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New leader of the family

Episcopalians install their fifth bishop, who has gone through a whirlwind journey.

By SHERRI DAY, Times Staff Writer
Published September 16, 2007

ST. PETERSBURG - The Right Rev. Dabney T. Smith stood outside the front door of St. Peter's Episcopal Cathedral Saturday morning and knocked.

Once for the Father. Once for the Son. A third time for the Holy Spirit.

The church's doors swung open, and Smith, 53, began the long walk down the aisle past hundreds of admirers who came to witness his installation as the fifth presiding bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Southwest Florida.

The diocese, which stretches from Brooksville to Marco Island, is home to more than 33,000 Episcopalians.

Filled with pageantry, Saturday's service marked the end of a whirlwind journey for Smith as the new head of the diocese.

Just in December, delegates elected Smith to serve as the diocese's bishop coadjutor, or second in command. He expected to serve in that role for several years. But earlier this year his predecessor, the Right Rev. John. B. Lipscomb, 57, announced plans to retire, a move hastened by long-standing illness.

Smith, who had most recently served as rector of Trinity Church in New Orleans, began working in the diocese in February. A month later, he was consecrated as bishop coadjutor. At Saturday's service, Smith was elevated to the role of the diocese's presiding bishop.

As Smith received the presiding bishop's staff from Lipscomb Saturday and sat in the official seat as bishop, it was clear he was among friends.

"I've been here long enough to start falling in love with these people, and it just feels good," Smith said after the two-hour service as he greeted the throngs of worshippers and clergy who came to wish him well. "I feel like they're part of my family, and I'm part of theirs."

Lipscomb, whose retirement became official at the ceremony, said he was pleased with the diocese's choice of his successor.

"I'm able to leave the diocese feeling like it is in extremely fine hands," said Lipscomb, who stepped down after 10 years. "No bishop could ask for more than that."

Hundreds of people filled the cathedral Saturday to get a glimpse of Smith. The congregation gave him a standing ovation when he took his seat as bishop of the diocese and again as he strode out of the church with his wife, Mary Ellen, by his side.

"I like the pomp and circumstance," said Jim Marcrum, a marketing executive who attends St. Raphael's Episcopal Church in Fort Myers Beach. "I really enjoy the choir and the orchestra. The parish I go to is small so it doesn't have this. And besides, I know Bishop Smith. He's a really great guy."

Jessica Pappa, 19, videotaped parts of the event on her cell phone.

"I'm just excited for what he's going to do," said Pappa, who lives in Port Charlotte and plans to enter the priesthood in a few years. "I'm really looking forward to working with him, and I'm looking forward to what he's going to do for the church."

Navita Cummings James, who attends St. James Episcopal House of Prayer in Tampa, appreciated the tradition of the service and Smith's style. He delivered an old-fashioned sermon reminiscent of a Bible study that focused on prayer and missions.

"I think he's the right person for the right time," she said.

Sherri Day can be reached at 813 226-3405 or sday@sptimes.com

[Last modified September 16, 2007, 00:28:17]