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Episcopal Church Women spring conference
By Emily McDonald
South East Area ETE Correspondent
 Bishops' wives took center stage along with the bishops during the traditional "conversation" as part of the statewide Episcopal Church Women's spring conference May 12-13 at DuBose Conference Center in Monteagle.
Forty to 50 women attended from each of Tennessee's three dioceses.
Jeannie Johnson and Annie vonRosenberg, wives of the Rt. Rev. Don Johnson of the Diocese of West Tennessee and the Rt. Rev. Charles vonRosenberg of the Diocese of East Tennessee, respectively, participated in the conversation that provided a glimpse of the personal lives of the men who lead the two dioceses. The Rt. Rev. Bertram Herlong, bishop of the Diocese of Tennessee, was unable to attend.
Lynn Ragland of St. George, Brentwood, served as emcee and began by asking the bishops to introduce their wives. "This is my bride, Annie." Bishop vonRosenberg said. "We met on a blind date 32 years ago."
Like the vonRosenbergs, Bishop Johnson said he and his wife met while he was in seminary. "She was supposed to have a date with someone else," he said.
In response to a question about their passions, Annie vonRosenberg said her secular passion is painting in watercolor and her religious passion making prayer beads, while Jeannie Johnson said her passions are gardening and Education for Ministry. "My goal is to have every church in the diocese have EfM before we leave," she said.
The Rev. Nancy Roth, conference keynote speaker and musician, was included in the conversation. When asked what led to her ministry as chaplain to the House of Bishops, she said she felt called to be a resource person rather than a parish priest, and her work with CREDO sparked an interest in clergy and family wellness. Roth said she met with Phoebe Griswold, wife of Presiding Bishop Frank Griswold, and "the next thing I knew, I was chaplain to the House of Bishops."
Exploring a question about being called, Bishop Johnson said his call to the priesthood was not a surprise but part of a life-long formation process. And becoming a bishop was "a continuation and extension of a ministry that God had been preparing me for all along."
Bishop vonRosenberg said he has told his current Commission on Ministry that he wouldn't have gotten through its discernment process "because I had a lot more questions than answers." He feels having questions is an important part of the process and "an important part of my own vocation."
Panelists were asked what they enjoyed most about their roles.
"I really enjoy being out of the office and being with people," Bishop vonRosenberg said.
Jeannie Johnson said she values forming friendships with "people in the parishes and in the pews," something she found hard to do as a priest's wife. However, "I have to tell you, a bishop takes a lot of care and maintenance. When he became bishop, I became his altar guild."
Bishop Johnson said he valued the support system provided by his class of bishops, and "I still find it incredible that people are willing to pay me to study the Bible and to preach."
The opening service for the conference was held at Christ Church in Tracy City and was followed by a reception in the parish hall. Bishop Johnson celebrated and Bishop vonRosenberg preached.
The conference theme was "Come, Holy Spirit." and during one of her sessions Roth said a professor once assigned her to write a book report on meditating on a hymn, and she realized "I was not just looking at music. I realized texts are often overlooked, but they come from a vast sweep of church history." She discussed six history-laden hymns and then accompanied a group singing of them.
During two later sessions, Roth demonstrated what she termed "theology of the body" or "kinetic theology." Roth had conference participants off their chairs for a prayer exercise that expressed the Trinity through movement. Attendees participated in a dance to the Shaker hymn, "Simple Gifts," expressed the Lord's Prayer in a circle and divided into groups to express the 23rd Psalm. "Reflection on scripture is almost like Bible study with the body," Roth said.
etdiocese.net/ecw
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