Synod News
0 comments | Posted by Steven Layson on 16 Oct 2011 in From Steve's Study ::
Many of you will be aware of the fact that the Sydney Diocesan Synod has been on this week. Here are some of the highlights:
- On Monday we heard the Archbishop’s address in which he challenged us to learn from the example of Elijah, who was emboldened by God to continue speaking his word despite much opposition. Amongst other things, he spoke out against the impact the “gambling culture” has had on society, especially on the sporting arena. He praised the Gillard government’s actions to try to stem addiction, but also encouraged us to think how we can be involved in solving the causes of this huge problem. His final challenge to all of us was to get down and pray for our world – to weep over the lostness of our society & to call on God to change people’s hearts and to use us to draw them to himself.
- We prayed for, and sent messages of concern to government leaders regarding the imminent execution of the evangelical Christian Pastor in Iran, who has been sentenced to death for converting from Islam to Christianity.
- “Disability Sunday” has been set down for October 30 this year. During our “Earth Church” services, we will also be seeking to encourage social inclusion of disabled persons and their carers in the life of the church.
- The majority of our time, however, has been spent discussing new plans for the governance and financing of our diocese. You will probably have heard of the deepening financial crisis within the diocese that has arisen since the GFC. This has caused a total re-think in the way the finances of the diocese are arranged. There have been many cutbacks and cost-cutting measures undertaken, but new ways will need to be found to fund the activities of the diocese that fall outside the parishes (such as Youthworks, Moore College, Evangelism Ministries, Ministry Outside the Diocese etc). One of the implications for us is that we will more than likely be asked to start making contributions to help cover some of these costs.
If you have any questions about any of these discussions, you can follow some of them on the Sydney Anglicans Website, or come and talk to Bruce Goldingay, Bruce York or myself.
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