The Rt. Rev. Shannon Johnston, Bishop of Virginia, announces the retirement of his assistant bishop and calls for a second suffragan bishop:
Nearly seven years ago, the Rt. Rev. Edwin “Ted” Gulick returned to his native Virginia to become the Assistant Bishop of this Diocese. During that time, he has brought his boundless energy to everything he has touched.
He has helped many congregations work through conflicts to become thriving ministries. He has been a leader in ecumenical relations on behalf of The Episcopal Church. He has devoted himself to supporting Shrine Mont to ensure that generations of young people have the kind of mountain-top experience that shaped his youth in the 1960s.
Now, Bishop Gulick has announced his plans to retire at the end of this year. Thankfully, he and his wife, Barbara, will continue to live on their Fauquier County farm, so their contributions to the life of the Diocese will continue.
It has been my honor to serve beside such a remarkable servant as Ted. I thank God for his friendship. I know the people of the Diocese share my profound gratitude for his inspiring ministry.
With Bishop Gulick’s impending retirement comes the need to assess our capacity in diocesan ministry and leadership. After thoughtful consideration, it has become clear to me that we need to return to a third full-time bishop.
The Standing Committee has offered its consent and the Executive Board has unanimously endorsed my request for the Annual Convention to call for the election of a second Bishop Suffragan in 2018. A resolution from the Standing Committee will be submitted this week to that effect and will be considered by the Convention on November 4.
Matthew Townsend is a Halifax-based freelance journalist and volunteer advocate for survivors of sexual misconduct in Anglican settings. He served as editor of the Anglican Journal from 2019 to 2021 and communications missioner for the Anglican Diocese of Quebec from 2019 to 2022. He and his wife recently entered catechism class in the Orthodox Church in America.
