Thoughts from Eileen O'Brien

The operational theme for General Convention 2009 seems to be reconciliation – reconciliation between humanity and creation, global and ecumenical reconciliation, and reconciliation within our own communities that face the strains of, not only the economic crisis, but a deeper crisis of identity.

Issues of equity are receiving consideration in a variety of committee venues. Today (July 9), the Church Pension Fund unanimously approved a proposal for a denominational health plan which will give lay and clergy employees greater parity in terms of access to health insurance. Resolution A177 will be considered by the House of Bishops tomorrow and has a strong foundation of support. Resolution A138 also addresses lay and clergy employee parity by putting muscle behind the establishment of a mandatory lay employee pension system, which was resolved in 1991 but not universally enacted across the dioceses.

What does this legislation have to do with youth and young adults in the church? By improving clergy and lay parity in terms of compensation and benefits (including health insurance, pension, and continuing education), the church validates its lay professionals and makes traditional lay employee roles (such as youth and young adult ministries) into viable career paths for qualified and called individuals. Youth ministries in particular suffer from high turnover rates because leadership positions are seen as transitional jobs. This legislation is a start on the path towards developing a better equipped lay leadership for the church.

Today the Prayer Book, Liturgy and Church Music Committee held hearings on a slew of resolutions dealing with blessings of same sex civil unions/holy unions/marriage. This hearing was an opportunity for the committee to hear many impassioned pleas from clergy trying to provide compassionate pastoral care for their parishioners, young people urging the church to model openness and diversity for their communities, and GLBT advocates who called for the church to recognize the grace and blessing of all monogamous, committed and loving relationships.

While the vast majority of voices at the hearings articulated support for the development of rites for blessing, it was acknowledged that in the church as a whole, there is a lack of broad consensus around the thorny theological issues at the heart of this debate. As the specific language of the resolutions is developed in committee, it is expected that this lack of consensus will become more evident. Tonight the Committee on World Mission is holding hearings on resolutions that address B033 and the “all sacraments for all the baptized” initiative. Tomorrow morning, the House of Deputies will meet in plenary to have a conversation about the same issues.

Tomorrow afternoon (July 10), another important piece of legislation related to global reconciliation in response to the Windsor report will be examined through hearings in the World Mission committee. Resolution D020 calls for the provisional commitment to abide by the Cambridge-Ridley draft of an Anglican Covenant and the commendation of the covenant to dioceses for study and comment. While it is unlikely that this resolution will pass as written, it would be surprising if it were not commended to the dioceses for study and comment over the next three years. In effect, dioceses and congregations would be called into a study process which gets at the heart of our identity as a catholic (with a little “c”) denomination.

The Covenant recognizes our interdependence as a global communion and sets up some specific mechanisms for conflict resolution, but will it really serve as “an instrument of unity” or will it simply define more clearly who is in and who is out? It is naïve to think that such a document can mitigate the need for continued work at reconciliation and relationship across the communion, but will it provide a helpful springboard into the next phase of this process?

Ms. O'Brien is the Director of Youth and Young Adult Ministries at Christ Church Cathedral.