wfn.org | Address from the Vice Chair to the

[ENS.parti@ecunet.org]

May 9, 1997
Episcopal News Service
Jim Solheim, Director
212-922-5385
ens@ecunet.org

97-1764
Address from the Vice Chair to the Executive Council of the Episcopal
Church, USA

        The last Council meeting of every triennium is a bittersweet
occasion: in the past three years we have spent a lot of time together,
and dealt with a lot of unanticipated crises.  You are a wonderful group,
and I treasure the time we have had, both in these sessions and in the
more intimate settings of our small groups, our shared worship, our
common meals.
        The Church has asked a great deal of us as leaders in a turbulent
time.  In return, we have been blessed by a rich fellowship among
ourselves, and the opportunity to visit and share briefly in the life of
many dioceses around the country.
        The final meeting of any triennium is bittersweet: because about
half are finishing their terms and will not be returning to our midst.  This
triennium's newcomers will be the "old boys and girls" when the new
Council convenes next fall, 
    teaching the ropes to a new crop of leaders, 
    ~   carrying on some of our traditions, 
    ~   creating new ones, 
    ~   responding in faith and love to whatever confronts the Church as
        the century ends.
     The final meeting of any triennium is bittersweet: but this time there
is a very special poignancy, because it is the last time we shall meet
under the leadership of Edmond L. Browning, our beloved Presiding
Bishop these last twelve years.  
         Ed Browning, with the steadfast support of Patti and her own
remarkable ministry at home and abroad, has presided over a remarkable
period in the life of our church.
         Not often in any lifetime do we have the opportunity to be led
by a person of great humility, the utmost integrity, and a very real vision
of what God is calling us -- as a Church,  and as individuals -- to be.  
         Not often are we privileged to share so closely in the hard
decisions, the revelations and insights, the moments of grace as we seek
God's will through the thicket of difficult problems and pressures from
every side.
         When I was elected vice-president of the House of Deputies, Ed,
as the new Presiding Bishop, asked me to chair a special Committee for
the Full Participation of Women in the Church.
         He also invited me to take a seat on the Executive Council. 
^From that vantage point I was able to witness his dedication to listening
to the many voices of our Church, and his faith that within the sometimes
noisy hubbub it was possible to discern the voice of God. 
         Out of his first triennium of listening to many voices previously
ignored, emerged the eight powerful "Mission Imperatives" that became
the foundation for our work as a Council.
         Some of you remember that I had served a term on Council just
prior to Ed's election.  His invitation that, as vice-president, I continue
with a seat and voice in this body enabled me to see clearly how he put
his own stamp on Council's life and work, and to learn from his quiet
convictions and courageous commitments.  
         Then during six years as President of the House of Deputies I
have been deeply blessed to be included in a real partnership with Ed
Browning, as we struggled to provide the best leadership to this Church. 
Not everyone has liked every decision; but I can assure you that every
one of them was made with careful consultation, fervent prayer, and a
sincere devotion to the well-being of this Church as an agent of the
Gospel in our world.
         In these last three years particularly, I have seen Bishop
Browning struggle with crisis after crisis, never losing his courage, and
never failing to keep the course he had set for himself and for this
Church.  
         We have been blessed as a Church by his courage and devotion,
and by his deep spirituality; we have been blessed as a Council by his
steadfast attention to things that were not only difficult for the Church
but personally very painful to him; and I rejoice that I have been
privileged to share in his prophetic leadership.  
         Thank you, Ed, for all that you have shared with me, and thank
you for your inspiring example of faithfulness in the midst of great
adversity.
         You have taught us so much, and I trust that your legacy will go
forward through those who will continue into the new Council.  As most
of you know, it is my hope to be among that group, and in Philadelphia I
will run for re-election to a final term as President.  
         Those who continue will be a potent resource for the next
Presiding Bishop, bringing expertise and continuity to the next chapter in
our corporate life.  As we make the transition, let us pray for the grace
to move forward with love and patience, with compassion for all.  
     
         Let us honor Ed Browning by making his values of empathic
listening and prayerful discernment an on-going aspect of Council's way
of doing business.  
         Let us honor Ed Browning by holding fast to his conviction that
God calls and loves absolutely everybody, and speaks to us especially
through the voices of the poor and the outcast.  
         Let us honor Ed Browning by continuing his commitment to re-
form the church so that all are welcomed, nurtured and challenged by the
baptismal covenant, and sent forth to spread the Good News from a
loving home base within the community of the baptized.  
         In the long long life of the Church, what we do here at the close
of the second millenium is only a blip on the time-line.  But we are the
people of a God who numbers the sparrows and counts the hairs on our
heads.  
         Working with Ed has given me a deepening appreciation of
God's boundless love and compassion, and a commitment to continuing
his witness to inclusivity, and the full participation of all in the life of the
Church.  
         Thank you, Ed, and thank you all for sharing this extraordinary
ministry.

Pamela P. Chinnis 
President of the House of Deputies