Episcopal Church ordains new diocese bishop
By Natasha Altamirano
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
May 27, 2007

The Rt. Rev. Shannon Sherwood Johnston was consecrated as the Episcopal Diocese of Virginia's new bishop yesterday during a celebratory service at the Washington National Cathedral.

Bishop Johnston, who eventually will succeed Virginia Bishop Peter James Lee, begins his post as bishop coadjutor as the diocese wages multimillion-dollar lawsuits against 11 of its breakaway parishes.

His consecration sends a positive message to the entire 2.3-million-member Episcopal Church, said the Rt. Rev. J. Neil Alexander, Bishop of Atlanta, who delivered a sermon to the roughly 3,000 Episcopalians gathered at the cathedral.

"The ordination of a new bishop is an act of faith," Bishop Alexander said. "It is a sign of hope. It is a living reminder of the mission that ... Christ has given the church." the rest