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Report on 213th Annual
Council of the Diocese of Virginia
Given by Helen K. Spence, Delegate,
St. Christopher’s Episcopal Church,
Springfield, VA
Council opened on
Friday, January 25, 2008 – the Feast of the Conversion of Saint Paul.
The theme for this year’s council was “The Abundance of God’s
Love.” We gathered at the
Hyatt in Reston – over 1,000 strong to share our thoughts, our common
life, our respect for one another.
I was seated at a table with Mother Susan, Father Michael, Father
Tom Holliday, Mary Johnson, our alternate, The Rev. Kate Chipps (St.
Margaret’s Woodbridge) and the priest, delegate and alternate from St.
Stephen’s in Culpeper. I
was aware, as I looked around the room, of how much our dear friend,
Stefan Barnhardt loved this gathering, and his spirit was present with
us. After our opening
hymn and various necessary appointments, including welcoming delegates
from Church of the Epiphany in Herndon, Bishop Peter J. Lee turned the
microphone over to The Rt. Rev. Victoria Matthews, former Bishop of
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
Bishop Matthews was the first woman elected a Bishop in the Anglican
Church of Canada, and served as Chaplain to Diocesan Council.
During her first address, she spoke of a work of art which had
been donated to a parish in which she once served, called “The Mirrored
Christ” – a crucifix in which the body of Christ is created from
mirrors. She told us that
the body is not to be looked upon, but absorbed – and that we are ALL
members of the body – even the person who may irritate us most.
She then read from Matthew, Chapter 15 – the story of the mother
who followed Jesus in order to have him heal her daughter.
“….Yet even the dogs eat the crumbs from the master’s table….”
This was the beginning of a new understanding for Jesus of his
role on earth - Christ’s mission grew that day. Then Bishop Lee
addressed the Council. He
spoke of many highlights from the year 2007 – Virginia’s 400th
anniversary; the consecration of Bishop Johnston as Bishop Coadjutor;
the largest number of priests ordained in a single year during Bishop
Lee’s tenure; the new dean of Virginia Theological Seminary; the loyalty
and love of congregations; and, unfortunately, the litigation required
to secure churches occupied by individuals who have abandoned the
Episcopal Church. The legal
fees are not paid for by any Diocesan pledge monies, but via a line of
credit that has been established.
This line of credit will be paid off with the sale of
unconsecrated and undeveloped property owned by the Diocese, and the
interest on the line of credit is paid for by a donation.
Bishop Lee said, “No one likes lawsuits, but at the same time,
our generation has a stewardship responsibility to protect the property
of our churches for Episcopalians in the next 400 years.”
WE are the Diocese…. Of the 5 largest
Dioceses in the Episcopal Church, we have the smallest staff (24 – some
part-time). Currently, the
only ordained members of the Diocesan staff are our Bishops – this for
the first time in Bp. Lee’s tenure.
Mission work, which is funded by donation – along with the
Diocese’s full time missioner for world mission – is being moved into
the regular budget, because the donated funds will eventually run out.
This puts our mission at risk because some parishes are either
unwilling or unable to meet the standard of proportional giving to the
Diocese. The Diocese of
Virginia is at the bottom of the list of all 105 Dioceses in the
Episcopal Church in proportional giving by parishes to their dioceses.
Bishop Lee then moved on to discuss
plans for 2008. We will,
for the first time, begin implementation of the Vocational Deaconate –
we need 6 postulants to begin, and our own Linda Murphy is the first
postulant accepted. The
Windsor Dialogue Commission will be formed from the “R-5” commission –
to continue the conversation with our gay and lesbian members, to help
us maintain our already expressed desire to remain in relationship with
the worldwide Anglican Communion, and to follow the recommendations of
the Windsor Report. He also
mentioned the fact that the Lambeth Conference of all Anglican Bishops
will be held this summer.
Bishop Lee closed with a text from the
spiritual There is a Balm in
Gilead – “Sometimes I feel discouraged and think my work’s in vain,
but then the Holy Spirit revives my soul again.
If you cannot sing like angels, if you cannot preach like Paul,
You can tell the love of Jesus, and say ‘He died for all.’”
We proclaim the abundance of God’s love – and there is hope
because of it. We moved on to
elections for various church-wide positions.
Two members of the laity and one of the clergy were elected as
deputies to the Province III Synod on the first ballot.
