ECW Test Site #2

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  • Bishop Curry: \”Go!\”

    \"\"Photo: Beverly RuebeckPresent at the United Thank Offering Sharing Dinner Friday evening were 400 people from throughout the Anglican Communion—including bishops, priests, deacons, ECW members and diocesan UTO coordinators.

    Our own Bishop Curry addressed the assembly. Using the 20th chapter of the Book of John as his frame of reference, he continually referred to the sister ministries of the United Thank Offering and Episcopal Church Women as “a mission of witness” sorely needed in “a time of absolute and unprecedented change.”

    “If you remember just one word from what I say tonight, it should be this: Go. You know, you won’t find the actual word ‘mission’ in the Bible, but mission is all over the Bible. It’s there because ‘go’ is there and ‘go’ means mission,” he explained.

    “And if you take the word ‘go’ seriously, it means you’ve got to trust the Lord. No more is there easy Christianity or easy religion. In a time with religious institutions finding themselves swimming upstream, remember that you don’t need to have all the answers, you just need to have a mission,” he said.

    The mission of the UTO, founded and administered by women since 1889, is to further the work of the church that addresses compelling human need by promoting daily offerings of thanks in parishes throughout the Church, receiving those offerings, then distributing that money across the Anglican Communion via grants.

    It is a vital ministry, said Bishop Curry. And in a closing that brought the crowd to its feet, he added, “I’m telling you, it makes a difference. You make a difference. So I ask you to continue to go and spread the good news of Jesus. Do not falter. Go and love without abandon! Go and spread his justice! Go UTO! Go ECW! Go!”

  • Scott Hughes: An Honored Woman

    \"\"The National Honored Woman award is the highest recognition given by Episcopal Church Women. Every three years, diocesan ECW executive boards around the country are invited to submit the name of a woman from their diocese they believe has, by word and deed, best exemplified the ministry of ECW. She is then honored in a ceremony during the Triennial Meeting at General Convention.

    On Friday, 73 Episcopal Church Women from dioceses across all nine provinces of the Church were recognized. Scott Hughes of Durham is the Diocese of North Carolina\’s Honored Woman for this triennium.

    The list of things Scott has done not only for Episcopal Church Women but the Episcopal Church in general at the diocesan, provincial and national levels is way too long to get into here. Suffice to say for now she was an innovator and remains a friend to many, respected counselor and servant-leader. You\’ll be hearing more about her accomplishments and this award.

    Congratulations, Scott! We are proud of you.

  • Katerina Whitley’s ‘Yet We Persist:’ The story of women in the church, the story of my life

    [In addition to blogging, I\’ve been asked to contribute to the in-house newspaper about the proceedings at General Convention and ECW Triennial. This is taken from an article I wrote for the July 10 issue of The Daily.]

    \"\"The Rt. Rev. Barbara C. HarrisThe Rt. Rev. Barbara C. Harris and Gregory Straub, executive officer and secretary of General Convention, and the other women and men who attended the ECW Welcome Dinner on Wednesday were reminded why the telling of our collective history can at once be liberating and soul wrenching.

    \"\"Katerina Katsarka WhitleyAsked to produce a program for the dinner, Katerina Katsarka Whitley, an Episcopalian, author, dramatist and retreat leader, opted to write a play chronicling the history of Episcopal Church Women in order to “show how God worked through admirable Episcopal women in the course of long years and struggles to bring about the accomplishments taken for granted today.”

    Nearly 140 years of history—from an early plea to the leaders of the Protestant Episcopal Church to seriously consider the contributions of women “who labor for their Lord” to the election of Katharine Jefferts Schori as presiding bishop—played out in under an hour, but still had people talking well into the following day.

    \"\"An ActressDee Doyle, Triennial delegate from the Diocese of San Joaquin, said, “I thought it was great. It was, in a real way, the story of my life. I’m coming up on 80 years old. I’ve lived a lot of what they were talking about. I graduated from college with a degree in business in ’51, and all potential employers wanted to know was how fast I could type. The young men got the great jobs. The story of our church and the story of our society really parallel one another. The play last night showed that clearly.”

    First-time delegate Sharon Massey of the Diocese of North Carolina said, “It was wonderful to see all that history so neatly laid out. I laughed. I cried. What a great gift.”

  • The Most Rev. Rowan Williams

    The Archbishop of Canterbury (aka \”ABC\”) Rowan Williams had just one day to spend at General Convention, and he made a point of devoting a portion of his time to the Episcopal Church Women.

    \"\"He and his entourage, including what appeared to be a security team, were escorted into our plenary session and he quietly took a seat. He indicated he wanted to listen for a few minutes to what was being said before addressing us, so our chaplain, the Rev. Dr. Ellen Sloan, continued her meditation on the true meaning of grace. Hint: it has nothing to do with being \”a ticket to heaven.\”

    Once he got to the microphone, he first acknowledged the tension between the Episcopal Church and some others within the Anglican Communion, characterizing it as \”rocky times.\” But he quickly moved onto his theme, the transformational capacity of women\’s ministry such as the Mothers\’ Union, which has a huge presence in Europe and Africa, and the Episcopal Church Women.

