It is on pages 31-61.

Here is the main portion of one of the three resolutions proposed for the Diocese of Fond Du Lac Convention this coming weekend. You can read all the resolutions here.
Resolution 2007-03 “Anglican Pastoral Scheme”

Submitted by the Rev. Dean Einerson, the Rev. Paul Feider, the Rev. Jim Fosdick, the Rev. Malcolm
Hughes, the Rev. Tom McAlpine, the Rev. Ian Montgomery, the Rev. Ken Okkerse, the Rev. Wilson
Roane, the Rev. Ray Ryerson, the Rev. Ed Smith, the Scott Thompson

Whereas, the Primates of the Anglican Communion sought to give temporary relief to the minority in
the Episcopal Church, who dissent from the decisions of recent General Conventions, and
Whereas, the House of Bishops in March 2007 rejected that pastoral scheme, and
Whereas, the Executive Council of the Episcopal Church in June of 2007 similarly rejected such a
scheme and sought to make General Convention 2009 the sole body able to make an appropriate
response, and

Whereas, there are several lawsuits to which the National Church is a party, which is expressly
addressed by the Dare es Salaam Communiqué, with the request that these cease,

1 Be it resolved, by the 133rd Annual Convention of the Diocese of Fond du Lac, that

The Diocese of Fond du Lac, expresses its regret that the leadership of the Episcopal Church has rejected this pastoral scheme, and

The Diocese of Fond du Lac, asks the leadership of the Episcopal Church to provide meaningful pastoral support and oversight to the dissenting minority, having involved persons from that 6 dissenting minority in discussion, and

The Diocese of Fond du Lac, asks the leadership of the Episcopal Church to accede to the requests of the Dar es Salaam Communiqué.

The Diocese of Fond du Lac, asks that the National Church cease its participation in the litigation that is at present before the courts and any future such litigation.

The Liturgical Covenanting, Blessing, and Sending Forth of Couples in Committed
Same-Gender Relationships

RESOLVED, that this 158th Convention of the Episcopal Diocese of California
commend to the Bishop of California the lectionary, rubric entitled “Concerning the
Service,” and three rites endorsed by the Commission on Marriage and Blessing, and
urge the Bishop to approve the trial use of these forms as resources in the Diocese of
California for formalizing the blessing of same-gender unions.

Explanation:
The Commission on Marriage and Blessing, in response to a resolution passed at the
156th Convention of the Episcopal Diocese of California, has adapted three extant rites
for use in the liturgical blessing of same-gender unions in this diocese. The rites are
adapted from:

Ӣ The Celebration and Blessing of a Marriage (as well as The Blessing of a Civil
Marriage and An Order for Marriage) in The Book of Common Prayer

Ӣ A Rite for the Celebration of Gay and Lesbian Covenants, commonly referred to
as The New Westminster Rite, from the Diocese of New Westminster in the
Anglican Church of Canada

Ӣ Marriage Liturgy, Second Form, in A New Zealand Prayer Book

In endorsing these rites/resources, the Commission celebrates the intention of the
Episcopal Diocese of California to support and bless both same-gender and ”˜straight’
couples in godly relationships, while hoping for the day when ”˜marriage equality’ will be
the reality in our Church and State.

The Commission calls particular attention to the part of the rubric ”˜Concerning the
Service’ which sets forth, in addition to the familiar material adapted from the Book of
Common Prayer, the expectation that the use of liturgies of blessing for marriage and
union occur in the context of Christian community and with the community’s
understanding of its role in fostering godly relationships.

The rites and other materials referred to in the Resolution may be found in the
Commission’s Report to the 158th Convention of the Episcopal Diocese of California and
on the Commission’s website (http://marriageandblessing.org) along with other
materials such as a bibliography for use in pre-marital/pre-union counseling and
examples of particular rites drafted or used over the years which are offered, without
endorsement, for informational purposes.

Commission on Marriage and Blessing

From here. Page 3-4. Note, the report is dated October 2007. It would be interesting to know exactly when this resolution was drafted. Pre or Post New Orleans?

From this blurb on page 6, we assume this resolution was drafted PRE New Orleans:

2007 and Beyond
The various CMB subgroups have been meeting during the first part of 2007,
including a working CMB retreat on March 31. We anticipate having a website up and
running by early summer, with sections on rites, resources, and matters of church and
state. (www.marriageandblessing.org) We plan on reporting to Diocesan Convention in
October, commending a list of Commission On Marriage and Blessing Endorsed Rites
and Resources for consideration by Convention, the Diocese, and Bishop Marc.
Having completed the initial phase of our work on rites, our primary tasks in 2008
will include continued development of resources for couples, clergy, and congregations
(per the second of the three resolutions cited above) and work on matters of church and
state, especially the issue of whether clergy should act as functionaries of the State in
marriage/civil union, etc.

Will New Orleans make any difference to the folks in the diocese of California? We’ll know next week.

Here’s an excerpt from Bp. Paul Marshall’s convention address to the Diocese of Bethlehem this weekend:

Comment is needed in the aftermath of the late meeting of House of Bishops. I need to say something different from what other bishops may be saying in their conventions because the Bethlehem deputation in 2006 did not vote for the General Convention Resolution that the bishops were seeking to “clarify” for the primates. Something we were not favor of in the first place has been intensified.

Every single news report I have read about that meeting does not resemble the meeting I attended. Let me just say that I remain perplexed by the action and more perplexed by the process in New Orleans, but as always, I think God is providing a spiritual opportunity for me.

I find that as just a few years ago I had to learn to be a gracious “winner,” if such a term is ever appropriate, when the church was moving my way, now I must learn to be a gracious “loser,” if such a term is ever appropriate, when that course is reversed or halted. For some of you those poles are reversed, and it is your turn to be a gracious winner. Some of you may well feel keen disappointment and even rejection as a result of my colleagues’ clarifications. As those of you who accepted the invitation to meet with me two weeks ago know, I believe that your pain is deep and proportionate. I will not presume to say that I can feel anyone else’s pain, but I certainly recognize and grieve its existence, as do many, many people in this diocese.

Beyond that, I must also say that I believe we have held together as a diocesan community during a turbulent three decades not because our range of opinion and conviction is narrower than that found elsewhere in the Episcopal Church. We have held together because of discipline, the tough discipline we practice of keeping our focus on Christ rather than ourselves, the tough discipline of genuinely honoring the conscience of every member of this diocese and welcoming the gifts the Holy Spirit bestows on the Church through each of the baptized. In previous years in this room I have had to reassure those who might be considered conservative of this fundamental principle of our life. I find myself today needing to reassure those who might be considered liberal or progressive of the same thing, that the only disciples of Jesus excluded in this diocese are those who exclude themselves.

I do not know how to predict if what the Archbishop of Canterbury and our domestic leadership wanted of and got from the majority bishops of this church will be effective or productive, and having no power in the matter have chosen to cease from worrying about the behavior or witness of any bishop other than myself.
So here is where I am. My understanding of my relationship with Christ means that I am not personally able to sacrifice individual lives or the dignity of any follower of Jesus to even the most benign dreams of world-wide ecclesiastical empire, but will do my utmost to stay in real and effective communion with Anglicans in every place on the globe.

As the designated chief sinner of the diocese, I will continue to try to honor each of you as God’s works in progress, living stones built into a marvelous temple for the praise of God the Father. As Habbakuk was taught in last Sunday’s first lesson, we do not know how things will turn out but we do know that the future belongs to God and we are to keep busy letting people know that there is a vision. We need to do that communicating, the prophet was told, in letters
so big that joggers may read them. Translation: it must be unmistakable in our words and deeds that we trust the God who made each of us and that we are moving ahead in that trust.

In saying that I do not mean to say that we should pretend that our varying understandings do not exist. On the contrary, I meant something active and powerful and traditionally Anglican ”“ that is, in honoring and exploring our differences, we may generate the way through them to a place nobody would have imagined.
Let me dwell on this for just a minute. I just spoke of 400 years of Anglicanism in Virginia, now let me go back a mere 40 years, to a non-Anglican in California. In 1967, Dr. Ralph Greenson, “psychiatrist to the stars” and medical professor in Los Angeles, wrote about the tendency of his colleagues not to communicate with each about their disagreements in theories or practice. Remember, these are psychiatrists who weren’t communicating. Listen to his observations from 1967. Where you hear the language of his vocation, insert the language of our life as disciples. Ask whether Greenson’s words do not speak to our situation:

Those who wish to suggest innovations or modifications of technique do not usually confer with others who are more traditional in their viewpoint. They tend to form cliques and to work underground, or at least segregated from the mainstream… As a consequence the innovators are apt to lose contact with those groups”¦ that might help validate, clarify, and amend their new ideas. The secluded innovators are prone to becomes “wild analysts,” while the conservatives, due to their own insularity, tend to become rigid with orthodoxy. Instead of influencing one another constructively they each go their separate ways as adversaries, blind to whatever benefits each might have gained from an opening and continuing discussion. (The Technique and Practice of Psychoanalysis I, p. 2)

To put his observation in spiritual terms, we grow when we risk exploring each other’s perceptions and applications of biblical truth to test and strengthen our own grasp of God’s will for us. I would say that it is quite one thing to think that one possesses truth and quite another thing to experience oneself as being possessed by truth. Whether it is an old truth or a new truth, they who believe they own the truth will become rigid and defensive. They who believe they are possessed by truth, new or old, find themselves in joyful service to the truth, and willingly engage others so that all members of the conversation can be productive and balanced. Rigidity and disconnection are the enemies of spiritual growth in conservatives and liberals alike.

The value of the worldwide Communion, when it is working well, is that those who see something new and those who cherish something old, are in a position to grow in a conversation that is truly catholic. At the moment, at least, that possibility still exists and, like many, I hope that the long-promised conversation may actually get started.

The full text is here.

