Public Narrative

On this, our second day of legislative sessions in both houses, deputies began the work of discernment, and listening, as

In the midst of all this work, the entire convention began a process know as “public narrative”.  This opportunity to share our stories with each other is designed to facilitate dialog and improve communications in the hope that such a spirit might spill over to and influence our discussions and debate over some of the issues over the next 8 days that might cause tensions and division within the body of the church gathered.  Considering the size of group participating (all convention attendees – deputies and bishops alike), the process was surprisingly smooth, and the dialogs that our deputation participated in were enlightening.  We followed this process with the daily Eucharist, led by the Bishop of Los Angeles, and with a sermon by the Archbishop of Canterbury – his last opportunity to be with us before returning to the UK to preside at his own gathering of the Church of England.

During the afternoon legislative session for the House of Deputies, the time began with a failed attempt at elections due to glitches in the electronic balloting system.  These will resume at the morning session on Friday.   Following this, the House reelected Bonnie Anderson to serve another three years as the President of the House of Deputies, a position in which she is currently displaying her considerable skills. 

To end this session, the deputies heard a report by the Committee on World Mission regarding Resolution B033, passed by the last General Convention.  The resolution reads:  “Resolved, That the 75th General Convention receive and embrace The Windsor Report's invitation to engage in a process of healing and reconciliation; and be it further Resolved, That this Convention therefore call upon Standing Committees and bishops with jurisdiction to exercise restraint by not consenting to the consecration of any candidate to the episcopate whose manner of life presents a challenge to the wider church and will lead to further strains on communion.”  This resolution was widely interpreted to to be a moratorium on the further election and consecration of bishops living in same-gender partnerships.  The Committee suggested there were 5 possible actions that could be taken by this Convention regarding this resolution, including:

1. Taking no action, thus leaving B033 in place.

2. Reaffirm the actions of the previous Convention.

3. Disavow B033.

4. Affirm existing canonical structure for electing bishops and disavow any extra-canonical constraints (this would negate B033).

5. Do a new thing, such as the drafting of a statement confirming full participation of partnered gay and lesbian members in all orders of ministry, including all forms of ordination.

Following the report, deputies engaged in a 30-minute conversation within the “Committee of the Whole”.  Deputies were paired up with someone they did not know and asked to dialog around three questions as they relate to Resoltuion B033:

1. What is your story with respect to resolution B033?

2. What is our story as a church with respect to resolution B033?

3. What is God calling us to do now?

These discussions were fruitful and engaging and allowed the deputies to hear each others thoughts and feelings in a more personal way that puts a human face on this debate.  To quote an editorial in one of the daily convention publications, “Talking has never been a problem for Episcopalians.  But maybe, just maybe, we’re developing another talent at this General Convention: listening. 

While there are many, many issues being discussed at this convention, this issue and related discussion will dominate much of the debate and energy.  Please continue to pray for our Bishop and deputies that we will have ears to hear the whisper of the Holy Spirit in the midst of all these conversations.

Bill Robison

A Day of Celebration

On our longest legislative day yet, the House of Deputies began the day with deputy testimony and statements specifically related to Resolution 2006-B033 (see above).  Due to the strong feelings many deputies have on this issue, a lottery was held to divide up the allotted time for dialog within the Committee of the Whole into three-minute segments.  Though many expressed strong feelings and occasionally emotional ones around this topic, the mood of the presentations was civil and orderly.  It is important to note that the Committee on World Mission requested this particular opportunity for dialog for the purpose of hearing something of the will and overall attitude of the deputation with regard to this matter.  This was not floor debate, as no resolutions regarding 2006-B033 have yet come to the floor.

Following this morning of conversation, the Diocese of Milwaukee grabbed a spot in the front row for the daily Eucharist as our own Bishop Steven Miller celebrated the service jointly with Bishop Hopeton Clennon, representing the Moravian Church in America.  One of the pieces of legislation before this convention proposes a status of full communion between our two churches. 

