A refocused Resources for Mission Department, formerly known as Philanthropy, will support stewardship throughout the whole church, Council of General Synod (COGS) members learned at their recent meeting in Mississauga, Ont. On April 2, COGS members approved the name change, pending official adoption at General Synod 2013.
Also on April 2, the Primate, Archbishop Fred Hiltz, announced that he had appointed Vianney (Sam) Carriere to serve as director of Resources for Mission. Mr. Carriere, who has been Interim Director since last July, will also continue in his previous role as director of Communications and Information Resources.
“I’m quite excited about the synergy between the two areas that I head,” said Mr. Carriere in an interview at COGS. “It’s a great area of work to focus on.”
One area to be refocused in Resources for Mission is the Anglican Appeal, the national church’s annual fundraising appeal. The appeal will now broaden its fundraising from international and northern Canadian partnerships to all national church ministries. The Anglican Appeal will also frame its work within the Marks of Mission, five mission priorities used widely throughout the Anglican Communion and adopted as guiding principles for the Anglican Church of Canada at General Synod 2010.
Mr. Carriere explained that all refocusing work will be guided by the report “Poised to serve, poised to lead,” written by Suzanne Lawson, consultant to Philanthropy. This extensive report described the history of the department, evaluated previous initiatives, and outlined current departmental priorities, structures, and staffing.
At COGS, the Primate announced that Ms. Lawson has been hired as half-time national campaign liaison within Resources for Mission. This national campaign will be developed with individual dioceses and will roll out in several stages. Its time frame is long-term, depending on how many dioceses choose to participate and what timeline they approve.
COGS also learned of two additional Resources for Mission positions, one in stewardship education and the other in diocesan services. There is currently no timeline for these hires, Mr. Carriere said.
Mr. Carriere explained that these new positions were identified based on information that Ms. Lawson gathered during one-on-one interviews with all diocesan bishops. Mr. Carriere also noted that all Resources for Mission positions will be reviewed and possibly reorganized or refocused so staff are working in their areas of strength and interests.
These staffing changes-particularly Mr. Carriere’s promotion-have implications elsewhere at the national office. At COGS, the Primate announced that Beverley Murphy, circulation manager for theAnglican Journal, will now also serve as senior manager of the Communications and Information Resources Department, where she will oversee daily operations.
Mr. Carriere encouraged Canadian Anglicans to review the recent stewardship document, “Stewardship: a faithful response to God’s mission” to understand the purpose and plans of Resources for Mission. He acknowledged that while there may be skepticism about stewardship work from the national office, the refocused department is already arousing interest and support.
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