| The Consecration of Johncy Itty Ninth Bishop of Oregon September 20, 2003 |
The church’s top clergyman in Oregon did not set his sights on the priesthood. CARA ROBERTS MUREZ Statesman Journal September 21, 2003 The air was thick with the scent of incense. The sounds of tubas and voices raised in song reverberated to the rafters. People of all ages waved banners and marched in robes of many colors. One new Oregonian waited, preparing to enter the auditorium where he would take one of the biggest steps of his life. Johncy Itty was consecrated as the new bishop of Oregon on Saturday in a nearly three-hour ceremony filled with religious tradition, ritual and meaning for Episcopalians and Anglicans worldwide. About 2,500 Episcopalians and dignitaries from other religions gathered at the Salem Armory to mark Itty’s transition from priest. As bishop, Itty will be the chief pastor for the 21,000 Episcopal clergy and congregation members living in the western part of the state, including those at eight churches in Marion and Polk counties. His office will be in Portland, where the Episcopal Diocese of Oregon has its headquarters. A day before Saturday’s ceremony, Itty talked about his path to the church leadership. It never was his goal to become a priest or a bishop, he said Friday while sitting next to Robert Ladehoff, retiring bishop of Oregon, at St. Timothy’s Episcopal Church in Salem. It surprised even him when he realized that it was his calling. “The things I said I wasn’t inclined to do, God has led me to do,” Itty said. “God has different ideas and plans than sometimes we perceive.” Born in India, Itty was raised in New York. At 40, he is the youngest Episcopalian bishop in the United States but not the youngest ever. He has been a priest since 1993, most recently serving at the Cathedral of Incarnation in Garden City, N.Y. He previously worked as a human-rights officer for the Anglican Consultive Council, a church body. Before that, he worked for the U.S. government and as a college professor. On Saturday, his parents, siblings and other relatives joined his wife, Jolly, and young daughters, Julie and Jennifer, to watch his consecration. The ceremony included 19 other bishops from across the country, presiding U.S. Bishop Frank Griswold among them. Just-retired U.S. Bishop Edmond Browning talked about Itty’s qualities in a sermon that was both serious and lighthearted, the same way that Itty describes himself. Browning called Itty their first Generation X bishop and joked that he might be wearing cutoffs under his robes and planning to play rap music in the church. He talked about Itty’s connections to India. Itty will have much to give to the American church as a whole and will be able to connect it with other Anglican churches in the world as well. “It certifies as truth what we say all the time, that we really can be a place where the barriers that separate people crumble away,” Browning said. The ceremony was filled with much music, as several musicians joined 200 choir members and the audience in singing several songs and litanies. Music, Itty said Friday, is one of his favorite things. He plays the organ, having learned just enough so that he could play hymns. He also enjoys flying small planes and is a licensed pilot. He plans to rent single-engine Cessnas or Pipers to visit a different Oregon congregation each week but will have to remember that his new home has many more mountains than Long Island. Itty moved to Oregon in July after he was elected by the people of his new diocese in May. Bishops serve until they retire or choose to move on. New bishops are elected by the people. The election then is affirmed by the bishops nationwide, as happened after much debate and controversy with Bishop Gene Robinson in New Hampshire this summer. Robinson, who is homosexual, was elected by his diocese members, and the election was affirmed. Robinson was a New Hampshire priest for many years, and his people recognized him as a man with many skills, Itty said. “People throughout the church got to know him as a wonderful human being,” Itty said, “and they affirmed that.” In Oregon, Itty plans to expand upon what Ladehoff has brought to the church in 18 years as bishop. Ladehoff, 71, is retiring because the church requires its bishops to step down by age 72. He also is looking forward to his changing future. Having lived in Oregon for nearly two decades, Ladehoff plans to stay in Portland. He also expects to travel, to fill in as a priest and to enjoy Itty’s leadership. “I feel good about the transition because we’ve got a top-notch bishop for our diocese,” Ladehoff said. Ladehoff has brought strength, peace and structure to a diocese that had none of those things two decades ago, Itty said. Now, there is a good climate of trust and strong congregations. Itty will focus on congregational development and a commitment to ministry to youths and young adults. He wants to be connected to local issues, including school-funding concerns and homelessness, and bring the diocese a global connection and understanding. “I think the energy and the will is there. It’s a matter of trying to channel that.” Itty said. “ … I want to build upon the strengths that are here.” Cara Roberts Murez can be reached at (503) 399-6750. |