We’ve finished this as best we can for next weekend’s conventions. We need info from readers for Quincy, Rio Grande, Western Kansas, in particular

Reminder: Our Convention links spreadsheet is here.
Next Weekend’s Conventions (Oct. 19 – Oct 21)

Arizona: The Convention page is here. The most interesting thing we found so far was the list of breakout groups, including this one:

2] State of the Anglican Communion – The Rev. Jan Nunley, Deputy for Communications for The Episcopal Church, and The Very Rev. Nicholas Knisely, Dean of Trinity Cathedral and Chair of the Episcopal Church’s Standing Commission on Communications

==========

California: The convention page is here.

Archbishop Ndungane, Primate of the Province of Southern Africa will be the featured guest:

The 158th Convention of the Diocese of California will provide a notable change from conventions of the recent past, and events throughout the week preceding convention promise to inspire and enliven members of the diocese while calling all into a deeper sense of community.

The Rt. Rev. Marc Andrus, Bishop of California, has invited his friend the Most Rev. Njongonkulu Ndungane, Archbishop of Cape Town and Primate of the Province of Southern Africa, to be present with the diocese during the week leading up to convention, and to preach the homily at the convention’s opening Eucharist to be held on Friday night, October 19, at 7:00 p.m. The entire week leading up to the convention’s day of business on Saturday, October 20, will feature regional appearances by Ndungane, with opportunities to engage him on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the continuing scourge of HIV/AIDS in Africa, and his perspective on the Anglican Communion.

more details on +Ndungane’s visit here.

The convention booklet is here. (108 page PDF document). The Resolutions are found on page 61 and following. They include:

1. Proposed Appointment of an Assistant Bishop
2. Sudan Divestment
3. Protection for Immigrants and their Families
4. Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs
5. The Five-Year Strategic Plan for Ethnic and Multicultural Ministries
6. The Liturgical Covenanting, Blessing, and Sending Forth of Couples in Committed Same-Gender Relationships (We’ll have a separate post on this, maybe tomorrow.)
7. Building the Beloved Community in the spirit of Transparency, Communication and Mission

Note: there seem to be a lot of proposed canon & constitution changes too. See above link for convention booklet, pages 76-89. Perhaps someone familiar with canon law can review these and let us know if there’s anything notable?

The Report of the Commission on Marriage & Blessings, to be presented to the Convention, is here. (48 page PDF)

==========

Connecticut: Convention page
A list of workshops. Given the Diocese of Bethlehem resolution about inclusion of all the baptized which we’ve posted below this evening, this workshop and it’s description caught our eye:

Are You Living Up to Your Baptismal Covenant?
Leader (s): A. Bates Lyons

How many times have you participated in a baptism and read the Covenant? Have you really paid attention to what you are promising to do-with God’s help? This workshop will call attention to this promise in light of institutional racism within our church. You will leave the workshop with a new outlook on your covenant and determine if you ”˜Are Living Up to Your Baptismal Covenant.’ You will also experience one exercise on exclusion during the workshop.

The Resolutions are here. We’ve already posted the anti-B033 resolution (official title: concerning the election of bishops) quite awhile ago.

============

Dallas: The diocesan home page has tons of convention info and links.

The proposed changes to Constitution & Canons are here

Proposed Resolutions are here.

============

Eastern Michigan

The Convention page is here. I can’t find any resolutions.

Of interest: a four-week study guide to help parishes prepare for diocesan convention.

=============

Fond du Lac: Here’s the convention page.

Resolutions are here.

All three proposed resolutions are interesting. We’ll probably be posting them separately in the next day or two:
2007-01 “Pledge to National Church”
2007-02 “Proposed Anglican Covenant”
2007-03 “Anglican Pastoral Scheme”

=============

Kansas. Convention page. Convention booklet. The only resolution is on the MDGs (p. 17 of the booklet).

=============

Quincy:. Kendall posted an article about the upcoming Quincy convention a few weeks ago, but I’m not sure I’ve seen any specific proposals or Constitutional changes.
We’d welcome info from readers!

============

Rio Grande: The pre-convention issue of the Diocesan Newspaper is here with all the nominees. But I’ve not seen any resolutions.

============

Southwest Florida: The convention page is here.
Four resolutions are here.

============

Spokane: The convention page is here.

The Pre-convention booklet (93 page PDF) is here. This includes the Report of the Task force on Same Sex Marriage (pp. 31-61), and Resolutions (pp. 67-77). Actually pp. 67-76 are Constitution and Canon amendments. p. 77 has the sole resolution re: the UN Declaration of the Rights of Children.

===============

Western Kansas: No info found!

*** end ***

From here:

Delegates to the 136th Convention of the Diocese of Bethlehem unanimously approved this resolution on the Participation of all Baptized Members in the Life of the Church

Be it resolved, that in support of the House of Bishops as stated in New Orleans, Louisiana, September 25, 2007, “”¦ we [c]all for unequivocal and active commitment to the civil rights, safety and dignity of gay and lesbian persons.” and be it further

Resolved, that as all baptize Christians are ministers of Christ, they are invited to fully participate in the life of the church. and be it further

Resolved, that we continue the “Listening Process” throughout the Diocese.

Explanation:
The House of Bishops of The Episcopal Church meeting in New Orleans, Louisiana, September 25, 2007, stated the following in “A Response to Questions and Concerns Raised by our Anglican Communion Partners.” In the summary of their statement, the eighth point reads: “We call for unequivocal and active commitment to the civil rights, safety, and dignity of gay and lesbian persons.”

The Book of Common prayer, in the catechism, states the following: “The Church is described as the Body of which Jesus Christ is the Head and of which all baptized persons are members.” (p. 854) ”¦ and “The ministers of the church are lay persons, bishops, priests and deacons.” (p. 855).

Submitted by
Mr. Robert Barker
The Rev. T. Scott Allen
The Rev. Canon Jane B. Teter

Ok, that’s all the news on COMPLETED conventions that we’ve been able to find tonight. So this post is now final.

Dioceses we still need more news from include: Alaska, North Dakota, Northern Michigan.

Here’s the link for the latest version of our convention links spreadsheet. All Diocesan Convention blog entries are here.

More links coming, and a separate post, if we find resolutions of interest, for upcoming conventions.

***

We’re finally getting back to working on diocesan convention news and links after first posting on that topic a week and a half ago. We’ll focus this post on dioceses that have already held their convention in the past few weeks. We’ll do a separate post for links and news, resolutions etc. for upcoming conventions.

Alaska: The Living Church has an article posted here re: resolutions regarding election of a new diocesan bishop as well as a suffragan.

===========

Bethlehem
The Diocesan Blog has a helpful post with news and lots of links re: the convention this weekend. Five resolutions were approved:

resolution_on_the_budget
resolution_on_salary_shedule
resolution_on_office_of_assistant_bishop
resolution_on_evangelism

*NOTEABLE* resolution_on_participation_of_all_baptized_members This is posted as a separate blog entry above, you can comment on this there

Bishop Marshall’s address is here.

==============

Colorado: Bishop O’Neill’s address is here. Here’s an interesting excerpt on the challenges to go “deeper”:

[blockquote] But like the gospel we heard tonight, there is that twist””that midpoint in the story in which Jesus calls those who would follow him to go even deeper.

What might that mean for us?

For Peter, it was about entering into deeper and deeper relationship with Jesus, and as a consequence being called to enter into deeper and deeper relationship with others. With each successive step in following Jesus, Peter was called out of himself to cross the lines of division and separation that so characterized his culture and society. He was challenged, by Jesus, to sit at table and break bread with those whom others would exclude. He was invited, by God, to embrace those who were radically different from him. He did so not without his own very real inner struggle and conflict. But he did so. He did so faithfully. He did so in obedience to Jesus. And in so doing, he gave the world a glimpse of the restored humanity that God desires for all humankind. For Peter, “the deep” was about giving of himself more generously than he ever thought possible. It was about learning increasingly to surrender himself, to abandon himself, to give himself up
completely, even to point of death, which is, if you think about it, the ultimate act of generosity.

There it is, the deep water””the challenge to live out of a posture of deep generosity, freely giving of ourselves in love to Love; and, as a consequence, the
challenge to enter ever more deeply into relationship with those around us whoever they may be. Here in Colorado the call to live generously has some very real challenges both practically and relationally.

Tomorrow, you will be presented with an operating budget””funding that you all set aside from your own congregational operating funds to support one another, to support the wider mission of the Church, through the Office of the Bishop. You will see that that proposed budget reflects the key mission initiatives that we have set before us, and you will see too that that budget is balanced. That would seem to be good and well. But I have to tell you it really isn’t. The funding for redeveloping the lives of our congregations is minimal. The resources to plant new congregations are extraordinarily limited. We have again reduced staffing in the Office of the Bishop. The money budgeted to support the summer camp program that has grown significantly over the past two summers will not cover the actual costs for this summer’s program. Funding set aside for the College and Young Adult Committee, which began its work in August, has been removed. Planned increases in funding to support children’s ministries in the diocese (training events, resources, resource development, and so on), is just not there. This
balanced budget is fiscally responsible, but it is, at the same time, missionally inadequate.[/blockquote]

There were no resolutions. ENS has an article about the Colorado Convention, here.

==========

Milwaukee: We’ve added links to the spreadsheet for the convention page, the 1 resolution (on clergy compensation) and the budget.

=========

Montana
Stand Firm had a report from an attendee posted recently. Another brief report (but some interesting comments) at RevRef’s blog is here.

==========

Nevada: The big news, of course, was election of a new bishop, Dan Edwards. His acceptance speech is here.

