July and August, 2009
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General Convention

This week begins one of the major events in the life of the Episcopal Church, the triennial General Convention. Every three years, laity, clergy and bishops from every diocese in the church gather for legislative sessions and worship. This year’s gathering in Anaheim, California began on July 8 and runs through July 17.

The structure of General Convention should seem familiar to any student of American government. That is because some of the same people were involved in founding the governmental systems of both the nation and the church.

Like the federal government, General Convention has two houses – the House of Deputies and the House of Bishops. The House of Deputies consists of both lay and clergy delegates (four each), who are elected by their dioceses. The House of Bishops consists of all bishops, active and retired. Legislation and resolutions must be approved by both houses in order to pass.

The responsibilities of General Convention are numerous. They must approve the national church budget, approve all church canon law, and approve any changes in the Book of Common Prayer or Hymnal.

Here are some of the issues that will be coming before the convention this year:

• Establishing a national church health insurance program, which would cover all employees of the Episcopal Church. Doing this would create a larger coverage pool, which would translate to lower insurance costs for churches.
  
• Approving the budget for the national church for the next three years. This is not an easy task, particularly with a projected $9 million shortfall over this time period.
  
• Establishing new liturgies for loss related to childbearing and childbirth, and new prayers for artists and writers, the care of God’s creation, the anniversary of a disaster, and scientists and environmentalists.
  
• Resolutions on economic justice issues, including establishing a program to help alleviate poverty in Appalachia and Native American reservations.
  
• Proposal for full communion with the Moravian Church.
  
• Revisions of the church’s disciplinary canons for clergy and other employees.

And, of course, it would not be General Convention without discussions and resolutions about human sexuality. This year, much of the debate is expected to center around resolution B033, passed in 2006, which calls for a moratorium on consecrating gay and lesbian bishops, and on blessing same-sex relationships.

Resolution B033 was one of the most controversial issues of the 2006 convention. It was passed by the House of Bishops, but defeated by the House of Deputies. Then, on the last day of convention, newly-elected Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori made an unusual appearance before the House of Deputies and asked them to reconsider their vote for the sake of the Anglican Communion. This time the resolution narrowly passed.

However, in the last year there have been numerous calls for the resolution to be repealed, or for new legislation to override it. At our diocesan council last November, a resolution to repeal B033 passed overwhelmingly. Many other dioceses passed similar resolutions.

There will be many news stories about the actions in Anaheim. I recommend three sources of information. The website for Episcopal Life, a newsletter of the national church; Episcopal Café, a very good blog; and the website for the Diocese of Atlanta, where our bishops and delegates will be posting daily blogs.

And in the days ahead, I ask you to keep the participants at General Convention in your prayers.

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A Prayer for Summer Travels

 

O God, whose glory fills the whole creation, and whose presence we find wherever we go: Preserve those who travel, particularly members of this congregation; surround them with your loving care; protect them from every danger; and bring them in safety to their journeys' end; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

 

Amen

 

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Announcements

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Welcome to Tom Gibbs!

Please join me in welcoming our new organist and choir director, Tom Gibbs, to St. Dunstan’s. Tom’s first day with us will be Sunday, July 19th.

Tom recently retired as professor of music at Birmingham Southern, where he taught for 37 years. He also has more than 20 years experience as a church musician, including 12 years as choir director at the Cathedral Church of the Advent in Birmingham, and six as choir director and organist at Grace Episcopal Church there.

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Christian Education

Many Make VBS a Success

Learning about taking care of the earth …worship …friendship …art …play…music …drama…cooking…all of this and more took place at St. Dunstan’s 2009 VBS, Go Green with God.

Highlights included a visit from a beekeeper (with some bees!); an hilarious and informative puppet show; and a presentation about water pollution done by Keep North Fulton Clean and Beautiful.

Above all, our week together was a wonderful experience of community which could not have happened without the contributions of many, many people. Thank you to all, especially Michelle Mundth, Michele Smither, Tricia Templeton, Tom Elston, Pat Berman, Gilda Morris, Tami Kimball, Elaine Wong, and Helen Branch. Thanks, too, to the youth who very ably shepherded the 16 children who attended: Lindsey Reese, Sophie Goldwasser, Meg Withers, Katie Richardson, Molly Herman-Gallow, and Will Vesey.

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Dream Group Starting

1st and 3rd Sundays, September 20 through December 20,
6:30 to 8:00 p.m. Limited to 8 persons.

“Suppose someone told you that there was something that spoke to you every night, that always presented you with a truth about your own life and soul, that was tailor-made to your individual needs and particular life-story, and that offered to guide you throughout your lifetime and connect you with a source of wisdom far beyond yourself. And, furthermore, suppose that all of this was absolutely free. Naturally you would be astonished that something like this existed. Yet this is exactly the way it is with our dreams.” ~ John A. Sanford, Episcopal priest and Jungian analyst, Dreams and Healing

Come join us for a bimonthly exploration of our dreams and discover the guidance and wisdom they offer. We will use various approaches to working with dreams, primarily informed by the work of C. G. Jung, psychoanalyst and pioneer of dream work. A suggested reading: Dreams: God’s Forgotten Language by John A. Sanford.

The group will be led by Dr. Renée LeStrange, a Licensed Professional Counselor, psychotherapist in private practice in Atlanta, and former director of the Clinical Services Division of the C. G. Jung Center in Evanston, IL. Renée has worked with dreams for many years, both with clients in psychotherapy and with groups in pastoral care settings and in her own life.

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The title may cause you to ask, “Why are we so late with the numbers?” The reason is that the Treasurer’s report for May is given to the Vestry at the June meeting (after the end of May), and then reported to the parish in the next issue of The Bellows. We are pressed to crowd these dates at the end of the year, but through the other months there is this built-in lag. Thus the May numbers below.

I begin to think that all the exhortations about spreading gifts throughout the year has had an effect, because we continue to do pretty well against budget. I certainly hope we can continue this throughout the summer, when so many people are elsewhere. Thanks to everyone who has taken this to heart.

For the last three weeks we’ve been dealing with check counterfeiters. A check of ours was stolen and a bunch printed up against our account. We aren’t out any money, but we are certainly out time, and you can scarcely imagine the nuisance. Putting checks in your street-side mailbox for pick-up is a dangerous habit. Take a lesson from this experience and mail your payments elsewhere.

~Dick Harris

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Many thanks to Peachy Horne, for overseeing the planting of 72 new trees and bushes on our property. The plantings are from the City of Atlanta to replace trees and shrubs cut down while replacing the sewer line.

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