Hello from Louisville. I’m Michael Funston from St. Margaret’s, Lawrence, and I am serving as a lay deputy to the 81stGeneral Convention of the Episcopal Church. Sunday, June 23 was the first legislative session of the convention. Other highlights of the day were the opening Eucharist and the Province VII reception.
The day began with early morning legislative committee hearings where testimony was heard on various resolutions that are under consideration for this General Convention. Then we gathered in the main ballroom at the convention center for the Opening Eucharist of this General Convention. The Rt. Rev. Terry Allen White presided over the service and Julia Ayala Harris, President of the House of Deputies, preached. This Eucharist was open to all who have gathered in Louisville to participate in some way in this convention including deputies, bishops, Episcopal Church Women, guests, and volunteers. Imagine worshipping with over a thousand people, it was quite moving. One of the deacons assisting with distributing communion was the Rev. Sarah Shipman of Grace Cathedral, Topeka, recently ordained to the transitional diaconate on June 15th.
The first legislative session of this General Convention began after worship in both houses. The President of the House of Deputies shared her selection of scripture that would lead us through our deliberation this week. There is a bible in front of the main podium that is opened to this scripture. President Ayala Harris chose Numbers 27:1-8. This tells the story of land being inherited by the women since there are no male offspring. She chose this scripture as this convention marks significant anniversaries of women in the church. It is the 50th anniversary of the Philadelphia Eleven, the first women to be ordained priests in the church, and the 150th anniversary of the Episcopal Church Women, an organization formed before women were allowed to be deputies.
Once the House of Deputies was organized for its work, the first six resolutions considered were around our house’s rules of order. During the last General Convention in 2022, there were Special Rules of Order used due to the shortened convention of only four days, due to the pandemic. A special committee was formed to examine these special rules and the former rules to see what changes could be made to help the House of Deputies deliberate more efficiently and effectively on the legislation brought before it during the six days of the convention. There was a good debate on how best to order our house in this new timeframe. Afterward, there was a resolution about an oil leak near the Hawaiian Islands. There was passionate testimony from the Diocese of Hawaii and the Diocese of Navajoland. This resolution urged the Office of Government Relations in the Episcopal Church to advocate for the shutting down of this oil reserve. There was also a resolution declaring gun violence a national health crisis. There was more passionate testimony from deputies who had experienced gun violence in their churches and schools. Both resolutions passed unanimously.
Before the house adjourned for the day, we recognized the Diocese of Cuba being seated with voice and vote in the House of Deputies for the first time since they were welcomed into the Episcopal Church at the last General Convention in Baltimore in 2022. Their deputation sits close behind the Kansas table.
The day ended with a reception with our sibling dioceses in Province VII. We met for food and drink and conversation. Bishops, deputies, ECW delegates, family members, and friends enjoyed catching up and making new acquaintances. It was a great end to a busy day. Thank you to the Diocese of Kansas for electing me to serve as a deputy to General Convention. I love telling people that I am from Kansas and sharing the Good News from our prairie state.
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