Friday afternoon brought the longest legislative session so far, running nearly 4 straight hours.  In the House of Deputies, these included the first elections for members of the committee to oversee the Pension Fund.  Of the twelve spots that were open to be filled, six members were elected on the first ballot (receiving a sufficient majority of votes).  A second election to fill the remaining six seats will occur on Saturday.  The rest of the legislative session covered a range of issues, from social justice and environment (local and world-wide) to issues of church polity and structure.  The session ended with a lively and uplifting presentation by the President of Episcopal Relief and Development.  In a 20-minute talk, he recounted the many accomplishments of the organization formally known as ERD in bringing relief to many corners of a hurting world, from those affected by disaster, to more long-range and continuous poverty, hunger and disease-fighting needs.  He highlighted in particular the work of Nets for Life, a partner organization that has provided over one million repellant-coated nets to areas of sub-Saharan Africa – brining a dramatic decline to deaths due to malaria in these areas.  In addition, he announced that the organization, with the help of members of the General Convention, had surpassed its goal of raising three million dollars in support of the Millennium Development Goals.  This convention will also debate continued support for the MDGs in the coming days. 

Finally, we request your continued prayers for this convention and our Bishop and Deputies.  In particular, that they will find opportunities and the means to be rested, refreshed and renewed – to find God’s Sabbath in the midst of this place.  The convention does not stop for the weekend, and moments of quiet and peace can be hard to find.  We pray the same for all of you. 

Bill Robison

Our International Brothers and Sisters

A more brief report for today:  Today’s legislative sessions in the House of Deputies featured further elections, a flurry of less-contentious resolutions and a touch of international flavor.  The morning session was primarily taken up with the election of the Vice President of the House (or should I say reelection…?).  As was the case with the reelection of Bonnie Anderson as president, there was only one candidate presented to his second three-year term – the current Vice President, Brian Prior, and the deputies enthusiastically supported his election.  Following this election, the electronic balloting machines came back out and we continued the election of members to administer the Church Pension Fund.  Six of the twelve members had been successfully elected on the first ballot, and so we were working to fill out that slate.  With that process of voting by wireless keypad now working smoothly, we also voted to elect two clergy and two lay members to the Court for the Trial of a Bishop – a body we hope will never have to be called into session. 

A special treat during the afternoon session were visits by several international observers, invited by the President of the House to speak to us and bring greetings and words of encouragement from their respective churches.  Speakers from Ghana, Brazil, South Africa, Canada and New Zealand each took their turn at the microphone and brought us messages of support as we work through some potentially difficult discussions in the days ahead.  They each in turn marveled at the way in which the Episcopal Church governs itself, and lives out its baptismal covenant in the ministry of all the baptized.  This is due in part to the fact that each church in the communion governs itself differently, and our structure, with a strong House of Deputies, is not found elsewhere. 

The last speaker, Jenny Te Paa, principal of Te Rau Kahikatea, College of St John the Evangelist in Auckland, New Zealand, urged the deputies present not be feel dismayed or vulnerable in our relationship to the larger Anglican Communion, but to do whatever the spirit was calling this convention to do, knowing that the larger communion “treasures you” and will ultimately stay connected as each part of the body needs the others.  She asked the deputies to consider a pointed question when regards to our relationship to the larger church and how it effects our decisions:  whether we wanted to become “one with” the larger church, or merely “one of”.  Added the Very Rev. Victor Atta-Baffoe, Dean of St. Nicholas Seminary in Cape Coast, Ghana, “... at the end of the day the work of God must go on.  And it’s God’s work, not our work.”

Tomorrow, we worship, we celebrate, and then we return to the work of the church.

Bill Robison

Pausing for the Sabbath, but not for long...

The centerpiece of Sunday at the 76^th General Convention was the major convention Eucharist and UTO ingathering.  This service, drawing the largest number of participants of any service during the 10 day convention, filled a packed worship hall with an estimated 7000 worshipers singing, praying and communing together.  It was a sight to behold.   Other performers including Elisabeth Von Trapp and cellist Erich Kory supplemented music by the all-volunteer Ubuntu choir.  The service was celebrated jointly by prior Presiding Bishops Edmond Browning and Frank Griswold along with our current Presiding Bishop, Katherine Jefferts Schori, who also preached the sermon.  Besides the sheer joy of celebrating as such a large family, this service also marked the ingathering of donations collected over the past three years for the United Thank Offering.  These collected donations totaled just under $7,000,000.00, of which approximately two thirds have already been allocated and distributed over the past two years.  The remaining more than $2.1 million will be allocated by the Triennial convention of the Episcopal Church Women who are meeting in tandem with the General Convention, and sharing with us in worship, education and conversation opportunities.  It was a moving moment in the day.

