Why do you feel called to be a bishop, and specifically Bishop of the Diocese of Los Angeles, at this moment?
I feel called to be a bishop, and specifically Bishop of the Diocese of Los Angeles at this moment, because of a holy encounter, a deep love for Los Angeles, a conviction about my skills and experience potentially meeting your stated desires and needs, and a vision of what the episcopacy could be for the sake of Christ’s Church and her future in your beautifully diverse region. I am a mystic at heart, first drawn to Jesus on the playground of my elementary school in Glendale, and called to ministry through a series of nudgings, many of them taking place in EDLA’s geography, as Los Angeles is home, and beloved, to me.
I continue to pray about a specific Holy Spirit beckoning three years ago. I readily acknowledge the possibility of misinterpretation, but it opened me to consider serving as bishop one day. And when I read in the episcopal ordination examination, “Your joy will be to follow him who came, not to be served, but to serve,” I think, even as I am beginning to understand the weight of that awesome responsibility and what EDLA is asking for, as difficult a task as you have laid before your future bishop, “I desire that joy.”
As I said in my cover letter, I was formed in EDLA’s geography. I was formed also by the Church, worshiping regularly, but in time passing through a number of denominations – Catholic, Methodist, Presbyterian. Though I grew up two blocks from St. Mark’s, I discovered the Episcopal Church later.
Los Angeles is also a part of me. I learned to be curious, to relish sunshine, to love people, to eat well, to value difference, to drive assertively, and to appreciate crowds, multiculturalism, nature, and heat in Los Angeles. I will love LA whether or not I’m in LA, but I have long prayed that one day that Lord would call me “home” to serve.
Your stated desire for a bishop who is a convener who will lean into multicultural ministry and inclusion, remaining present, pastoral, and relational, supporting lay and ordained members of the diocese, and creating the path forward for sustainability with financial transparency and good stewardship is exciting to me – you have named elements of ministry where I have experience and strengths. I have navigated conflict, and commend your commitment to continued healing which will require significant attention, as will balancing the budget.
I am a faithful truth-teller, an attentive pastor, and a persistent advocate for the health and future of the Church. If given the opportunity to serve among you, I would want to partner with you in continuing all that you are doing to be an outward facing church. I would bring to that partnership deep love for those who are not yet a part of the Church, inviting our courage and faithfulness in sharing Christ’s love.