Bishop John Said

As the daughter of a preacher, the Rev. Mary Rosendahl learned to respect the bishop at a very young age. But she quickly learned that it is not just the bishop’s position that warrants respect, but the bishop’s actions as well.

As rector at Church of the Nativity in Port St. Lucie, she took time out to reflect on the impact of a bishop in the Episcopal Church in the wake of the recent passing of the Rt. Rev. John Lewis Said, who served as an Assistant Bishop in the diocese for 15 years (2003-18) after formerly serving as Bishop Suffragan in the Diocese of Southeast Florida (1995-2003).

Said, who died Saturday, Jan. 5, in Port St. Lucie after a long illness, was 86. He had been serving as bishop in residence at Church of the Nativity in Port St. Lucie in retirement, according to The Living Church newsletter. A Requiem Eucharist will be held Saturday, Jan. 26, 2019 at 1 p.m. at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Ft. Pierce.

“As a “PK” (priest’s kid), I was taught at a very early age to respect the Bishop!” Rosendahl said. “I have carried that idea throughout my entire life in the Episcopal Church. Certainly not always agreeing with her or him, but always respecting the office. Then, one day, I attended the ordination of a friend and classmate at Sewanee led by Bishop John L. Said. I remember a few of his words from the sermon but what I remember most was the moment he anointed her hands with oil – not just making the sign of the cross from some oil stock, but the pouring of oil all over her hands and his words that followed. That was the first time I officially met Bishop John Said.”

In 2008, Rosendahl came to Church of the Nativity, where Said was the resident bishop after retiring from the Diocese of Southeast Florida. Rosendahl followed a rector, Father Paul Wolfe, who was very beloved in his church and was battling cancer. Six months later, Wolfe died.

“Bishop Said was the glue that held Nativity together,” Rosendahl said. “He quickly became my mentor, “personal bishop” and friend.”

Rosendahl served next to Said for 10 years, and said she was privileged to experience his own personal faith and love. “Each Sunday, he taught a class while I was in another service,” she said. “It was the most popular class at Nativity because not only his presence but his wisdom and listening heart. It was more an “open mic” time where people could ask questions and not feel dumb or intimidated. His willingness and patience to listen and answer questions and allow people in the room to explore their own faith was amazing.”

A graduate of Wabash College (Crawfordsville, Indiana) and Yale Divinity School (New Haven, Connecticut), Said was a man with a gigantic heart, soul and faith. “He deeply respected and loved his Episcopal Church,” Rosendahl said. “Not only was he a bishop, but a priest and deacon with a serving spirit and heart. But he also was a man with a wonderful sense of humor. He would tell jokes in his sermons that people laughed and laughed at, although at times they were repeats, which he would say ‘I might have told this before’ … but no matter how many times it was told, we always laughed. He was a man who could laugh at his own funny moments, acknowledge his mistakes and openly share his own humanness.”

Said also was known for his humility. “One of the last conversations we had together was about where his memorial service would take place,” Rosendahl said. “Tearfully pleading with him not to have it at his church, Nativity, due to the small space, he insisted not that many people would show up! You see, he had no idea what an impact he made in so many people’s lives. A man of great humility, love, patience, acceptance, understanding of Scripture, a great deacon priest, bishop, husband, father, grandfather, great grandfather, uncle, brother, and dear, dear friend.

“If I had to express Bishop John L. Said in one word it would be ‘love,’” Rosendahl said. “As the old saying goes, ‘preach the Gospel at all times, when necessary use words.’ And that he did.”

He was born in Marion, Indiana, about 75 miles east of Purdue University.  He was ordained deacon and priest in 1958 and 1959, respectively, in the Episcopal Diocese of Indianapolis. He went on to serve parishes in Indiana and Florida and also worked as a missionary for the Diocese of Central Brazil for three years from 1966-69.

In the late 1980s, Said joined the Brotherhood of St. Andrew, a worldwide ministry that focuses on the three disciplines of prayer, study and service. Nearly a decade later, he was consecrated in Southeast Florida.

The Diocese of Central Florida requests that Bishop Said’s family, especially his wife of 63 years, Ann, remain in your prayers.

Deliver your servant, John, O Sovereign Lord Christ, from all evil, and set him free from every bond; that he may rest with all your saints in the eternal habitations; where with the Father and the Holy Spirit you live and reign, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.