Announcing the Slate of Bishop Candidates
From the Standing Committee
After more than nine months of prayer and discernment, the Standing Committee and Bishop Search Committee are pleased to share the following slate of candidates for the 14th Bishop of Arkansas:
The Rev. Canon John T. W. Harmon, Rector, Trinity Episcopal Church, Washington, DC
The Rev. Mary Vano, Rector, St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church, Little Rock, AR
There will be opportunities to learn more about the candidates at four public meet-and-greets to be held August 3–6 around the diocese. The electing convention will be held August 19, 2023, at Trinity Cathedral in Little Rock. More information about both the meet-and-greets and the convention is available on the Bishop Search page.
Each candidate will have a primary contact, assigned by the Transitions Committee, shepherding them through the process. We ask that others refrain from direct engagement with the candidates so they may balance this discernment process with their current ministry roles. Any questions you have for the candidates themselves can be submitted online for use at the meet-and-greets. Any questions about the process can be directed to the Transitions Committee or the Standing Committee.
HOW THE SLATE WAS DEVELOPED
The Bishop Search Committee has been working diligently since their appointment last August. Their work has included:
Conducting 35 listening sessions in person and on Zoom, with 341 individuals participating. These holy conversations focused on gifts, challenges, and opportunities for our diocese, as well as qualities desired in our next bishop. There were also 32 individual responses to the open survey, representing 18 churches.
Reflecting upon and condensing these responses to create the diocesan profile, from which interview questions were developed.
Actively reaching out to all major groups in the Episcopal Church, representing the breadth and diversity of The Episcopal Church, to recruit a diverse pool of applicants.
Reviewing applications, essay questions, calling references, and conducting interviews on Zoom and in-person.
Conducting a retreat with applicant finalists at which the Search Committee gained more personal and in-depth knowledge of each individual.
Remarkably, at each point when candidates were advanced or eliminated in the process, the Search Committee was of one mind. Led by the Holy Spirit, the Search Committee unanimously presented this slate to the Standing Committee to fulfill their charge, and the Standing Committee unanimously received it. The Search Committee’s work is now concluded.
PETITION PROCESS
For bishop searches in The Episcopal Church, a petition process takes the place of nominations from the floor. This process allows the same review and due diligence to be conducted on nominees nominated by petition as the nominees put forward by the Search Committee. Download the information and instructions for our petition process. The petition process is now open, and closes at midnight on June 12, 2023.
We are grateful for the faithful support of the people of the Diocese of Arkansas, the Bishop Search Committee, and the Transition Committee, who will usher us into the next phase of the process. We ask your continued prayers for our diocese, for Bishop Larry Benfield and the diocesan staff, and for our candidates.
Prayerfully and joyfully submitted,
The Standing Committee of the Episcopal Diocese of Arkansas
The Rev. Stan McKinnon (Grace, Siloam Springs) president
Robert Newell (St. Paul's, Newport)
Bay Greenhill (Grace, Siloam Springs)
The Rev. Elizabeth Henry-McKeever (St. Michael's, LR)
Suzi Freeman (St. Paul’s, Fayetteville)
The Rev. Brandon Hudson (St. Theodore’s, Bella Vista)
