Hawaii Bishop Named to Lead Episcopalians

Episcopal Bishop Edmond Lee Browning, 56, of Honolulu was elected today as the denomination’s new presiding bishop--the long-term spiritual leader of the 2.8-million-member Episcopal Church.

Browning is considered a liberal on social issues and matters of interfaith cooperation and is a sharp critic of the nuclear arms race. He was quickly selected from a field of four candidates by the church’s bicameral legislative body meeting in the Anaheim Convention Center.

During an emotional acceptance greeting to the assembled delegates, Browning, a bright red lei draped around his neck, pledged himself to a “ministry of servant-hood for the life of the whole church.”

Texas, Okinawa, Europe

A native of Corpus Christi, Tex., Browning has served the church in Texas and in Okinawa, and has been bishop to the American Episcopal churches in Europe as well as in Hawaii, where he has been bishop since 1976. During his tenure in Europe, he actively supported reconciliation moves with anti-Vietnam draft resisters and deserters. In recent years, his addresses in Hawaii have focused on peacemaking, racism and the role of the laity in the church.

The presiding bishop, defined as the church’s “chief pastor and primate,” is its main spiritual guide and administrator, but he exercises his general influence by persuasion rather than edict.

Church canons say he is to “speak God’s word to the church and to the world as the representative of this church and its episcopate in its corporate capacity.”

Will Serve 12 Years

Browning will assume office on Jan. 1, succeeding Bishop John M. Allin, who is completing a 12-year term of office.