Standing Committee & RB30 Jan 18

January 2018 Standing Commitee News

The Standing Committee of the General Synod met on Tuesday 23rd January 2018 in Church House, Dublin. Mr Ken Gibson opened the meeting with a reading from Mark 3.31–35 and in prayer, including an intercession for the forthcoming political talks in Northern Ireland.

The Archbishop of Armagh referred to a constructive and helpful meeting on the previous day between representatives of the Church of Ireland, the Presbyterian Church in Ireland and the Methodist Church in Ireland, and the Irish Government, represented by An Taoiseach, five Ministers and a Minister of State.

The agenda for the meeting included: migration, direct provision and overseas aid; the impact of Brexit; abortion and the Eighth Amendment to the Constitution; homelessness, social housing and wider economic issues; and education issues. A press release summarising the meeting is available at https://tinyurl.com/yabjp37c

General Synod 2018

The Honorary Secretaries’ report highlighted the following deadlines ahead of General Synod 2018, which will take place in the Armagh City Hotel from 10th–12th May:

• applications for display stands at General Synod – Monday, 19th February
• receipt of Bills (for circulation) – Thursday, 29th March;
• receipt of Motions (for circulation) – Tuesday, 10th April;
• advance receipt of Requests for Information – Thursday, 3rd May;
• receipt of Petitions – Thursday, 3rd May; and
• late Bills – Thursday, 3rd May.

In all cases, documents should be sent to the Honorary Secretaries at Church of Ireland House, Rathmines, Dublin 6, or by email to honsecs@ireland.anglican.org. Forms are available at www.synod.ireland.anglican.org and the Legislation Committee is available to assist members of General Synod with the drafting of Bills for General Synod. To avail of the assistance of the committee, members were asked to contact the Synod Officer, Dr Catherine Smith, at catherine.smith@rcbcoi.org

Standing Committee resolved that the Honorary Secretaries should write to diocesan councils and synods with a reminder of the commitment made to increase diversity and participation in Church decision–making bodies when they are electing new members.

This reflects the 2013 resolution of General Synod on reviewing the membership of committees to reflect the membership of the Church in terms of age, gender, geographical location, experience and recently arrived migrant groups. A report on the Long–Term Church initiative noted that a commentary on the Constitution of the Church of Ireland is approaching completion, with a view to its launch at General Synod 2018.

In the course of the report, the Secretary General referred to the Parish Resources project (www.ireland.anglican.org/parish–resources) and three seminars on charities regulation in the Republic of Ireland. Further seminars and further updates for the Parish Resources section are due in the course of 2018.

General Synod 2020 will be held in the Croke Park Meetings and Events Centre from 7th–9th May.

Appointments

The Very Revd Niall Sloane was appointed as a member of the Bishops’ Appeal Advisory Committee and the Revd Dr William Olhausen was elected as a Church of Ireland representative to the Methodist Church in Ireland’s Working Party on Human Sexuality. The Revd Canon Ian Berry was appointed to a committee exploring the potential for a merger between the Children’s Ministry Network and the Sunday School Society for Ireland.

The following persons were appointed to attend the Irish Council of Churches (ICC) AGM to be held in Drogheda, on 22nd March 2018: the Bishop of Connor; the Bishop of Down and Dromore; the Revd Canon Dr Daniel Nuzum; the Revd Canon Ian Ellis; the Revd Canon Shane Forster; the Very Revd Katherine Poulton; the Revd Canon Gillian Wharton; the Revd Ken Rue; the Very Revd Niall Sloane; the Revd Dr Peter Thompson; Dr Catherine Smith; Mrs Ethne Harkness; Mr Philip McKinley; Ms Georgina Copty; Ms Cate Turner and two ordinands (to be appointed by the Director of the Church of Ireland Theological Institute). The Bishop of Clogher, the Bishop of Tuam, Killala and Achonry, and Dr Kenneth Milne will be entitled to attend as members of the ICC.

Members were asked to note that the date of the June meeting of Standing Committee has been moved from 19th June to 12th June.

The Ven George Davison closed the meeting in prayer.