Episcopal leader urges teamwork in repairing the world
`Reconciliation and freedom go hand in hand,' the first female presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church tells Houstonians
By BARBARA KARKABI
Houston Chronicle

When one is oppressed, all are oppressed, the presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church told church members Wednesday.

Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori noted the irony of holding a "reconciliation Eucharist" on the Fourth of July, a day the nation celebrates freedom.

"The reality is that reconciliation and freedom go hand in hand," she told Houstonians and members of the Union of Black Episcopalians in a morning service at downtown's Christ Church Cathedral. "The irony is that freedom, reconciliation and the reign of God are all around us, and yet none of them is fully known or experienced — not yet."

Jefferts Schori, who was elected the first female leader of the 2.3 million-member Episcopal Church in June 2006, is on her first official visit to Houston. Her sermon was a highlight of the 39th annual meeting of the Union of Black Episcopalians, many participants said. She will lead a forum today at the conference, which concludes Friday. the rest