Saturday, July 11th. Day 4. We are just about at the halfway point at our time here in Anaheim, and I think I have finally been here long enough not to feel totally lost as a first time deputy. As Archdeacon Coyne remarked last night, no amount of orientation or advice will prepare you for General Convention – you just have to jump in and experience it in order to really “get it.” Amen!
Although I am not assigned to a committee, I have been following the National and International Concerns committee by attending hearings and deliberation sessions (which are all open to the public) and it has given me a much better handle on what is going on. In fact, the first significant resolutions from that committee came forward today, and since I have witnessed their evolution from hearings, to subcommittee, to committee, to the House, I feel like a couple of my children have finally “made it” – and this is without having any role whatsoever in their development other than as a silent witness!
Anyway, I want to commend one of them to anyone back at home as something to watch – it is a resolution on health care (C071 for those who like the code names). This is a resolution that was submitted by the diocese of East Tennessee and came out of a resolution passed at their Diocesan Convention. It urges members of the Church to be equipped for a grassroots lobbying movement for health care reform that will allow access for all, but the best part is that the diocese is actually developing an online curriculum that will be available by the end of the month (they hope) to all dioceses and congregations.
This was an efficient and exciting resolution that I think shows the power of our Church system at work – and I think could be a model for our diocese. I don’t think that we tend to think about passing resolutions at our convention with the idea that they will travel on to affect the life of congregations all of the nation and the world. And East Tennesee found a way to act in a timely manner so that they can use GC as a platform to affect an issue that will be acted on by our local and national legislators in the next several months. Not an easy feat! The resolution was adopted by the House of Deputies (HD) and moves on to the House of Bishops, but I think either way, the curriculum is being produced, and I urge people to watch out for this material.
Other notable legislation today:
A resolution to ensure the full disclosure of members of all committees or other appointed groups so that the Church is a model for transparency in governance (this caused some debate on the floor, but was adopted by the HD in the end)
A resolution to formulate strategy for lifelong Christian formation (to further act on the Charter for Lifelong Christian Formation that was passed yesterday), which was adopted by the HD with slight amendment
We also had a great visit from some international guests today, including (and especially) Jenny Te Paa from College of St. John the Evangelist in Auckland, New Zealand. I will not try to summarize her remarks here, but I encourage you to read this article on their comments (http://www.episcopalchurch.org/79901_112399_ENG_HTM.htm) and to watch out for other references to their visit. It was enlightening and reaffirming to hear what Jenny and others had to say to the House of Deputies.
There was plenty more that happened today, but I will stop here so I can get to sleep. The big Eucharist and UTO Ingathering is tomorrow – should be a great time! Then it is back to the grind – legislative sessions will only get longer and more intense from here on out, so I am planning on enjoying some Sabbath time tomorrow.
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