But what is it trying to teach? Fred Hiltz seems to think that structural changes are the answer, while Dennis Drainville wants to \u201cfocus on mission\u201d \u2013 although by \u201cmission\u201d, he means more vigorous leftist political agitation rather than the saving of souls.<\/p>\n
James Cowan wants to \u201cview the challenges as an opportunity\u201d, a sure sign that he was asleep for most of the meeting.<\/p>\n
It doesn’t seem to have occurred to anyone that perhaps the malady is a consequence of the beliefs <\/em>of the Anglican Church of Canada not the inadequacy of its structures, programs or bogus \u201cmissions\u201d.<\/p>\n If what most of the church leadership believes is nonsense \u2013 and it is \u2013 why would God bless the church, why would people give it money and why does it deserve to survive?<\/p>\n From here<\/a>:<\/p>\n Archbishop Fred Hiltz, primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, kicked off the fall meeting (Nov. 15-18) of the Council of General Synod (CoGS) in Mississauga, Ont. by urging members to view declining revenues and a looming budget shortfall as a \u201cteaching moment handed to us by God.\u201d<\/p>\n What\u2019s needed now, said Hiltz is \u201ctransformational change.\u201d He called on members to find \u201cthe courage to let go of our deep attachments to old ways and structures\u201d and to \u201cdare to imagine new scenarios.\u201d In recent years, the church has attempted to effect change but \u201cthe structures don\u2019t really look very different,\u201d Hiltz noted.<\/p>\n CoGS members are being asked to discuss ideas that support priorities set out in the church\u2019s 10-year strategic plan, Vision 2019. These priorities include envisioning a more streamlined structure for General Synod. The work being done at CoGS is part of a series of discussions that will take place over the next eight months leading up to General Synod 2013 in July. In January, Hiltz is convening a national consultation in Toronto to look at the future of church.<\/p>\n In its written report to CoGS, the financial management committee (FMC) has stressed that \u201crevenues have been declining more rapidly than expected\u201d and as a result, anticipated deficits for 2013 and beyond \u201chave materialized much earlier than expected.\u201d \u00a0This weekend, CoGS will be asked to approve a 2013 budget with a proposed deficit of $513,000.<\/p>\n Rob Dickson, FMC chair, cited declining membership as a factor for the deficit. Diocesan giving has been declining annually at an average rate of 3%, said Dickson, adding that capital fundraising initiatives undertaken by the national office in partnership with dioceses are \u201cnot a quick fix.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" But what is it trying to teach? Fred Hiltz seems to think that structural changes are the answer, while Dennis Drainville wants to \u201cfocus on mission\u201d \u2013 although by \u201cmission\u201d, he means more vigorous leftist political agitation rather than the … Continue reading