Anglicans encouraged to create Vision 2019

The Anglican Church of Canada has embarked on an ambitious project to create its next long-term strategic plan, Vision 2019. The church is asking for input from all Anglicans in Canada on a two-part question: “Where is your church now, and where do you think it should be in 2019?”

Parishes, groups and individuals can send their answers in the format that best suits them – written letters, e-mails, voicemail or videos – and their responses will shape a report to be analyzed and presented at General Synod in June 2010 in Halifax.

Lisa Barry, senior producer at Anglican Video, is head of a staff group in charge of the project at the General Synod offices in Toronto. “We were asked by CoGS (Council of General Synod) to do basically a survey of Anglicans about what they want their church to be by 2019,” she said. “We thought that a good place to start with would be to find out where they are now, what they are up to, what their concerns are.”

The focus is on the five marks of mission. A study guide to stimulate discussions  can be downloaded from the Vision 2019 page of www.anglican.ca. (The five marks of mission are: to proclaim the good news of the kingdom; to teach, baptize and nurture new believers; to respond to human need by loving service; to seek to transform unjust structures of society; and to strive to safeguard the integrity of creation and sustain and renew the life of the earth.)  

Submissions will be accepted until Oct. 1. Videos should be kept to a 10-minute length and voicemail messages to five minutes. The committee members are Archbishop Fred Hiltz, primate of the Anglican Church of Canada; Michael Pollesel, general secretary of General Synod; Dean Peter Elliott (diocese of New Westminster), chair; Wayne Barnes  (diocese of Niagara); Bishop John Chapman (diocese of Ottawa); Paul Goulet (diocese of Toronto); Archdeacon Janet Griffith-Johnson (diocese of Montreal); and Rev. Susan Titterington (diocese of Yukon).