During the first five months of his episcopacy, the Rt. Rev. S. Todd Ousley intends to visit all 50 congregations in the Diocese of Eastern Michigan, but he will not vest and is not scheduled to perform any liturgical functions until February.

“It’s so easy for a bishop to get drawn into the frenzy of Sunday visitations,” he told The Living Church. “I wanted to take this time now to listen. I’m 45. I’ll be in this for the long haul. I don’t feel as though I need to make my mark in a hurry. The first thing I want to do is hear from [the parish leadership] how I can help them to bring their dreams to fruition.”

Last May clergy and lay delegates to a special convention, elected Bishop Ousley on the fifth ballot. The former missioner for congregational development was consecrated Bishop Coadjutor of Eastern Michigan Sept. 9 in front of a congregation of 900 at the Horizons Conference Center in Saginaw. The Rt. Rev. Wendell Gibbs, Bishop of Michigan, served as chief consecrator. The Rev. Gay Jennings, associate director of the CREDO Institute, delivered the sermon. For the past three years, Bishop Ousley has been a member of the faculty at CREDO, a continuing educational institution dedicated to the health and well being of clergy.

Following the Dec. 31 retirement of the first Bishop of Eastern Michigan, the Rt. Rev. Edwin M. Leidel, Jr., Bishop Ousley will become the second youngest Episcopal bishop in America, behind 43-year-old Oregon Bishop Johncy Itty.

Bishop Ousley said he felt “a palpable sense of connection” when the episcopal ring (one of the symbols of office traditionally given a new bishop during the consecration liturgy) was placed on his finger. The ring, which was also used when Bishop Leidel was consecrated in 1996, belonged to the late William J. Gordon, Bishop of Alaska from 1948-1974 and assisting Bishop of Michigan from 1976-1986. Bishop Gordon is still fondly remembered by many in Eastern Michigan for his grassroots organizational efforts which led to independence from the Diocese of Michigan in 1994.

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