Bishop Santosh Marray, the subject of a badly handled Title IV clergy disciplinary case, is continuing to diminish trust among laity and clergy within the struggling Diocese of Easton following a poorly managed diocesan convention.
Tellingly, the convention started unable to transact business, as it did not achieve the quorum needed in order to vote.
Thus, the first session was devoted almost entirely to Marray’s narcissistic puffery, in which he made a series of questionable claims.
Among Marray’s assertions at the initial session:
- He gets up at 4:00 a.m. daily to pray for the Diocese and its members.
- Prior to his arrival, the diocese was in a state of collapse, but he alone turned it around. He made this claim despite the fact that Bishop Shand, a predecessor, was sitting in the audience.
- That there would be no more Delegated Episcopal Pastoral Oversight bishops — a troubling claim, as Marray has deliberately eroded his connections with many clergy in the Diocese.
In short, this is precisely the sort of empty rhetoric that erodes trust, even as it points people away from God and towards the claimed accomplishments of one human being. Moreover, it ignores Marray’s previous lies and manipulation, particularly in the Title III and Title IV processes.
Despite a packed agenda of proposed resolutions, many delegates left mid-day after concluding their morning had been wasted.
Many also expressed concern about the potential conflict of interest of naming Deborah Dragone to the Board of Managers of the Diocese’s investment funds, and to the diocesan standing committee. Her husband, John Dragone, is the Diocese’s “lay canon to the ordinary” (CTTO), which in itself is a remarkably ill-advised role, as the CTTO is, in a well-run diocese, a clergyperson of integrity and insight, bound by the same canonical obligations as other clergy.
Additionally, Deborah Dragone has served on the Diocesan Nominating Committee, which in most dioceses is a chokepoint for nepotism and resistance to change. Yes, we get that a nominating committee is better than having a bishop do the nominations. Still, invariably, it’s a distinction without a difference, as bishops choose their closest sycophants to serve on the committee.
Also concerning was lay person Tom Shuster’s role as the diocese’s assistant director of business. Shuster, although a long-time member of the church, has proved a divisive force in his local parish, and we see no sign that he has worked to foster healthy relationships with other church leaders. Yet, despite these issues, Marray has repeatedly tried to pull Shuster into positions of authority and had him seated with other leaders at the front of the diocesan meeting.
So, we are mindful of two painfully true adages about life in the Episcopal Church:
- The more things change, the more they stay the same.
- Nothing causes trauma within the church like a badly handled Title IV process.
In closing, it’s time for the Diocese to begin a Title IV process to discern a path forward without Bishop Marray. It’s also time for insiders within Easton to step back from their preconceived notions and ask, “If I were an outsider looking at this situation, what would I see?”
Unfortunately, as things stand, we see a repeat of an all-too-common scenario: A narcissistic bishop trashes their diocese, even as they proclaim, in the words of one particularly incompetent bishop, that the place is “running on all eight cylinders.” And far too often, persons in diocesan leadership, misled by superficial charm, look around and say, “That’s exactly right!”
Let’s hope for a better outcome for Easton.
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