Over the course of the legislative day, two controversial pieces of legislation came to the floor of the two houses.  First, the House of Bishops reviewed the resolution creating a church-wide denominational health plan for clergy and staff.  The idea behind such a plan is to create a significant buying group for health insurance with the idea that this will lower costs for such insurance across the Episcopal Church.  This resolution will now come to the floor of the House of Deputies, where there is certain to be some contention and discussion, particularly from larger dioceses, for whom this may in fact increase insurance costs.  Later in the afternoon session, the House of Deputies took up perhaps the most contentious issue of the convention.  Resolution D025, which recognizes and celebrates the full participation of LGBT persons in the life of our church and declares the ordination process open to all persons in our church.  This resolution was one of many submitted to committees with the intent of overturning or setting aside resolution B033-2006, which urged “restraint” in the Episcopal Church with regard to such ordinations.  The committee that presented this resolution modified it and submitted it as the single best such motion considered by their members.  The deputies were required to vote by orders and the results were overwhelming, with 71% of lay deputies, and 75% of clergy deputies voting in favor.  The resolution will now move to the House of Bishops, where its fate is uncertain. 

Other pieces of legislation of note that came before the deputies on Sunday included a resolution related to the Millenium Development Goals.  The House of Bishops not only adopted the resolution, but amended it to raise the amount allocated from 0.7% to 1%, designating the entire amount over the next triennial to the Nets for Life program.  There was also discussion of the upcoming budget hearing, with the Program, Budget and Finance Committee reading a statement to the two houses letting us know that we were to expect major cuts in the coming budget, as well as a proposal to reduce the diocesan “asking” recognizing the financial stress many dioceses and parishes are feeling.   We will look forward to the arrival of the draft budget on Wednesday.

Bill Robison

Needing to get caught up...

By the time we reached the floor on Monday, the House of Deputies was already approximately three days behind in the legislative calendar, give or take a few stray resolutions that had moved up in the ranks.  There remains so much work to be done, the time allotted does not seem sufficient.  All that pending and important work aside, this day will likely be the focal point in the convention for many.  The later part of our day featured a difficult discussion and vote on the consent to the consecration of the Rev. Louis Fernando Ruiz as the Bishop of Central Ecuador.   Controversy surrounded the manner of the election of Rev. Ruiz and members of the deputation from Central Ecuador spoke passionately both for and against the consent of the House.  In the end, the election was consented to.  Much healing will be required as this Diocese moves forward under the pastoral care and leadership of Bishop Ruiz.  Our prayers are with the people of Central Ecuador.

Following that vote, the House invited and received a presentation by the Official Youth Presence attending and observing the convention.  The two speakers implored the deputies to look for opportunities to engage the youth of our church in worship, leadership, mission and administration, including participation in diocesan conventions as well as the General Convention.  One of the speakers pulled no punches, and reminded us that the youth are not the future of the Episcopal Church - they ARE the Episcopal Church.  He recounted that as a young person, he is constantly being told things he cannot do.  "Well here are some things the adults in the Episcopal Church may not do."  He said.  "You may not grow the EC without the youth.  You may not fund the EC without the youth. You may not feed the EC without the youth, and you may not hear the voice of the EC without the youth."  It was a pointed reminder that ministries to and by our youth needed the attention of this and future conventions, and was well received. 

Probably the biggest news of the day occurred in the House of Bishops, where a version of Resolution B025 passed the house with minor amendment.  The vote was 99-45 in favor of the amended resolution, which will now return to the House of Deputies for a vote to concur.  Bishop Mark Hollingsworth of Ohio, who authored the amendment, called B025 "an honest reflection of who we are as a church, and of where we are."  The matter will return Tuesday to the deputies for action.  The House of Bishops also approved the plan and associated budget for Hispanic/Latin ministry in the Episcopal Church already acted on by the deputies.  

One last note of interest that is happening on the fringes of this convention.  Both Deputies and Bishops are participating in the construction of a home for Habitat for Humanity - on the floor of the convention arena!  Once major framing is completed and following a reception Wednesday evening, the home will be moved to its permanent location and completed, with the homeowner's required participation.  I will try to bring you pictures of the home before it leaves the convention.

Bill Robison

Standing up for all God's creation

Another busy, if not fast-moving day on the floor of the House of Deputies.  Though we remain a bit behind our schedule, legislation and voting continued apace for the seventh legislative day (have we really been at this for a full week already?).  Included in the days activities were further rounds of elections – this time for Executive Council, as well as further votes in previous elections. 

Of the various pieces of legislation to come before the deputies, several drew extended periods of testimony.  We added several names to the calendar of saints – the Lesser Feasts and Fasts – and approved a much longer list of names for trial use over the next three years.  There were many attempts at “word-smithing” through amendment, but in the end, the legislation passed with an understanding that this trial period was in place for exactly the purpose of modifying information (dates, biographical information, etc.) in the material proposed. 

