1General Synod Report February2015
General Synod Report
February 2015 Group of SessionsTruro Diocesan Synod 2nd May 2015
Perran Gay, Proctor in Convocation
2/5/2015
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Introduction• Very unusual Synod – central day set aside for
Reform and Renewal programme• This report
o Deals briefly with the other matters before Synodo Focusses on the elements of Reform and Renewal
• See Church of England website for more detailso Documentso Written transcript o Audio record
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General Business• Address by the Archbishop of the Chaldean
Diocese of Erbil, Iraq • Report on Immersion Experience in India
o A pilot to explore how Christian Aid might support the learning of those taking senior leadership roles within the Church of England
• Mission and Growth in Rural Multi-Parish Benefices• General Synod Elections - Seat Allocation
o Arrangements between Dioceseso New provisions for Universities
• Draft Amending Canon No.35o Allowing parish priest or Rural Dean to authorise lay persons to
distribute communiono Prelude to admitting children to this ministry
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General Business• Report of the Standing Orders Committee
o More time for the lawyerso Autonomy of Archbishops’ Councilo Non Synod Members to answer questions
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General Business• Draft Safeguarding and Clergy Discipline Measure
o More detailed work in a rapidly changing areao Input from Survivors Groups important
• Draft Naming of Dioceses Measure o Sought permission to name diocese either by see city or geographical area, and for name of
bishop to be different from name of diocese
o A fascinating debate on mission and ecclesiology
o Failed to pass in the House of Clergy
• Private Members Motion o asking for legislation to amend Canon B 38 so as to allow those who have taken their own life,
whatever the circumstances, to be buried in accordance with the rites of the Church of England.
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General Business• Christian Initiation: additional texts in accessible language • No further changes made in Revision debate (+Truro)• To House of Bishops for approval• Final Approval in July
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Reform and Renewal• A series of six reports including those from four
linked task groups• What follows is a summary of each one of them –
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What is it about?
What did Synod
decide?
What happens
next?
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Resourcing
Ministerial
Education
Developing
Discipleship
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Resourcing
Ministerial
Education
Developing
Discipleship
Resourcing the
Future
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Resourcing
Ministerial
Education
Developing
Discipleship
Resourcing the
Future
Senior Leaders
2/5/2015
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Resourcing
Ministerial
Education
Developing
Discipleship
Resourcing the
Future
Simplifi-cation
Senior Leaders
2/5/2015
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Resourcing
Ministerial
Education
Developing
Discipleship
Resourcing the
Future
Simplifi-cation
Financing the
Programme
Senior Leaders
2/5/2015
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The ReportsResourcin
g Ministeri
alEducation
Developing
Discipleship
Resourcing the
Future
Financing the Programme
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Reform and Renewal • Introduction by Archbishops
o Background – ecclesiology and declineo ‘Renewing and reforming aspects of our institutional life is a necessary
but far from sufficient response to the challenges facing the Church of England.’
• The general direction of travelo Continuing the change of culture with its emphasis on missiono Focussing and prioritising energyo Resourcing those prioritieso Clearing obstacles away from this work
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Resourcing
Ministerial
Education
Developing
Discipleship
Resourcing the
Future
Financing the Programme
2/5/2015
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Developing Discipleship
• Taking note of this report, the Synod commended the ‘Ten Marks for Developing Discipleship’ for dioceses to study and adopt and pass down to deaneries and parishes
• The Synod also invited the House of Bishops to prepare a Revised Catechism and identify and commission other resources o A light catechism - a digest of Christian teaching?o Or a full revision of the current Catechism? (a liturgical process so lots
of Synodical time and energy)
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The Ten Marks1. A lifelong journey of discipleship and growth in
Christian maturity is supported and modelled by all.
2. The importance of discipleship in daily life is affirmed.
3. Gatherings for worship celebrate the discipleship of all the baptized.
4. Disciples are equipped to help others to become followers of Jesus.
5. Diocesan work on vocations is based on the principle that all the baptized are called into God’s service.
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The Ten Marks6. Good practice in facilitating learning and
formation is developed. 7. Gifts of leadership are recognised and developed
among all the baptised. 8. Innovation and experiment are encouraged in
mission, ministry and discipleship. 9. Specific diocesan policies and plans promote
discipleship development.10.Diocesan resources are committed to the
development of the whole people of God.
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Resourcing
Ministerial
Education
Developing
Discipleship
Resourcing the
Future
Simplifi-cation
Financing the
Programme
Senior Leaders
2/5/2015
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Resourcing Ministerial Education
• The Vision• Every minister equipped to offer collaborative
leadership in mission and to be adaptable in a rapidly changing context
• A cohort of candidates for ministry who are younger, more diverse and with a wider range of gifts to serve God’s mission
• An increase of at least 50% in ordinations on 2013 figures sustained annually from 2020
• The rapid development of lay ministries • A continued commitment to an ordained and lay
ministry which serves the whole Church both geographically and in terms of church tradition.
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Resourcing Ministerial Education
oHow?
• More vocations work – being proactive
• Greater powers to dioceses to make decisions about forms of training
• New funding for lay ministry candidates
• Measures to improve quality in selection and education
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Resourcing Ministerial Education
o Some proposals• A Personal Learning Plan for all candidates more
flexible than Bishops’ Regulations• Priority national funding for gifted individuals for
strategic roles:- teaching and research, missional leaders, poorer parishes
• September ordinations to add to training period available
• Candidates over 50 will be selected locally by the Bishop and the cost of their training will fall to the Diocese
• National selection and funding for younger candidates for lay ministry
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Resourcing Ministerial Education
oWhat next?
