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Report of the Vice-Chair
Synod Council holds two regular meetings per year. The scheduling of these meetings was adjusted in 2009 with the August meeting being moved to November and in 2010 with the movement of the January meeting to March. In addition to these regular meetings, Council has adopted a protocol for holding electronic meetings. Several such meetings have been held over the past two years. Electronic meetings serve the purpose of keeping council members engaged in the business of Synod between regular meetings. In the past, such business would have been conducted by the Synod executive committee.
The 2008 Synod convention gave first reading approval to a comprehensive revision of the synod’s constitution. The 2010 convention will consider the same package of revisions and if passed again, they will come into affect once given final approval by the National Church Council. The revised constitution sees all logistical details concerning items such as job descriptions of officers and Synod Council members, when terms of office begin, how often various bodies are to meet, etc. transferred from the constitution to the bylaws. By moving logistical details to the bylaws, future changes to such details can be acted upon and implemented at a single convention. A second thrust of the proposed amendments is to create a separation between the roles of Chief Executive Officer (our Bishop) and the chairperson of our board of directors (the Synod Council). Such a model is already in place in several other Synods (ABT and SK). Adopting this model in no way diminishes the role of the Bishop. It in fact enhances the Bishop’s ability to be a full participant in Council discussions and debates by freeing her / him from the duty of “refereeing” the action.
In anticipation of the 2nd reading approval of the proposed constitutional change, Synod Council has approved for presentation to the 2010 convention a revised set of bylaws. A significant addition to the proposed bylaws is a formal specification of the duties of and limits to the authority of the executive committee. As well, a revised section on committees provides for increased flexibility in terms of the creation of committees and establishment of roles and responsibilities.
Since the 2008 convention, Synod Council has adopted a new procedure for creating policy. Historically, synod councils have established policy through the passage of detailed motions. The new system sees detailed policy documents developed for inclusion in a synod policy manual with council adopting simplified motions that approve the adoption a specified policy. In recent meetings council has approved new policies on the bequests, cost of travel of the Bishop’s spouse, standing committees and a program approval. As new policies are created, the intention is to make them available on the synod’s website.
A major initiative of council in 2009 was the Mission as Hope program. Designed to consolidate the Focus on Mission and Youth and Campus ministry appeals into a single appeal, the program was launched in January 2009 with council members taking the lead in making pledges. The program was then taken to congregational councils across the synod who in turn introduced the program to their congregations. The purpose of Mission as Hope was two fold: (1) to ensure any shortfalls in regular benevolence did not put any regular programming in jeopardy and (2) to fund new initiatives in the area of leadership development and Canadian and global missions. Council also adopted an approach to the expenditures of Mission as Hope funds that will see funds collected in one year being used to support new initiatives in the following year. This ensures that new initiatives will only commence once funding is in place. The Mission as Hope program will continue in 2010 with a focus on raising awareness and support for new initiatives in the area of rural ministry.
On the advice of our treasurer, Council adopted a new budgeting procedure in 2009. It is no secret that the financial resources available to the synod have flat-lined if not fallen off in recent years and financial reserves have been drawn down. To guard against budget deficits, council adopted a two-column budgeting system. Perhaps the best way to explain this is to say that column A represents a restrained level of expenditure while column B holds a higher figure that will only be funded if sufficient benevolence and other funds are received.
With convening of the 2010 convention, council members Ernie Dojack, Trudy Thorarinson and Michael Kurtz will have served two terms and will be ineligible for reelection. It has been a pleasure to serve with these dedicated individuals and I am sure I speak on behalf the rest of the council in extending a sincere word of appreciation to each of them for the contributions they have made over the past eight years.
Respectfully submitted
Brian Lorch
Vice-Chairperson