The Pre-Convention journal has one resolution on the MDGs

==========

South Dakota: There is this comment by Bp. Creighton Robertson on the Diocesan Information Exchange. There is no way to link it, so we post it in full:

[blockquote]+Creighton
Yesterday at 03:10 PM

Comments:
Greetings in the name of our Lord:

Well, the Diocesan Convention is over for another year, and we will meet again in Chamberlain in 2008. I think the folks in the Black Hills Deanery deserve a special round of “thank you” for hosting this convention. Also, the people of the Mni Sose cluster in Chamberlain, Lower Brule, and Ft. Thompson deserve a special “thank you” for their help hosting with the Friday evening service and providing lunch afterward. It was good to see so many folks gathering to participate in this year’s convention.

The Banquet on Saturday evening was a little different, with a buffet dinner. Fr. Bunker Hill did a great job in locating the entertainer for the evening following the banquet. Great job Bunker!!

Some of the clergy, some lay folks as well, were upset that a letter had been mailed out from a group of folks at Good Shepherd Episcopal Church in Sioux Falls, asking folks to leave the Episcopal Church and join their Anglican group. The usual reasons were cited for their leaving, the issue of human sexuality, same sex union blessings, our failure to interpret scripture as narrowly as they do, and they ask all of us to consider leaving the Episcopal Church and join their splinter group. I spoke about some of their concerns in my convention address.

I believe that the Anglican Consultative Council (ACC) has addressed the HOB statement and finds that it has met the conditions set forth in the Windsor Report, which is the document being touted by these splinter groups as the standard for belonging to the Anglican Communion. Whether or not the Primates will follow the ACC’s lead is questionable. But as I said at the convention, it doesn’t matter, since the Primates do not have the authority to either ask or remove someone from being a part of the Anglican Communion. The Episcopal Church in South Dakota will continue to be the Anglican expression of faith here in South Dakota. I suppose that some folks will be unhappy with that and will likely leave us. They can do that if they wish, and they can go with my Blessing. We, the Diocese of South Dakota, will use whatever resources we have to ensure that folks at Good Shepherd Episcopal Church will be able to worship in the Episcopal/Anglican tradition as they have since that church was started.

As I said at the convention, this whole splinter conversation is not about being the church, it is about power, authority, biblical interpretation or rather the holding of everyone to one interpretation, and it is about control. It is about dishonesty and it’s about holding one group accountable to one standard and another accountable to a different standard.

I trust that you will see it for what it is worth, an attempt to force on the good people of this diocese, a way of life in the church which is at odds with the Anglican/Episcopal tradition as they have been expressed and handed down to us in this Diocese over time. If you have any questions, please feel free to call me.

I am preparing a letter to be sent to all congregations in this Diocese concerning the House of Bishops statement at the New Orleans meeting in September. It can be made available but not read from the pulpit.

Note to the clergy: There will be a Diocesan Clergy Retreat at Blue Cloud Abbey on January 28-31, 2008, Monday through Thursday. The Reverend James Lemler will be our retreat leader, and he will build on the information presented at the clergy conference in Chamberlain. Please put this on your kalendars.

Thank you all who attended the convention last week; it was great to see all of you. It was a wonderful time.

Peace,

+Creighton[/blockquote]

==========

Western Louisiana: Virtually nothing on the diocesan website so far. But of course, Brad Drell made up for that lack. You can find the links here.

==========

Wyoming: We’ve added the link for the Wyoming Bishops Address. The focus was church vitality:

This is what a vital church looks like to me.
1. The unique perspective and contribution of every member is valued.
2. Members participate in ongoing engagement with the Gospel.
3. Members display the hard work of learning, discerning and healing.
4. Members engage in broad based, collaborative decision making.
5. There is full local engagement in determining strategies for mission and ministry
supported by diocesan staff.
6. All members share the Gospel in word and deed seeking to bring others into
relationship with Christ.
7. Should this congregation disappear from it’s community, it would be truly missed.
Vital churches bring Christ to the world and the world to Christ
Over the next decade we will pursue vitality. Vita (latin for life). We will become fully
alive, animated, vigorous, gospel sharing, bodies of Christ.

There don’t appear to have been any resolutions.

If we hadn’t been offline most of yesterday and today, we would have noted earlier that Brad Drell was liveblogging the Western Louisiana diocesan convention.

Brad’s blog is here (There are 5 or 6 convention entries)

Perhaps of greatest interest are a resolution that was presented, and Bishop MacPherson’s address.

Here’s the resolution:

In accordance with the Lord’s High Priestly prayer that we be one, and in obedience to his Great Commission to go into the world and make disciples, and in gratitude for the wider Anglican Communion which is a sign of the fulfillment of the High Priestly Prayer, and in working toward reconciliation of all people with God and each other, we propose the following resolution:

Whereas the Diocese of Western Louisiana is committed to following the recommendations of the Windsor Report; and

Whereas we support Bishop MacPherson’s resolution to the House of Bishops meeting in New Orleans expressly calling for the establishment of a Pastoral Scheme as outlined in the Dar es Salaam Communique;

Be it resolved that the Diocese of Western Louisiana calls upon our Bishop, Standing Committee, and General Convention Deputation to initiate plans and to take all possible action toward the creation and implementation of the Pastoral Scheme proposed in the Dar es Salaam Communique; and to take all possible action to ensure that the Diocese of Western Louisiana remains fully in communion with the wider Anglican Communion.

Grace Church, Monroe
St. Michael & All Angels, Lake Charles
St. Paul’s, Shreveport
The Rev. Errol Montgomery, Christ Church, Bastrop
St. Thomas Monroe Delegation Members, Vicki LaMarca, Tony LaMarca, and David Furr
Judge Dee Drell, Individually, St. James, Alexandria

According to a later entry by Brad, the resolution was approved by laity but rejected by clergy: Lay: 70-53 in favor; Clergy 24nay to 19 yea.

Brad liveblogged Bp. MacPherson’s address here. We’ll post the official link/text when it becomes available.

From a proposed resolution in the Diocese of Bethlehem:

Resolution on Raising Weekly Attendance

Be it Resolved, That weekly attendance and active parishioners in the Diocese of Bethlehem have been
flat for over a decade. This is evident in the pews and in Parish and Diocesan financial health. One needs
to look no further than the Diocesan staff reductions necessary in recent years. At a parish level, giving
has not risen at the same level as expenses resulting in program or staff cutbacks, or greater use of
endowment resources. The financial health of the Diocese is in direct correlation to the financial health of
its parishes. And the financial health of a parish is in direct correlation to the growth or lack thereof in
active membership. At the same time that our income is stagnant, we are faced with necessary significant
expense increases such as health insurance and utilities. And, we have important new expenses that we
wish to fund such as the Presiding Bishop’s call to us to meet the United Nations Millennium
Development Goals and Bishop Paul’s New Hope initiative.

You can read the resolutions here. (pp. 46 – 50)

If anyone thinks the Episcopal Church actually intended in New Orleans to abide by any kind of slow down on the march to fully authorized rites for SSB’s, resolutions like this may cause them to think again. Here’s proposed resolution 5 in the diocese of Northern California:

Supporting Same-Gender Relationships of Mutuality and Fidelity

Resolved: That this 97th Convention of the Diocese of Northern California, desiring to support our sisters and brothers in Christ who are in same-gender relationships of mutuality and fidelity, and desiring to provide clergy with appropriate pastoral tools for ministering to persons in same-gender relationships, calls upon General Convention of the Episcopal Church to develop and authorize same-sex union blessing rites.

The Convention is Nov. 10 – 11. You can read all the resolutions here.

Here’s the beginning of proposed resolution 4 from the Diocese of Northern California:

TITLE: Affirmation of Real and Personal Property Status

RESOLVED: That this 97th Convention of the Episcopal Diocese of Northern California urges every Parish, Mission and Congregation in the Diocese of Northern California to examine the title documents for all real property held in their respective Parishes, Missions and Congregations, and where necessary take such steps to incorporate the provisions of Title I, Canon 7, Section 4 of the Canons of the General Convention of the Episcopal Church into said title documents affirmatively stating that “all real and personal property held by or for the benefit of any Parish, Mission or Congregation is held in trust for The Episcopal Church and the Episcopal Diocese of Northern California.

You can read all the proposed resolutions here.

In fine print at the bottom of page 1 of the Diocese of Colorado proposed budget for 2008 is this interesting caveat:

This budget includes only normal legal expenses and no provision for extraordinary investigations and litigation. The Diocese expects that
there will be additional, significant amounts to be approved by the Standing Committee for such expenses in 2008.

Inquiring minds would just love to have a ball park figure. Oh well.

West Virginia had the honor of kicking off the fall diocesan convention season. You can find all the convention info here.

On one level most of the proposed resolutions aren’t too controversial. Nothing dramatic re: Same-Sex Blessings. Nothing about the Windsor Process, the Tanzania Communique or the Crisis in the Communion. Nothing about voting to leave TEC.

But, these resolutions are not exactly “Yawn-worthy” either. Take a close look. Resolutions are here.

How about Resolution 4 which starts out:

Concerning: Deletion of Clergy Minimum Compensation
WHEREAS, many churches in West Virginia are struggling with finances causing the closing or clustering of churches.
WHEREAS, in the Diocese many churches have lost almost 50% of their congregations over the last many years exacerbating this problem.

Lost 50% of their congregations?!?! Um, but, I thought our presiding bishop has said that TEC and its dioceses and parishes are all healthy and thriving.

Then there’s Resolution 9 on the Diocese’s giving to 815 which begins:

Concerning: Remitting Full Amount of National Church Assessment in Four Years
WHEREAS, In Article I of its Constitution, the Diocese of west Virginia accedes to the Constitution and Canons of the National Episcopal Church of the USA, and
WHEREAS, In various Canons the National Church, called the General Convention, mandates the payment of an assessment, also called “asking,” of a certain percentage sum of the income of each Diocese to support the National Church, and
WHEREAS, In 2007, and for some years prior, the Diocese of West Virginia has forwarded half or less than half of its assessment (asking) to the General Convention, and it proposes to submit only approximately 45.2% of the asking in its draft budget for 2008,

It’s interesting of course to see the fact that WV (a “reappraising” diocese) hasn’t been able to meet its full assessment for the National Church. Yet another sign that perhaps some dioceses are not as “healthy and vital” as 815 would like folks to believe. But even more interesting to this elf…. note the first line of the resolution: WHEREAS, In Article I of its Constitution, the Diocese of west Virginia accedes to the Constitution and Canons of the National Episcopal Church of the USA

Very interesting that. In fact one will note that in every resolution submitted by this individual, one Robert DuBose, that phrase appears. We wonder whose idea THAT was/is?

