Synod 2008 - Archbishop's Charge - Fifty-First Session of the Synod of the diocese of Athabasca
I welcome all of you to this very important meeting of the 51st Synod of the Diocese of Athabasca. A special welcome is extended to a number of guests who have come to High Prairie, Alberta to be a part of this Synod meeting.
We are blessed with the presence of two very capable leaders of both the Anglican Church of Canada and the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Canada. I am pleased to introduce to you a former dean of Christ Church Cathedral in Victoria and presently the Executive Director of the Anglican Foundation, the Very Reverend John Wright. John will address this Synod and will be with us in community throughout the duration of Synod. We in this Diocese have been and will continue to be grateful for the ministry of the Anglican Foundation in our continued growth and development. Welcome, John, and I promise I won’t tell any stories about our Huron College days.
Our next equally important guest is AnnE Zimmerman who will be, as of June 1, 2008, the Executive Director of On Eagle’s Wings Ecumenical Ministries. Since 2001 AnnE has served as the Assistant Director of this ecumenical ministry that serves the Church and individuals in isolated and remote areas of Canada, and we in this Diocese have been the beneficiaries of their ministry. Anne brings a background in youth ministry, teaching, pastoral counseling and chaplaincy to her new ministry. To introduce you to her vision I use her own words, “With Catholics, Anglicans and Lutherans, aboriginal and non-aboriginal people, I hold to the reality and task of working together. It is exciting to ‘walk together’ and see what God still intends to do.” Welcome, Anne, and I do know that you have to leave on Saturday; but we are very pleased to have you with us.
Keeping faith with the full communion agreement that the Anglican Church of Canada has with the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Canada, I am pleased to welcome The Reverend Phil Hink who is the personal assistant to the Lutheran Bishop, The Right Reverend Ron Mayan. Phil has been in this Diocese many times, including the induction of the new Parish of Dunvegan which has a partnership with the Lutheran Congregation of St. John’s, Woking. Welcome, Phil, I am certain that you will see a lot of familiar faces in this group.
I also want to welcome a member of our General Synod Office Staff to our Synod, Archdeacon Dr. Michael Pollesel, the General Secretary. When I invited him to attend this Synod, Michael said they were anxious to visit Diocesan synods to introduce the work that they do on behalf of the wider Church that we are a part of. I think also that he said something about proving to us that there were real people working in the Toronto office. Welcome to you both and please feel at home in one of the more interesting and challenging areas of the Canadian mosaic. I have no doubt that you will discover that the people that you will meet in Northern Alberta are also real, but they have what Ralph Klein used to refer to as “The Alberta advantage.” For the life of me I am not certain what that means, none the less I welcome both of you to an area of Canada that my wife and I have become very fond of. The Anglican Centre, which used to be called the Synod office, is still as busy as ever and I want to publicly thank and acknowledge the work that falls on the shoulder of your Secretary-Treasurer, Donna Meeres. Not only has she got to put up with Daryle and I, she is the contact person for all of you, the National Church office, and the Provincial House of Bishops, while also arranging the reservations for Camp Artaban. It is a huge task and we all need to show our appreciation.
A sincere thank you as well needs to be extended to The Reverend Victoria Luke, chair of the Synod planning committee and her band of hardworking people, which included Peter Clarke, Kim Marceau, Paul Crossland and Daryle Kerr. Well done all of you!
Let me say how much I and the members of the church family appreciate the excellent work of the clergy and the lay leadership of this Diocese. The tasks that are yours are never easy; however all of you have shown over the years the commitment and loyalty to the Gospel and the Church family which is your trademark. At this point in our history I am pleased to report to you that all of our Parishes have ordained leadership. This was so strange for me, especially during the Christmas season, when my responsibility was the normal one for a Bishop, and that was to be at the Cathedral of the Diocese. For the past few years I have been at various points covering for the Christmas services due to a lack of clergy. Let me now take the time to identify each of the new members of our clergy family.
I extend a very warm welcome to our new Dean of the Cathedral of St James the Very Reverend Dr. Iain Luke, his wife the Reverend Victoria and their family, who came to us from St. John’s College in Winnipeg. Iain you have done a tremendous job in a very short period of time at the Cathedral. Victoria, I want to thank you for work and leadership especially as the Chair of the Synod planning committee. Welcome to your new home in the Diocese of Athabasca.
To the realigned Parish of Dunvegan, We welcome the Rev. Dr. Henry Victor. Henry comes to us from Sri Lanka via the Diocese of Edmonton. Being in a parish which partners with a Lutheran congregation, he has to contend with two Bishops. Good luck to you Henry on that point!
In the Parish of Valleyview we have the Reverend Glenn Widdis, a Lutheran pastor working in a totally Anglican Parish. I have promised Glenn that we will have the official induction soon. This past winter it simply was not possible mostly because of the weather and my schedule. Welcome Glenn!
Christ Church in Grande Prairie also experienced a change as the Rev. Canon Terry Leer transferred from All Saint’s, Fort McMurray. Terry and Elaine are firmly ensconced in their new home in a very busy parish in an equally busy community.
