"What we’re sharing is
not yet a highly crafted, totally thought-through plan. We are sharing
where we’ve got to with the story so far. But we need your help. We are
going to shape this together. As a Leadership Team, we think we have the
broad outline of the plot so far – we know how the story starts and a
pretty good idea of where it needs to end. We’ve begun to see who the
key characters are and how they need to grow within the story.
"Now,
with you, we need to work out the chapter headings and the pace of the
narrative. Then we can begin to inhabit this evolving and changing story
together, which is our story, and Christ’s story in this place. Some of
that we will do today. Some we will do in the New Year."
He spoke of five themes becoming clear from the process so far:
- We cannot carry on as we are.
- We need a compelling vision.
- We need to be a more generous Church.
- The Church is for the world.
- We need to see in the Diocese of York a huge growth in vocations to ministry in the church, both lay and ordained.
WELCOME TO DIOCESAN SYNOD
Diocesan
Secretary Canon Peter Warry introduced the working of Diocesan Synod
for the benefit of those members newly-elected to serve for the next
three years. He commended the full Standing Orders that can be
downloaded from ‘What is Diocesan Synod’ at www.dioceseofyork.org.uk/diocesansynod,
and ended by reminding members to ‘own’ the synod’s decisions,
reporting them to others as “we decided” rather than “they decided”.
NEXT BISHOP OF HULL
Synod
discussed and overwhelmingly endorsed Archbishop Stephen’s resolution
that a new Bishop of Hull should be appointed following Bishop Alison
White’s retirement in February 2022. The resolution is required by the
national church before an appointment can be made. A brief debate
affirmed Bishop Alison’s ministry and the importance of the post to the
East Riding Archdeaconry as well as the City of Hull, and acknowledged
that the stipend and working costs of a bishop are not met by the
Diocese.
LIVING CHRIST’S STORY
Archdeacon
of York Sam Rushton, who on the 15th November began a six-month
secondment to the post of Interim Diocesan Director for Strategic
Transformation, introduced an hour’s presentation and discussion on the
developing proposals for the future resourcing and staffing of the
Diocese that are emerging from the consultations with deaneries and
parishes during 2021.
Updates on the Generous Giving programme,
and from Director of Mission & Ministry Ian McIntosh embracing the
Mustard Seed and Multiply projects as well as the development of a new
team embracing ministerial discernment and formation (to include York
School of Ministry), had been included in the pre-Synod papers.
Referring
to the Archbishop’s Presidential Address, (qv) Sam and Archdeacon of
the East Riding Andy Broom updated the Synod on the likely process of
developing the consultation responses into a programme of transformation
beginning with Deanery planning early in 2022 and feeding into a new
diocesan plan and budget during the year.
Synod was invited to
consider what it means to Live Christ’s Story, and where we are starting
from as a diocese, and whether the basis for our plans should be
maintenance of a status quo showing inexorable decline, or for planned
growth in church membership and income; our attitudes to inform the next
steps and appetite for change.
Breakout groups were invited to
consider the scale and nature of change they were prepared to embrace
and to contribute their thoughts via Zoom’s ‘chat’ facility for
consideration following the meeting.
FINANCE
Introducing
the proposed Diocesan Budget for 2022, Finance Director Kathryn Rose
noted that the likely financial results for 2021 were broadly within the
budget, including anticipated levels of Free Will Offer received for
the Common Fund from parishes, despite the difficulties and
uncertainties thrown up by the COVID pandemic.
With 2021 not yet
complete, investment performance appeared to have been strong, and news
had recently been received of a substantial grant from the national
church to help the process of post-COVID recovery.
However,
looking ahead, if the Diocese does not transform its finances in the
near future, it is projected that the level of financial reserves will
fall below the recommended safe level (four months’ expenditure) in
2024-25; this projection is partly a reflection of the failure of Free
Will Offerings to the Common Fund to keep pace with inflation from the
system’s adoption in 2014 to the beginning of the pandemic in 2020, and
underscores the necessity for the Diocese to review its activities to
live within its means.
Synod gave 98% support to the motion, “This
Synod approves the Budget for 2022… and authorises the Diocesan Board
of Finance to expend a sum of £14,745,000 with the facility to draw up
to £250,000 of contingency in addition from reserves.”
www.dioceseofyork.org.uk/finance
THE ENVIRONMENT
After
lunch, Green Ambassador for the Diocese of York the Revd Jan Nobel
updated Synod on progress by the Diocesan Environment Steering Group
(DESC) since the last Synod in July gave its backing to the development
of a Diocesan Environmental Policy, and called on DESC to “provide
practical guidance to churches on how to measure and reduce [carbon]
emissions.”
