The Rt. Rev. William E. Swing, Seventh Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of California, announced his retirement plans today to the annual convention of the diocese, held at San Francisco's Grace Cathedral. Swing has called for a special convention to elect his successor on May 6, 2006.
The Standing Committee of the Diocese of California will assemble a search committee to vet a slate of eligible candidates. The search and nominations process will last a little more than one year, and nominees will be announced to the diocese in February 2006. "In this search, the people of the Diocese of California will be encouraged to express themselves regarding the issues the diocese faces and the qualities we will be looking for in the Eighth Bishop of California," said the Rev. Canon Michael Hansen, Executive Officer of the diocese.
Swing was elected Bishop Coadjutor of the Diocese of California in 1979, and became Bishop of California in 1980. His tenure is the longest among active bishops in the national Episcopal Church's House of Bishops, and has been one of the most active, ministering to victims of the HIV/AIDS pandemic, the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, the 1982 Oakland fire, and the growing homeless population.
Swing gained national attention with his innovative leadership to establish the United Religions Initiative (URI) in 2000, an international body similar in concept to the United Nations. According to its charter, the purpose of the URI "is to promote enduring, daily interfaith cooperation, to end religiously motivated violence and to create cultures of peace, justice and healing for the Earth and all living beings."
Swing was ordained to the priesthood in Wheeling, West Virginia, on December 20, 1961, where he served as curate at St. Matthew's Church. From 1963 to '69, Swing served as vicar of St. Thomas' in Weirton, and St. Matthew's in Chester, West Virginia. In 1969, Swing became rector of St. Columba's in Washington, D.C., where he served until his election as Bishop Coadjutor of California.
As bishop, Swing has served the national Episcopal Church in times of crisis. In 1986, he chaired the First National Episcopal Conference on AIDS, and he became chair of the House of Bishops Task Force on AIDS. He has served on several different committees of the American Foundation for AIDS Research (AmFAR), and as chair of AmFAR's Education Committee and Social & Behavioral Policy Committee.
Swing has also been a Bay Area leader in the response to homelessness, advising the San Francisco Food Bank, the Episcopal Sanctuary for the Homeless, Episcopal Community Services, the Good Samaritan Family Resource Center for Immigrants, and the Henry Ohlhoff House for Substance Abuse Rehabilitation.
"Swing’s episcopacy," says Hansen, "has had an extraordinary impact on the Diocese of California, and his ministry will be felt in the diocese for years to come."
An avid golfer and son of a golf pro, Swing made the championship cut at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am Golf Tournament in 1994. In 2000, he published a memoir of his life as bishop, with the jocular title A Swing With a Crosier.
Swing and his wife Mary have two children and three grandchildren. After his retirement in 2006, Swing plans to dedicate himself full-time to furthering the development of the United Religions Initiative.
Media interested in interviews or images should contact Jane Kallgren at 415.673.0606 or janek@diocal.org.
