Episcopal Press and News

Diocese of Virginia Elects Two Suffragans at Once

Episcopal News Service. May 14, 1993 [93095E]

In an unprecedented move, the Diocese of Virginia elected two suffragan bishops at one special council on May 1. The Rev. Canon F. Clayton Matthews was elected on the third ballot of the first election and the Rev. Canon Antoine Lamont Campbell was elected on the second ballot of the second election. The voting was completed by 12:30 p.m. Matthews has served Bishop Peter James Lee of Virginia as his chief clergy assistant since 1987, and was the former rector of Emmanuel Episcopal Church in Richmond. Campbell is canon missioner for the Diocese of South Carolina and was the rector of Baskervill Ministries in Pawleys Island, South Carolina. Campbell will be the first African-American bishop in the 207 year-old diocese and the youngest member of the House of Bishops. Bishop Robert Atkinson, former bishop of West Virginia, will retire from his five-year appointment as Lee's assistant in October.