John Chane

The Right Reverend John Bryson Chane
Washington
Province	The Episcopal Church
Diocese	Washington, DC
Enthroned	2002
Reign ended	2011
Predecessor	Rt. Rev. Ronald Hayward Haines
Successor	Rt. Rev. Mariann Edgar Budde
Orders
Ordination	24 June 1972 (deacon) 6 January 1973 (priest)
Consecration	1 June 2002

John Bryson Chane was the Eighth Bishop of Washington in the The Episcopal Church. He was elected on the second ballot and was consecrated on June 1, 2002. In his capacity as bishop, he also served as interim dean of Washington National Cathedral while it searched for a new dean. He was President and CEO of the Protestant Episcopal Cathedral Foundation which oversees the operations of Washington National Cathedral and the three cathedral schools of Saint Alban's, National Cathedral School for Girls and Beauvoir School.

On January 30, 2010, Chane announced his intention to resign as Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington, relinquishing the role to his successor in the autumn of 2011. The inauguration of the Ninth Bishop, Dr. Mariann Edgar Budde, took place at Washington National Cathedral on November 12, 2011.

Biography

A Boston native, he previously was dean of St. Paul's Cathedral, San Diego and served in congregations in Southborough, Massachusetts, Erie, Pennsylvania and Montvale, New Jersey. He received a Bachelor of Arts from Boston University and a Masters of Divinity from Yale Divinity School. He was the team chaplin for the Team USA Hockey team during the famous 1980 Olympics. He later received honorary doctorates from Virginia Theological Seminary and Berkeley Divinity School at Yale University. He is father to Chris Chane and Ian Chane. He also has four grandchildren two of whom are named Madeline Chane and Althea Chane.

On the side, he has a band called The Chane Gang.

Chane and Archbishop Akinola

In February 2006, Peter Akinola, Primate of Nigeria, issued a communique on behalf of his Church of Nigeria Standing Committee stating "The Church commends the law-makers for their prompt reaction to outlaw same-sex relationships in Nigeria and calls for the bill to be passed since the idea expressed in the bill is the moral position of Nigerians regarding human sexuality." The bill in question, as well as criminalising same-sex marriage, also proposed to criminalise "Registration of Gay Clubs, Societies and organizations" and "Publicity, procession and public show of same-sex amorous relationship through the electronic or print media physically, directly, indirectly or otherwise", on penalty of up to 5 years imprisonment. The proposed legislation was formally challenged by the United States State Department as a possible breach of Nigeria's obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

Chane, writing in the Washington Post, said:

"The archbishop's support for this law violates numerous Anglican Communion documents that call for a "listening process" involving gay Christians and their leaders. But his contempt for international agreements also extends to Articles 18-20 of the United Nations Universal Declaration on Human Rights, which articulates the rights to freedom of thought, conscience, religion, association and assembly. Surprisingly, few voices -- Anglican or otherwise -- have been raised in opposition to the archbishop. When I compare this silence with the cacophony that followed the Episcopal Church's decision to consecrate the Rt. Rev. Gene Robinson, a gay man who lives openly with his partner, as the bishop of New Hampshire, I am compelled to ask whether the global Christian community has lost not only its backbone but its moral bearings."

See also

• List of Succession of Bishops for the Episcopal Church, USA

External links

1. The Episcopal Diocese of Washington
2. Biography of Bishop John Bryson Chane Episcopal Diocese of Washington
3. Bishop Chane's Major Sermons, Writings, and Pastoral Letters

Episcopal Church (USA) titles
Preceded by Ronald Hayward Haines	Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington 2002–present	Incumbent