The Diocesan Dialogue
Current Issue
April 2008

Welcoming the Presiding Bishop

The Most Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori, Ph.D., will grace our diocese April 18th and 19th as she speaks, meets, and shares communion with Episcopalians and the community at large. On Friday, Bishop Jefferts Schori will meet the youth, speak at a dinner, and lead conference sessions as Spring Weekend starts at the Hilton Hotel. Prior registration is required for all Friday events. Saturday the Presiding Bishop will preach and address the public at the historic St. Mark's Cathedral and offer a house blessing for the new Episcopal Church Center of Utah. The Saturday events are open to the public, free of charge, and do not require prior registration.

Presiding Bishop Jefferts Schori will start her Friday with scheduled media visits and a visit with the general authorities of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She will then go to the conference portion of the Spring Weekend. A full schedule is available at www.episcopal-ut.org. A conference fee is required for the Friday sessions and dinner. The youth meeting with the Presiding Bishop requires registration but is free for any young person ages 12 to 18 years old.

The Presiding Bishop will stay Friday night at the ECCU in the new hospitality wing. In honor of her stay, the Presiding Bishop's room will be named after her and recognized as such in the house blessing on Saturday. She will start her public appearances on Saturday as the preacher at a 9:00 Holy Eucharist at St. Mark's. Because of the expected demand for space, attendees are asked to arrive early. The Dean of the Cathedral, the Very Rev. Rick Lawson says, "To have the Presiding Bishop in the Cathedral is a gift to us. We share that gift with her and all are blessed on the occasion."

The Rt. Rev. Carolyn Tanner Irish notes that the Presiding Bishop is a woman of "great spiritual depth." In her year and a half of service, she has wrestled with issues of division and unrest, embraced a ministry of social justice, and opened the doors to a greater diversity within the church. Numerous press requests to interview the Presiding Bishop during her Diocese of Utah visit demonstrate the recognition she is getting both within the church and within the community at large.

Bishop Irish, the clergy, and all associated with the Spring Weekend hope that every Episcopalian embraces this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

WELCOME, the Most Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori, Ph.D.!

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