Four clergy and four lay deputies to General Convention 2009 were
also elected on the first ballot, and one of them was The Rev. Susan
Goff. One clergy and one
lay person needed for Standing Committee were elected on first ballot –
the clergy person was the Rev. Susan Daughtry-Fawcett.
A second ballot was then taken for additional members to Standing
Committee, and alternates to General Convention. Friday is the day
we pat ourselves on the back, a little, and celebrate the good things
done over the year just past.
The Biggar-Powers awards for ministry to the elderly were given
to St. George’s in Fredericksburg, Church of the Holy Comforter in
Vienna and Trinity Church in Charlottesville.
The Happy Pullman Award for mission and the Bishop’s Outreach
Award were also given at this point in the program.
New this year, were awards recognizing high levels of giving to
the Diocese. Bishop Lee
also introduced all of the clergy new to the Diocese this year. We then had a break
and set up for the Council Eucharist, which took place in the middle of
the opening day’s meeting.
This was different than years past when the Eucharist was celebrated
after the session on Friday evening.
It was a time of joy and sharing.
The lessons were read by members of The Falls Church and St.
Margaret’s in Woodbridge and our own Rachel Wattenbarger was asked to
read the Prayers of the People, which she did very well. After lunch, our
ecumenical guests and senior seminarians were introduced.
Then Bishop Shannon S. Johnston, Bishop Coadjutor, gave his
address. He began by
telling us of how abundantly he has felt God’s love and grace in the
welcome given to him and his wife, Ellen (whom he introduced) as they
join with us in mission and ministry – for the next 22 years.
He spoke of his travels through the diocese and impressions he
has received – particularly his inspiration in the congregations that
are continuing after December 2006.
He mentioned the abundance he has seen across the Diocese and
then used the metaphor of a basketball team “playing small.”
The church wants to be the point guard – making the pretty
outside shots - but is, by
nature, the power forward – doing the gritty work under the basket.
Small places can do big things – the work makes the difference.
We need to be aware of our smallness of vision and action – where
are we underachieving? We then heard
several reports – including the report of Mike Kerr – Treasurer of the
Diocese. His report was not
unlike the report we heard from our parish treasurer.
Our Diocese is doing well, but we could be doing better.
We are fiscally sound – health insurance was negotiated
well/pensions are safe. The
invested funds grew, despite the economy.
Mr. Kerr also mentioned the fact
that many of our parishes are not living up to the minimum Diocesan
standard for proportional giving, and this may cause hardships in the
future. A report from the
“R5” commission was then given by the Rev. John Ohmer (Rector, St.
James, Leesburg). “R5” was
the name of the commission given because it was created from Resolution
5s voted on at the 212th
Annual Council meeting.
Their task was to discern a possible emerging consensus regarding
local option for the blessing of same sex unions, taking into account
the concerns of the worldwide Anglican Communion.
There was a wide variety of points of view within the commission
– all voices are needed in the discernment process.
The conversation is part of the body of Christ, not a political
body – it is a discernment process not a democratic process (seeking the
will of God, not the will of the people).
Any options are ultimately subject to General Convention and the
Bishop of Virginia. The
Church does provide pastoral care to everyone.
The commission was unable to reach consensus, and this commission
was given a new name and a new commission by Bishop Lee.
It is now the Windsor Dialogue Commission, and its goals are
stated in the notes on the Bishop’s address.
The key is to stay in communion with all views as the discernment
process continues. Bishop Matthews
then gave her second meditation, based on a reading from Paul’s letter
to the Phillippians: “Make
my joy complete”. We need
to remind ourselves of WHY we’re here and whose vision we’re dealing
with. It’s not about us –
it’s about Jesus. There is
no such thing as the church’s mission – it is Christ’s mission and the
church only exists because of it.
At this point, full
council was in recess so that committee hearings could take place.
Mary Johnson and I attended the resolutions hearing, and Mother
Susan attended the hearing on constitutional changes– arriving late to
the resolutions hearing. In
this hearing only the resolutions were discussed – not the courtesy
resolutions. We began with
9 resolutions and several of them involved lively discussion.
We witnessed measured discussion – almost no anger – a hearing of
all points of view. We returned
Saturday morning renewed and refreshed.
