A SHORTENED and smaller 80th General Convention of the Episcopal Church in the United States went ahead in Baltimore over four days last weekend, curtailed by a spike in Covid figures in the US.

About 1200 people attended — down from the usual 10,000 participants — and all had to be double-vaccinated and wear masks indoors. They were also required to test each day, and there were at least 26 reported infections during the meeting.

Opportunities for socialising were cut, and many of the 412 resolutions were voted on remotely. Floor debates were allowed only for the more hotly debated items.

The Convention was the scene of a historic first, with the election of two women as president and vice-president of the House of Deputies — the first time people of colour have served together as leaders of the House of Deputies. The Revd Julie Ayala Harries succeeds the Revd Gay Clark Jennings, who finished her third term as president. She is the first Latina and the youngest person elected to preside in the House. She described herself as a “church geek”.

“You have sent the message to church geeks everywhere, that if you try hard and you read the canons and you read all the minutes, that you can actually make a huge difference on this Church,” she said. “Dolly Parton has the saying ‘Figure out who you are, and then do it on purpose.’ Be a church geek on purpose.”

The Revd Rachel Taber Hamilton was elected as her deputy. She is the first indigenous person, and first ordained woman, to serve as vice-president.