| Role wasn't preordained, new Episcopal bishop says |
| Episcopalians welcome bishop The Rev. Canon Johncy Itty is consecrated as the Oregon diocese's ninth bishop and the church's youngest in the nation 09/21/03 SHELBY OPPEL SALEM -- Amid velvet banners, brass horns and clouds of incense, the Rev. Canon Johncy Itty became the ninth bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Oregon on Saturday. Itty, 40, becomes bishop of Western Oregon's 21,000 Episcopalians during tumultuous times for the Episcopal Church, one of 38 self-governing churches worldwide that make up the 75 million-member Anglican Communion. The Rt. Rev. Edmond L. Browning, a retired presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church who lives in Hood River, welcomed Itty to Oregon in a sermon that praised his "rare combination of zeal and centered peace." Itty will help lead the church through difficult times with grace, Browning said, hinting at the division that has surrounded the church's recent confirmation of the first openly gay bishop in the Anglican Communion, the Rev. V. Gene Robinson of New Hampshire. Foremost, however, the ceremony was a celebration of Itty's ministry and of the Oregon faithful he now leads. Itty, who is the youngest Episcopal bishop in the United States, replaces the Rt. Rev. Robert L. Ladehoff, who is retiring after 18 years. At 11 a.m., two columns of clergy and laypeople entered the Salem Armory from opposite sides. The armory was chosen for the service because of its size and central location in the diocese, which covers Oregon west of the Cascades. Teenage acolytes hoisted colorful banners representing 77 congregations, from the newest (St. Anselm of Canterbury in Corvallis, Mission San Pablo in Hillsboro) to the oldest (St. Paul in Oregon City, Trinity Cathedral in Portland). A row of bishops took seats on a raised stage. Itty comes to Oregon from Garden City, N.Y. He was canon residentiary at Cathedral of the Incarnation. Episcopalians in each diocese elect their bishops, who are confirmed by the church's national convention of bishops, clergy and laypeople. On Saturday, the presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church, the Most Rev. Frank T. Griswold III, presided over Itty's ordination and consecration, which drew more than a dozen bishops and a congregation of 1,500 to 2,000. "Is it your will that we ordain Johncy a bishop?" Griswold asked the audience. "That is our will," they answered. While Episcopalians are a small fraction of religiously affiliated Oregonians, the church's General Convention last month in Minneapolis drew national attention. In addition to confirming Robinson's election, the convention approved a resolution that acknowledges that some Episcopal priests are blessing same-sex unions, despite the fact that the national church does not officially sanction them. Confusion exists about whether the resolution gives dioceses the explicit option to authorize such blessings. In an interview last week, Itty said "Oregon is not ready" for him to authorize Episcopal priests to bless same-sex unions. "I don't think it would serve the diocese well to pursue a course for which it is unprepared," he said. He said he based his assessment on the strong reactions of Oregon Episcopalians who talked with him after the national convention. Personally, he is undecided about whether the church should formally recognize same-sex unions, Itty said. "It's important I come with no specific agenda to push. I want to discern God's will in it," he said. "There needs to be a time for face-to-face conversations, and we haven't had that, because I'm new." On Saturday, for the first half of the ceremony, Itty sat off-stage from the bishops, in folding chairs with his wife, Jolly; daughters Julie, 12, and Jennifer, 8; and other family. Itty, who was born in Bhopal, India, grew up in Queens and Long Island, N.Y. For the actual consecration, Itty walked up two stairs to the stage and knelt before the bishops. They circled Itty, lay their hands on his head and prayed together for God to "pour out upon him the power of your princely spirit." Later, Itty's parents, John and Annakutty, walked up to the stage to present him with his cope -- a long, capelike vestment of gold damask and red velvet. His father helped him slip it on. For most of this, Itty's back was to the audience as he faced the other bishops. Then Ladehoff, the retiring bishop, handed Itty his crosier, a staff with a crook at the top that symbolizes the office. To applause, the new bishop turned around. Shelby Oppel: 503-221-5368; shelbyoppel@news.oregonian.com |
| The Sunday Oregonian |
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