On Monday, August 28, 2023, the Rt. Rev. Kathryn M. Ryan, Bishop Suffragan for the Diocese of Texas, and Chair of the Southwest Board of Trustees issued the following statement regarding the Most Rev. Michael Curry, and how his upcoming surgery will affect his availability at the Grand Opening and Ribbon Cutting of the Bishop Dena A. Harrison Library and new Learning Complex on September 13, 2023. All of us at Southwest join Bishop Ryan’s call for prayers to bring healing to Bishop Curry.
All of us at Seminary of the Southwest eagerly anticipate September 13th and the Grand Opening and Ribbon Cutting of the Bishop Dena A. Harrison Library and new Learning Complex. As Chair of the Southwest Board of Trustees, I look forward to being with Bishop Harrison and all of you to celebrate this significant moment in the life of our seminary.
The Most Rev. Michael Curry, our Presiding Bishop, treasured friend of the seminary, and Honorary Chair of the Forming Leaders at the Frontier Capital Campaign, had accepted our invitation to attend the Grand Opening, where he was scheduled to preach at a service of Evening Prayer following the ribbon cutting. As many of you know, he announced this week that he will undergo surgery on September 8th to remove his right adrenal gland and an attached mass. He reached out to us here at Seminary of the Southwest immediately after this news was released to let us know, regretfully, that he will be unable to join us. I ask you to join us in prayer for Bishop Curry, and for his family, his medical team, and for his uncomplicated recovery to full health.
After prayerful discernment, and with the blessings of Bishop Curry and the Rt. Rev. Todd Ousley, a member of the Presiding Bishop’s staff and proud Southwest alum, I have asked that our Dean and President, the Very Rev. Cynthia Briggs Kittredge, step in to preach at this important service in Bishop Curry’s stead. She has indicated to me she plans to represent Bishop Curry in a way that will make him and Southwest proud. We hope to celebrate this day with such resounding joy that he will feel our love for him even from far away, and we cannot wait to share that celebration with you.
May God, who is the source of life and health, bring healing to our brother Michael, and strength and joy to Michael and us as we gather in our service to Christ and Christ’s kingdom.
In gratitude,
The Rt. Rev. Kathryn M. Ryan
Bishop Suffragan, Diocese of Texas
Chair, Seminary of the Southwest Board of Trustees
