Many think of the "swing era" as a time of dance and romance, peace and war. For Bay Area Episcopalians the "Swing era" was an equally memorable time of spirit, growth and community, still tinged with a type of innocence. When newly-elected Bishop Coadjutor (assistant and successor) of the Diocese of California William Edwin Swing was consecrated at Grace Cathedral on September 29, 1979, AIDS did not yet exist, and home computers were still a novelty. President Carter grappled with an oil crisis as gasoline prices soared to over a dollar a gallon. Bishop Kilmer Myers resigned December 31, 1979 and the 43-year-old Bishop Swing became the Seventh Bishop of the Diocese of California.

Son of a West Virginia golf professional, Bill Swing attended Kenyon College and seminaries in Virginia and Pennsylvania. Ordained a priest in 1961, he served several Appalachian parishes, supported by his loving wife Mary, a former mathematician, and their two children. Reverend Swing's relaxed, unassuming style won many friends and parishioners, and he served for a decade at St. Columba's, Washington D. C. Swing was not at first enthusiastic about his California candidacy, but ex-Secretary of State Henry Kissinger was, surprisingly, among those who persuaded him otherwise. Upon his election, Bishop Swing eased into his new position, knowing that people, "give you authority when they see you really care".

Shortly after his arrival in California, Bishop Swing met a 99-year-old parishioner baptized by Bishop Kip, diocesan founder. She gave Bishop Swing her baptismal certificate. He was awed by the moment, as a link for him to a century and a quarter of diocesan history. Yet, among his first tasks as bishop was to preside over a fifth, and amicable, diocesan split. The Diocese of El Camino Real was born in 1980 from the south portion of the Diocese of California, leaving the Bay Area as the small but vibrant core remnant of the once state-wide diocese.

In words from "A Swing with a Crozier", his informal biography, Bishop Swing was ready to "dare great things." The diocese, his new "parish," was full of ideas, but short on funding to implement them. He announced a "Dream of California" campaign to bring the best ideas to fruition, and $5 million was raised. Results of the campaign included a lay academy, a school for deacons, expanded social and media ministry, seminary support and expanded Hispanic and Asian ministries. The Community Bank followed, and St. Luke's Hospital was saved with Bishop Swing's help. Rising controversy over the new Book of Common Prayer, division over women priests, and concern over gay ordinations resulted in the departure of some parishioners and several breakaway parishes. Bishop Swing handled these complex problems with characteristic tact and candor. Meantime, the diocese acquired new congregations and institutions.

The gay rights movement gathered momentum in the 1970s and Bishop Swing learned about, and became sensitive to, gay concerns. In 1980, he co-founded the Parsonage, a center for reconciliation between the church and the gay/lesbian community, now continuing as Oasis. While his stand on gay issues was, and remains, controversial in the wider church, Bishop Swing kept, and keeps, his focus on humanity and sympathy. The AIDS crisis proved wrenching and challenging, but the diocese was in the forefront of compassionate response and care for victims. The Diocese of California soon became the international leader in Anglican theological and pastoral response to the now international AIDS/HIV pandemic, with Bishop Swing its disarming spokesman.

The San Francisco Bay Area's, homeless problem became serious in the 1980s, and Mayor Feinstein recruited Bishop Swing to find solutions. The Episcopal Sanctuary began in January 1983, when 40 people were sheltered in Grace Cathedral's crypt. By 2000, Episcopal Community Services housed 2000 in the downtown Sanctuary and related facilities, supplying not just food and shelter, but recovery centers and opportunities to learn and work back into the community. ECS was and is partly funded by the annual Walk-a-Thon and a pavement-pounding Bishop Swing, and became a model for homeless solutions. Senior housing also developed as new and refurbished life-care facilities were built in the diocese.

The energy crisis, environmental degradation and global warming became pressing concerns in the 1990s, and Bishop Swing encouraged wider understanding of the spiritual aspect of creation and its stewardship. He recalled the angel in Revelation who proclaimed, "Hurt not the earth." Parishes were urged to become environmentally responsible, and use of renewable energy was encouraged by the diocesan environmental commission. Much work remains to be done, but foundations have been laid for a truly "green" diocese befitting its location in and around the city of Saint Francis.

Having had little contact with cathedrals, Bishop Swing nevertheless grew to love Grace Cathedral, and came to understand its ability to "tell a big story in a big way," and to be a place of community expression. He depended on the cathedral bells to tell the time, as he never wore a watch. The 1993-5 completion of the cathedral close also allowed for underground enlargement of adjacent Diocesan House. A diocesan web site was created, despite the Bishop's computer illiteracy. Moved by the 1996 Herb Caen memorial service, Bishop Swing wrote his vision of the Cathedral as a place of non-coercive religious immunity, non-partisan spiritual anonymity, and divinely-centered unity (see www.diocal.org). Very much a man of prayer, Bishop Swing well understood the phrase, "A House of Prayer for All People." Grace Cathedral shone at the 150th birthday of the diocese in 2000, hosting over 2500 parishioners and delegates from the cathedral, 80 parishes, and many diocesan institutions.

Wider world issues were never far from Bishop Swing's mind, or desk. After reading of the round-the-world trip taken by his predecessor, Bishop Nichols, Bishop Swing undertook his own sabbatical world trek in 1987, visiting Anglican, Orthodox and Protestant leaders, the Pope, and Muslim, Hindu and Buddhist leaders. He found them linked by a common desire for world understanding and peace. From this experience came his idea for the United Religions Initiative (URI), linking all faiths in the cause of world justice, healing and peace, and ending the scandal of religious-based violence. Now in its tenth year, URI has proved to be a compelling and inspirational organization. Bishop Swing will spend much of his retirement, beginning June 22, 2006, working for this international community of hope.

Bishop Swing ends his bishopric as the longest serving active Episcopal bishop of recent times. He was, and is, an easy-going man of wry humor, a wise consensus-builder and a consummate pastor, following surely in the steps of the Good Shepherd. Bishop Swing's impact on the diocese will be felt for many years. His retirement will be filled with family, friends, and faith. "Whatever the future," he notes, "I find myself less preoccupied by fear. I can't keep from smiling as the final putt rolls towards the cup." As for Bishop Swing's episcopate, it only remains to say, in the words of Christ's parable, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant!"

 
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