H. Julian Gordy
Bishop
ELCA-Southeastern Synod

A native of Newnan, Georgia, Julian Gordy served as pastor of St. Andrew Lutheran Church, Franklin, TN; Christus Victor Lutheran Church, Ocean Springs, MS; and Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Morristown, TN before his election as bishop of the ELCA Southeastern Synod in June, 2007. He received the A.B. in religion from Mercer University in Macon, Georgia in 1972 and the M. Div. from Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary in 1985. A long-time proponent of ministries of mercy and justice, Bishop Gordy was a founding member of the board of MATS, a unique home for homeless persons in Morristown, and of Samaritan Ministry of Jackson County, an ecumenical emergency relief agency on the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

He has been involved in numerous community and church agencies and boards in Tennessee and Mississippi and was active in the founding of Lutheran Episcopal Services of Mississippi. He has served church agencies and institutions in a number of roles, most recently as Secretary of the Board of Trustees of Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary. Bishop Gordy has been a frequent leader of workshops on organizational structure, consensus decision-making, mission development and liturgical renewal.

Before attending Southern Seminary, Bishop Gordy worked in university and hospital administration and in housing restoration. He is married to the Reverend Dr. P. Morgan Gordy, pastor of Faith Lutheran Church in Lebanon, Tennessee.
They have four children and six grandchildren. His hobbies include backpacking, sailing and woodworking.
Rev. 1-25-08