In a lavish ceremony intertwining centuries-old rituals with contemporary messages, a man who pledged compassion to all became Ohio's newest leader in the Episcopal faith yesterday.

The Rev. Thomas E. Breidenthal was consecrated as the ninth bishop for the Episcopal Diocese of Southern Ohio at the Ohio State University campus.

About 2,000 people from throughout the state welcomed their new bishop at Mershon Auditorium. The diocese includes 25,000 members in 40 counties of central and southern Ohio.

"It's something that just pulls the whole diocese together," said Molly Bailey, who traveled from Cincinnati for the consecration. "It's not like this happens on a regular basis."

Breidenthal succeeds Bishop Herbert Thompson Jr., who retired in December 2005 after reaching the mandatory retirement age of 72. He died in August.

The U.S. church's House of Bishops put a moratorium on consecrating new bishops after the church in 2003 chose an openly gay man, the Rev. V. Gene Robinson, as bishop of New Hampshire. The controversy forced the Ohio diocese to postpone its election of a new bishop until last year.

The auditorium's two-tiered stage was crowded with lush green plants, musicians, a piano, organ and altar. A 250-member procession marched in to the sounds of a choir, trumpet and a young percussionist beating an African drum.

Deacons each carried tubs of water from the different rivers in southern Ohio and poured them all into one baptismal font in front of the altar.

The sermon was given by the Rt. Rev. C. Christopher Epting, deputy for ecumenical and interfaith relations for the Episcopal Church.

Epting said two vows that Breidenthal takes as bishop might seem contradictory. One pledges to guard the faith, unity and discipline of the church, while the other promises to be merciful and compassionate to everyone, and to defend those who have no helpers.

"These perspectives of unity and justice are hard to hold together," Epting said. "It's a problem for bishops."

His last comment drew chuckles from the audience. In February, leaders from the Anglican Communion warned the U.S. Episcopal Church to not bless same-sex unions or consecrate gay bishops.

The Episcopal House of Bishops last month restated their support of gays despite the argument from conservative dioceses. Breidenthal has said he believes a faithful same-sex union, like any covenanted relation, is a way of following Jesus.

The answer to that contradiction, Epting said, is to keep it simple: Stay focused on daily prayer and the mission of the church.

"We cannot always figure it out," he said. "And doing things the way we've always done them will not always be sufficient in this post-modern age."

Joy Rose of Columbus said she was amazed at the beauty and majesty of the ceremony. Although Rose is Catholic, not Episcopalian, she wanted to see the highly anticipated consecration and liked the inclusiveness of the sermon.

"I really appreciated the tradition of the ceremony, but also trying to tie in the present and the future," she said.

khassett@dispatch.com