As many of you know, the 75th General Convention of the Episcopal Church is set to meet this year, from June 13-21 in Columbus, Ohio . Because of the furor arising over certain events surrounding this gathering in 2003, I wanted to apprise the parish of the ways they can keep informed about this assembly’s proceedings, as well as make their views known to the bishops and deputies of our diocese.

First of all, I have updated the “Anglican Communion News and Resources” Page (temporarily renamed the “General Convention 2006 News and Resources” Page: www.pohick.org/anglican.html) with links to recently posted documents on the General Convention web site. Chief among these is the Report to the 75th General Convention, otherwise known as The Blue Book. It contains all the reports and resolutions arising from the various Standing Commissions of the Episcopal Church, along with those of other important committees.

As you might imagine, these reports and resolutions are wide ranging in subject matter. Most of them are non-controversial, and many are worthy of support (e.g., Resolution A058, adding C.S. Lewis and others to our church’s “Lesser Feasts and Fasts” calendar).

More controversial is a separately published document, “Report of the Special Commission on The Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion.” This was written in response to several statements from the larger Anglican Communion in the aftermath of our last General Convention’s confirmation of Gene Robinson’s election as the Bishop of New Hampshire.

While I am not yet prepared to offer detailed comments on this report, as it was only recently published, my first reading of this document leads me to view it as a recommendation that General Convention step back from the course it began to take three years ago. To be sure, the competing viewpoints of the drafting committee members can be discerned throughout the document and its accompanying resolutions. Nevertheless, I believe it is a good starting point for General Convention to begin thinking about the Episcopal Church’s place within the larger Anglican Communion, which would necessarily include its compliance with the Church’s established teachings on Human Sexuality.

The move in this direction seems to have been given impetus by the rather pointed remarks made by the Bishop of Exeter - an emissary of the Archbishop of Canterbury - in his address to the House of Bishops at their retreat in March of this year. Speaking about the upcoming General Convention, Bp. Michael Langrish stated, “any further consecration of those in a same sex relationship; any authorisation of any person to undertake same sex blessings; any stated intention not to seriously engage with The Windsor Report [the international report calling the Episcopal Church to reconsider the actions of the 74th General Convention] - will be read very widely as a declaration not to stay with the [Anglican] Communion.”

The directness of this address, coupled with mounting international pressure and growing internal dissent, seems to have led many bishops to rethink their positions on this matter. While it is unclear whether the finally approved resolutions will satisfy the Archbishop of Canterbury and all of the Primates, it now seems unlikely that a majority of bishops would consent to the election of a candidate such as the one put forth by the Diocese of New Hampshire three years ago. Bishop Lee himself has pledged not to do so.

Of course, there will be other items of business going on at the General Convention, including the election of a new Presiding Bishop. As you have time, please read through the various documents on the web page mentioned above. Then, as you feel God lead you, make your views known to our bishops and the Virginia deputation through the email links also included on that page (pjlee@thediocese.net; djones@thediocese.net; deputation75@thediocese.net). Keep in mind that the most effective communiqués are focused, concise, theologically thoughtful, and written with a tone of respect.

The Vestry and I will endeavor to keep the congregation informed about any late-breaking developments leading up to the Convention, as well as our consideration of any appropriate responses in its aftermath. In the meantime, please keep this meeting and our church in your prayers, that the bishops and deputies will respond favorably to the sage counsel of the Anglican Communion, understanding their entreaties to embody the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

*********************************

After distributing the Audio System Survey over two Sundays and in last month’s Pohick Post, we received 133 responses. Of these, 102 (77%) were in favor of adding a sound system to the Church, while 31 (23%) were opposed. One third of the respondents indicated that they had difficulty hearing during the services, which many of them elaborated upon in their comments. More than two-thirds of those replying indicated that they would be willing to contribute funds to underwrite such a system. Among both those for and against the proposed addition, there was concern expressed that it not detract from the historic look of our church. In addition, a number of respondents stated their desire that any system have a high-quality, authentic reproduction of the human voice.

After reviewing the results of the survey, the Vestry referred the matter to the Property Committee for exploration of various options that would meet the stated criteria, along with their price tags. The Jr. Warden will be reporting on these in future editions of the Pohick Post.