Episcopal Press and News
Bishops Elect New Bishops for Navajoland, Armed Forces
Episcopal News Service. October 4, 1989 [89170]
PHILADELPHIA, September 27 -- The House of Bishops today elected two new bishops for specialized ministries in the Episcopal Church.
By unanimous consent, the bishops affirmed the election of the Rev. Steven Tsosie Plummer as the first indigenous bishop of Navajoland.
In the same closed session in historic Christ Church, the bishops elected the Rev. Charles Lovett Keyser as the new suffragan bishop for Armed Forces. Keyser, a career Navy chaplain, was one of five nominations from the bishops' nominating committee. Two additional candidates were nominated from the floor.
The confirmation of bishop-elect Plummer represents a milestone in the life of the uniquely structured Navajoland Area Mission, which encompasses a large area of the desert Southwest. Plummer's election underscores the Episcopal Church's intentional promotion of self-determination among Native American ministries. The 69th General Convention in Detroit assured the Navajo people that their choice for bishop would be affirmed.
Plummer, 45, is the first Navajo ordained to the priesthood and was the only candidate fluent in the Navajo language when he was elected in a special convention in Coalmine, New Mexico, last June. Plummer was ordained to the diaconate in 1975, following several years of special preparation for his seminary education. Since then, he has served in the Arizona region of the Navajo Reservation and later was made Utah regional vicar, serving three congregations.
Owanah Anderson, who heads the Indian desk for the national church, said the election was "very encouraging" and gives the Navajo church a "renewed sense of self-determination." It could also mean new growth for the church, similar to one experienced in the Maori church in New Zealand a few years ago.
It is anticipated that bishop-elect Plummer will be consecrated in early 1990.
Bishop-elect Keyser, 59, of Montrose, Virginia, was elected on the second ballot as the new suffragan bishop for Armed Forces.
A graduate of the University of the South and St. Luke's Seminary, Sewanee, Tennessee, Keyser was ordained a priest in 1955.
Keyser served in the U.S. Navy as a chaplain from 1960 until retiring in 1986 with the rank of captain from the Marine Corps command at Quantico, Virginia.
Since retirement, Keyser has served as a priest in the Diocese of Virginia. Bishop Peter James Lee of Virginia said of the election, "I am thankful the church has elected a man of compassion and strength. Keyser has experience both as a military chaplain and as a parish priest that will serve the church well. Since 1986, he has been very effective rector of two churches in Westmoreland County, Virginia. "
The job of the suffragan bishop for Armed Forces has evolved to include additional ministries, including overseeing chaplaincy programs in Veterans Administration hospitals and federal prisons.
The other candidates nominated for the Armed Forces post were the Rev. Kenneth G. Beason, living in the Philippines, and an instructor at the Air Force Chaplains School since 1983; Col. Alston R. Chace of Andrews Air Force Base, Maryland; the Rev. Dr. Harvey G. Cook of Trinity Episcopal Church, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina; the Rev. Norman Lee Cram, Jr., the Naval Submarine Base, New London, Connecticut; the Rev. Sanford Garner, Christ Church, Georgetown, Washington, D.C.; and the Rev. David Williamson Kent, St. Michael & All Angels Church, Mission, Kansas.