Readers, can you keep your eyes open for similar phrases about Acession to TEC’s Constitution and Canons in all of your diocesan resolutions? This elf has a hunch there is going to be a LOT of that language floating around. Thanks! Looking like it could be a very long and UNdull convention season. Stay tuned.

Whew. It’s time to gear up for the annual fall Diocesan Conventions spree. Forty-three conventions scheduled for October!!

We elves probably won’t have time to do the exhaustive coverage we attempted at least for part of the convention season last fall. We need readers’ help. PRIOR to your diocesan convention, please send us any important info on resolutions or budgets for your diocese. And then AFTER convention, send us info on what resolutions passed, your bishops’ convention address, etc. We’re counting on you!

Here are the list of October Conventions:

10/4/2007 – 10/7/2007 Alaska (St. Matthew’s Church – Fairbanks, AK)
10/4/2007 – 10/7/2007 Wyoming (Jackson, WY)
10/5/2007 – 10/6/2007 Colorado (St. John’s Cathedral – Denver, CO)
10/5/2007 – 10/7/2007 Montana (Copper King Hotel – Butte, MT)
10/5/2007 – 10/6/2007 North Dakota (Kelly Inn – Bismarck, ND)
10/5/2007 – 10/7/2007 South Dakota (Oacoma, SD)

10/12/2007 – 10/13/2007 Bethlehem (Cathedral Church of the Nativity – Bethlehem, PA)
10/12/2007 – 10/14/2007 Eastern Oregon (St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church – Prineville, OR)
10/12/2007 – 10/13/2007 Milwaukee (Italian Community Center – Milwaukee, WI)
10/12/2007 – 10/14/2007 Nevada (South Point Hotel – Las Vegas, NV)
10/12/2007 – 10/14/2007 Northern Michigan
10/12/2007 – 10/13/2007 Western Louisiana (Holiday Inn Convention Centre Hotel – Alexandria, LA)

10/18/2007 – 10/21/2007 Churches in Europe (American Cathedral of the Holy Trinity in Paris.)
10/19/2007 – 10/20/2007 Arizona (Sheraton Crescent Hotel, Phoenix)
10/19/2007 – 10/20/2007 California
10/19/2007 – 10/20/2007 Connecticut (Christ Church Cathedral – Hartford, CT)
10/19/2007 – 10/20/2007 Dallas
10/19/2007 – 10/20/2007 Eastern Michigan (St. John’s Church – Saginaw, MI)
10/19/2007 – 10/20/2007 Fond Du Lac (Liberty Hall – Appleton, WI)
10/19/2007 – 10/20/2007 Kansas (Kansas Expocentre – Topeka, KS)
10/19/2007 – 10/20/2007 Quincy (Christ Church – Moline, IL)
10/19/2007 – 10/20/2007 Rio Grande (Cathedral Church of St. John – Albuquerque, NM)
10/19/2007 – 10/21/2007 Spokane (Termplin’s Red Lion Hotel on the River – Post Falls, ID)
10/19/2007 – 10/20/2007 Western Kansas (Garden City, KS)
10/20/2007 – 10/20/2007 Southwest Florida (Venice Community Center – Venice, FL)
10/21/2007 – 10/21/2007 Puerto Rico (Coliseo Juan “Pachin” Vicens – Ponce, Santa Eucaristía – Puerto Rico)

10/26/2007 – 10/27/2007 Hawaii (St. Andrew’s Cathedral & Prince Kuhio Hoten – Honolulu, HI)
10/26/2007 – 10/28/2007 Idaho (Idaho Falls, ID)
10/26/2007 – 10/28/2007 Indianapolis (Holiday Inn Conference Center – Columbus, IN)
10/26/2007 – 10/27/2007 Maine (Bangor Civic Center – Bangor, ME)
10/26/2007 – 10/27/2007 Michigan (Holiday Inn South – Lansing, MI)
10/26/2007 – 10/27/2007 Minnesota (St. Paul River Centre – St. Paul, MN)
10/26/2007 – 10/27/2007 Nebraska (corrected per comment below)
10/26/2007 – 10/28/2007 Northwest Texas (San Angelo, TX)
10/26/2007 – 10/27/2007 Rhode Island (The Biltmore Hotel – Providence, RI)
10/26/2007 – 10/27/2007 San Joaquin
10/26/2007 – 10/27/2007 Upper South Carolina (Christ Church – Greenville, SC)
10/26/2007 – 10/27/2007 Utah (Cathedral Church of St. Mark – Salt Lake City, UT)
10/26/2007 – 10/27/2007 Western Massachusetts (Springfield Sheraton – Springfield, MA)
10/26/2007 – 10/27/2007 Western New York
10/27/2007 – 10/27/2007 El Camino Real (Sherwood Hall – Salinas, CA)
10/27/2007 – 10/27/2007 Northern Indiana
10/27/2007 – 10/28/2007 Springfield (Trinity – Jacksonville, IL)

You can find a list of all conventions here: by date, by diocese.

All the T19 diocesan convention posts will be under this category link

——
Update: We’re putting together an Excel Spreadsheet. It will have any links we find to the diocesan convention website, proposed resolutions, and then post-convention materials (final resolutions, bishops’ speech) if/when they are posted online. Here’s the link.

We’ll try to update it regularly. (So far we just have a few links for this weekend’s conventions. But we will add more over the weekend)

Local Episcopalians were briefed this week on where the long-simmering dispute involving the church’s stance on homosexuality stands, specifically the ordination of homosexuals.

The Rev. Lewis Payne of Quincy, a retired Anglican priest, presided over a general information meeting.

“It was nothing major, there was nothing new,” Payne said. “These kinds of meetings are always held a couple of weeks before the (state) convention in each of the deaneries, or regional units.”

This year’s convention is scheduled for Oct. 19-20 in Moline.

The dispute over homosexuality in the church, which has been going on for at least 30 years, has worsened in part because of a larger clash about biblical interpretations. Tensions heightened in 2003 when the Episcopal Church consecrated an openly gay man, V. Gene Robinson, as bishop of New Hampshire.

At that time, St. John’s Episcopal Church of Quincy was part of a growing number of churches, parishes and dioceses around the country taking the first steps toward breaking away from the mainline denomination and placing themselves under the authority of a foreign bishop, most of them in Africa.

Read it all.

A committee of the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth recommended Monday that the diocese leave the U.S. Episcopal Church and affiliate with another province of the worldwide Anglican Communion.

Because the proposal involves a constitutional change, it would first have to be approved at the diocese’s annual convention Nov. 16-17 and again in 2008, Bishop Jack Iker said.

“This is just a first step,” Iker said.

Read it all.

Leaders of the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth have recommended that it leave the more liberal Episcopal Church, the Anglican body of the United States.

The Episcopal Church faces considerable internal division, including revolt by some dioceses and parishes, over allowing an openly gay bishop and not forbidding the blessing of same-sex unions.

The Fort Worth diocese’s standing committee ”“ a key panel of clergy and lay leaders ”“ proposed Monday that the diocese withdraw from the Episcopal Church and affiliate with another province of the worldwide Anglican Communion.

In announcing the recommendation, the Rev. Ryan S. Reed, president of the committee, described Fort Worth as a “traditional, conservative diocese” that has long found itself at odds with the leadership of the Episcopal Church.

The proposal to withdraw would have to be approved at the diocese’s annual convention Nov. 16-17. And because the move involves changing the diocese’s constitution, a second vote would be required at next year’s annual convention.

Read it all.

[i]Posted today on the Diocese of Fort Worth website[/i] [hat tip to Randall Foster at TexAnglican who had it posted before we’d even gotten this by e-mail.]

Today the Standing Committee of the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth announced its decision to sponsor five proposed amendments to the Diocesan Constitution and Canons for consideration at the diocese’s 25th Annual Convention on November 16 and 17, 2007. [PDF document below]

If adopted, the Diocese would take the first step needed to dissociate itself from the General Convention of The Episcopal Church and to begin the process of affiliating with another Province of the worldwide Anglican Communion. Since constitutional changes do not go into effect until they are approved by two successive diocesan conventions, the second, ratifying vote would come at the annual meeting in 2008. Under the proposals, the Diocese would reaffirm its position as “a constituent member of the Anglican Communion, a Fellowship of the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church, consisting of those duly constituted Dioceses, Provinces and regional churches in communion with the See of Canterbury, upholding and propagating the historic Faith and Order as set forth in the Book of Common Prayer.”

EXPLANATION from the Very Rev. Ryan S. Reed, President, on behalf of the Standing Committee

The Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth has always been a traditional, conservative diocese, adhering to the beliefs and practices of the historic catholic faith. This means it has often found itself in conflict with decisions of the General Convention, which has continued a series of innovations in liturgy, theology, and the sacraments. For 25 years, the diocese has attempted to differentiate itself from the actions of the General Convention and its ongoing effort to revise and redefine the historic teaching of the Church on faith and morals, as revealed in Holy Scripture.

To submit to and comply with the current direction of the General Convention would mean for us to embrace a distortion of the Christian faith that our forebears would not recognize as a continuation of “the Apostles’ teaching and fellowship.” It would mean driving an even deeper wedge between us and the rest of the Anglican Communion, as well as other Christian bodies, who do not condone recent actions of the General Convention, but rather view them as schismatic and sectarian. We cannot act against our conscience and in violation of the faith once delivered to the saints.