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Consult
Dioceses and Traine
rs
Abps Coun
cil Decid
es
Synod ScrutinisesFeb
2016
Budget
July 2016
ImplementSeptember 2017
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Resourcing
Ministerial
Education
Developing
Discipleship
Resourcing the
Future
Simplifi-cation
Financing the
Programme
Senior Leaders
2/5/2015
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Resourcing the Future• Objective:
• ‘Removing the current formula systems which provide mechanical, ineffective subsidy and replacing them with investment focussed on fulfilling dioceses’ strategic plans for growth, with a strong bias towards the poor.’
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Resourcing the Future• How?
• Over a ten year transition period from the present system to the new system
• All money available for Dioceses should be invested for mission and growth
• Half for the support of development of mission in the poorest communities, using objective measures of need and in conversation with dioceses
• Half for pro-active investment in growth to be applied for by dioceses on a matched funding basis, with a bias in the distribution to the poorest
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Resourcing the Future• What next?
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Consult Diocese
s
Abps Council decides
Synod Scrutinises Feb
2016
ImplementJan
2017
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Resourcing
Ministerial
Education
Developing
Discipleship
Resourcing the
Future
Simplifi-cation
Financing the
Programme
Senior Leaders
2/5/2015
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Developing and Nurturing Senior
Leaders• Background
o From a long period of reflection on the complexity of senior ordained leadership
o Recent inactivity and lack of transparency within the preferment listo Lack of process for proper development for posts of wider responsibility
• Proposalso Leadership development through exposure to ‘the voice without’ – disciplines
from the business world and elsewhere
o A mini-MBA for Deans
o A mandatory modular programme for bishops based on the Archbishops’ Council 3 quinquennial goals – Contributing to the Common Good, Leading the Church for Growth, Re-shaping Ministry, together with an underlying theme of Building Healthy Organisations
o The creation of a talent pool and an alumni network for exceptional individuals to enable proper preparation for wider responsibility
o Cost – about £2m from 2014 – 2016, then £785,000 a year from 2017
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Developing and Nurturing Senior
Leaders• What next?• Already underway – implementation plan agreed
by House of Bishops• Recognized that further reporting back to Synod
is required – and discussion of another report from FOAC on Senior Church Leadership which displays some similarities with the Green Report but also some striking differences.
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Resourcing
Ministerial
Education
Developing
Discipleship
Resourcing the
Future
Simplifi-cation
Financing the
Programme
Senior Leaders
2/5/2015
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Simplification• The longest and most complicated of the reports!
• Why simplification?
• Legislation based on building in safeguards for all possible eventualities – so enormous complexity.
• Not trying to remove important checks and balances, but believes that Church has been overcautious in e.g. pastoral reorganisation, and new mission initiatives
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Simplification• Recommendations address three levels of concern
• Immediate major hindrances to mission
• Weighty and worthy bureaucracy and procedure
• Redundant paperwork
• Largely focussed on Clergy Terms of Service, and Mission and Pastoral Measure
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Simplification• 19 recommendations including
o More fixed term appointments under Common Tenureo SSM Statements of particularso Pastoral scheme consultationo Team and group ministries – finding other ways to work togethero Closed churcheso Bishop’s Mission Orderso Clergy compensation for loss of office through pastoral organisationo Patronage lapsing to Bishop, not Archbishop
• What next?o Consultation nowo Common Tenure changes possibly this Julyo Mission and Pastoral Measure changes during lifetime of next Synod
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Simplification• Linked with this report but not one of the ‘big six’
and not debated by Synod:• OPTIMISING THE ROLE OF THE NATIONAL
CHURCH INSTITUTIONS (GS Misc 1094)• Includes a new enabling measure that would
simplify the process for amending existing church legislation by order rather than measure
• Suggests a reduction in the length of General Synod sessions, and more national working through conference calls to save expensive travel
• May be introduced to the new Synod in November
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Resourcing
Ministerial
Education
Developing
Discipleship
Resourcing the
Future
Simplifi-cation
Financing the
Programme
Senior Leaders
2/5/2015
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Financing the Programme
• Church Commissioners’ Funds and Inter-generational Equity
• Special extra funding needed for the whole Reform and Renewal programme
• Church Commissioners could legitimately provide it without endangering their other responsibilitieso – unlike the ‘bad’ over-distribution of funds which led to difficulties in the
early 1990s
• Synod supported this proposal• Specific requests for funding to be made to the
Archbishops’ Council in the light of the emerging conclusions on the various elements of the reform programme
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Resourcing
Ministerial
Education
Developing
Discipleship
2/5/2015
General Synod Report February2015
49
Resourcing
Ministerial
Education
Developing
Discipleship
Resourcing the
Future
2/5/2015
General Synod Report February2015
50
Resourcing
Ministerial
Education
Developing
Discipleship
Resourcing the
Future
Senior Leaders
2/5/2015
General Synod Report February2015
51
Resourcing
Ministerial
Education
Developing
Discipleship
Resourcing the
Future
Simplifi-cation
Senior Leaders
2/5/2015
General Synod Report February2015
52
Resourcing
Ministerial
Education
Developing
Discipleship
Resourcing the
Future
Simplifi-cation
Financing the
Programme
Senior Leaders
2/5/2015
General Synod Report February2015
53
Reform and RenewalResourcin
g Ministeria
lEducation
Developing
Discipleship
Resourcing the
Future
Simplifi-cation
Financing the
Programme
Senior Leaders
2/5/2015