culture of collaboration and partnership within the Council and the general church on the Four Areas of Focus within the denomination, Bishop Bickerton added.
“The expectation used to be that new bishops sit quietly and listen,” he said. “You are the Council now. I don’t think there’s any expectation that you need to be compliant to anything the previous Council has done.”
“We want a Council that’s fluid and moving. We’ve been waiting for you, eager for you to write the next chapter on where we need to be.”
Bishops ended their orientation with a worship service and Communion. Bishop Bickerton told them: “Don’t leave here thinking all of your fears will be gone. But know that in the midst of your fear, in those moments of anxiety, just know that serving God is not a life of serving without fear, but serving with Christ who is always with you to the end of the age. Don’t worry about being bishop of Alabama/West Florida, of Mozambique, because we’ll get together and we’ll make sure that you do not fail.”
Bishop Peggy Johnson (Philadelphia) said the orientation made her feel more confident moving into her new role. “It’s going to be OK,” she said. “Until you see other people in the same boat, you don’t know how you’re faring on the planet.”
Using a favorite phrase she learned while working at a deaf church, Bishop Johnson said she had gained a sense of “the overwhelming grace of God that sustains and covers the ‘not know-ness.’”
She signed the last words, adding, “Some things just don’t translate into English well, and ‘not know-ness’ is one of them.”
UMR PHOTOS BY ROBIN RUSSELL
The nine new bishops elected this summer attended a September orientation in Atlanta at the North Georgia Conference’s Simpsonwood Conference and Retreat Center. They arrived with their spouses—from Philadelphia to Seattle and Iowa to San Antonio—and even from Africa; among them was that continent’s first female episcopal leader, Bishop Joaquina Nhanala of Mozambique. 
“It’s a great responsibility, not only in my country but the whole of the continent,” Bishop Nhanala said in an interview during the orientation. “I get calls even from other denominations.” 
Adjusting personally 
Racelder Grandberry-Trimble, wife of new Bishop Julius Trimble (Iowa), said the orientation provided her with a model of transition. “I’ve given myself permission to give the voice to those moments of ‘Wait a minute—what?’ so my anger is not what it could have been,” she said. 
Bishops also need team members who will provide honest feedback, she said, and communicating their expectations will help. “If they’re guessing, they’ll only get it right some of the time.” 
With a third of the Council’s bishops having been elected since 2000, there’s a new culture of collaboration and partnership within the Council and the general church on the Four Areas of Focus within the denomination, Bishop Bickerton added. 
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