Episcopal bishop of Spokane diocese undergoes double lung transplant

News Brief by FāVS Staff

Bishop Gretchen Rehberg of the Episcopal Diocese of Spokane underwent a double lung transplant Saturday after receiving the long-awaited call for donor lungs.

Rehberg, who oversees dioceses in Eastern Washington and the Idaho panhandle, wrote in a March 14 email to clergy and congregations that she had been admitted to University of Washington Medical Center in Seattle and had entered surgery for the transplant.

“I have received the call and am in surgery for a lung transplant,” Rehberg wrote. “I ask for your prayers. I am currently at the University of Washington Hospital and know that I am in the care of skilled and dedicated doctors and nurses.”

In the letter Rehberg said that contingency plans already prepared for this moment were being put into effect. She said diocesan staff and ministries will continue operating normally during her recovery, though she will be temporarily unavailable.

She expressed confidence in diocesan leadership and said committees, commissions and congregational life will continue as usual. 

“Our mission and ministry continue,” she wrote, adding updates are expected to be released by diocesan offices.

The bishop also directed supporters to a CaringBridge page created by family members to share updates during the transplant process. On the page, her sister, Dorothy LaMastus, confirmed Saturday that Rehberg had entered surgery and asked for continued prayers, noting that the procedure and recovery will be lengthy.

As soon as the email was sent, visitors increased on Rehberg’s CaringBridge site where several shared their support.

“Dear Bishop Gretchen, you are in my thoughts and prayers daily,” Carol Forhan wrote. “It’s been a long time so we know how anxious you are to get this over with and be in good health to continue to lead us forward. God‘s blessing on you.”

Another visitor, G. Wayne Hawks, wrote, “She is wrapped in the arms of Jesus and in our prayers.”

Rehberg, who was consecrated bishop of the Spokane diocese in 2017, has been awaiting a double lung transplant since November 2022 due to pulmonary fibrosis, a progressive disease that scars lung tissue and restricts breathing.

Her lung disease may be connected to exposure during volunteer work near Ground Zero after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. At the time, Rehberg was a seminarian in New York and volunteered at hospitals and relief sites in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks.

Before entering ordained ministry, she had a career in organic chemistry and served as a professor at Bucknell University in Pennsylvania. She later attended General Theological Seminary in New York, was ordained a priest in 2003 and eventually served congregations in Idaho before being elected bishop in 2016.

In her message to the diocese Saturday, Rehberg acknowledged the uncertainty surrounding the surgery but emphasized faith and continuity in church life.

“In this time of both uncertainty and hope,” she wrote, “let us all remember that the Diocese is in good hands, that we follow Jesus, and that God has blessed us and will continue to walk with us in our journey.”

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