The role of bishops as servants of the gospel was examined during the annual academic convocation Oct. 23 at Nashotah House. Prof. Henry Chadwick, English patristic scholar, author and ecumenist, was the featured speaker and also received an honorary degree from the Wisconsin seminary.

Prof. Chadwick, honorary fellow and Regius Professor of Divinity Emeritus at Cambridge University, discussed the roles of bishops in his presentation.

"The succession of bishops in a historic chain on earth makes visible the continuity ... of faith and the gospel," he said. He described episcopal succession as "about the doctrine of grace."

"Bishops often have found themselves having to do something more worldly than they were called to do," he noted. He said "God's work is the source of all ministerial authority" and that bishops were called to bring to the people of God the gospel as "a witness to an event and its consequences.

"A bishop's life will be more like Martha than Mary."

During the afternoon, the program continued with discussions of bishops in classical Anglican theology. The Rev. E. Charles Miller, Jr., associate professor at Nashotah House, spoke on Episcopacy and Truth. Fr. Miller mentioned a threefold role of bishops which developed in the 17th century - ruling, teaching and ministering, in local communities.

"The bishop is the point of reference to the authentic covenant of grace," he said.

Bishop William Lazareth, retired Bishop of the Metropolitan New York Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), discussed "Episcopacy in Ecumenical Dialogue." He spoke of the Concordat of Agreement between the ELCA and the Episcopal Church, which narrowly was defeated by the ELCA in 1997, and of the Porvoo Declaration of 1996, involving Anglican churches of the British Isles and Lutheran churches of the Nordic and Baltic regions.

"The Anglican Communion has responded to ecumenical endeavors by faith, action and love," he said. There are eight changes in the revised Concordat, scheduled to be presented to both churches, which ought to make the document more attractive to Lutherans, he added.

The event concluded with a panel discussion chaired by the Rt. Rev. James Brown, retired Bishop of Louisiana. The Rt. Rev. Jack Iker, Bishop of Fort Worth, and Bishop Lazareth also participated in the discussion on bishops as servants.

"We're perceived often as administrators rather than as preachers and teachers," Bishop Brown said.

"The bishop is responsible for setting the direction, the spirit, of the diocese," Bishop Iker added. "No one else is expected to do so." He also spoke of the bishop's role as chief evangelist and missionary.