The full text of the announcement is here.

A PDF document with the proposed changes to the Constitution & Canons is here.

We, the Standing Committee of the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth, have recently conducted two meetings with clergy and lay leaders of the diocese. This was done in accord with our decision, announced in May, to continue to seek Alternative Primatial Oversight as requested by vote of the 2006 Diocesan Convention. The meetings allowed us to explore the options before us. All active parish clergy resident in the diocese were invited to attend one of the two meetings. The junior and senior wardens of each congregation also were invited to attend, to represent the concerns of the laity.

The purpose of the meetings was to give each participant an opportunity to share personal feelings and opinions on the crisis facing The Episcopal Church and the relationship of this diocese to General Convention. The meetings were characterized by a spirit of charity and openness, as well as anxiety and grief. We heard sincere and faithful voices from all points of view. It was the opinion of all that, regardless of what course of action is taken, there will be tremendous cost at all levels. At the same time, we were encouraged by the honest discussion during this time of listening.

Three general options for the future were identified in May. During the whole course of both meetings, we heard two or three persons voice support for a path of complete accession to the positions taken by the General Convention of The Episcopal Church. There was a little more support for continuing the current course of staying and witnessing within The Episcopal Church. The overwhelming opinion expressed by those who spoke was that it is time for the realignment to move forward, as we committed ourselves to doing at our Diocesan Convention of 2003.* Sadly, no other solution to the crisis could be identified. With faith and renewed hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, we will move forward.

We appreciate the contributions made by all who participated, and we pray for the life and direction of this diocese.

The Very Rev. Ryan S. Reed
President
on behalf of the Standing Committee

The Diocese of Connecticut is one of the diocesan websites we visited on our diocesan news trawl last night (see “it’s awfully quiet…”, below). Although Connecticut didn’t have any recent news that we could find about the HoB meeting or the Sept. 30 deadline to respond to the Primates, we did check out the page for their upcoming Diocesan Convention in mid-October. Of particular interest was the Resolutions page, and especially the anti-B033 Resolution.

Well, well. If at first you don’t succeed, try try again. Last year Connecticut also had an anti-B033 resolution, as did at least 8-10 other dioceses. Connecticut was one of the few dioceses [a more complete list is here] where such a resolution failed. So, they’re trying again….

The Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh is moving closer to a decision on whether to break with its American parent church and to join a more conservative branch of the Anglican Communion.

Meeting Tuesday night at Trinity Episcopal Downtown, a Pittsburgh Diocese council moved forward a resolution that, if approved, would allow the diocese to leave the Episcopal Church and realign itself with another province of the Anglican Communion.

The 2.3-million member Episcopal Church is the Episcopal wing of the worldwide Anglican Communion, which has more than 70 million members. A number of provinces of the communion in Africa are headed by conservative bishops who have provided oversight to some conservative Episcopalians unhappy with the church in the United States.

The resolution is supported by Bishop Duncan, the conservative leader of the Episcopal Diocese here. The resolution now heads to the diocese’s convention, which is scheduled for Nov. 2-3 in Johnstown.

The resolution could potentially change the centuries-old Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh’s constitution, which at present places the diocese under the authority of the larger Episcopal Church.

Read it all.

It appears to many of us ”“ bishops, clergy, laity ”“ that a moment of decision has arrived in the Anglican Communion. The Windsor Report and Primates Communiques from Dromantine and Dar es Salaam have asked The Episcopal Church and the Anglican Church of Canada to take clear actions committing these two Provinces of the Anglican Communion to “walking together” rather than “walking apart” from the Communion. After four years the official, as well as general, response from The Episcopal Church seems to be “we’ll do it our way.” Moreover rejection (by both the House of Bishops and Executive Council) of proposals to allow sufficient integrity to dioceses like Pittsburgh, concerning traditional Faith and Order, now seem all but final. A last minute reversal by the House of Bishops (prior to a September 30th deadline established by the Communion) seems most unlikely. In light of these events, with heavy hearts, and for the sake of our mission it appears the time has come to begin the process of realignment within the Anglican Communion.

Constitutional changes proposed for consideration at the 142nd Annual Convention would begin the process to exercise our right to end the accession of the Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh to the constitution and canons of The Episcopal Church of the United States of America. The accession clause first appeared in the Constitution of our Diocese in 1868. The effect of the changes would make clear the right to end any claim of spiritual or canonical authority of the General Convention over the Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh and would allow the Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh to realign itself with another Province of the Anglican Communion. The proposed changes are written in such a way, however, that continuing membership in The Episcopal Church remains a possibility if The Episcopal Church were to reverse its “walk apart” from the Anglican Communion.

Where are we going? Nowhere. We stand where we have always stood. We are who we have always been. It is The Episcopal Church that has moved. It is The Episcopal Church that has become something new. If the Convention adopts the constitutional amendments proposed, it is re-alignment within the Anglican Communion that would be made possible. The argument is that this re-alignment would free the Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh from any claim that it can be forced to be something different, from being carried somewhere outside the mainstream of Anglicanism, from being lured somewhere outside the mainstream of the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church.

Because the accession clause is a feature of our local diocesan constitution, adoption of the changes requires the action of two successive annual conventions. The proposed changes would therefore not take effect immediately, but would open a season of planning, discussion and decision-making in preparation for the second vote in 2008.

Read it all.

Take the time to read it all. Make sure to check this out as well (especially page 7 and following).

Turning now to a concern that is weighing heavily upon many of us, bringing with it great anxiety and confusion. As we all know, the Episcopal Church and Anglican Communion is going through a very difficult time right now. It is easy to get caught up in the belief that this is unique to our generation. Unfortunately, as you study Church history, you will discover that the Church in every generation has had it trials and struggles. The issues might change, but the attack doesn’t.

My brothers and sisters, we are in the midst of a major spiritual war, one that has been raging ever since the fall. Knowing our vulnerability to SEX and MONEY, Satan is using these two areas of our lives to bring division and chaos into the Church, causing us to take our attention off the mission of the Church, and redirect it to attacking one another, dividing and weakening the Church. As Jesus himself said, a house divided against itself cannot stand.

If the Episcopal Church and Anglican Communion are to survive, it is essential that we recognize what Satan is up to, and stop cooperating with his battle plan. I am all too aware of the great diversity in theological views concerning the appropriateness or inappropriateness of homosexual behavior in the Church today. Emotions are raging on both sides of the issue, and as a result, Satan is succeeding in turning what once were friends into enemies of one another. As a lifelong Episcopalian and Anglican, my heart is grieving over what I see happening to the Church.

Ultimately, each one of us will have to decide how we are to respond to Satan’s attack, and that is exactly what it is ”“ Satan’s Attack. We can cooperate with his battle plan and continue to rip ourselves apart, OR we can focus our attention on Christ, joining in His prayer, that We may be ONE, as He and the Father are ONE. In so doing, I am not suggesting that we compromise our faith, but rather that we keep Christ and the mission of the Church as our central focus, as we work through our differences, seeking God’s will in all that we do.

It is only in and through Christ that we can be one with one another and one with the Father. Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, the life. No one comes to the Father, but though me. It is for that reason, that we must keep our focus on Christ, and not be distracted by the storm that brews around us. When Peter stepped out of the boat, in response to our Lord’s call, he did the impossible ”“ he walked on water. It wasn’t until he took his eyes off of Christ and focused on the wind and the waves around him, that he began to sink. Focused on Christ, we can walk through the current storms threatening the Church, apart from Christ, we will sink.

As your Bishop and brother in Christ, I am asking each of you to join me as we move forward, and ask, “What would Jesus do?” in determining how best to address and deal with the issues before us and those who disagree with us. He will guide and direct us, if we humble ourselves and trust him and are obedient to his command ”“ “Love one another, as I have loved you.” I caution us not to become pharisaical in our dealings with one another. As we heard in this evenings passage from Luke, it is easy to fall into the trap of pointing out the sins of our neighbor, while conveniently ignoring our own sins. While we are busy condemning others, the Lord is reaching out in love to those very same people, inviting them into relationship with Him, ministering to them, healing them and giving them His peace.

We are Episcopalians and we are Anglicans, but first and foremost we are Christians. It is my hope and prayer, that by the grace of God, everyone of us will be able to continue to serve our Lord and His Church as Episcopalians and Anglicans. I pray that the Lord will cleanse and purify His Church of anything that is not of Him, and strengthen and bless that which is of Him.

As many of you know the House of Bishops will be meeting in September. High on the agenda will be the Bishops’ response to the Tanzania communiqué from the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Primates concerning the Episcopal Church and the Windsor Report. The Archbishop has accepted the House Of Bishop’s invitation to join them in September. I will be at that meeting and will participate in all the discussions. The Diocese of Albany has been a strong conservative voice in the larger Church, upholding the traditional and orthodox teachings of the Church. We will continue to do so. At the same time, by God’s grace, I will work to ensure that every parish in our Diocese is welcoming and loving to ALL people, reaching out and ministering to everyone who seeks God’s love and a closer relationship with Christ.

I ask your prayers that the Holy Spirit will be present at the HOB meeting in a mighty and powerful way, and that He will guide and direct all conversation and all actions taken by the House of Bishops. I pray the Holy Spirit will guide and direct the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Primates as well, in their response to the Episcopal Church.

If the Episcopal Church or the Wider Anglican Communion takes any action that would threaten our continued relationship with either, then I will call for a Special Convention of the Diocese to come together as a Diocese to deal with whatever confronts us. It is my hope and prayer that there will never be a need to do so. This Diocese since its founding in 1868 has always been part of the Episcopal Church and as such has always been part of the Anglican Communion. We need one another and by the grace of God will always be part of one another. I hereby call upon the House of Bishops and the Archbishop of Canterbury and all the Primates of the Anglican Communion to heed the Lord’s call as revealed in II Chronicles 7:14 ”“ “”¦if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from Heaven and will forgive their sins and will heal their land.” God have mercy on us, if we choose any other path.