The Reverend Wayne Putman came to Beaverlodge from the city of Sault Ste Marie in the Diocese of Algoma. He and wife Ann are enjoying the challenges of being totally immersed in a thriving rural community in Northern Alberta. The Church of St Luke’s is a jewel that reflects the commitment of its members.
All Saint’s, Fort McMurray has a new incumbent as well. The Reverend Doug McClure and his wife Lesley arrived before this past Christmas and, even though we have not been able to arrange an induction, the ministry of the Parish is in good hands and I am very pleased that Doug and Lesley found their way from the Diocese of Algoma to their new home in Fort McMurray.
The final newcomer, and she is certainly not new to the Diocese, is The Reverend Joan Schellenberger, the new Rector of St Mark’s, High Prairie; St Paul’s, McLennan; Prairie Echo and St. Paul’s, Faust. That sounds like a small Diocese! Joan and her husband Fred are enjoying life in High Prairie and the work is absolutely thriving. During this Synod you are their guests and you will experience firsthand the warmth of the hospitality of the people that make up this faith community.
Since the last Synod I have appointed a new executive Archdeacon for the Diocese, the Venerable Daryle Kerr, formerly the rector of the Parish of East Smoky. This is a part-time appointment as Daryle is also the incumbent of the Parish of Berwyn and Grimshaw. I cannot tell you how much I appreciate Daryle’s ministry. He along with the two Regional Deans, Paul Crossland in the Deanery of Athabasca and Wayne Putman in the Deanery of Peace, has taken a tremendous load of responsibility in terms of leadership dealing with difficult situations. In every case they have proven to be extremely capable and their work has been absolutely stellar. On behalf of this whole Diocese I thank each of you for who you are and for what you do in the name of Christ.
I want to begin my thoughts this evening by expressing my sincere appreciation to this Diocesan Synod, the clergy and the membership of the Diocese of Athabasca, for having afforded me the privilege of being called to minister with you as your bishop since 1991 and as your metropolitan Archbishop from the spring of 2005. It has been a period in my life that has been a real blessing. Yes, there have been the odd times of trial and disappointment, but overall it has been a time of personal challenge and growth. That is due primarily to the faith and witness of the many people who are the driving force of the growing life and health of the Diocese of Athabasca. You, the people who make up this Diocesan family, honour your past history and the faith journeys of the many pioneers that have gone before us. People like the Van ladies who provided the caring ministry of compassion to the newcomers struggling to survive before there were highways and power lines. That same caliber of compassion is still the trademark of the Anglican Church in this part of God’s Kingdom. You will not find this in the written Canons or regulations of the Diocese, but it is a quality that is endemic to who you are as a people. It is an attitude that cannot be legislated; instead it comes from the heart of each and every one of you. To know Christ can mean nothing else, and you are an example to the communities that you serve. It’s those virtues that I want to address.
Reviewing the history of this Diocese of Athabasca you cannot help but acknowledge the tremendous commitment and devotion of those who planted the seeds of the Church community that we now enjoy. From the time of Bishop Bompas, who ended his ministry in Carcross as the Bishop of the Yukon, down through the history of the immigration, there is an overriding theme of commitment to both the Gospel and the people that God has called the church to serve. A good example happened at the first meeting of Synod of the Diocese of Athabasca in July of 1885 at Fort Vermilion, where they passed a number of memorials to the Department of the Interior, pointing out the plight of the Indigenous people in their area. All of the activity and work of the Church prior to the time of “settlement”, which began roughly in 1912, was in what we now call the northern part of the Diocese. Fort Chipewyan was the key settlement as it was the shipping depot for the north. It became an inland port of call for the steamboats that plied the Athabasca and Slave Rivers between the limits of Fort McMurray and Fort Fitzgerald (near what is now called Fort Smith). At Fort Chipewyan today there stands the proud Church of St. Paul’s, which was the first Anglican Church in the Athabasca District, which at that time included all of the District of Mackenzie. St Paul’s had its opening service on Easter Day, 1880 and is the oldest Church building in all of Alberta still in continual use. In recognition of our history as the Diocese of Athabasca, the special place Fort Chipewyan had in its development, and the work that the local community has performed in reconstruction, I propose to designate St. Paul’s, Fort Chipewyan as the Pro Cathedral of the Diocese of Athabasca. This designation will place in perpetuity a position of honour for St Paul’s and the people that it continues to serve. I will ask for your support for this action.
At our last Diocesan Synod the theme was “Take Charge – The Diocese of Athabasca moving forward in Mission,” and we passed motions that committed us all to the three principles of 1) self-support 2) self-evangelism and 3) self-governance. Those are the three principles that we have agreed to be the governing principles of our growth and development. These three principles must be kept in a healthy tension to ensure that our focus remains on Christ, being faithful to the Gospels, and the traditions of our Church. We were warned about looking for the quick fix approach that is so prevalent in our secular society. We have committed ourselves to becoming a Diocese of mission in thought, word and deed. Our goal that we committed ourselves to was to enable all of the people of the Diocese to be fully engaged in mission, by virtue of maturity of faith and practice.
