Synod 2009 a successful combination of generous spirit, careful planning and creative thinking

By Ana Watts

A generous spirit, careful planning and creative thinking made the 130th Synod of the Diocese of Fredericton successful in every way. A realistic agenda, professional technical support, thoughtful worship and study times, a colourful backdrop designed especially for the event, all combined to create a positive experience. Saint John even offered warm, sunny weather for the meeting held harbourside in Market Square at the Trade and Convention Centre.

About the only sad note was word of the death of the Rev. John Pearce at the beginning of the business meeting on Friday morning. A no nonsense, out spoken and well loved cleric, he remained fully engaged in ministry well into his 80s and actively served in the Parish of Kent at the time of his death. Delegates from his parish returned home as soon as they heard the news.

The Choral Evensong service at Trinity Church that opened Synod on Thursday evening, June 4, was a spectacular celebration, beginning with a grand procession of choirs, clergy, dignitaries, the bishop and the primate. Accompanied by a police escort, they walked from the east entrance of Trinity on Charlotte Street to King Street, down King to Germain Street, and up Germain to the grand west entrance to Trinity. The church was packed with delegates and other interested Anglicans. The bishop’s charge embraced the synod theme — Celebrating God’s Grace … Responding to God’s Challenge, and set the stage for delegates to fashion a foundation for transformative change from the work done by Diocesan Council, the task forces on budget support, and rural/struggling parishes, as well as the stewardship study conducted by the National Church.

The opening service was not the only elegant event at synod. On Friday evening, June 5, Archbishop Fred Hiltz, Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, spoke at a very well attended gala dinner held in the posh new dining room at Rothesay Netherwood School. Toward the end of the evening the winning bidder in the silent auction of a painting in support of the Primate’s World Relief and Development Fund, through the Canadian Foodgrains Bank, was announced.

On Saturday morning, Holy Eucharist was celebrated in the grand hall of the Trade and Convention Centre. The three draped spinnakers (sails) and the handcrafted hangings, including an eight by eight-foot quilt with the synod logo appliquéd on it, made a fitting backdrop for the service. The cloth for the 12-foot altar as well as a burse and veil were also hand made for the service.

A great deal of business was also accomplished at synod.

A new and holistic formula for budget support was passed. It liberates the synod treasurer who has been bound by frozen parish income rates in recent years.

Synod named specific recommendations from the Rural and/or Struggling Parishes task force report to be considered and prioritized by the Bishop and Diocesan Council for implementation (subject to available funding as identified by the Bishop and Diocesan Council). It is this report that calls for transformational change. The resulting actions will be accompanied by a comprehensive communication plan documenting the need for the changes and what they will mean New Brunswick Anglicans.

Parish-based stewardship education initiatives can be expected across the diocese; the value and the effectiveness of current diocesan governance structures and processes will be evaluated with an eye toward efficiency and economy. The diocese’s commitment to children and youth and the positions necessary to support these ministries were articulated and endorsed; and before Synod 2011, New Brunswick Anglicans will further investigate the issue of embryonic stem cell research.

Resolutions concerning the blessing of same-gender relationships as well as ministries in support of gay/lesbian/trans-gendered persons were discussed and decided without apparent rancour.

Delegates to General and Provincial Synods and members of Diocesan Council were elected. All the resolution and elections results are available here.

 

Diocesan Communications
16 June 2009