The first full day of proceedings brought a bit of everything to the members of the 2013 Joint Assembly between Canadian Anglicans and Lutherans, and to the first session of the Anglican General Synod.
In the morning delegates to the Joint Assembly were introduced to the history and current state of full communion between Canadian Lutherans and Anglicans inaugurated in 2001. Stories of how ministry is shared locally, nationally and internationally were shared, table groups engaged in conversations about the life and work of their parishes and congregations. In its first resolution, the Joint Assembly overwhelmingly supported the continuation of a national commission to extend this work further.A presentation on resource extraction stimulated conversations again at table groups about members’ own views and experiences of the mining industry both in Canada and internationally. I am at a table with a number of Albertans so the discussion was rich and far from a single view. Our discussions within the diocese of New Westminster’s council were very helpful as we approached these issues.
Greetings from international Anglicans and Lutheran leaders enabled the assembly to understand the uniqueness of this Joint Assembly and its significance beyond Canada.
In the afternoon ‘the wall came down’ in the large meeting room where the assembly has been meeting allowing for separate spaces for the two denominations to work at their own business agendas. At the General Synod meeting, after the necessary constitutional work to convene, Archbishop Fred Hiltz gave his Presidential Address reviewing the life of the Anglican Church of Canada from his perspective over the past 3 years. It was moving to hear him describe his visits to dioceses, his support of the work of the church in the north; he commended the work of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and kept the theme of mission very much before the synod. He spoke of the hope that he experiences as he participates in the life of the church—and encouraged us to have hope also through these changing times.
The work begun at General Synod in Halifax in 2010 through the strategic plan “Vision 2019” was highlighted with its focus on the 5 Marks of Mission of the Anglican Communion and its clarion call to be a church engaging in God’s mission. Resolutions growing from the Governance Working Group and the task force on structures occupied the balance of the day with major changes to Canons that will now allow for the National Indigenous Anglican Bishop and the Bishop to the Canadian Forces to be elected by their respective constituencies. After a spirited debate a resolution reducing membership in the majority of the General Synod’s standing committees was passed—it envisions new ways of working—regional task groups taking on pieces of national church work for shorter terms.
In elections Archdeacon Harry Huskins of the Diocese of Algoma was elected Prolocutor, Cynthia Haines-Turner as Deputy; members of the Council of General Synod from the diocese of New Westminster will be Archdeacon Lynne MacNaughton for her second term and Alex Starr as Youth.
Image: Members of Joint Assembly - General Synod from the Diocese of New Westminster, Jane Osler and Archdeacon Ellen Clark-King. PHOTO: Peter Elliott