Virginia Episcopalian Magazine Spring 2013 Issue | Page 15

The lady BIshop from America The Rt. Rev. Susan E. Goff “Excuse me,” the seven-year-old schoolboy asked at the end of the assembly, “Are you the lady bishop from America?” “Yes,” I responded. “But I thought you’d be speaking American,” he said. “I am speaking American,” I replied. “Is it different from what you expected?” “Yes,” he stated emphatically, “I can understand you.” Growing in understanding of one another and of the world we serve in Christ’s name was at the heart of the recent weeklong visit my husband Tom and I made to our partner Diocese of Liverpool, England. Two particular realities provided a context and backdrop for the visit. The first reality was the vote of the General Synod of the Church of England on November 20, 2012, regarding the ordination of women as bishops. The measure was easily approved by the necessary two-thirds majority in both the House of Bishops and the House of Clergy, but failed by six votes in the House of Laity. A total vote of 324 to 122 was not enough to carry the motion, even though 42 of the 44 dioceses of the church had already backed the measure. The failure in the General Synod therefore came as a blow to many. In response, the House of Bishops determined to elect eight senior women priests as “participant observers” to the House with seat and voice, though not vote, until the House has at least six women bishops. I found myself surrounded at times by women priests, by young people and by other frustrated lay people who saw in “the lady bishop from America” a sign of hope. My preaching and presiding at the Eucharist in cope and miter in the stunningly beautiful Liverpool Cathedral became for many, it seems, an icon of the promise of what will one day be in the Church of England. I saw firsthand how witness and presence can be signs of hope and roads to understanding. The second reality that provided a backdrop for the visit is the lon