    Here, in part, is what he had to say: \”In your sharing of care and prayer, what you have is one of the most deep-rooted and enduring things that keeps our community together. It is profoundly sacramental. What unites Christians is the presence to one another in Christ; this is what you represent and live out.

    \”It is clear that the women of faith are among the most effective leaders of lasting and prophetic change. That is because, in so many contexts around the world, with women it\’s the grassroots. With this approach you provide the lever for real and lasting and profound change. You are the people that will bring about the Millennium Development Goals or whatever need is determined.

    \”I say, if you want transformation look to the women.\”

    In all, he was with us 20 minutes. Not long after he offered a meditation during the daily Eucharist, again touching on issues of brokenness and reconciliation.

    \”I don\’t like coded messages and hidden agendas,\” he said in opening. \”So I\’ll speak plainly. Thank you for the invitation to join you and for your continued willingness to engage in the wider life of the communion. Of course I\’m coming here with hopes and anxieties. One of my hopes is there won\’t be decisions made in the coming days that will push us further apart.\”

    Perhaps what he was talking about was B033, a resolution adopted by the 2006 General Convention. It calls for restraint in electing as bishops those whose \”manner of life,\” widely understood to mean homosexuality, would cause concern for the rest of the Anglican Communion.

    Revisiting B033 has created quite a stir in the House of Deputies, where opinion remains split between rejecting the resolution and preserving it.

  • Growing in Grace

    \"\"Though the ECW tends to its Constitution and bylaws, minds rules and holds hearings to address matters related to the business end of our ministry, we are not a legislative body. Instead, we are a from-the-pews-up organization all about mission and service, spiritual enrichment, study and fellowship. We represent the Church, and it\’s been said on more than one occasion that the ECW meeting hall at Triennial — \”House of ECW\” — can feel like sanctuary.

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    Audio of bagpiper

    \"\"And so on Wednesday, July 8, there was joy as hundreds of women from places as diverse as Navajoland and the U.S. Virgin Islands, Delaware and the Dominican Republic, gathered for opening day festivities. Led by a kilted bagpiper, provincial presidents followed by diocesan ECW presidents, representatives of Episcopal women\’s organizations (Church Periodical Club, Episcopal Women\’s History Project, United Thank Offering), and the National ECW board, filed into the plenary hall.\"\"

    \"\"There, a choir ready to burst into song and the Triennial Meeting chaplain, the Rev. Dr. Ellen Sloan, Chaplain and Dean of Community Life at General Theological Seminary, were waiting along with other certified delegates, alternate delegates and visitors.

    \"\"Shortly after Kay Meyer, president of the National ECW, declared the 46th Triennial Meeting open, Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori arrived to greet the gathering and participate in the \”surprise\” that had been promised. She blessed gold crosses embossed with the ECW symbol and then proceeded to hand a cross to each woman present. She did not rush the process. Nor could she stop smiling. There was singing and even dancing in the aisles.

    Solemnity must be given its space, yes. But on this day, at this time, we were about the celebration of the gift of faith. We have been called to \”grow in grace.\”

  • Shifting Into High Gear

    \"\"The gang\’s all here in the Diocese of Los Angeles.

    Good thing as the activity level, already humming along, has picked up. Joining me in Anaheim are the following Diocesan ECW board members:.

    \"\"Alice Freeman, a member of the deputation from North Carolina, who\’s also an ECW delegate given that she\’s the United Thank Offering Coordinator for the diocese.

    \"\"Sharon Massey, an at-large delegate and triennial newbie. Sharon is chair of the Durham Convocation ECW.

    \"\"Vivian Edwards, who, as Altar Guild Coordinator for our diocese is contributing to the altar guild effort for the convention\’s daily community Eucharist.

    We very much miss Moli Jones, Church Periodical Club Director. She was to have been a part of the delegation, but her for-pay job obligations called.

  • More MDG News

    This afternoon the House of Bishops requested that the Millennium Development Goals remain a program and budget priority for the Episcopal Church for the next triennium. But then they went even further. They not only recommended reinstatement of the MDGs budget line item of 0.7%, but to raise it to 1% of the non-government revenue of the Church! All three of North Carolina\’s bishops voted in favor of this.

    Word around the convention center is that the budget people at the national level completely underestimated the belief in the MDGs as a way for the Episcopal Church to live into its mission. Kay Meyer, president of the National ECW, had testified in a hearing to the vital role of the MDGs in women\’s ministries, and Episcopalians for Global Reconciliation executive director, the Rev. Devon Anderson along with the Rev. Ian Douglas, EGR board member and co-founder, had also spoken to the passion of the Church\’s grassroots for the Goals. And each of them stressed that national leadership was needed if these efforts are to be sustained.

