Navajoland bishop ordained

From Navajo Land

In a ceremony drawing from Episcopalian and Navajo traditions, the Rev. David Bailey was ordained as the Bishop of Navajoland Episcopalian Church.

The Navajoland missions have had interim bishops since the death of Steven Plummer, the Episcopal Church's first Navajo priest and the first Navajo bishop of Navajoland, in 2005.
Bailey promised his reign as bishop will be similar to the ceremony in which he was ordained.

He will infuse Navajo traditions into the church's customs, work to get Navajos into the priesthood and select a Navajo to be his successor, said Leon Sampson, Plummer's nephew who is entering the priesthood.

The Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori, the bishop of the Episcopal Church, presided over the ceremony along with Rustin Kimsey, who was the assisting bishop of the area mission. Bishops from around the country also took part by laying their hands on Bailey to ordain him.

Navajoland prides itself by being an Episcopal Church like no other, and it's members are glad their new bishop approves of this philosophy, said Cornelia Eaton, the assistant administrator for the Episcopalian Church of Navajoland.

"We need to remember those dark times from your past for many reasons," Kimsey said to Navajoland members during the ceremony. "Not just for your sake but for ours."

The blend of Christianity and Navajo culture within the church is not simple and without controversy, said Catherine Plummer, the first bishop's wife.

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