For the Diocese of East Carolina, the theme of its convention, "Behold, I Make All Things New," turned out to be prophetic. Working with the late Bishop Sidney Sanders and Bishop Coadjutor Clifton Daniel III, the convention committee chose the theme early in 1997, not knowing the changes the year would bring.

The convention's opening service melded a celebration of the life and ministry of Absalom Jones and the investiture of Bishop Daniel as diocesan bishop. Bishop Daniel had been serving as diocesan since the death of Bishop Sanders last June. African drummers and dancers, colorful banners and African-American spirituals combined for a representation of life in the diocese. Even the visiting bishops - the Rt. Rev. David Alvarez, Bishop of East Carolina's companion Diocese of Puerto Rico, the Rt. Rev. Ernest M. Shalita, Bishop of Muhabura, Uganda, and the Rt. Rev. Edward L. Salmon, Jr., Bishop of South Carolina, seemed to reflect the diversity in East Carolina.

In his address, Bishop Daniel outlined his vision for the diocese, focusing on inclusivity and love for all.

"The church is not meant to be dull or homogenous," he said, "but expansive, diverse, restless, searching out God's will and new arenas for ministry, growing."

Bishop Daniel outlined several new initiatives for ministry begun in the past year: a system of pastoral care for retired clergy, a ministry for persons with AIDS and their caregivers; a commission on hunger, peace and justice; a spirituality commission, a committee studying the feasibility of establishing a retirement community in the diocese, and a consulting committee to begin working on a long-range plan for the diocese.

The bishop also recalled the image of Rosa Parks on a bus in Montgomery, Ala., in the 1960s. He said his wish was that he could have sat beside her on that bus and washed her feet. Noting that the fight with racism is not over, Bishop Daniel said, "I share this image of kneeling at the feet of Rosa Parks because it is part of my vision for being your bishop."

The call for inclusivity was not missed during legislative sessions. More than 200 persons attended the hearing on three resolutions addressing issue of human sexuality - one in support of the ministry of Exodus, one adopting the Kuala Lumpur statement on sexuality, and one adopting the American Anglican Council's statement, "A Place to Stand: A Call to Mission." All three resolutions were defeated.

The Rev. Canon Phillip Craig, Sr., was invested as canon to the ordinary and Bruce Nolin was welcomed as the new deployment officer.