Nearing the Finish Line

Let’s start with something silly.

Did you hear that there’s a pigeon making some waves at General Convention this year?  Well, to be more accurate, there seems to be several pigeons.  Several pigeons that now have a twitter handle. They have added some great good humor to the House of Deputies legislative sessions as they can be seen swooping through the room, walking along the floor, maybe even pecking at your snacks.

The @gc79pigeon has been the talk of #GC79 in the House of Deputies. @gaycjen just ruled the pigeon’s nomination for president out of order. Read our interview with the pigeon here: https://t.co/DlyarVI6Po pic.twitter.com/Gb5IRlc0m6

— Episcopal News (ENS) (@episcopal_news) July 8, 2018

Okay, now on to some more serious updates:

The ECMN Deputation is near the finish line of their experience at General Convention.  As they do so, here are ECMN Deputy Devon Anderson’s reflections on how the work of General Convention impacts her work doing ministry in a faith community.

How do resolutions passed General Convention Resolutions impact us? – Devon Anderson

Prayer Book Resolution has passed both houses

The original resolution passed by the House of Deputies called for full-scale revision of the prayer book, but the resolution that was passed yesterday had been revised with an eye to the creation of new liturgical while leaving the Book of Common Prayer intact. Click here to read more about this, and click here to read the resolution that was passed.

Diocese of Cuba

As you may have heard already, both the House of Deputies and the House of Bishops voted unanimously to re-admit the Diocese of Cuba back into the Episcopal Church.  It’s been a long time coming, and it was pretty incredible to watch. Click here to read more about the history and impact of this re-unification.

Click here to watch the livestream of the House of Deputies as they vote to include the Diocese, followed by the immediate welcome of the Bishop and Deputation from Cuba to the floor. (start the video at 22:30) – or watch the whole thing to get some insight into pigeon references mentioned above.

Rick Swenson – Resolutions Regarding the Diocese of Cuba ECMN Deputy Rick Swenson re-caps some of the highlights from his time sitting in on the Committee reviewing the resolutions regarding Cuba.

Analyzing Events

In addition to these news-y things, here are a few resources if you’d like to dive more deeply into what all this means, and how some leaders in the Episcopal Church are unpacking and understanding the events and work of General Convention.

Inside General Convention

The Episcopal Church has been producing a show every afternoon where they break down, analyze and go more deeply into the topics being discussed and decided about during General Convention. Click here to view the stream of episodes!

House of Deputies News Podcast

House of Deputies News is a great resource for news as well as some opinions and analysis from the events of General Convention.  Click here to read some of their articles.

In addition to articles, they’ve been producing nightly podcasts where they analyze and interpret the events of the day.  Click here to view the stream, and click here to listen to the episode featuring ECMN Deputy Devon Anderson!