A summary of Executive Council resolutions

By Mary Frances Schjonberg
Posted Apr 20, 2012

[Episcopal News Service – Salt Lake City, Utah] During its April 18-20 meeting here, the Episcopal Church’s Executive Council adopted several resolutions, which are summarized below.

Executive Council

  • Submit an A resolution to General Convention to recognize the work of the Episcopal Church Foundation and its management of the church-wide Rebuild our Church in Haiti campaign and the contributions of individuals, parishes and dioceses in support of the Diocese of Haiti’s determination to re-build post-earthquake; reaffirm church’s desire to stand with the diocese “as it continues to renew its life and rebuild for a stronger future” through continuing fundraising work (EC000).

Joint resolution: Advocacy & Networking for Mission, Governance and Administration for Mission, Local Mission and Ministry

  • Reaffirm the importance of ongoing anti-racism training for the church, and commit council to participate in anti-racism training at its regularly scheduled meetings on a periodic basis (A&N-GAM-LLM001)

Advocacy & Networking for Mission

  • State opposition to racial profiling by law enforcement and civil authorities that unjustly victimizes persons of color, causing undue harm to the victims, their families and their communities; support for Senate Bill 1670 (End Racial Profiling Act of 2011); stand in solidarity with suffering of the victims, families and communities of the harm caused by racial profiling, and lament the lack of adequate training on racial profiling issues as part of law enforcement training, the lack of effective policies that prohibit racial profiling, and the lack of monitoring of discriminatory racial profiling practices by jurisdictions (A&N053)
  • Urge the U.S. Congress to adopt Senate Bill 1925 to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act; urge Episcopalians, through the Episcopal Public Policy Network, to contact their legislators and express support; support new provisions in the law to protect Native American women by giving tribes expanded authority to prosecute domestic violence-related cases, raise cap on visas issued to undocumented aliens who are victims of domestic violence, and prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation in domestic-violence shelters supported by the act. (A&N054)
  • Support work of Children’s Defense Fund’s “Cradle to Prison Pipeline” campaign and similar campaigns (A&N055)
  • Reauthorize the Executive Council Committee on Corporate Social Responsibility and the Executive Council Economic Justice Loan Committee as continuing committees of council pursuant to Canon I.4.3(h) (A&N056)

Finances for Mission

  • Establish Trust Fund 1050 as St. John’s Episcopal Thrift Shop Fund as an investment account for St. John’s Episcopal Church in Fallbrook, California (FFM065)
  • Authorize the Rev. Rosemari Sullivan, special assistant and coordinator for Haiti Long Term Recovery Project, to raise approximately $26,000 to bring Choeur D’Anges from Mirebalais, Haiti to perform at General Convention in Indianapolis, Indiana; such funds to be held in a designated account administered by the treasurer for this purpose (FFM066)

Governance and Administration for Mission

  • Amend the by-laws of the Executive Council of the General Convention and the Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society to revise nomenclature (GAM027, GAM028, GAM029)
  • Submit an A resolution to General Convention asking that it amend Canon I.4.3(h) to provide that any committee of Executive Council (other than its standing committees) will cease to exist at the close of the second General Convention following its creation unless otherwise extended and that council may revoke, rescind, or modify the mandate or charter of any Executive Council Committee not otherwise created by canon (GAM030)
  • Amend Article VIII, Section 5 of the bylaws concerning the Joint Investment Committee to add at least one of the additional members shall be a member of Executive Council’s Joint Standing Committee on Finances for Mission (GAM031)
  • Adopt the Employee Handbook of the Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society and related documents (GAM032)

Local Mission and Ministry

  • Review and affirm a list of Jubilee Programs (LMM025)
  • Recognize the companion diocese relationship between the Diocese of Southeast Florida and the Diocese of Haiti until such time as this relationship is terminated by mutual consent (LMM026)
  • Propose an A resolution to General Convention to amend the mandate and membership selection for the council’s Committee on Anti-racism (LMM027)
  • Continue council’s Committee on Indigenous Ministries with a revised mandate (LMM029)

World Mission

  • Thank Episcopal Church Foundation for its work on the Rebuild Our Church in Haiti project, direct church’s development staff to take up management of that work through the end of the year, direct council to make more permanent plans for continuing the work and thank those who have contributed and will contribute to the efforts to help the (WM024)
  • Urge council’s World Mission Committee in the next triennium to develop a plan for conversation with Province IX, Mexico and Iglesia Anglicana de la Region Central de America for revisioning the mutual mission-based partnership as a model for working with all other covenant partners (Brazil, Liberia and the Philippines). (WM025)

Note: An “A” resolution is one submitted to General Convention by the church’s committees, commissions, agencies and boards, known as the CCABs. Most, but not all, A resolutions are contained in those groups’ reports to convention known as the Blue Book. The Blue Book for this summer’s convention is due to become available online April 23. Resolutions submitted to convention by bishops are “B” resolutions; those from dioceses are known as “C” resolutions and those from deputies are “D” resolutions. Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori and House of Deputies President Bonnie Anderson assign each resolution as it is received to one of the convention’s legislative committees. Once those assignments are made, resolutions are posted here.

— The Rev. Mary Frances Schjonberg is a writer and editor for Episcopal News Service.


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