Bishop Shaw of Massachusetts Announces Retirement

The Rt. Rev. M. Thomas Shaw, SSJE, Bishop of Massachusetts, announced January 15th that he intends to retire in 2014 and called for the election of his successor.


The Rt. Rev. M. Thomas Shaw, SSJE“I love being your bishop and it is an honor to serve you,” Shaw told the diocese in his announcement,  “These years have been some of the richest years of my life.  All of you and this work have taught me much about myself and the nature of our loving God for which I will always be grateful.  I am full of gratitude for all that God has given us to do:  the challenges God has offered us, the opportunities and all the experiences of God’s abundance which we have experienced in our life together.”

"Integrity is grateful for the quiet leadership of Bishop Shaw," said The Rev. Dr. Caroline Hall, Integrity's president. "He is a man of deep spirituality who has been a gift to the Church as a bishop and will continue to be a gift to the world in his retirement."

Bishop Shaw brings a somewhat unique perspective to the episcopate, because he is also a brother in the Society of St. John the Evangelist, a religious order in the Anglican church whose members take vows of poverty, celibacy and obedience. He speaks about his experience as a gay man in the monastery and the wider church in Love Free or Die, the award-winning documentary about the Rt. Rev. V. Gene Robinson, the first out, partnered gay person ordained a bishop.  Integrity has sponsored numerous screenings of the film across the country. If you are interested in a screening please contact us.

Bishop Robinson, a close friend of Bishop Shaw, also recently retired.  Retired bishops in the Episcopal Church retain their voice and vote in the church's House of Bishops for life.