Deputies spent a bit of time debating issues of transparency with regard to the cost of litigation conducted by the national church.  In the end this was rejected in large part because it was felt that it would tie the hands of the Presiding Bishop and her staff when faced with such issues.   We also passed legislation requesting a study of the methods of communication used by the Episcopal Church.

The House of Deputies also took final action to approve the amended version of B025, discussed in this writing earlier.  Last minute testimony was heard on both sides, but in the end, the legislation again passed by a more than 2/3 majority in both the lay and clerical orders. 

Finally, the house began debate and action on a series of environmental issues that will continue to come before the deputies on Wednesday.  These resolutions, ranging from protection for God’s creatures to conservation issues to discouraging the use of bottled water at convention will provide some clarity of position for the EC, and are largely expected to pass in the coming days. 

In the midst of this legislative work, we were greeted by a group of ecumenical observers to the convention, twenty persons representing Christians, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, Sikhs and Baha’is from around southern California.  The highlight of their visit was a stirring signing of an Abrahamic blessing by cantors representing Jews, Muslims and Christians, sung first separately, and then together.  It was hauntingly beautiful and a gift all deputies will take with them when they return to their homes.

While we were at work on these issues, the House of Bishops concurred with the action of the House of Deputies in approving a rewriting of Title IV of the Canons, entitled Ecclesiastical Discipline.   The new canons are designed to improve transparency and honesty, and encourage reconciliation in the church. 

At the close of business for the day, most of our deputation headed to the Province V Synod meeting where our own deputy Steve Murphy was nominated by the Synod to stand Thursday for election to the nominations committee to elect a Presiding Bishop for the next Triennial.  You are correct if you read this and thought “but wait - we aren’t electing a new Presiding Bishop in the next three years”, but a committee stands ready between each convention on the chance that circumstances might create the need for an early election.  Though Steve is unlikely to have to serve even if elected, his selection by our Synod was an honor nonetheless.  While we were conducting that meeting and selection process, many members of both Houses were participating in a prayer march to support the hotel workers of Walt Disney who are in a contract dispute over that employer's plan to reduce their benefits.  The church’s show of solidarity with this group was very moving.

To end the day, nearly all our deputation and a few invited guests from Milwaukee crossed town for a wonderful dinner and chance for fellowship and relaxation.  All who were at the convention from Milwaukee were invited to join us, though a couple were unable to make it due to illness or other commitments and were missed.  We enjoyed our time together “off the floor” and were recharged for the final three days.  Continue to pray for us, for our health (several of us are battling illnesses that likely come from so many people sharing so much air-conditioned air…), and for our focus, which will be increasingly needed as we head for the finish line.

Bill Robison

Down the Home Stretch

Greetings from Anaheim!

Bill Robison took the day off today from the General Convention, so he asked me to do the Thursday blog.  On the penultimate day of legislative sessions, the House of Deputies voted on many resolutions on what I believe was the busiest day yet for us, due in large part to parliamentary procedures that sped up the process.  We need to get legislation to the House of Bishops before the last legislative day so that they can consider the various resolutions before our joint adjournment sine die Friday at 6 PM.

Highlights of today included:

• Debate on the leaner budget.  Many amendments to change the budget were presented, but none were approved.  The mind of the House seemed to be that the Committee on Program, Budget, and Finance did more than due diligence in crafting the budget, which showed a $23 million reduction from the original draft budget.  The budget was passed as presented, and it now goes to the House of Bishops for consideration.
• Suspension of the rules for a special order to consider Resolution C056 (Liturgies for Blessings), which we will take up on Friday morning.
• A vote on Resolution C023 (Same-Sex Unions: Defense of Marriage Statutes), which called for Congress to repeal the so-called “Defense of Marriage” statute passed in 1996, and to call against similar statutes and amendments at the state level.  The vote was taken by orders and passed in both the clergy and lay orders.  It now goes to the House of Bishops for debate.
• A unanimous vote on Resolution D096 (Prevention of Domestic Violence), which was something I spoke to on the floor of the House, because a dear friend of mine was murdered by her ex-husband last year and I had the chance to share that story in front of the House of Deputies.
• A courtesy vote recognizing the work of former Deputy Charles Crump of West Tennessee, who served in the House of Deputies in seventeen General Conventions from 1958 through 2006, when he decided to retire.  I met him in Columbus and found him to be an engaging and gentle soul who is missed on the floor here in Anaheim.
• A vote for the Joint Standing Committee for the Election of a Presiding Bishop, in which this blogger was a lay candidate from Province V.  (Friday update: this blogger was not elected, but I offer my congratulations to Pamela Chapman from the diocese of Western Michigan.)
• A rocking good time at the Hilton Anaheim as Bill Robison, Laura Norby, John Washbush, and this blogger attended a “U2charist” with Bono double Pavel Sfera singing the wonderful music of U2 as the Holy Eucharist was celebrated.