After our opening hymn – “Love Divine, all loves excelling”, we
began with a meditation from Bishop Matthews based on a reading from
Paul’s letter to the Ephesians.
Whose Ministry is it?
What does holiness look like?
Can you recognize it in others?
Can you recognize it in yourself?
Be open to adapting yourself to Christ – God calls you to a
deeper transformation. If
Christ is not at the center of transformation, it becomes a cultural
norm – but there is a cost to following Christ.
In North America, there is pressure for Christians to be nice.
We’re not supposed to be NICE – we’re supposed to be CHRIST.
The central focus of the Eucharist is the actions - Take – Bless
– Break – Give…. Give not until it hurts, but until it feels good. We then heard from
our Suffragan Bishop, Bishop David C. Jones:
Missionary excitement abounds – and contrasts with the
litigation. Church planting
efforts are predominantly reaching for the unchurched.
We need more focus on evangelism and opportunities to grow the
church. We need more focus
on multi-cultural and multi-racial ideas in reaching out to those around
us. Missionary efforts must
combine the Great Commission (Teach all Nations) with the Great
Commandment (Love one another).
It is time for each of us to examine our commitment.
A theme he hears around the country is that clergy want to be in
the Diocese of Virginia.
Bishop Jones’
address was followed by the report from the Episcopal Church Women and
the Committee on Related Organizations – where we made the Peter/Paul
Society in Richmond a related organization under our Diocesan umbrella. We then moved on to
the report from the committee on Resolutions.
All Courtesy Resolutions were adopted without comment.
C1 –
Two Collegiate representatives
at Diocesan Council – carried for second year and is now in effect. C2 – This was a
suggested change in the formula by which lay delegates to Diocesan
Council are chosen. It was
referred to committee to discern a better way to allocate lay
representation at Council in this Diocese. Standing Committee:
Highlights of the year included a New Bishop/Transition Team –
New Postulants for Ordination, Candidates for Ordination, Transitional
Deacons for Ordination to the Priesthood – Regretful agreement that 22
priests had abandoned the Episcopal Church and are no longer priests–
Support for continuing congregations – consent for three churches to
incur indebtedness – consent to 12 bishops for consecration – response
to Draft Anglican Covenant. BUDGET COMMITTEE: The budget was
adopted unanimously – after some discussion.
The budget was balanced at $4.8 million.
$275,000 in new pledges was added after Friday and was part of
the final budget package.
The budget represents an increase of 6.6% from 2007.
The second longest discussion of the day regarded Shrine Mont
Scholarship funding, which had been decreased $6.790.00 from 2007
levels. This led to a
passionate discussion, a “passing of the hat”, and then pledges from 197
people for $100.00 each to restore that funding.
When all was said and done, we had pledges to restore funding to
the 2007 levels, and an additional $12,910.
When the monies in “the hat” were counted, the total was $11,290,
some of which may have been pledged funds.
The Budget income line was amended to include the $19,700.00 in
pledges, with all the money going to Shrine Mont.
This provided the council with a real “feel good” moment as we
supported the youth of this Diocese in such a tangible way.
As this portion of the program was ending, there were voices in
the room who expressed the reality that we need to use this as a
teaching tool to get our congregations to give more abundantly to the
Diocese. Parishes as a
whole should be funding the Diocesan budget, not the individual members
of Council Bishop Matthews
then gave her final meditation.
She gave thanks for our hospitality.
She gave thanks to our Bishops – thanks FOR our Bishops.
She sees a depth of commitment to Mission – but “it’s time
to stop ‘nickel & diming’ the Kingdom of God.”
We live in an embarrassment of riches in EVERY sense of the word.
We should be falling all over each other to give it away.
Giving of that abundance is a mindset we need to learn – all of
us. People in much poorer
countries are more generous and hospitable than those of us in North
America. It is God’s gift
that was alive in North America and it is our duty to share that gift
with others. Bishop Lee then
made a few closing remarks, gave us all the Episcopal Blessing and the
213th Annual Council of the Diocese of Virginia was adjourned
sine die. This is only a
brief overview of what happened in the two days of Council.
The Diocesan Budget, the full text of each resolution, and the
full texts of the addresses given by each Bishop can be found on the
Diocesan website –
www.thediocese.net – and you are urged to read them.
We are blessed to have such committed and caring Episcopalians in
Virginia – and I thank you for allowing me to represent you in their
gathering. |