Reflections from Synod: Andrea McKellar

I am sitting in the Kanuga Inn lobby soaking up the last moments of peacefulness and wi-fi before heading to a weekend with my family. 

The view from the back porch of the Kanuga Inn

Today, we got a taste of what the legislative sessions will be like at General Convention.  We had three resolutions that were put before us:

1. A Resolution endorsing "A Memorial to the Church".  I recommend you read the Memorial if you have not already.  I won't vote for all of the resolutions but I applaud the efforts of the group that put this together to take the vision of TREC and keep the work going.  I think that we will be discussing these things for many years, possibly decades, and I am glad to be part of a church that isn't afraid to try new things.

This Resolution was approved, without debate, on a divided voice-vote. 

2. An Amendment to Canon I.9 (full text on page 44 here if you are feeling curious) to add a purpose for Provinces of The Episcopal Church.  A little clarification was necessary because it wasn't clear if we were adding a section or replacing a section.  Once we were all on the same page, it was approved with some minor changes.  Purposes are good and I was glad that they suggested this.  There are other similar resolutions already before General Convention so I hope the committee will make these cohesive before they come to the floor. 

Province IV has been exceedingly supportive of our diocese and I personally have benefitted from their help in my work for our diocese and my church.  I hope provinces will stay or at least a "Convocation of Southeastern Dioceses"(my term) or similar group so we can keep the networking and friendships that benefit us all.

3.  A Resolution to condemn persecution of Christians and call for a Church-Wide Day of Prayer in remembrance of martyrs. This is where things got interesting, or really, really boring, depending on what you like to do for fun.  There were much discussion, multiple amendments, which a number were approved but many weren't, and a lot of parliamentary procedure, which I am not as familiar with as I should be. 

Do I want to condemn persecution of Christians? Yes! Do I think we should pray for those who are persecuted? Yes! Do I think we need to take up General Conventions time with lots of feel good resolutions that probably won't change the daily life of those in our pews? No!  This is the part of General Convention that is frustrating to me and we aren't even there yet.  It was a good introduction to our deputation about what issues will come up in Salt Lake City and the minutiae that will make us want to beat our heads against a wall.  The resolution was passed after some good modifications and I learned a lot from the experience.

Now we are all headed home, or to visit friends and family.  The next time we will all see each other is in Salt Lake City.  18 days until I get on the airplane!  I have a lot more reading to do and would be interested in hearing from parishioners and clergy in The Episcopal Church in South Carolina if you have strong feelings about these or any other issues before General Convention.  Feel free to leave comments below or contact any of our deputies directly using the links on the right of this page.