    Still and all, the recommendations and affirmative votes don\’t guarantee funding of the Goals at the national level. That decision rests with the Joint Standing Committee on Program, Budget and Finance (PB&F), and they\’ve been told income during the 2010-2012 triennium could be $9 million less than forecast last January, when Executive Council approved the draft budget.

    This is why dozens of people representing various constituencies within the Episcopal Church again pled their case before PB&F tonight. Episcopal Church camps, ministries for Native Americans, deaf congregations, the bishops of Haiti and Columbia, and Christian education directors were just some of those seeking to maintain funding levels. Dr. Dianne Suber, president of Saint Augustine\’s College in Raleigh, spoke on behalf of the country\’s three historically black Episcopal colleges. And Devon Anderson was back to bat for the MDGs.

    \”Symbols like the cross convey the images of our core values. They are visual proclamations. Likewise, the MDG line item in our national church budget is a singular proclamation, a symbol of who we are in relation to the world\’s poorest people,\” she said. \”The choice to be faithful to the MDGs will cost us, but it will cost us more if we aren\’t.\”

  • Just In

    The House of Deputies has adopted five priorities proposed by the Program, Budget and Finance Committee that will guide the mission of the Episcopal Church for the next three years. Included is reinstatement of a triennial budget line appropriating 0.7% in revenue for specific Millennium Development Goal spending as well as Christian education and formation. The resolution now goes to the House of Bishops for consideration.

  • Lots More to Come

    Off to a 7:30 am hearing.

    There\’s so much more to share, I\’ve just run out of time and zip the past few nights. Live blogging (i.e. blogging from a meeting hall) is not allowed, so I have to wait until I get back to my room. And when events go until 10 pm or longer… At any rate, keep checking.

  • A Deeper Sense of Mission and the MDG Debate

    People from around our diocese who share my passion for the Millennium Development Goals and the way they help frame the twin issues of Christ-centered transformation and mission, asked to be kept informed of all things MDG at Convention. The Big Debate, of course, centers on whether or not the national church will retain the Goals as a program and budget priority as it has since 2006. There have been meetings about the matter, and people have been very verbal in their disappointment that the church, still officially known as the Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society, would seriously consider making such cuts.

    General Convention has only been open for a few days. I parse the words of Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori and House of Deputies President Bonnie Anderson in order to determine what they really think about the MDGs as central to the national budget. Here\’s what I\’ve come up with thus far: Don\’t know.

    Our leaders are careful with their words. In her opening on Tuesday, the PB spoke about the Episcopal Church being in (financial) crisis, how General Convention is \”always a time of decision making\”, and how \”we may revisit conversations of the last General Convention.\” Underlying all of those debates, she said, \”will be the reality that we do not have the same kind of financial resources to address them that we had three years ago – that is another kind of crisis, both local and global.\”

    She continued, \”The temptation for us here will be to see one small part of God’s mission, the part each one of use holds most dear, as the overarching reason for this church’s existence. The reality is that God’s mission will continue, whatever we do here, but it may not advance as effectively or penetrate as widely in the next few years if we get selfish or miss the mark. There are aspects of mission that are more appropriate and effective at the congregational and diocesan level.\”

    Yesterday, in her sermon at the convention\’s first community Eucharist, she couldn\’t have been clearer about the church\’s priority: \”The heart of this church will slowly turn to stone if we think that our primary mission work is to those already in the pews inside our beautiful churches, or to those at other altars. We are in cardiac crisis if we think we can close the doors, and swing our incense and sing our hymns, and all will be right with the world. The heart of this body is mission – domestic and foreign mission, in partnership with anyone who shares that passion.\”

    In her opening address, Bonnie Anderson spoke of the essentialness of the MDGs: \”One of the toughest things about these tough times is that we can’t hide from them. Our technology enables us to see and to know not only how we are effected, but how the global economic crisis is disproportionately affecting the poorest people in the world.

    \”It is within our reach to do something about it and THAT is the toughest thing about our times. As economist Jeffrey Sachs said as he stood on the chancel steps of St. Mark’s Cathedral in Minneapolis, ”For the first time in the history of the world, we have the resources, the technology, and the capacity to wipe extreme poverty off the face of the earth. The only thing we lack is the will.

    \”Some of us have the will. Over 50% of our approximately 7,000 congregations have embraced the Millennium Development Goals as a mission focus. 82 of the 110 dioceses have sacrificially pledged 0.7% of their diocesan budgets toward global poverty eradication and the MDGs. In 42 countries, Episcopal Relief & Development has touched the lives of 2.5 million people.

    \”The vision of building the “Beloved Community” in the Diocese of Louisiana, for example, has been embraced by over 100,000 volunteers and a $10 million dollar investment from contributions made to Episcopal Relief & Development for this purpose which has conservatively produced 20 times that amount in benefit to the community. Many of us are responding to God’s call to mission, but what if ALL of us did it? What if all of us did it as if our lives depended on it? Think of it!!\”

    Round and round we go. Their emphasis was clear. We must respond to crisis by continuing to \”care for the most vulnerable.\” How that gets done is the question.

    Stay tuned.