This Tuesday, the Rev. Elizabeth Eaton, bishop of the Northeastern Ohio Synod, was elected as presiding bishop of the ELCA at the 2013 ELCA Churchwide Assembly. She was elected on the fifth ballot. There were 889 votes, and 445 votes were needed for an election. Bishop Eaton received 600 votes. Current Presiding Bishop Hanson received 287. Eaton will be the first female Presiding Bishop in the ELCA.
Prior to becoming synod bishop, Eaton served as pastor for ELCA congregations in Ohio. She earned a Master’s of divinity degree from Harvard Divinity School in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and a Bachelor’s degree in music and education from College of Wooster in Wooster, Ohio.
You may remember Bishop Eaton from her time with us at the South Dakota Synod Assembly in 2011. Please keep Bishop Eaton and this church in your prayers during this time of transition.
