Diocese of the Great Lakes announces three nominees for first bishop
[Episcopal News Service] The Diocese of the Great Lakes announced on July 22 a slate of three nominees for its first bishop. The nominees are:
- The Rev. Terri Bays, canon to the ordinary, Diocese of Northern Indiana.
- The Rev. Zachary Nyein, senior associate rector, St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church, New York, New York.
- The Rev. Holly Rankin Zaher, rector, St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Evansville, Indiana.
The diocese was created in 2024 through the merger of the former Diocese of Eastern Michigan and Diocese of Western Michigan.
A petition process for additional nominees runs through Aug. 5. Meet-and-greets with the candidates are planned for the week of Sept. 20. The election is schedule for Oct. 24.
The following is the text of the standing committee’s announcement.
With gratitude and hope, the Standing Committee of the Episcopal Diocese of the Great Lakes announces the nomination of three candidates to stand for election as the first bishop diocesan of the Episcopal Diocese of the Great Lakes.
This is a sacred and historic moment. For the first time, we will gather as one diocese to call the bishop who will walk alongside us in the years ahead as we continue growing into the diocese God is calling us to be. We give thanks to God for bringing us to this threshold together.
We are deeply grateful for the faithful, prayerful and often unseen work of the Search Committee, whose members have given themselves generously to this demanding discernment work on behalf of us all. And we extend our heartfelt thanks to these three candidates for their courage and openness in responding to God’s call, and for their willingness to discern with us the future of Christ’s church in this diocese.
We now invite you into this next season of discernment. On the Meet the Candidates page of our website, you’ll find a photo, bio, and short video introducing each candidate. We encourage you to read, watch and, above all, pray.
The candidates will spend time among us in a series of Meet and Greets held all across the diocese and online during the week of Sept. 20. The Bishop Transition Committee will announce specific dates and locations soon, along with a number of other opportunities to get to know the candidates and discern together. Watch your email, the diocesan newsletter and our social media in the coming weeks for details.
A petition process for any additional nominations opens with today’s announcement and remains open for two weeks, closing on Wednesday, Aug. 5. Once all petition candidates have been reviewed, the final slate will be announced.
The election will take place at our Diocesan Convention on Oct. 24 at the VanDyk Mortgage Convention Center in Muskegon. All convention worship and business sessions, including the Saturday election session, will be livestreamed and open for anyone to attend. On-site seating will prioritize voting delegates first, then registered convention visitors, then any unregistered on-site guests. The proposed rules for the election were approved by the Standing Committee at its Feb. 1, 2026 meeting and are part of the larger proposed rules of order for our third diocesan convention, available here.
Above all, we ask you to hold this diocese, these candidates, and their families in your prayers. Let us pray together:
Almighty God, giver of every good gift and source of all wisdom, look with favor upon your Church in the Episcopal Diocese of the Great Lakes as we seek the bishop you are calling to shepherd and to lead us: Grant to your people faith to discern, courage to choose, and unity to follow in the way of your Son; that guided by your Holy Spirit, all of our prayers may rise up to you, and we may continue to proclaim the Gospel and serve the world in love; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
With hope in Christ,
The Standing Committee of the Episcopal Diocese of the Great Lakes
