VIEWPOINT – Am I prepared for General Convention? I guess the answer depends on your viewpoint. The first sentence I learned in 9th grade Latin was “vestus virum reddit” or “clothes make the man”. If that’s true, I’m well prepared! Being a first time deputy means I don’t really know what to expect. Is this a jeans/sandals event or a slacks/pumps event? I took both. At last count, there were 12 pairs of shoes. I think I can stay in Anaheim for a couple of months and only have to wash socks and underwear.

And then there’s technology. I’ve updated my status on Facebook (you can follow at facebook.com/kelley.kimble), I’ve twittered (follow me @ktkimble), I’ve texted (hey Nancy, is it true they cancelled new deputy orientation?), I’ve called (my husband to ask him to overnight an extra pair or contacts because I already tore a lense) and I’ve emailed (my office to check on last minute details)! And now, I’m working on my first blog entry on the flight from Phoenix to Orange County. Whew! Wonder if I’ll have time to actually attend the Convention with all this technology?

What I don’t feel so prepared for is the magnitude of the Convention itself. Literally, there will be thousands of Episcopalians that meet only once every three years and we are given the responsibility of making decisions that could strengthen or weaken our Church as a whole. What an awesome responsibility! I’m positive that I do not understand all the theological and scriptural bases for all the discussions that we will have over the next 10 days and I’m pretty sure I don’t even understand the practical aspects of all the disagreements. I’m simply trying to walk in with an open mind, rely on my fellow deputies that have walked this road before and to be ever mindful of our true purpose. It’s His purpose, not mine.

My plan is to do at least a short blog entry each day. We’ll see how that goes. You can look for it under www.dwtx.org/blog and also at www.stphilipsuvalde.com. I ask that you keep the General Convention as a whole in your prayers. And while you’re at it, the deputies from West Texas could use a few too!

God’s Peace, Kelley Kimble
Lay Deputy
St. Philip’s, Uvalde

VIEWPOINT – If you want (more properly, need) to exercise and if you “need” to eat, you have to do it early. I arrived at the opening of the Exercise “Spa” at 5:30am to find 9 of the 10 tread mills in use as well as all the exercise bikes and most of the elliptical trainers. No wonder the Episcopal Church is in turmoil with all these type A’s!

I am the Canonical Consultant to the Committee on Prayer Book, Liturgy and Music and also the Education Committee. Both are excellent assignments—the fireworks will most likely come out of PBLM.

General Convention rules provide that every resolution that is filed (the deadline for filing resolutions is close of business tomorrow, Wednesday) must have a public hearing before it can be discussed and considered by a committee. After a resolution has had a public hearing, the committee discusses the resolution in open hearings unless the committee gives advance written notice that it will meet in executive session. The committee votes on each resolution and can either send the resolution to the appropriate House, with or without its approval, amend the resolution, or refer the resolution to another committee. I think a committee can also “deep six” a resolution but I haven’t learned at this point how to do that, a skill I most definitely want to learn before GC is over. It will no doubt come in handy in other venues!

The Committee on Prayer Book, Liturgy and Music met from 8am until noon today and will meet again from 7 to 9pm tonight for the public hearing on approving liturgical calendar commemorations and adding persons to Holy Women, Holy Men: Celebrating the Saints. The Committee is a joint committee of Bishops and Deputies. The Chair alternates each time the Committee meets between The Rev. Sam Candler, Dean of the Episcopal Cathedral in Atlanta, and the Rt. Rev. Wayne Smith, Bishop of Missouri, who incidentally grew up in Colt McCoy’s home town. Sam Candler chaired the meeting this morning and did an excellent job. PBLM is scheduled to meet again tomorrow morning from 11:00am until 12:30pm. It will continue to have a full schedule of meetings until all public hearings have been conducted.

Fortunately for me, I don’t have to attend all the sessions—just those sessions when they need my canonical interpretations. I will attend all the sessions on same sex blessings, which is lining up to be one of the most, if not the most, contentious issues to be dealt with this General Convention.

Keep us all in your thoughts and prayers—most especially that we may be given the gifts of hospitality, graciousness, kindness, good hearing and good expression.

Drew Cauthorn
Lay Deputy
St. Mark’s, San Antonio

VIEWPOINT – While we can trace our beginning to Henry VIII getting tired of one of his many wives, the origin of The Episcopal Church relates back to the heroes (or rebels, depending on your point of view) defeating the English in the Revolutionary War.  The Church of England, home to so many in the Colonies, had no place in America.  Recognizing a great opportunity to fill the void, The Episcopal Church—voila!

Actually, the Archbishop of Canterbury and many other wise, spiritual souls used the American Revolution as the impetus to form The Anglican Communion.  An Anglican church is one that is sacramental and liturgical.  Pillars of Anglicanism are scripture, tradition and reason.  To be a member of The Anglican Communion, the Presiding Bishop (or Archbishop) of a Province (initially, the United States of America) needed to be “in communion” with the Archbishop of Canterbury.  That may not be an accurate statement and I request those who are more knowledgeable about this than I (and that would be a multitude) to correct me with a comment.

I’m not sure what “in communion” meant then or means today but at a minimum it means the Archbishop of Canterbury recognizes the validity of the Province as an Anglican Communion.  Each Province has its own constitution, canons (statutes) and practices—known collectively as “polity”—within the broad tent now called Anglicanism.

I am unclear about this next point—and it is a VERY important one in the debate currently taking place in The Episcopal Church.  Either The Episcopal Church was formed first and then Bishops were consecrated or at least one and maybe four Bishops were surreptitiously consecrated and then The Episcopal Church was formed.  I’ll try to explain why this is important—at least why some are arguing that this is important.  Basically, it’s the old States Rights argument made by the Confederate States—the states formed the United States and hence had the right to withdraw if they wanted to.  The Episcopal argument goes that the dioceses headed by Bishops formed The Episcopal Church and hence a diocese should be able to withdraw from The Episcopal Church if it wants to because the Constitution of The Episcopal Church doesn’t say it can’t.  Others argue that The Episcopal Church was formed first and then the dioceses, which are not free to secede since they are a creation of The Episcopal Church.  I’m thankful that the partisans on both sides don’t have armies at their command.

Now (finally) to the subject, The Episcopal Church has a constitution modeled in many respects after the U.S. Constitution.  One of the principal drafters was John Jay, the first Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court.  We have a legislative body—called General Convention—that meets every three years.  There are two houses—the House of Bishops and the House of Deputies.  The House of Deputies is comprised of an equal number of clergy and lay from each diocese (four clergy and four lay) who are called Deputies.  Resolutions (legislation) must pass in both houses in the same form to be adopted.

A resolution can be filed in either the House of Bishops or the House of Deputies.  When a resolution is filed, it is assigned to a committee of the applicable House that reviews the resolution and supporting materials, holds public hearings in some cases, and either kills the resolution or reports it to applicable House with the committee’s recommendation.  The foregoing description may not be totally accurate but it is mostly correct—or at least somewhat correct.

Committees have chancellors (a fancy word for lawyers) assigned to them to make sure resolutions that make it to the floor of General Convention don’t have fatal flaws (i.e. contradict the Constitution).  I have been assigned to the Prayer Book, Liturgy and Music Committee, so I will be reviewing some of the most controversial resolutions to come before GC.  I’ll keep you posted!

That’s it for now.

Drew Cauthorn
Lay Deputy
St. Mark’s, San Antonio