Highlights from General Convention 80

The 80th General Convention in July 2022, despite being smaller, shorter, fully masked, and tightly focused due to Covid precautions, managed to make history in multiple ways. Covering the huge amount of work needed in four days was made possible by committees holding hearings via Zoom prior to GC80. Committee members made disciplined use of the Consent Calendar, which allows passage of many resolutions at once with no debate. Deputies and bishops worked long days with worship in the separate houses beginning at 8:30 am and legislative sessions ending at 9:30 pm.

Reunion

A high point for both Houses of General Convention was the votes to confirm the reunion of the Episcopal Church of North Texas (formerly the Diocese of Fort Worth) with the Diocese of Texas. Emotional unanimous votes in both houses ended in standing ovations and cheers. In the House of Deputies both deputations were invited by Gay Jennings, president, onto the platform for the vote. In the House of Bishops, North Texas Bishop Provisional Scott Mayer joined bishops Andy Doyle, Jeff Fisher, Kai Ryan, and Hector Monterroso as all were invited onto the platform by Presiding Bishop Michael Curry for the vote. Reports are that there wasn’t a dry eye in either house.

History

For the first time, the House of Deputies is led by two women of color. Oklahoma lay Deputy Julie Ayala Harris was elected the first Latina and the youngest person to lead the house and Rachel Taber-Hamilton of the Diocese of Olympia was elected as the first indigenous and first ordained woman to serve as vice president. This means that along with Curry, for the first time in history, all the presiding officers of the Episcopal Church are people of color.

Priorities

In what many saw as a sign of healthy priorities for the church, both houses spent much more time in discussion about possible additions to the Book of Common Prayer than they did on the budget, although the latter was examined thoroughly as well.

Holy Listening

The House of Deputies sat in rapt silence during what Jennings described as “holy listening” as indigenous deputies somberly related their stories as survivors of horrific experiences at indigenous boarding schools. The House of Deputies passed and the bishops concurred on Resolution A127. The resolution pledges more than $2.5 million over the next biennium to further the Episcopal Church’s commitment to investigating its role in indigenous boarding schools; create a fact-finding commission to preserve and to provide a public platform to hear the stories of survivors of any such schools within dioceses’ geographic area; establish Indigenous communitybased spiritual healing centers to address intergenerational trauma; and to create educational resources regarding the church’s role in the schools.

This was part of Convention’ work on racial justice and reconciliation which involved several resolutions that continue the church’s commitment to reckoning with its history of racism. Deputies on July 8 adopted Resolution A125 offered by the Racial Justice and Reconciliation Committee, establishing a voluntary Episcopal Coalition for Racial Equity and Justice among dioceses and congregations. Bishops concurred, rejecting a proposed amendment that could have prevented its passage because there was no time to send an amended resolution back to the deputies for concurrence. The coalition is designed as a remedy to the church’s uneven record of prioritizing racial reconciliation at the church-wide level and across the dioceses of the church.

Social Justice

General Convention affirmed that all Episcopalians should be able to access abortion services and birth control; adopted resolutions to offer paid family leave and health insurance to lay and clergy church employees; spoke out against gun violence; and lauded investment in community violence intervention programs.

In a moving unanimous silent affirmation of Resolution A226, Convention rose to recognize, honor and lament the three members of St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church, Vestavia Hills, Alabama, who were murdered June 16 by a man who was attending a potluck supper at the church. The resolution also recognized the surviving 18 church members and friends who were there that night.

Convention also created a staff position for LGBTQI and Women's Ministries, expanded the definition of gender identity and expression, and advocated for access to gender affirming care.