Mohney: The bishop who kept flunking retirement

In a beautiful service last Sunday morning, Bishop Richard C. Looney was recognized as Bishop in Residence at First Centenary United Methodist Church.

At the same service, two former pastors, the Rev. Al Bowles and the Rev. Charles Neal, who continue to be a part of the congregation, were each declared a Pastor Emeritus. There was a sense of long tradition and joy in the entire service.

Looney was born into a Methodist parsonage in Virginia. He graduated from Emory and Henry College and his post-graduate studies were at the Candler School of Theology at Emory University, the University of Edinburgh and Union Theological Seminary. In 1988, he was elected to the Episcopacy and assigned to the South Georgia annual conference, where he served for 12 years. Immediately after, he was named president of the Foundation for Evangelism with offices at Lake Junaluska, N.C.

In 1957, Looney married the former Carolyn McKeithen. In my mind, she was the perfect minister's wife -- gracious, talented, accomplished and always willing to serve. They had three children and four grandchildren. After 51 years of marriage, Carolyn died in 2009; Looney felt a call back to his pastoral roots and served two local churches, a small church in Northeast Tennessee and Munsey Memorial United Methodist Church in Johnson City.

Following that retirement -- "I keep flunking retirement," he laughingly said -- the church still would not allow him to move out of the mainstream. So he begins a new chapter as Bishop in Residence at First Centenary. In the process, Looney brings excitement, motivation and hope to all of us fortunate enough to come under the sphere of his influence.

When I think of Richard Looney, two things are front and center. He has a strong spiritual foundation based on intellectual honesty and a lifetime commitment to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Equally as strong is his capacity to enjoy life. Humor is one of his trademarks. Each time I hear him use humor, I remember that Mark Twain said, "Laughter is God's hand on a troubled world."

Contact Nell Mohney at nellwmohney@comcast.net.

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