Bishop David?

It seems that I am soon to be made a bishop. It is a position which I have not sought, for which I have not campaigned, and, in all truth — at least for the past few years — have not desired.

All this has come about not because I have come to a place where my leadership abilities are profound and undeniable or because my accomplishments are such that they cannot be ignored. Quite the opposite, in fact.

It has come about because our bishop, The Most Reverend John Holloway, age 53 and the father of four, suffered a massive stroke in early June and has been severely disabled since that time.

As in war, when a commander is wounded or killed, someone has to be promoted so that the battle may continue and the enemy defeated. So it is with me. Our commander is wounded and I am to receive a battlefield promotion. Such was the decision of our American House of Bishops in Orlando last Monday.

The good news is all this is that, in our communion, bishops, with the exception of retired or auxiliary bishops, must also be pastors of their own church. This means that I continue to serve as the rector, or senior pastor, of the church I helped to found over 11 years ago.

I will still be in the pulpit nearly every Sunday morning, will be visiting the hospitals to visit the sick, will be blessing the new born babies within minutes after they are born, and will be teaching the scriptures and being involved in the life of the parish.

I will even be continuing to write articles for the newspaper and, occasionally, for magazines and journals. I still desire to meet with the other clergy from different denominations for breakfast each Wednesday because it is enjoyable and they have been a great support to me in that past.

Some things will change. I am in the process of resigning from some committees, positions, and work groups and there will need to be greater delegation of duties and responsibilities in the church and in the diocese.

I have already stepped down as a chaplain in the Georgia Defense Force and from chaplain duties at the Fulton County Police Academy.

There will be other adjustments as well. One thing I desperately need to do is to finish my doctoral paper at Trinity Episcopal School for Ministry so, somewhere, I need to carve out the time and complete a long overdue process.

It seems strange to me that I will have a new designation. Whereas, at present, I am “Father David Epps,” or “The Reverend Father David Epps,” I will soon be “The Most Reverend David Epps.”

People who know me are aware that I am not very “reverend” and am certainly not “the most reverend.” The people in my church will most likely continue to call me “Father David,” a designation with which I am most comfortable since it conveys relationship rather than position.

I will be the “acting bishop” of the Mid-South Diocese which includes Tennessee and Georgia. I suppose I will have to cheer for the Bulldogs now (except when they play Tennessee).

When, in the grace and mercy of God, Bishop Holloway returns to health and resumes his duties, then I will stand aside and serve as his auxiliary or assisting bishop. Until that time, I will do my best to do my duty to those who are engaged in the battle.

My family and congregation are excited about all this. I am less so. I have been in the ministry a long time and served in a similar position, with less responsibility, in another denomination, so I am well aware that much work, much anguish, and much heartache and heartbreak is ahead. There will be good times as well, but I’m not certain that they make up for the pain one sees and experiences.

When I was elected last Monday, the bishops gave me the news and then apologized for having elected me. There was no applause, no backslaps, no cheers of congratulations. The moment was sober because the challenges ahead are daunting.

I am, of course, honored and humbled. And, for the foreseeable future, there will no funds available to carry out the work — this promotion will actually come at a cost to my church and me.

I will be consecrated in November, the Lord willing. I feel intensely unworthy which, in truth, I am. But I will do my duty. Lord have mercy. Pray for me.