Raleigh clergyman elected bishop of Episcopal Church
RALEIGH (WTVD) -- A historic election in Salt Lake City in June made a Raleigh clergyman the leader of all Episcopalians in America. Now, Michael Curry is preparing for his move from bishop of the North Carolina Diocese to presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church.
It's easy to tell Curry really enjoys working with members of the faith community and people who've heard him say he's a gifted preacher.
"We all bring our own gifts and capacities. But in order to make them really effective, that's really the Holy Spirit stepping in there and helping us to become more than we could be on our own," Curry told ABC11.
As presiding bishop, he'll lead one of the largest religious denominations in America. It's a responsibility he never considered when he decided to be a minister when he was a young man.
"Because once it became clear that this was my calling, I wanted to be a parish priest, a pastor, a parish pastor - and to be involved in the lives of people in that parish, in that community," Curry said.
"I always grew up around clergy who were involved in the life of the community as well as their parish, who were involved in civil rights movement, and who were involved in saving the soul and redeeming the body," he explained.
His election at the Episcopal Church's general convention this year made headlines since he is the first African American chosen to serve as head of the denomination. It's not an unfamiliar situation for him because he was the first African American bishop of the church's North Carolina Diocese when he came to Raleigh 15 years ago.
Before that, he was pastor of Baltimore's historic St. James Episcopal Church for 13 years at a time of middle-class flight from inner city neighborhoods
"We had development corporations that were seeking to rehab buildings. We worked intensively with kids on academics, after school work, and also in terms of Sunday school," he said. "We wanted kids to know something about the God who created them.
He said the images of Baltimore after the death of Freddie Gray are a call for action by the church and government.
"Because that's not a Republican or Democratic issue. That's a humane issue. That's an American issue. And if we can begin to build upon those places of common ground, we might be able to end some of these nightmares that lead to riots and urban explosions," he said.
Once he's installed as presiding bishop at a ceremony in Washington in November, he will move from his office in Raleigh to Manhattan. He said he probably won't spend much time there anyway.
"I fully expect that I'll be on the road, traveling here and there, hopefully proclaiming good news, listening to stories of good folks, and helping us all as a society find our way beyond the nightmares we often live into the dream that God intends for us all," he said.
