Thursday, November 20, 2008

The Bishop's address at Convention

Bishop Greg gave his annual address to the Diocese at Convention. Let me summarize the high points.

Radical Hospitality. He gave a humorous example of radical hospitality by telling us about his first visit to his dentist, in which he received the complete and total attention of the dentist and her staff. This was his way of emphasizing the importance of welcoming guests to our churches.

Three priorities. The bishop has always stated his three priorities are: People 35 and under; Congregational development; and Stewardship of all of our resources—human, monetary and our environment. He cited many instances where the diocese is working on those goals.

People 35 and under: a new commission for the emerging church; and a new diocesan staff person for youth.

Congregational Development: the founding of the College for Congregational Development; and the beginning of the Safeguarding God's Children training program.

Stewardship: the success of the Bishop's Society; good work by the Bishop's Committee for the Environment, including the Genesis Covenant; his service on the Governor's Climate Action team; and raising $160,000 for hurricane relief and malaria nets.

He mentioned the economic recession and addressed concerns about the tightening economy, and he talked about his mutual ministry review.

You can find the whole address on the diocesan website by clicking here.

No comments:

Post a Comment