PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESSES: APRIL AND SEPTEMBER
Archbishop Dr Barry Morgan having retired, the presidential address at the April meeting was given by the Senior Bishop, the Rt Revd John Davies, Bishop of Swansea and Brecon, on behalf of all of the bishops of the Church, with the emphasis on evangelism – which set the tone for the rest of the Governing Body meeting.
The Membership and Finance Report had caused much debate in September 2016 and Bishop John stated that, while the figures had been disappointing, members needed to be reminded that, despite the challenges facing the Church, it was still very strong and one of the largest voluntary organisations in Province. He further highlighted the Church's 2020 Vision strategy for growth ahead of its centenary year in 2020, which had already resulted in significant changes, and emphasised that it was financially secure enough to support new ministries. He said:
We must want and prepare our church to reach our centenary having really got to grips with re-imagining and refreshing our faith, our own knowledge of scripture, our understanding of our own discipleship and our potential to evangelise others. We need to become, afresh, a Jesus movement. But – and this is a big ‘but’ – we have to begin with ourselves, we have to re-evangelise our life – because unless we really know what we are about, unless we really are fit for purpose, there is little point in trying to reach out to others and to invite them in.
Shortly before the September meeting Bishop John Davies was elected as the 13th Archbishop of Wales and was warmly welcomed by the Governing Body. In his first presidential address as archbishop he reminded the Governing Body of the importance of the Church in Wales as a bilingual church:
It is so important that even those of us who are not first-language Welsh speakers honour that heritage, and that we as a church seek to do what we can to ensure that that heritage and that language continue to live.
Having witnessed his grandfather's dementia and his grandmother suffering from cancer, Archbishop John saw the challenge of caring for people with mental and physical health problems as a priority. He told the Governing Body that the care for the sick in mind or in body was something that, as a Church, we might not be able to deliver but at least we must always be ready to call for it.
The new archbishop then considered discipleship and growth, reminding those present that there was a need to try to work together in order to be a Church which is fit for the Lord's purpose: to be a Church that loves and takes seriously those who are suffering, where welcome is offered to those who may be troubled or who are different, or to those who may challenge us. The Church in Wales needed to have open hearts and open doors.
He further suggested to the Governing Body that it must be able to both call for and enable a reimagined Church in order for it to grow, so that when we came to 2020 we would not be celebrating that we had hung on for a hundred years but that we were making plans, if not for the next hundred years, certainly for years to come.
EVANGELISM MOTION
In April, it was the motion on evangelism, introduced by the Rt Revd Andrew John, Bishop of Bangor, that prompted the biggest response from members. The motion recognised the primary importance of evangelism within the life of the Church and made it a priority for the coming year in order to embed a culture of faithful witness across the whole Church in Wales. A commitment was made to discerning new ministers who could exemplify and pioneer new ways of sharing good news, as well as a commitment to nurturing disciples in every ministry area and parish.
The motion, which was carried nem con, affirmed the central place of evangelism in church life; supported training and resourcing evangelism as a requirement for all clergy and as something to be made available to all laity; endorsed strategic planning for evangelism in the Church in Wales; and committed the Church to a season of prayer for evangelism, beginning with Thy Kingdom Come 2017.
BILL TO AMEND CHAPTER IX OF THE CONSTITUTION
The courts of the Church in Wales had decided that there was a need to clarify which categories of people fell within the scope of the existing Section 9 of Chapter IX of the Constitution under the September 2010 Canon. To that end, an extensive list identifying all categories of persons who are to be subject to the jurisdiction of the Disciplinary Tribunal was put to the Governing Body in April, for insertion into section 9 of Chapter IX of Volume I of the Constitution of the Church in Wales. The Bill was passed with one abstention.
ST PADARN'S INSTITUTE REPORT
The report on St Padarn's was presented by the Principal, the Revd Dr Jeremy Duff, who said that after the first nine months it had progressed from being just an idea to being securely set up as the training arm of the Church in Wales. St Padarn's would enable the six dioceses to work together on discipleship, formation and ministry development. The whole training estate would function as part of a single entity, including lay discipleship, initial formation for lay and ordained ministry in its different strands, and continuing ministerial development.
CATHEDRALS REVIEW REPORT
The Governing Body received a report from a small working group set up by its Standing Committee to review the role and governance of the cathedrals. One of its key recommendations was that the cathedral chapter should become a small trustee group with a diverse membership, accountable to a larger advisory board. It was suggested that a minimum number of clergy and staff should be available to support the work of each cathedral and that sufficient funding (from dioceses and the Representative Body) should be provided for this and also to undertake new work to develop cathedral ministry. It was recognised that the cathedrals fulfilled different roles in different dioceses and that local differences should be allowed. The Governing Body agreed, with three abstentions, to ‘note the Cathedrals Review and request the Standing Committee to coordinate consideration of the Report and action on its recommendations’.
ARCHIEPISCOPAL SEE WORKING GROUP REPORT
The working group established by the Standing Committee to consider the question of a permanent archiepiscopal see presented its report to the Governing Body. The issue had been considered four times since the 1970s; it was also a recommendation in the Church in Wales Review 2012. When the Church was disestablished in 1920, an important principle had been established that the Archbishop of Wales would be elected from among the diocesan bishops and would continue to serve as a diocesan in addition to his provincial duties. Unlike the Church of England and the Church of Ireland, the Church in Wales would not permanently designate a diocese for the archbishop.
The working group recommended that the current peripatetic model of primacy should continue, with longer-term plans to refine the archbishop's role. It was decided that a package of measures should be introduced in order to support the archbishop – with some key changes: the bishops should share more fully in the archbishop's provincial ministry and additional administrative support should be provided for the archbishop to ensure that the role was adequately resourced and the workload reduced. With one member voting against, the Governing Body agreed to note the Report ‘and request the Standing Committee to co-ordinate consideration of the Report and action on its recommendations’.
REVISED RITE FOR CONFIRMATION
The Rt Revd Gregory Cameron, Bishop of St Asaph, introduced the motion for the new experimental Rite for Confirmation, which will give fresh emphasis to the role of confirmation on the journey of faith. The Bench of Bishops believes that Confirmation is a moment of ‘primary evangelism’. With one abstention, the Governing Body assented to the revised Order of Confirmation's experimental use for a period not exceeding five years.
ADMISSION OF CHILDREN TO HOLY COMMUNION
A proposal to admit all the baptised to Holy Communion in the Church in Wales, whether or not they have been confirmed, had been announced by the Bench of Bishops in September 2016. The bishops had requested it to be phased in from Advent Sunday 2016 until Advent Sunday 2017; however, a private member's motion debated at the September meeting of the Governing Body sought further clarification.
The motion, which was carried by 53 to 40 with 9 abstentions, requested the bishops to update the ‘Documents about admission to Communion’ following a future Governing Body debate, in order that any concerns might be shared and for appropriate responses to be made within that document. The period of introduction was extended until Advent Sunday 2018.
ARMED FORCES COVENANT
A private member's motion carried unanimously at the September meeting invited the Bench of Bishops to endorse the Armed Forces Covenant. It asked individual dioceses to reflect on the Armed Forces Covenant and to consider signing community covenants and corporate covenants setting out the provisions for the pastoral and spiritual needs of the Armed Forces community in their own diocesan areas. The Standing Committee has been asked to keep under review the implementation of the Armed Forces Covenant across the Church in Wales and to report to the Governing Body in two years’ time.