(The full text is below).

The 139th Annual Convention of the Diocese of Albany

Bishop’s Address By
The Rt. Rev. William H. Love, D.D.

My dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ ”“ Welcome! The 139th Annual Convention of the Diocese of Albany is now in session. Let us pray. (BCP pg 818).

By the end of this weekend, we will have approx. 900 faithful men, women and children join us for the Convention, workshops and Youth Rally, in addition to several hundred more for tomorrow’s ordination service, representing each of the 122 parishes and summer chapels, located throughout the 19 counties or 20,000 square miles that make up the Episcopal Diocese of Albany.

In addition, we are blessed to have several special guests with us from outside the Diocese. Please join me as we welcome:

n The Rt. Rev. Bruce MacPherson, Bishop of Western Louisiana, President of Province VII and President of the Counsel of Advice to the Presiding Bishop. Bishop MacPherson will be the guest Preacher at Saturday’s Ordination Service.

n Ms. Christy Speer, Vice President North America Equipping for Crown Financial Ministries. Ms. Speer is one of our keynote speakers and will be addressing the Convention a little later this evening following my address.

n Also with us from Crown Financial Ministries, is Mr. John Harper, District Director of the Northeast Seaboard. Mr. Harper will be leading several workshops, sharing Crown Financial Ministries with us.

n A dear friend of mine, Mrs. Edwina Thomas, National Director of SOMA (Sharing of Ministry Abroad) will address the Convention tomorrow morning on the ministry of Mission. In addition, she will also be speaking to the kids.

n The Rev. Dr. Grant LeMarquand and his wife, Dr. Wendy LeMarquand, will be joining us. Fr. LeMarquand is the New Testament Professor and Acting Academic Dean of Trinity Episcopal School For Ministry. He will be leading two Bible Meditations this weekend during morning prayer, as well as teaching a Bible workshop with his wife.

n The guest speaker at this year’s Youth Rally is Pastor Adam McLane, Associate Pastor of Romeo Church, Romeo, Michigan, and President of Youth Ministry Exchange. He will be teaching and ministering to our middle and senior high kids this weekend and will be the guest preacher at Sunday’s Youth Rally.

n As most of you know, for the last several years we have been greatly blessed to have Bishop Harold and Liz Miller with us from our sister diocese, the Diocese of Down and Dromore, in Northern Ireland. Unfortunately, Bishop Harold had another engagement that he was not able to change and is therefore not able to be here for the Convention, but will be visiting the Diocese later this summer. In the meantime however, we are most blessed to have a few of our friends here visiting from Down and Dromore: The Rev. Rodric West and his wife, Joan, The Rev. Simon Richardson, and Philip Holland, a lay person from Port ”“ A – Down.

n Last, but not least, it my honor to welcome back, the Rev. Cecil Wilson, the head of the Church Mission Society “CMS” Ireland, and his assistant, David Gough. This will be Cecil’s last time with us in his current capacity as head of CMSI due to retirement. Cecil on behalf of the Diocese of Albany, we want to thank you for your years of faithful ministry throughout the world and especially your helping us to reach out to our Christian brothers and sisters in the Sudan.

I would also like to extend a special welcome to Bishop Ball, retired Bishop of Albany, and to Mother Miriam and the Sisters of St. Mary. As always, we are blessed by your presence and your prayers. We also welcome our two Assistant Chancellors, Tom Bell and Raymond Dague. Thank you for your wise counsel.

In addition, I feel very blessed to have my wife Karen, and our daughter Catie with us this weekend. Unfortunately, our son Chris, is away on an Air Force ROTC commitment and can’t be here. As many of you know, Karen has served our nation proudly for 27 years in the Air Force and Air National Guard. As a result of all the changes in our life this past year, she has decided that it is now time to retire from the military and return to teaching. While not officially retiring until November, she will step down at the end of the summer as Mission Support Commander at the 109th ANG Base, in order to begin teaching high school math at Hadley Luzerne in September. Please join me in thanking Karen and all the brave men and women who have and continue to serve our Nation in the military, fighting to protect our freedom.

Canon Bob Haskell and Margaret, would you please stand. As most of you know, I have asked Fr. Haskell to serve as my Canon to the Ordinary. He has taken on most of the ministries previously carried out by Bishop Bena, minus those duties unique to the episcopate, and is doing a superb job. In addition to Fr. Haskell, Margaret is a also a real blessing to me and the Diocese. She is one of our chief volunteers, helping out a couple of days each week in the Diocesan office and with a variety of other things. Fr. Bob, and Margaret, we thank and appreciate you!

At the recent Sunday School and Religious Ed. Conference, Mother Laurie Garramone-Rohr, who did an excellent job by the way along with her dedicated team, stressed the importance of saying “Thank You,” something we often fail to do enough of. Inspired by her example, I would like to take a few moments this evening to say thank you to some extraordinary folks throughout the Diocese.

First, I would like to say a very special thank you to three highly gifted ladies, without whom this Convention Weekend would never have been possible. Carol Drumond, Convention Coordinator, and her assistants Micki Thomas and Sue Ellen Ruetsch Workshop Coordinator, have been instrumental in planning, organizing and carrying out hundreds of details involved in putting on this weekend. Fr. Shaw Mudge, Secretary of the Diocese, also played a key role in organizing the business aspects of the Convention. Stephen Hasslacher designed the Convention Logo. You did a great job. As hard as they all worked, they didn’t do it alone. Would everyone who has any part in organizing, planning or carrying out the various aspects and ministries of the Convention please stand. Thank You for all that you have done.

If I could ask all the Diocesan Staff, both South Swan Street and the Spiritual Life Center, (paid and volunteers), to please stand. We are blessed to have a very dedicated, hard working, committed and professional staff, working day in and day out, often behind the scenes carrying out and supporting the administration, business and ministry of the Diocese. Canon Jerry Carroll and all the folks at South Swan Street and Canon Matt Baker and his staff at The Spiritual Life Center are all doing an outstanding job. It is with great joy, that I report to you, that the Audit for 2006 is complete and without exception ”“ meaning everything was found to be in order with no mistakes. Loren, Kriss, Carol, and Joan, you are to be commended for an outstanding job. Thank you and all the staff for all your hard work, tireless dedication, and sacrificial giving of yourselves in so many ways. You are a blessing to all of us in the Diocese.

I would like to say a special thank you to Canon George Marshall for his valuable work as editor of The Albany Episcopalian and as Administrator of Episcopal Charities. Special thanks also goes to Maggie Hasslacher and Chris Copeland for their excellent work in the various other diocesan publications and communications, not to mention the multitude of other duties and responsibilities. Chris’ ministry and that of his staff, to the young people in our Diocese is such a blessing. Thank you.

Just a note concerning one of our modes of communication, the PDU or Priest and Deacon Update, while it started out as just that, it now reaches beyond the priests and deacons. As such, the PDU is going to be renamed the Diocesan Update. If you are not already receiving the PDU and would like to start getting the Diocesan Update, please contact Maggie at the Diocesan Office.

Would the ordinands please join me on the stage. It is my honor to introduce the soon to be newest transitional deacons in the Diocese of Albany: Jacqueline Jones, Teri Monica, Bruce Mason, Tom Ortung, and Beau Wagner. They will be ordained tomorrow afternoon, as transitional deacons. Thank you for all your hard work and obedience in answering God’s call to the ordained ministry. May God use you mightily in His service and always to His glory.

Please bear with me, for there are several other folks who need to be recognized and honored this evening.

Would all the priests of the Diocese and those licensed to serve in the Diocese, please stand. Thank you for joining me in serving as pastors, priests and teachers, loving and caring for the people of this Diocese, preaching the Gospel and administering the sacraments.

Would all the deacons of the Diocese please stand. Thank you for joining me as fellow servants of the Lord, sharing the Gospel and ministering to the needs of God’s people. I give thanks for your strong witness and example.

Would all the clergy spouses and children of the clergy please stand. I know all too well the demands placed upon you and your families. Thank you for your patience when family events get changed because of pastoral emergencies, and for all the sacrifices you make on behalf of the Church and for your strong witness in the community.

Would all the members of the Standing Committee, Trustees, Diocesan Council, Commission on Ministry, CTK Oversight Committee, DDF Committee, Great Chapter, and any other Diocesan Committees that I failed to mention, please stand. Thank you for giving of your time and talent, not only in your parishes, but at the diocesan level.

Would all the church wardens, vestry members, treasurers, clerks of the vestry, parish secretaries and parish administrators, please stand. Thank you for your faithful leadership.

Would all the Religious Education and Sunday School teachers, Bible Study leaders; Youth Group leaders, nursery and child care leaders, please stand. Thank you for your willingness to teach and care for God’s children, young and old alike.

Would all the kids and youth group members please stand up. Thank you for your faith and love for the Lord. May God give you the courage to share your faith with all your friends.

Would all the Altar Guild Members, Acolytes, Lay Readers, and Eucharistic Ministers please stand up. Thank you for your service to our Lord and His Church.

Would all the ushers, welcome team members, parish home visitors, hospitality and sunshine committee members, and parish sextons please stand. Thank you for your kindness and gift of hospitality.

Would all the Convention Music Team Leaders, parish organists, parish musicians, choir members, music and praise team members from all around the Diocese please stand. Thank you for sharing your incredible gift of music, adding to the beauty and majesty of the liturgy and our worship time.

Fr. Nigel, would you and Lynn and all your volunteer prayer team members and everyone else involved in the Christian healing ministry throughout the rest of the Diocese, as well as our parish nurses and all medical personnel, please stand. The healing power of Jesus Christ is real. Thank you for your faithfulness and offering of yourselves as instruments through which our Lord Jesus can and will work.

