Episcopalian initiative calls for flexibility in episcopal authority Institute on Religion and Democracy Monday, October 11, 1999 Dallas – Lay and clergy members of the American Anglican Council board are calling for wide church discussion of the "Jubilee Bishops Initiative." "It's time to break the ecclesiastical gridlock and free our church to move ahead in mission," said the Rev. Martyn Minns of the AAC board of directors. Taking up the Bible's call for a "year of release," the Jubilee Bishops Initiative urges voluntary flexibility in geographical lines of authority in the Episcopal Church to allow local ministries and mission to prosper. The initiative reflects "a determination to focus our energies as bishops on mission and evangelism, not on issues of control." The initiative was brought to the September meeting of the House of Bishops in San Diego by its author, Bishop Robert W. Duncan of Pittsburgh, who shared it with the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church, Frank Griswold. Bishop Griswold referred it to his Council of Advice for further study. "We are pleased that bishops will be discussing this ground-breaking document," said Diane Knippers, a lay member of the AAC board. "But this matter concerns the whole church. Not even all the bishops have seen this proposal. We want to encourage the widest dissemination and discussion of this innovative proposal." The Presiding Bishop has declared "Jubilee" for the upcoming 2000 General Convention, hoping to preserve the church's unity by avoiding controversial legislative decisions, especially regarding human sexuality and same-sex "marriages." Taking his cue, the Jubilee Bishops Initiative promotes a pro-active approach to preserving the church's unity through releasing Bishops and congregations from geographical restrictions. The Rev. Dr. Stephen Noll, editor of the AAC's newsletter Encompass, said, "Given the wide diversity of convictions within our church, I see the Jubilee Bishops Initiative as a possible way forward. It will not satisfy anyone completely, but it may provide a way that we can stay together under one formal umbrella." The Jubilee Bishop Initiative grew out of lengthy discussions among leaders of the American Anglican Council, including several bishops. Focusing on the national, diocesan, congregational and global levels of the church, it advocates the freedom "to release congregations to alternative episcopal oversight," the "renewal of mission … through evangelism, and ministry with the poor and oppressed," and the "willingness to provide alternative episcopal oversight for congregations in other dioceses." The initiative urges refraining from "coercive national legislation within the General Convention." Sensitive to conflicts that arise when church offerings are spent in ways that seriously violate the consciences of donors, the initiative allows for the possibility of a parish's diocesan "assessment" (financial contributions) to go to the diocese of the bishop providing alternative oversight. While the initiative urges efforts to persuade dissident congregations not to leave the Episcopal Church, it also asks bishops to consider that "resorting to civil courts in battles for church property is destructive to the life and witness of the diocese." The initiative calls for "a renewal of the mission of the Episcopal Church in the 21st century through evangelism and ministry with the poor and oppressed – especially through the agency of vital congregations." "This is an extraordinary and unprecedented document for an extraordinary time in the life of the church," said the Very Rev. Canon David Anderson, who was on site at the House of Bishops meeting. "The responsibility for unity and mission does not reside only with the bishops. This initiative deserves the widest consideration across the church." The American Anglican Council is composed of bishops, clergy and laity, as well as parishes and ministry organizations that affirm Biblical authority and Anglican Orthodoxy. NOTE: Copies of the Jubilee Bishops Initiative are available upon request. Call 800-914-2000 or e-mail your request to Anglican@ix.netcom.com.

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