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[Back to index of October 2007 articles] Council Hears Congregational Development Report By Lucy Chumbley In December 2005, the Diocesan Council identified "congregational development" as one of the top priorities for the Diocese of Washington. But soon after the newly appointed Working Group on Congregational Development began to meet, its members realized they were not sure they understood their charge. "We were really unclear what ‘congregational development' meant," the group's chairman Atron Rowe reminded the council at its September meeting. "I even came to the council and asked you, and got 32 different answers." Despite this rocky start, the group hired a consultant, stayed with the task and on Sept. 18 presented the council with a comprehensive and long-anticipated strategic plan. "We're hoping what we're presenting tonight is very clear," Rowe said. To do its work, the group used a process called Appreciative Inquiry, said the Rev. Donna Brown, rector of St. Mark's, Fairland. This process gets people to "focus on what's meaningful and productive and can make a difference," she explained. Seeking to identify "life and energy in the diocese," group members interviewed more than 30 people from various congregations, asking them to describe "transformational moments" in their church lives, Brown said. People also were asked to describe their three wishes for the diocese, and how they envisioned the diocese in five year's time. "Themes began to develop," Brown said. "Repeatedly there was a desire to feel connected with one another. There's a desire to share stories, to share successes and to share resources." The working group's next step was to take these dreams and hopes and turn them into goals and milestones for the strategic plan. "You can hear the freeway, but where's the on-ramp?" Brown asked. "How do you join that journey?" To begin, the group created a vision, that "united in the power of the Holy Spirit, the people of the diocese actively engage in worship that transforms lives; training that deepens emotional and spiritual health that empowers discipleship; and the building of interdependent parish communities that reach out and embrace all God's people." Group members then drew up an action plan based around six propositions – building faith communities, outreach, evangelism, worship, spiritual formation and connections – intended to produce "an organic shift in the life of the diocese and new and renewing energy over the course of the next several generations." The panel understood that the diocese would have limited resources with which to carry out any work proposed, Rowe said, and the completed plan takes this into account. "Start with what you've got," Brown advised. "To survive, you've got to get going." Council moderator Gerry Perez explained that because of the length and complexity of the plan, the council would be reviewing it over a period of months. "What we're doing tonight is sort of taking the first look, getting to grips with it," he said. "Next time we'll be looking at what details really strike us and at what we can tackle quickly; which are a little more difficult." At its November meeting, the council will establish priorities and milestones for congregational development that can be tackled in 2009, he said. "I wanted to say that this group took on a huge task," said Bishop John Bryson Chane. "My hope and prayer is that the council is going to embrace this, as I do." This positive presentation was followed by a somber briefing on the diocesan budget from Finance Committee Chairman John Welch. "We have a revenue problem," Welch said, reporting that the diocese is facing a $150,000 shortfall in its 2007 budget and that the annual Bishop's Appeal is "below where we hoped it would be." "We'll continue to have a revenue problem in 2008 and that's not going to allow us to do some of the great things we'd like to do," he said. "We're really budgeting a zero increase for 2008." Although parishes have been asked to pledge 10 percent of their net income to the diocese, "average giving has slipped close to 7 percent," he said. In addition, the diocese is facing cost of living increases and sharply rising health insurance costs. "This points to how important it is to create this congregational development program that people can really buy into," said the Rev. Carleton Hayden. "Because people support things they can really see." In other matters: * Canon to the Ordinary Paul Cooney updated the council on a possible merger between the congregations of St. James, Capitol Hill and nearby St. Monica's. "The two parishes have been working together very well, very hard all year under the guidance of [consultant] Bob Gallagher," he said. "The St. James/St. Monica merger is gaining momentum, but there's really no decision made until every decision is made." The congregations worshipped together for most of the summer, Cooney said, and "the two communities found they're very compatible." If the merger goes ahead, St. Monica's would move to St. James' near the beginning of Advent, he said, and that parish would be renamed. If it does not go ahead, St. Monica's would "simply conclude their ministry at the end of the year." Should the two congregations decide to join forces, the diocese will make a grant of $150,000 to $200,000 available to the new congregation to fund transitional operating costs, Cooney said. "I think that this is a blessing and a gift," said council member Wes Baldwin. "I hope this does not derail." * The council heard a presentation on the planned Bishop John T. Walker School for Boys by project director James Woody and the Rev. Preston Hannibal, canon for academic ministries. Woody described the project as "one of the most powerful, exciting and moving activities that I've ever been a part of – I'm confident that the Lord's hand is on this work." The diocese is close to securing a permanent location for the school, Woody said. The school plans to open in fall 2008 with a Pre-K class of 16 4-year-olds, adding a grade a year until it reaches its projected capacity of 160 pupils over a 10 year period. Asked what the annual operating budget for the school will be, Woody said that $400,000 was projected for the first year, rising to $700,000 after three years and close to $1 million after five years. The school will have to raise most of this money, he added. [Back to index of October 2007 articles]
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