We also addressed the issue of paternalism and discovered that paternalism, especially that which is done with the best of intentions, is in fact is the most destructive. It is the most destructive because it fails to take into account the importance of allowing the recipient to take responsibility for their own ministry. This has resulted in the rise of an attitude of dependency and a welfare mentality that is not conducive to the mission that we have all been called to. Some still struggle with this issue because it has been such a part of the relationship of the Church authorities and its people for many generations. It will take time! Perhaps I can share with you the wise words Robert Kanatewat, an elderly Cree gentleman from the Northern Quebec Community of Chisasibi. This past summer he said to me, and I quote, “that the paternalism of the past needs to be left in the past. This is a new day.” So wise and so true!
Having said that we must acknowledge that is some areas this is a difficult concept to change, for all of the cultural and historical reasons that we are all familiar with, and it is incumbent upon all of us to be gracious in our relationships with each other. That will enable the true meaning of ministry come to the fore. We have acknowledged very clearly that paternalism in itself stifles growth and has been the curse that leads to dependency that does nothing to enable the ministry of others. Instead as we are challenged in the Gospel of Mathew, we must seek to “grow up into Him who is the head, into Christ” and to demonstrate that maturity in all of our actions by becoming more self supporting, fully engaged in self evangelism and take full ownership of our own governance.
I am pleased to tell you that that in many ways that is exactly what is happening. For example, during this past year one particular congregation sent a sizable sum of money to another congregation that was having difficulty in paying the moving costs of their new priest. That is the kind of responsible action that will stand all of us in good stead. Also, the Parish of Northern Lights centered in Boyle needed a new rectory and new Church building in Colinton, and I can tell you that only a few years ago the first call from any congregation with that kind of need would have been to the Bishop asking where he can get the money. No longer is that the case! Instead the congregations discovered their own Documents and have built both buildings which are truly representative of the witness and vision of that faith community. Well done, good and faithful servants!
The theme adopted for this Synod is “Owning our call to Mission”. This is built on the previous meetings of this body, and certainly underlines the importance of keeping our focus on the Gospel and the task that is in front of all of us. One truth that is undeniable is the fact that we are involved in one of the fastest growing areas in Canada. The combination of oil development including the tar sands, worldwide demand for lumber and the products of the farming communities have all lead to a sharp increase in population in our towns and cities. Let us never forget that this increase in population, much like the time of immigration from the 1920s to the 1940s, is providing this Church the opportunity to grow and develop. Be mindful of your heritage as you go forward - that includes the reality that the majority of the people who make up the membership of the Diocese of Athabasca are first generation Anglicans. They bring with them a wide variety of spirituality that we all celebrate, mostly from the Eastern Orthodox communities. The same is true today as people from all over the world are searching for a new home amongst us.
I will never forget an experience that I had in Peace River, where in taking a funeral for a gentleman who never went to the Church, I discovered that of the over 600 people that were present at that funeral only ten percent had any connection with the Church. That, I believe, is the new reality in which we are ministering. The mission field of yesterday used to be Africa and the North; that is no longer true. It is right here where we all live and call home. I am convinced that with our history of commitment and faithful ministry we are, by the grace of God, capable of meeting this challenge. We are in fact doing this now by the use of many tools such as the Alpha program, events such as the lay training event held in Edmonton a few months ago, Clergy retreats, Anglican Church Women’s conferences and ministries such as “On Eagle’s Wings”. There is also a new program called “The Bones Program” which sounds as though it has real possibilities. Canon Fraser Lawton has more information on it. All of these are methods by which the ministry of the whole people of God is supported and encouraged.
The one issue that can be a stumbling block to the task that is in front of all of us is the issue regarding the ordination and marriage of active homosexuals. This issue has the media, both secular and Church, on a feeding frenzy and has been thrust upon the Church by the influence of Western Society. I am still dumbfounded by the reaction of our National Church some twelve years ago when this came forward. When the issue of the remarriage of divorced people was presented to General Synod there was absolutely no question, it was a matter of doctrine. We all went through the process of theological debate, the canonical standard of 66% in all three houses and two consecutive Synods, with the result that the final decision proved to be a blessing to the whole Church. In my opinion, by not following the same route and doing an end run by claiming that this is a justice issue, we have been unfaithful to the wider Church and disrespectful to the homosexual community. My prayer is that by virtue of the commitment of General Synod to deal with the issue of the marriage of gays and lesbians as a matter of doctrine we might be able to recapture the integrity that has been lost.
In spite of all of this we have a job to do. That mission is to be the body of Christ in this part of God’s kingdom. Let us commit ourselves to this mission and not allow this issue of sexuality to be the driving force of both our faith and our purpose.
It is time, my dear friends, for all of you and those whom you represent to be bold in the Gospel; to pray, to dream and to work for what is possible in His name. This is your time of meeting and I trust that the Risen Christ will continue to direct all of us, as together we accept the challenges that lie ahead.
May God Bless you all!
+John
Archbishop of Athabasca
Metropolitan of Ruperts’ Land