Posted Saturday 12 June 2010
The day started with Morning Prayer lead by Rev Samantha Ferguson.
Business got underway with a presentation by the Convener of the Mission and Ministry Board, the Most Rev David Chillingworth, on the Board’s Whole Church Mission and Ministry Policy, saying “what we hope for is sufficient clarity about our direction to enable people to see how things relate to one another. It is sufficient clarity about our priorities to enable consistent and transparent decisions to be made about the use of our scarce resources and to produce the kind of culture in which the church can be energised for mission and growth rather than preoccupied with fragility and decline. When we started trying to define a policy, some felt that it would be a rather abstract exercise - that our challenge would be to relate it to what actually happens in the life of the church. But what has been happening is that questions have begun to arise in our life – and people can see that the answers to those questions lie in our understanding of where they fit into the overall policy. There are two examples of that. The first is our need to consider what kind of ministry we need and how we are going to sustain it in places where the financial resources to do that are not present – it’s the augmentation issue but there is more to it than that. Another is the complex of issues which stretches from the desire of dioceses to provide patterns of training for Lay Ministry which will have some inter-diocesan consistency –to the potential for shared training which arises from our EMU partnership. These and other issues have given a depth and a reality to our attempts to develop a ‘whole church’ policy.” The Motion was seconded by Rev Fay Lamont and was carried unanimously.
This was followed by a presentation by the Provincial Overseas Committee in which Mary McKinnell spoke about her experience of leading a visit of young people from the Diocese of Aberdeen & Orkney to Mthatha last year, accompanied by the Rt Rev Dr Bob Gillies, Bishop of Aberdeen & Orkney.
The Bishop of Moray, Ross & Caithness, The Rt Rev Mark Strange, introduced the Rural Commission Report, which produced much discussion before Motions 11 - 19 were carried.
In the session on the Committee for Relations with People of other Faiths, committee member Rev John Conway advised that the Scottish Episcopal Church is the most active Scottish Church engaged in interfaith issues but warned this is not cause for resting on laurels but called for further engagement. The Committee Convener, Rev Donald Reid, spoke about the this year’s Festival of Spirituality and Peace (taking place in St John’s Episcopal Church, Princes Street, Edinburgh 7-30 August, which will reflect the theme of ‘treat others as you would like to be treated’.)
The morning’s business came to a close with a report on the Pension Fund. Simon McIntosh, Chairman of the Fund, advised Synod of changes in Strategy and Fund Manager for the Pension Fund in that now all investment is in pooled funds with no direct investment.
The afternoon session began with presentations by the Administration Board, Investment Committee, Finance Committee and Buildings Advisory Committe, and voting on a number of Motions re Canons for Second Reading, which were all carried.
The most recently elected member of the College of Bishops the Rt Rev Dr Gregor Duncan, Bishop of Glasgow & Galloway introduced a session on the College of Bishops by giving examples of a typical agenda for a meeting of the College of Bishops - highlighting the diversity of items and the varying levels of time required to consider them.
Following voting on some amendments to Canons for First Reading and presentations by the Liturgy Committee and the Church Relations Committe, the Primus welcomed the Presiding Bishop of The Episcopal Church, the Most Rev Dr Katharine Jefferts Schori who spoke about the imperatives of mission and ministry and reflected on the shared heritage with the Scottish Episcopal Church.
Category: General Synod 2010
