The Rt. Rev. Onell A. Soto, recently installed as Assistant Bishop of Atlanta, points out that when the Rev. Leopoldo Alard is consecrated Suffragan Bishop of Texas next month, he will be the eighth Cuban priest elected to the episcopate.

Bishop Soto notes the small Cuban church had only 32 priests at the beginning of the revolution, and the eight bishops have been elected since 1967. They are: Bishops Jose Agustin Gonzalez, Bishop of Cuba, 1967-82; Anselmo Carral, Bishop of Guatemala, 1973-81, Assistant Bishop of Texas, 1985-92; Hugo Pina, Bishop of Honduras, 1978-83, Assistant Bishop of Central Florida, 1995; Emilio Hernandez, Bishop of Cuba, 1982-1992; Leopoldo Frade, Bishop of Honduras, 1984 to the present; Onell Soto, Bishop of Venezuela, 1987-1995, currently assistant Bishop of Atlanta; Jorge Perera, Bishop of Cuba, 1994 to the present; and Leopoldo Alard, suffragan bishop-elect.

The Rt. Rev. Robert Hargrove, Jr., Bishop of Western Louisiana, hit a bobcat while he was driving on Interstate 49 on a foggy night, according to Alive, the newspaper of his diocese.

The August issue of The Lutheran reports members of the clergy divorce at about the same percentage as society's rate: 22 percent of men and 23 percent of women. The magazine also lists Episcopal clergy as divorcing at a higher rate: 25 percent of ordained men and 30 percent of ordained women.

When the Rt. Rev. Penelope Jamieson, Bishop of Dunedin, New Zealand, ventured into the Diocese of Sydney, Australia, last month to speak at several churches, she was granted permission by Archbishop Harry Goodhew to function as a deacon. The Diocese of Sydney has not approved legislation permitting women to be ordained as priests, and the Anglican Church of Australia has not debated the issue of women becoming bishops.

Notice in the newsletter of All Saints' Church, Philadelphia: "Air Conditioned Sunday Services at All Saints' Church ..."

Among the places I visited on my recent trip to England was Derby Cathedral. There the diocese was preparing for its new bishop, the Rt. Rev. Jonathan Bailey, who seems to have caused a stir because his wife is a priest. Church Times reported the "new bishop will cause a buzz" because he has a hobby of bee-keeping.

Note to Sarah in Queens: There are four St. Gregorys in the Episcopal Church's calendar. The feast of Gregory of Nyssa is observed March 9, Gregory the Great March 12, Gregory the Illuminator March 23, and Gregory of Nazianzus May 9.

David Kalvelage, editor