He cited the Gaia exhibition at Hull Minster, the
week-long residency in York of the Young Christian Climate Network Relay
team during their journey to the Glasgow COP26 conference, the 9th
October Diocesan Environment Conference ‘Saying Yes To Life’ (recordings
of keynote addresses available via www.dioceseofyork.org.uk/environment),
the resources made available for Climate Sunday, and the concerts
given as part of the Doxecology COP26 tour by Resound Worship.
Other
recent news included the selection of Archbishop Holgate’s C of E
Academy as a Pilot School for a ‘Net Zero Carbon Action Plan’,
publication of ‘Celebrating Creation’ - a Worship and Action Pack for
all churches, and participation in the consultation for the Church of
England’s ‘Route Map to Net Zero’ following the vote by General Synod to
achieve ‘Net Zero’ carbon emissions by 2030.
Priorities for the
coming months include promoting the Church of England’s ‘Energy
Footprint Tool’ (currently an optional add-on to the annual Statistics
for Mission exercise asked of parishes), promoting the ‘Eco Church’
scheme run by A Rocha, creating a network of Deanery Green Champions
across the Diocese, and of course drafting a Diocesan Environmental
Policy.
Breakout groups discussed the questions, “When we—as
missionary disciples living Christ’s story—think about the climate
crisis and our diocese/church, what status quo needs disrupting, and
what inconvenience will we need to accept?
LIVING IN LOVE AND FAITH (LLF)
The
Revd Richard Walker, one of the two Diocesan Advocates for LLF, the
Church of England’s programme to explore what it means to follow Christ
in love and faith given the questions about human identity and the
variety of patterns of relationship emerging in our society, updated
Synod on the growing levels of engagement with the process across the
Diocese, and the roll-out of resources including a series of short
videos made by himself and fellow Advocate Helen Lawrence modelling
constructive conversations on potentially challenging topics.
www.dioceseofyork.org.uk/llf
FROM LAMENT TO ACTION
Canon
Linda Ali and Director of Mission and Ministry Ian McIntosh updated
Synod with progress made since the July meeting’s endorsement of the
Church of England’s report ‘From Lament to Action’ in establishing a
working group with representation from across the Diocese, and
establishing its terms of reference. The report emerged from the
Archbishops’ Anti-Racism Taskforce report and calls for urgent changes
to the culture of the Church of England through 47 recommended actions;
these shape the agenda for the new Diocesan working group.
CHILDREN’S AND YOUTH WORK
Diocesan
Director of Education Andrew Smith and Diocesan Children’s and Youth
Work Adviser Carolyn Edwards reported on recent development in
children’s and youth work. The ‘Children of Light’ Festival, much of
which had been conducted online due to COVID, had taken a huge amount of
work but had proved extremely popular, with a great response to the art
competition and continuing enthusiasm for the travelling exhibition of
entries. A new web resource for church children and youth workers has
been launched at
yorkdiocese-children-youth-resources.online.
GENERAL SYNOD REPORT
Dr Neill Burgess, one of the newly-elected Lay Members of General Synod representing the Diocese of York, reported on the November Sessions of the Church of England’s representative body.
Remarking
on the huge scale and scope of General Synod’s Question Time (132
Questions had been put down and a written answer published to each one),
he noted five main topics:
- Vision and Strategy update from
the Archbishop of York, who reminded Synod of the vision and mission to
be Jesus Christ centred and Jesus Christ shaped, and simpler, humbler,
and bolder.
- A motion was carried on Reducing the Wealth Gap and
Tackling Inequality. This was originally proposed by Inner Bradford
Deanery and made its way to General Synod following support from the
Leeds Diocesan Synod.
- There was good news about cost savings
from the Archbishops’ Council: thanks to certain central savings and
increased support from the Church Commissioners, the cost to Dioceses of
supporting the centre has again fallen, and is now 5.4% below the 2019
level.
- General Synod agreed to make it easier for wealthy
Dioceses to give financial support to poorer Dioceses if they wish to do
so. There are various technical reasons why this is difficult to do, so
Synod has asked for legislation to be brought forward to simplify such
generosity.
- Simplifying the central structures of the CofE was
discussed; the “central” Church of England is NOT a single organisation,
but currently it is made up of 7 separate bodies and an amazing 122
sub-committees!
NEXT MEETING
To be confirmed: evening of Monday 17 January 2022