The Bishop of North Carolina

 

 

February 9, 2007

 

 

Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

 

            I am delighted to announce that the Right Reverend William O. Gregg, Ph. D. Bishop of Eastern Oregon, has accepted my call to serve as Bishop Assistant in the Diocese of North Carolina. This appointment will be effective May 1, 2007.

 

Bishop Gregg will begin his ministry among us at that time. His wife Kathy will stay in Oregon until the conclusion of the school year. His office and residence will be in Charlotte, continuing our commitment to having an Episcopal presence in metropolitan areas of the diocese, providing availability to the surrounding communities.

Bishop Gregg and I are both in the House of Bishops class of 2000, having been consecrated that year. Together we attended the College for Bishops, sometimes referred to as “baby bishops school.” Since then we have become friends as well as colleagues in the House.

He was ordained and consecrated VI Bishop of Eastern Oregon on September 23, 2000. Together with his wife Kathy, and their son Nathan, he came to Eastern Oregon from New London, Connecticut where he served as Rector of St. James Episcopal Church. He previously served in the Diocese of Virginia (where he was ordained Deacon and Priest) as a parish priest and Chaplain/Teacher at St. Anne’s-Belfield School in Charlottesville, the Diocese of Southwestern Virginia, where he served as Rector of St. Thomas, Abingdon, the Diocese of Northern Indiana where he served as an Interim, supply priest and priest associate while attending the University of Notre Dame (Ph.D., ’93, Systematic Theology), and the Diocese of Indianapolis, where he served as Vicar of St. George, West Terre Haute, priest associate at St. Stephen’s, Terre Haute, and as Associate Professor of Theology at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College. He received the M.Div. from Episcopal Divinity School, Cambridge, MA.

Among his numerous leadership roles in the church, Bishop Gregg currently serves as Chair of the Standing Commission on Ecumenical Relations of the General Convention, as an Anglican member of the International Anglican-Orthodox Theological Dialog, and as a member of the House of Bishops Theology Committee.

 

 

 

In addition to sharing Episcopal responsibilities and ministry with Bishop Marble and me, Bishop Gregg will serve as the area bishop for the Charlotte, Sandhills and Rocky Mount convocations. Working together with the Bishops, Canons and Diocesan Council, he will also provide Episcopal oversight and support for the implementation of Phase II of the Mission Action Plan and ecumenical and interfaith work of the diocese.

 

Bishop Gregg brings a depth of experience with congregations, particularly with small congregations in both urban and rural communities. He is a scholar, an ecumenist, someone skilled in administration and organization, with a background in family systems theory. At the root of all the gifts, skills and experience, he is a person of profound Christian faith and commitment, genuine wisdom, and authentic humanity. Bishop Marble and I are very much looking forward to sharing the ministry of episcopate with him here in the Diocese of North Carolina.

 

We are thinking about ways to welcome, incorporate and liturgically signify this new ministry. Praying God’s blessings on you as we near the holy season of Lent.

 

I remain,

 

Your brother in Christ,

 

 

Michael B. Curry

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

200 West Morgan Street, Suite 300, Raleigh, NC 27601-1338

919-834-7474