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Council of Assembly News

Meeting 18 - 20 July 2003

When Council of Assembly met in Wellington we brought together the work being done by Policy and other Groups and spent some time in a discernment process that fed into and enriched our shared journey. Some of the matters discussed are listed below.

We noted the role of the Council is to work on "what we as a church have agreed together"in the General Assembly. We recognised that a great deal of change is being experienced within the church and in society and that we need to be aware of these pressures when proposals are being developed.
Policy groups reported on work in progress and identified issues that they will address in dialogue in the September regional workshops, Tutahi Tatou. The context is developing and maintaining healthy congregations as the focus of mission.

Resourcing for Mission (ReforM) are addressing ways to help congregations be effective in mission.
What will congregations of the future look like? When we are in an environment of constant change, when interest in spirituality is high, but interest in institutions is low; where do congregations fit? Is doing things the way they've always been done the best answer?

What things help strengthen a local church as a worshipping community and what helps the congregation grow in faith and in the outward expression of this faith? How can we, as a church, help individual congregations become what God wants them to be?

ReforM has been working on finding answers to some of these questions and will have three policy areas to discuss at Tutahi Tatou.

1. We are looking at a process of appraisal that will replace the Quinquennial Visitation. Every three years each congregation will work with a trained facilitator to assess where they are and discuss what they would like to do over the following three years. The facilitator will help the congregation put together an appraisal report with an action plan of the next steps. It will take into account the congregation's strengths, needs and local opportunities and include a commitment to act. The report and the action plan will be communicated to Presbytery, so that they contribute to the regional planning, in order that congregations can support and encourage each other.
2. Following on from this, we are looking at what can be offered to help congregations work from the initial planning document in (1) to create a Congregational Mission Plan. This may involve providing access to expertise, resources and personnel. It may well be that this is provided from a regional base; so that local initiatives can be better supported. The intent is to find a way to encourage congregations to "be salt and light in the world".
3. The third area we would like help in discussing is how to encourage congregations to use God's resources for God's purpose. What prevents us from releasing resources for Mission? What should we focus on doing locally and what should we do together?
   Members of the Reform Policy Group will be attending the Tutahi Tatou workshops and are keen to hear a range of views on these proposed policy directions.

This proposal will be brought to Tutahi Tatou for discussion.

Equipping the Leadership (EtheL) are taking seriously the direction given by General Assembly to look at ways of training ministers that doesn't require them to relocate to Dunedin. They are exploring a variety of options including training in congregations and combinations of distance learning and residential study in Dunedin. In considering the options EtheL are looking at several factors including the effectiveness of the approach in ministry formation, financial benefits and local resources. The different approaches will be discussed at Tutahi Tatou in September.

Work has begun on an approach to ministry and leadership development appraisals. EtheL will be considering a comprehensive report at its next meeting. A draft proposal will be brought to Tutahi Tatou for discussion.

It is important remember that Leadership for Mission can be exercised by both lay and ordained leaders. A paper on this topic is available on the Leadership for Mission pages on the website.

Administration and Finance are charged with resourcing the mission of the church. They have been considering feedback and an alternative proposal on the move to a single assessment system. The decision to go to single assessment from July 2004 has been made, but close attention has been paid to feedback about the definition of income and the effect on small congregations. Admin and Finance have noted the concerns expressed and are continuing to discuss them. They believe the revised proposal should be acceptable as a just system on a broad base to the Church. The proposal about how single assessment will operate will be brought to Tutahi Tatou in September.

Indications are that the budget deficit that for this year that was projected at $600,000 will not happen. It is likely that the national budget will, in fact, break even. Admin and Finance expect that budget accuracy will improve as financial reporting to management improves and there is closer monitoring of spending.

Following a recommendation from Admin and Finance, a task group will be set up to further consider the role, support and position of Moderator of the General Assembly. The group will look at strengthening the role of Moderator as a key mission leader of the national Church (including as a communicator of national vision and direction) and the relationship with other leadership roles such as Convener of the Council of Assembly and the Assembly Executive Secretary. Consideration is also being given to the support, where appropriate, of the Moderator's parish, family and personal situation.

Overseas Mission and Partnerships (OMP) have set a high priority on providing opportunities for a new generation of young people to learn about global mission. Andrew Bell's work is highly regarded and he is keen to take up opportunities to work with congregations.

Connecting with Society (ConSoc) has now met twice and is developing relationships with CASI (Churches' Agency on Social Issues) and a range of other groups within the church and beyond.

Regional meetings to discuss 'Strengthening Presbyteries' were held in March and April. A variety of local initiatives making better use of resources were noted and a report will be going to presbyteries shortly. A number of functions were identified as better performed regionally or even nationally while, at the same time, the importance of small local groups for other functions was recognised. Council noted that initiatives to improve regional functioning are continuing but that resources are short. To progress the opportunities for regional co-operation where it seems viable, Council decided to create a part time, contract Project Leader position. The Project Leader would be focused on working with presbyteries and the Mission Resource Team to progress and support the opportunities available. The possibilities for regions co-operating to create plans will be discussed at Tutahi Tatou.

Tutahi Tatou - let us stand together - Planning is well advanced and all session clerks should now have received invitations to send teams or individuals to these six-hour September events. Full information is in the August issue of sPanz and on the website Tutahi Tatou pages in the Newsevents part of the website.

Registration forms are either in the papers sent to session clerks or on the Tutahi Tatou pages on the website.

Work in progress includes updating the Directions 2003 paper that was brought in draft form to this Council meeting. A Task Group is working on this document that will be available later this year
The Conference of Churches in Aotearoa New Zealand sent a paper that indicates they are looking at moving towards a new expression of ecumenism in New Zealand. The possibility of new structures will be discussed at their 2004 Forum.

Anyone dealing with Asian matters is asked to include our Asian Liaison Officer Rev Paul Kim (Ph 09 833 4595) and the Council of Asian Congregations in their dealings. Paul is an important resource and source of advice for our Church.

As it does at each meeting, the Service Team reported on its work. Council noted in particular the congregational leadership course at the School of Ministry, the congregational support and regional planning initiatives assisted by the Mission Resource Team, the formation of a Youth focus group helping Mo Mansill, letters of support for Mary Petersen's work as Children and Families Co-ordinator and progress on the computer installation in the Assembly Office.