From June 11-June 20, Julie and I had the honor of attending the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) New Bishops Orientation, the ACNA College of Bishops, and the annual ACNA Provincial Council in Ligonier and Ambridge, PA. I’m writing today with some personal reflections as a newly consecrated (March 29) bishop already in the thick of episcopal ministry, and sharing some thoughts I believe Julie would share as a new bishop’s spouse.

The Orientation of New Bishops: 

It was a bit strange to be on the receiving end of bishops training rather than the giving end for the first time in 20 years. The American Anglican Council (AAC) organized and facilitated the training and partnership of bishops both in the ACNA and GAFCON/Global South since 2017. We had to stop when COVID overcame us, but since then, Archbishop Steve Wood organized the Common Life Commission (CLC) of the ACNA College of Bishops to take over ACNA episcopal training. You can find a description of the strategic work of the Common Life Commission in Archbishop Wood’s December 2024 Provincial Letter here. As he described, the work of the CLC includes:

• Guiding dioceses as they move through new episcopal elections.
• Leading new bishop orientations and the ongoing development of all bishops.
• An initial onboarding retreat for newly elected bishops and their spouses. (Thereafter will follow a series of annual retreats broken down in the following way: “Starting Well” – aimed at bishops under three years in the saddle; “Growing Well” – aimed at bishops 3-10 years in the saddle; and “Finishing Well” – aimed at bishops 10+ years in the saddle or over 60 years old.)

Archbishop Steve and his wife Jacqui joined the teaching team, which included Bishop Steve and Sally Breedlove (Bp. Steve is the CLC Chair), Bishop Chip and Beth Edgar (Diocese of S. Carolina), and Bishop Brian and Lisa Wallace (C4SO), as well as ACNA provincial staff and guest speakers. We were blessed by the opportunity to build friendships with the newly elected and consecrated bishops as we broke bread together, shared our testimonies, and processed what the teaching team shared with us. I believe the intent was for us to become a long-term “co-hort” that will continue to grow and work together in the years to come.

The teaching team brought many helpful presentations on various issues faced in episcopal leadership. One of those presentations was by the Rev. Andrew Rowell, Director of Anglican Governance Ministries and Chair of the ACNA Governance Taskforce. He took up the mantle of teaching bishops canon law, and his presentations on new Title IV were very helpful.

Julie and I were particularly blessed and affirmed by Archbishop Steve’s address on his vision of unity, mission, and health for the ACNA. His emphasis on building and rebuilding trust, cultivating “good soil” for church planting and growth, and recovering the love we had for Jesus at first (Rev. 2:1-10) resonated with us deeply. Archbishop Steve had discerned these needs from his provincial “listening tour,” and these were also the needs that Julie and I have discerned in our own diocesan visitations.

For example, in March we began a series of short video reports from most of the congregations we visited called, “Good Soil, Good News,” which you can find on our DWA website. In these short, home-grown videos, we describe the good news from the good soil in which God has called each of our congregations to plant. We, too, began a “listening tour” in late May of our three deaneries (called “reverse walkabouts”) and our Yellowstone Missionary District, during which we heard from both clergy and laity. Likewise, the Lord put on my heart the theme of our October 2025 Diocesan Synod: “Recovering our First Love: for Christ, each other, and those who are not yet followers of Jesus.” 

It’s a joy to know that, as a new bishop, you’re on the same page as your Archbishop!

The ACNA College of Bishops: 

For many years, I was invited to attend meetings of the College as a consultant on canon law. It’s been a while since I last attended, but now I was present for the first time as a peer, a fellow diocesan bishop. Out of respect for the sensitivity of the conversations there, I will simply say that I was encouraged by the time we were given to discuss the difficult issues the College is tackling. Those issues included codes of conduct for bishops that will strengthen our communication, cooperation and collaboration with one another, how to address the challenge of overlapping jurisdictions, and church planting and transfers of congregations. I am hopeful that we will be given even more time and open discussion in future meetings that will reflect the conciliar nature of Anglican decision-making and genuine trust. The archbishop’s emphasis on unity, mission, and health framed our conversations so that we can continue moving forward together in mission with a sense of mutual trust and partnership.

ACNA Provincial Council: 

The high points for us during Provincial Council were the archbishop’s opening address, the Offices of Morning and Evening Prayer at the beautiful Trophimus Center, hearing the good news of provincial growth, which others have written about, the good news of a possible ten million dollar grant from the Lilly Endowment to Trinity Anglican Seminary (for the expansion of theological education in the ACNA and ongoing clergy formation), the many ACNA ministry workshops, and, of course, the networking we participated in among old friends. In addition, the AAC was on the scene, reporting from Provincial Council through our podcasts, articles, and videos.

I am so grateful for the many opportunities to serve the province, both through my work with the AAC and now in the College of Bishops. I am aware of how significant our efforts will be moving forward to build deeper trust, transparency, and participation as a conciliar Anglican church in all areas. The American Anglican Council is committed to coming alongside the province as the Church moves in this direction, building stronger and healthier leaders, congregations, and structures, and this Provincial Council was a great start! In this new season for the province, we will continue to pray for the Church as we through ordinary time and into another year of fruitful ministry.