Peter Minucci and his dedicated staff at the Episcopal Counseling Service are also to be thanked for their dedicated and professional service, ministering to the emotional and psychological needs of those they are called to serve. Just a quick plug, Counseling Service Sunday is coming up on Father’s Day. That would be a wonderful opportunity to demonstrate your thanks by a financial gift in support of the Counseling Service.

Torre and Jean Bissell, would you and all your diocesan intercessors, and would all the Daughters of the King and parish intercessory prayer teams from around the Diocese please stand up. I can never thank you enough for all your many prayers for me and my family, for this Diocese, for the Church at large, and for all those countless individuals who request and are in need of our prayers. God bless you in this extremely important and invaluable ministry of prayer.

Would all the ECW members from around the Diocese please stand. You are the backbone of the Church. Thank you for all that you do in support of the life and ministry of the Church.

Would all the Brotherhood of St. Andrew members and other men’s ministries please stand. Thank you for your faithful witness and ministry to the men in the Church. May God bless your efforts mightily. It is my hope and prayer that every parish in this Diocese will soon have an active Men’s Ministry. We need to bring men back into the Church in greater numbers.

Would all the members of Cursillo and Happening, associate members of the Order of St. Francis, the Sisters of St. Mary, or any other religious order, please stand up. Thank you for your faith and for being a channel through which the Holy Spirit has come into the Church in an exciting and powerful way, touching and transforming lives.

Mother Eileen, would you and all the members of the Diocesan Mission Committee, and all those from around the Diocese who have gone on or supported mission trips domestically and overseas, please stand. Thank you for your faithful witness in answering the Great Commission, sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ with all who will receive it.

Would all the Deputies to Diocesan and General Convention please stand. Thank you for faithfully representing our parishes and the Diocese of Albany.

Will all who faithfully say your prayers, attend Church regularly and give generously of your time, talent and treasure to God and His Church, please stand. Thank you for your faithfulness and your generosity. Without you, the Church would close its doors.

Will all sinners in need of God’s love and redeeming grace, please stand up. May the Lord give us the grace we need to humble ourselves and come before Him, confessing our sins and seeking His forgiveness.

Last, but most important of all, would all who love God and accept and proclaim His Son, Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior of their lives, please stand up. I thank you my brothers and sisters, for you are the Church, the Body of Christ. May God Bless You this night and always, using you mightily in His service and always to His glory and the benefit of His Church.

Is there anyone here who has not stood up or raised your hand at least once or twice this evening? If so, you are probably wondering what the heck you have gotten yourself into, but stick around, by the grace of God, you’ll be converted by the end of the weekend.

Do you know what we just witnessed? Besides for offering a well deserved thanks to some wonderful folks ”“ we just witnessed a sampling of the wide variety of ministries being carried out by fellow brothers and sisters in Christ (clergy and laity, from all different theological and churchmanship perspectives) here in the Diocese of Albany. When we are obedient to God’s call, and keep our focus on Christ, there is no limit to what the Lord can and will do in and though us.

We are the Episcopal Church and Anglican Communion in the 19 counties and 20,000 square miles that make up the Episcopal Diocese of Albany. The Holy Spirit is alive and present and doing wonderful and mighty things in and through us. Every individual, every parish family, every group just mentioned is vitally important to the life and ministry of our Diocese and to the wider Church. I give thanks to God for you, and I am humbled and honored to be your brother in Christ and your Bishop.

The other thing we just experienced — is tonight’s exercise class. Hopefully all that standing up and sitting down, and clapping and waving of hands helped work off dinner and get your circulation flowing, so you can stay awake for the rest of my address.

In all seriousness, I thank you for taking time out of your busy and demanding schedules to come and be a part of this diocesan family reunion and to carry out the business required of us at Convention. As you look at your schedules, you’ll see there is a lot planned. By the grace of God and the guidance of the Holy Spirit, everything that is suppose to happen, will happen.

The most important thing we will do this weekend, is spend time together as the Body of Christ, worshipping and serving our Heavenly Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, and being fed, nurtured and empowered by the Holy Spirit, to carry out the life and ministry our Lord calls us to.

The theme of this year’s Convention, is “Transformation” and is centered on Jesus’ promise found in Revelation 21:5 “Behold, I am making all things new.” Everything planned for this Convention is intended to help pave the way for the Lord to make us into that “new creation” that He is calling us to.

As I was preparing the sermon for my Installation Service as IX Bishop of Albany, back in February, I was particularly struck by a passage from the 47th Chapter of Ezekiel. In that passage, Ezekiel was given a vision of water flowing out from under the threshold of the Temple ”“ living waters, cleansing and blessing and bringing new life to everything it touched. As I read that passage, the Lord gave me a vision of His “Living Water” flowing forth from the doors of every parish in the Diocese of Albany, His Holy Spirit cleansing and purifying, comforting and strengthening, quenching the spiritual thirst of all those longing for His love and presence, bringing healing and peace into our communities and the broken and hurting world in which we live.

This is the vision the Lord has given me for the Diocese of Albany, a vision that I believe God wants to lay the ground work for this weekend. For it to happen, we must keep our eyes and focus on Christ. Everything we do, must be Christ-centered. The writer to the Hebrews states, “”¦Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith.” (Heb. 12:1-2).

To help us “run with perseverance the race marked out for us,” keeping our eyes on Christ, I believe the Lord is calling us to concentrate on four key areas this weekend. I have shared these with many of you, leading up to the convention.

First, recognizing that the Lord has already been working in and through us to varying degrees, there is much more that can and needs to be done, if only the obstacles that tend to limit us, are removed. It is important that we acknowledge and invite Christ into the wounded and brokenness that exists within our individual lives, our parishes and the Diocese, in order that we might be healed and set free of that which is not of God and that which gets in the way of our ability to serve God and carry out the ministry of His Church. Each parish has its own history, much of which glorifies and honors God, but some of which doesn’t. We are being called by our Lord to take an honest look and identify as best we can those things that are a detriment and hindrance to the life and ministry of our parishes and the Diocese and then offer them up to our Lord, asking Him to cleanse us and set us free. I want to thank those of you who have already begun this process in your parishes. If you haven’t, please give it serious thought and prayer tonight. During the offertory at tomorrows Ordination Service, a representative from each parish will be invited to come forward and nail the sins of the Church on a large cross that will be placed on the stage. Later tomorrow evening, during the Healing Service, we are going to pray for the healing and empowerment of each of our parishes throughout the Diocese. If your parish delegation has not yet had a chance to compile your list of the sins and impediments of the Parish, there is paper and envelopes available up front. Feel free to take what you need before leaving this evening.

Second, and related to the above, there seems to be a spirit of poverty and fear that has come over much of the Diocese, negatively impacting our ability to serve God and His people. Far too many parishes are in a survival or maintenance mode, due to limited finances and fear. That is not what God wants for us. Satan knows all too well our human vulnerability when it comes to money and material possessions, and he is using it against us, to limit our effectiveness in serving God and growing the Kingdom. What many regard as a financial issue is really a spiritual issue. With rare exception, most of the financial struggles in our individual lives and our parishes are self imposed, not because the expenses aren’t real, but because we have failed to trust God with our money, which in fact, is really His money on loan to us. Later this evening, Ms. Christy Speer, from Crown Financial Ministries, will help us to take a new and more Godly view of our finances. Crown Ministry workshops will also be offered tomorrow. Martin Luther once said, the last part of a person to be converted is their wallet. That is very true. For those who have come to trust God with their money and material possessions, they have been set free of the huge financial albatross that drags so many people down, wreaking havoc and misery in their lives. True financial freedom can only occur when God is in control of our finances. It is time to get out of the drivers seat and turn it over to the Lord. If you are not yet tithing, there is still work to be done. Even with the tithe, we still sometimes have trouble letting go. May the Lord give us the grace and faith to do so.

Third, as baptized Christians, we are all called by our Lord, through the Great Commission, to be missionaries, sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ with all who will receive it. We have a growing and dedicated group of missionaries in the Diocese, but far too many in our parishes are fearful of venturing forth and sharing their faith. While overseas mission trips are extremely import, we must never forget that we live in one of the largest mission fields in the world. Everyone of us knows someone in our own backyard, who is un-churched and has not yet come to know Jesus as Lord and Savior. There are more un-churched people in our communities, than there are churches enough to hold them all. Tomorrow, Edwina Thomas, national director of SOMA, a wonderful mission organization, will share her faith story and speak to us about the mission ministry. Countless unsaved souls are dying everyday. You may very well be the one chosen by God to introduce His Son, Jesus Christ, to someone who has not yet come to know Christ. We have no greater gift to share, than the love and Good News of Jesus..

The fourth area we will be focusing on is Holy Scripture. Unfortunately, this is one area the Church has far too often dropped the ball. If we are to grow in our relationship with God and knowledge and understanding of His Word, it is imperative that we get more serious about reading and studying the Bible. Fr. Grant LeMarquand, from Trinity Episcopal School for Ministry, is here to help us do just that. In addition, you should find in each of your bags a wonderful daily Bible meditation resource called “Discovery.” I encourage you to use it as part of your daily Bible study and prayer time. Taking time to pray and study God’s Word is absolutely essential for our spiritual health and well being. It is important that every parish have an active ongoing Bible Study. If your parish doesn’t have a Bible Study, I ask the clergy and lay leaders to start one. There are a variety of ways to go about this, and it will the subject of our upcoming Religious Ed. Conference later in August. It is in saying our prayers and studying God’s Word, that we are best able to come to know the Lord and discern His will for us and how we are to live our lives.

Moving forward in these four areas, I believe is vital to the life and ministry of each of our parishes and the Diocese, and in so doing will help to lay the foundation for the “Living Water” of Christ to flow forth, transforming our hearts and minds and those we are called to minister to.

