The Life and Mission Agency committee met in November to hear from LMA staff about their work, to chat with the General Secretary, and to participate in a blanket exercise and listen to a special guest from Mistawasis Memorial Church near Prince Albert, Sask.
The committee also discussed the proposal to move to biennial General Assemblies, asking to hear from staff about how the change would affect their work. Most commented that the move would be a positive one, freeing up time to do good work, to possibly offer other conferences and educational events, and to respond to overtures that come from assembly, rather than spending many hours to write the lengthy reports that required for GA every year.
“We need to be able to change and envision something different,” said Glynis Williams, associate secretary of International Ministries, the department responsible for the church’s missionaries. “There are ways to respond to a new reality, and we shouldn’t be afraid of it.”
Rick Fee, general secretary, reiterated that the call for biennial assemblies “is not Wynford-driven,” noting that the “whole church needs a review,” and lamenting that all aspects of governance and organization such as synod and presbytery, aren’t being examined along with General Assembly. He also noted the financial considerations, and the fact that with electronic communication, the church has many more options to do things differently, yet effectively.
The committee listened to these responses and is drafting a list of pros and cons around each scenario and sending it to the Assembly Council for information.
Ken Kim, associate secretary of PWS&D, shared the results from an online survey conducted by his department. There were 250 respondents, and while the results are too lengthy to note here (watch an upcoming issue of the Record for more!) the overall takeaway was that both the church and PWS&D’s international partners have a high level of confidence in the work of the agency, though there were some questions raised around the countries where PWS&D works (in particular, the number of countries), and their work around climate change.
The committee also heard from Delores Werchola from Mistawasis Memorial Church. Werchola is a direct descendant of Chief Mistawasis, was born and raised on the Mistawasis reserve, and attended a residential school run by the Anglican Church for seven years. She spoke about her work as a social worker, and the work she does to help strengthen relationships between St. Paul’s in Prince Albert, Sask., and the Presbyterian church on the Mistawasis reserve.
The committee also participated in a blanket exercise—an interactive exercise that helps demonstrate the plight of aboriginal peoples in Canada beginning with when Europeans first came to this land, up to residential schools, apologies from churches, and government laws and reconciliation. The exercise is available through the Church’s Justice Ministries department.
Regional staffing was also discussed in response to two overtures from General Assembly, both asking that monies be found to continue funding regional staff at the current levels for the next five years. A small committee was set up to work on the response to the overtures and will report to the committee’s March meeting.
