The Ven. Richard Cluett named to new position to assist reorganizing dioceses
Episcopal News Service. December 1, 2008 [120108-06]
Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori has named the Venerable Richard I. Cluett as pastoral assistant to reorganizing dioceses, serving under the supervision of Bishop Clay Matthews in the Office of Pastoral Development.
Cluett, who hails from the Diocese of Bethlehem, will provide pastoral guidance and assistance to dioceses of the Episcopal Church that are in the process of reorganizing and reconstituting.
"I am honored to be named by the Presiding Bishop to this new ministry," Cluett said on his December 1 appointment. "I look forward to working with the clergy and laity of our dioceses through their transitions."
Cluett's main office will be located at the Episcopal Church Center in New York City.
Prior to his retirement in June 2004, Cluett was responsible for the coordination and oversight of ministry and administration for the Diocese of Bethlehem, which is comprised of 14 counties in northeastern Pennsylvania. For 20 years he worked with parishes in planning, problem solving, and ministry development; with clergy in vocational and professional development; with persons in the ordination process; and with the diocesan staff, committees and boards that have responsibility for diocesan life and ministry.
He also served as interim dean of the Cathedral Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, diocesan chaplain to retired clergy and families, and bishop’s representative for world mission. He is currently a conference leader and consultant for the CREDO Institute of Memphis, Tennessee.
Cluett is a graduate of the Berkshire School, Sheffield, Massachusetts; Hobart College, Geneva, New York; and Virginia Theological Seminary, Alexandria, Virginia. Ordained a priest in 1971, he served churches in the dioceses of Bethlehem, Rochester and Washington, D.C. Among his many activities, he was a deputy to six General Conventions and was a member of the benefits review advisory committee of the Church Pension Fund and the church-wide Standing Commission on Ministry Development.
He and his wife Patricia are the parents of three adult children.