Friday is our last day, and no doubt we will be furiously voting on legislation before our 6 PM adjournment.  Many of us will be packing our things and leaving on Saturday morning for Milwaukee.  Please continue to pray for our deputation and our bishop Steven.  Know that you are in our prayers back home.

Steve Murphy

After 10 days in Anaheim, and after acting on over 350 pieces of legislation and a three-year budget, it is time to head back to our family and friends in Milwaukee.  This has been a wonderful experience for all of us, but we look forward to returning home.  I hope this blog has been of some use to you all as a way for our deputation to stay connected, and for you to follow our work.  That being said, we turn over the last day of writing to our Bishop.  Peace.

Bill Robison

A Word from your Bishop

Dear Friends in Christ,

I write to you as the 76^th General Convention draws to a close. This convention has been very different for me from the conventions in 2003 and 2006. I attribute this to a number of factors. Part of this is the fact that is my third General Convention and thus I am more familiar with how it works. Another reason is that we did not have the additional task of electing a presiding bishop. Most importantly, this convention had a much better spirit characterized by deep and  respectful listening to the positions and concerns of others and an absence of the “party spirit” condemned by scripture that so dominated previous gatherings. It felt a lot to me like the respectful listening with a place for everyone that I have sought to build with you in our diocese throughout my episcopate.  The renewed focus on mission as the heartbeat of our common life was a breath of fresh air, breathing new life into our work through the Holy Spirit.

The most significant pieces of legislation during this convention were the budget; Resolution D025-- Commitment and Witness to the Anglican Communion; and Resolution C056--Liturgies for Blessings. The budget is perhaps the most important as it reflects a new focus on shifting work to the diocesan level and the development of diocesan and provincial networks to strengthen ministry from the ground up rather than the top down. As a result the staff at the Episcopal Church Center will decrease and the percentage of the asking from dioceses to support the budget of The Episcopal Church will be reduced. I applaud this direction as it mirrors the work we have done in the Diocese of Milwaukee.

Resolution D025 is titled Commitment and Witness to the Anglican Communion. It affirms the Episcopal Church's commitment to the Anglican Communion to “live in the highest degree of communion possible”, but also states that "God has called and may call" gay and lesbian persons to the ordained ministry in accordance with our canons. Some saw this resolution as a rejection of Resolution B033 of the 75th General Convention, others did not. I voted against this resolution because I believe it was unclear both in intent and content. The various interpretations of it in a wide variety of print and broadcast media confirmed my belief.  I am grateful for the letter issued today from the Presiding Bishop and the President of the House of Deputies to the Archbishop of Canterbury that clarifies this resolution, and urge you to read it yourself .  A copy can be found by following this link.

Resolution C056 calls for the collection and development of theological and liturgical resources with regard to same sex unions. I was one of 26 bishops who worked to find a common mind on this issue that would compel this church to have a much needed theological conversation regarding these matters and one of five who drafted the original substitute resolution that was adopted with amendment. I regret that the House of Bishops amended the language I proposed which asked the church to collect theological resources and design liturgies as I believe that language more clearly conveyed what we are asking of ourselves by means of this resolution.  We are asking the church through the Standing Liturgical Commission, in consultation with the House of Bishops, to wrestle with if this church were to approve rites for this purpose what might they look like. While the resolution is not as crisp as I would have liked, I believe it will help us all to have a deeper conversation about this matter and so I voted in favor of it.  I am particularly grateful that calls for us to honor all the different positions regarding this issue.

I want you all to know that I remain committed to the three moratoria requested in B033 from General Convention 2006 and to deep theological discussion regarding the issues outlined in the Windsor Report.  It is my intent to begin these discussions in the diocese in the coming months.  We are a diocese where all the baptized have a place in the conversation.

As we come to the end of the 76^th General Convention, I ask your prayers for safe travel home and look forward to seeing many of you at our post-Convention gatherings in August.

Yours in Christ,

The Right Rev. Steven A. Miller

Bishop of Milwaukee