Turning now to a concern that is weighing heavily upon many of us, bringing with it great anxiety and confusion. As we all know, the Episcopal Church and Anglican Communion is going through a very difficult time right now. It is easy to get caught up in the belief that this is unique to our generation. Unfortunately, as you study Church history, you will discover that the Church in every generation has had it trials and struggles. The issues might change, but the attack doesn’t.

My brothers and sisters, we are in the midst of a major spiritual war, one that has been raging ever since the fall. Knowing our vulnerability to SEX and MONEY, Satan is using these two areas of our lives to bring division and chaos into the Church, causing us to take our attention off the mission of the Church, and redirect it to attacking one another, dividing and weakening the Church. As Jesus himself said, a house divided against itself cannot stand.

If the Episcopal Church and Anglican Communion are to survive, it is essential that we recognize what Satan is up to, and stop cooperating with his battle plan. I am all too aware of the great diversity in theological views concerning the appropriateness or inappropriateness of homosexual behavior in the Church today. Emotions are raging on both sides of the issue, and as a result, Satan is succeeding in turning what once were friends into enemies of one another. As a lifelong Episcopalian and Anglican, my heart is grieving over what I see happening to the Church.

Ultimately, each one of us will have to decide how we are to respond to Satan’s attack, and that is exactly what it is ”“ Satan’s Attack. We can cooperate with his battle plan and continue to rip ourselves apart, OR we can focus our attention on Christ, joining in His prayer, that We may be ONE, as He and the Father are ONE. In so doing, I am not suggesting that we compromise our faith, but rather that we keep Christ and the mission of the Church as our central focus, as we work through our differences, seeking God’s will in all that we do.

It is only in and through Christ that we can be one with one another and one with the Father. Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, the life. No one comes to the Father, but though me. It is for that reason, that we must keep our focus on Christ, and not be distracted by the storm that brews around us. When Peter stepped out of the boat, in response to our Lord’s call, he did the impossible ”“ he walked on water. It wasn’t until he took his eyes off of Christ and focused on the wind and the waves around him, that he began to sink. Focused on Christ, we can walk through the current storms threatening the Church, apart from Christ, we will sink.

As your Bishop and brother in Christ, I am asking each of you to join me as we move forward, and ask, “What would Jesus do?” in determining how best to address and deal with the issues before us and those who disagree with us. He will guide and direct us, if we humble ourselves and trust him and are obedient to his command ”“ “Love one another, as I have loved you.” I caution us not to become pharisaical in our dealings with one another. As we heard in this evenings passage from Luke, it is easy to fall into the trap of pointing out the sins of our neighbor, while conveniently ignoring our own sins. While we are busy condemning others, the Lord is reaching out in love to those very same people, inviting them into relationship with Him, ministering to them, healing them and giving them His peace.

We are Episcopalians and we are Anglicans, but first and foremost we are Christians. It is my hope and prayer, that by the grace of God, everyone of us will be able to continue to serve our Lord and His Church as Episcopalians and Anglicans. I pray that the Lord will cleanse and purify His Church of anything that is not of Him, and strengthen and bless that which is of Him.

As many of you know the House of Bishops will be meeting in September. High on the agenda will be the Bishops’ response to the Tanzania communiqué from the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Primates concerning the Episcopal Church and the Windsor Report. The Archbishop has accepted the House Of Bishop’s invitation to join them in September. I will be at that meeting and will participate in all the discussions. The Diocese of Albany has been a strong conservative voice in the larger Church, upholding the traditional and orthodox teachings of the Church. We will continue to do so. At the same time, by God’s grace, I will work to ensure that every parish in our Diocese is welcoming and loving to ALL people, reaching out and ministering to everyone who seeks God’s love and a closer relationship with Christ.

I ask your prayers that the Holy Spirit will be present at the HOB meeting in a mighty and powerful way, and that He will guide and direct all conversation and all actions taken by the House of Bishops. I pray the Holy Spirit will guide and direct the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Primates as well, in their response to the Episcopal Church.

If the Episcopal Church or the Wider Anglican Communion takes any action that would threaten our continued relationship with either, then I will call for a Special Convention of the Diocese to come together as a Diocese to deal with whatever confronts us. It is my hope and prayer that there will never be a need to do so. This Diocese since its founding in 1868 has always been part of the Episcopal Church and as such has always been part of the Anglican Communion. We need one another and by the grace of God will always be part of one another. I hereby call upon the House of Bishops and the Archbishop of Canterbury and all the Primates of the Anglican Communion to heed the Lord’s call as revealed in II Chronicles 7:14 ”“ “”¦if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from Heaven and will forgive their sins and will heal their land.” God have mercy on us, if we choose any other path.

I have gone on much too long, but there is one final thing I must touch upon. God has blessed our Diocese richly with and through Christ the King Spiritual Life Center. What has been accomplished there in the past couple of years is nothing short of miraculous. Canon Matt Baker and his highly dedicated staff and all of you who have given so generously and often times sacrificially of your time, energy and money are to be commended for helping to make the Spiritual Life Center the blessing that it is, not only to our Diocese, but to the larger Church. I have lost track of the number of brothers and sisters from other denominations who have come up to me and said thank you for the gift of the SLC.

In less than a month, the new retreat lodge, know as The King’s Inn will be open and ready for business. It will enable us to greatly expand our ministry at Christ the King, by providing added overnight accommodations, something we have desperately needed. Again, I thank everyone who has given so generously toward the building of The King’s Inn.

I realize that not everyone in our Diocese was thrilled with the creation of the Spiritual Life Center. For some it was seen as competition to the local parishes or other ministries in the Diocese; for others it was seen as too costly and a financial risk or drain; some were angered and upset by the selling of the original Beaver Cross and Barry House whose ministry by the way has not stopped, but was simply relocated to the SLC where it is growing and better able to meet the needs of the Diocese. I hope and pray that those who were not originally happy about the Spiritual Life Center, will now be able to see and appreciate it, for what it truly is ”“ a blessing and gift from God, entrusted to us for the building up of the Kingdom. If you have not yet been there, I encourage you to go at your earliest convenience. I realize it is a long and expensive trip for some of you, but I promise, you won’t be disappointed.

I will spare you the statistics of all the thousands of people (men, women and children) who have come to Christ the King. The bottom line is that the Lord is doing a mighty work at the Spiritual Life Center, not in competition with the local parishes, but in cooperation with them ”“ touching, healing, refreshing, educating, empowering, transforming thousands and thousands of lives, young and old, from all different parts of the Body of Christ, from all over the world, sending them back out into their parishes and communities, better able to live out the Great Commandment and the Great Commission ”“ Disciples making Disciples sharing the love and Good News of Jesus Christ with all who will receive it.

God Bless You! May this weekend be just the beginning of our transformation as the Lord makes all things new in our Diocese and throughout the Church. Amen.

Representatives of the Episcopal Diocese of South Carolina gathered Saturday at St. James Episcopal Church on James Island to vote to continue where the 216th diocesan convention left off late last year, reconvening delegates for the purpose of electing a new bishop.

Though some church officials expressed concerns over the procedures adopted to reconvene as well as the perceptions of church officials outside the diocese, all but a few dissenters voted to proceed as planned in an effort to fast-track the Very Rev. Mark Lawrence into the bishop’s office.

This entailed suspending Rule 21 of Canon 31, which was established in late 2005 for the purpose of electing a new bishop but which would have required officials this time to start from scratch with a new convention, a new set of delegates, a new Electing Convention and a new set of candidates. That standard process could have taken a year, Bishop Edward Salmon said.

Representatives from only two Charleston area churches ”” Grace and St. Mark’s ”” voted against suspending the rule.

The diocese’s standing committee now takes control of the election process, and individual parishes will elect delegates whose sole purpose is to choose the bishop.

Lawrence has provoked concern among Episcopalians who fear he could lead the diocese away from the Episcopal Church and realign with another Anglican authority if the church did not repudiate its tolerance for gay clergy and affirm a more traditional reading of Scripture. A church crisis was sparked when, in 2003, the Rt. Rev. Gene Robinson, who is divorced and openly gay, was elected bishop of the Diocese of New Hampshire.

Salmon said the special Electing Convention will be Aug. 4, and the new bishop might be consecrated Jan. 25, the day of St. Paul’s conversion on the road to Damascus.

Read the whole article.

The consent period had just begun when the diocese’s annual convention met Nov. 9-10. Rather than adjourn, Eugene “Nick” Ziegler, the diocese’s long-time chancellor, advised the secretary of convention that it recess. Recessing, Mr. Ziegler stated, might save the diocese significant time and money if it needed to call another election because the delegates to the 2006 annual meeting would not be discharged and could be recalled if necessary.

The 90-minute June 9 meeting began with Morning Prayer before the business session was formally reopened. The first person recognized to speak was Ted Halkyard, a lay member of Grace Church, Charleston, who asked that the diocese employ the highest degree of transparency in its second attempt to receive consent to the election of Fr. Lawrence as bishop. In the only other piece of business, delegates elected Wade Logan to replace Mr. Ziegler, who has resigned as chancellor.

Bishop Salmon told The Living Church that the diocese’s standing committee had met immediately after convention adjourned on Saturday and would be completing plans for the Aug. 4 election after another meeting next week. Among the decisions yet to be made are whether to permit candidates other than Fr. Lawrence on the ballot. Rather than conducting a full search process, Bishop Salmon said the standing committee might permit either nominations by petition during an interval before the election or nominations from the floor on the day of the election.

“There was a good spirit at convention,” Bishop Salmon said. The standing committee wants to put in place a plan that builds on that, he added. “None of us want this election to fail.”

Read it all.

After some discussion, we met in a reconvened convention today and suspended a previous rule by more than the required 2/3 majority in both orders, and a new electing Convention will likely convene in early August. Parishes will need to elect new delegates for the express purpose of sending them to this new electing Convention.