Episcopal News Service: Press Release # 99-166

Executive Council Receives Warm Welcome to Flood-Ravaged Honduras

Episcopal News Service. November 18, 1999 [99-166]

(ENS) In a rare meeting outside of the United States, the church's Executive Council met in Honduras -- and was embraced in a special way by the people and the problems of a vibrant and growing diocese.

It began when many council members joined the work crews building the first 35 houses out of 95 planned at a new village outside of San Pedro Sula, a commercial hub where the diocesan headquarters and cathedral are located. A year after the devastation of Hurricane Mitch, the houses and a clinic were blessed by council members and ground was broken for a chapel.

"To come back here less than a year after the hurricane and see what has been possible is nothing less than a miracle," said Phoebe Griswold, who has traveled in the area with a team from the Presiding Bishop's Fund for World Relief. The "Faith, Hope and Joy" project is the first directly sponsored by the fund. (A meeting of the fund's board after the council meeting approved the purchase of additional land, adjacent to the village, enough for another 100 homes).

The bare patch of land she first visited last year now supports several housing projects, including one nearby that is sponsored by Habitat for Humanity and the South American Missionary Society. She expressed particular excitement with the new clinic, named for her husband, Presiding Bishop Frank T. Griswold.

"But we are building community, not just houses," she said, pointing out that a soccer field and garden are also part of the plans. And there will be a clean, safe water supply, thanks to a water purification system designed by an Episcopalian from South Carolina who is an environmental scientist.

Excitement infuses meeting

When the council officially convened October 28 it was quickly apparent that the work experience would impact on the whole meeting. The presiding bishop called it "an opportunity to taste the reality of Christ's body in some concrete ways, to experience Christ in the here and now."

Council members agreed that working together on the project had been a unifying force for the council itself, giving its decision-making a mission context. Some expressed an eagerness to return in another year to see how the village develops when it is filled with families -- and the laughter of children.

"The poor of Honduras angrily ask why God abandoned them -- but you have helped us answer the question," said Bishop Leo Frade in welcoming the council. He described a diocese that combines evangelism with social action, a diocese that is growing with about 20,000 members in 67 parishes and 15 missions, served by 45 priests and deacons.

Later in the meeting Frade would strongly endorse a resolution calling on the U.S. government to halt its policy that deports Hondurans who lack legal immigration status. The policy threatens the economic recovery of Honduras after the hurricane. "It is difficult for an ant to walk beside an elephant," Frade said in pointing out that the policy towards Salvadorans and Nicaraguans is different. Despite its support for American policies in the region during the Reagan years, "We were your friends and we were left hanging. We are the only country that doesn't get protection. We are asking for the same treatment," he said.

Eucharist as festival

For many council members, the highlight of the encounter with the people of Honduras came at a festival Eucharist -- or a Eucharist that was a festival.

Over a thousand people jammed the Catedral El Buen Pastor and an adjacent courtyard with television monitors to catch the exuberant service. Many had traveled through the night to be present. "I know now what it is like to be in the center of a cloud of witnesses," said Bishop Christopher Epting of Iowa, who helped distribute communion. Judge Jim Bradberry of Virginia called it "the richest liturgical experience" he ever had.

The recently refurbished cathedral was flooded with light as the procession of bishops and clergy and guests was greeted with lively music. Youth in native costume brought forward the gifts of the earth during the offertory and placed them in front of the altar. The sanctuary was quickly filled with incense. The presiding bishop celebrated and preached in Spanish, receiving murmurs of surprise and appreciation.

After the service the participants were inundated with confetti and glitters as they moved out of the cathedral and boarded buses for a visit to the diocesan-sponsored home for abandoned, orphaned and abused girls. Our Little Roses was founded by Diana Frade, council member and wife of the bishop of Honduras. Following lunch a choir from the home sang a special song they had written for the presiding bishop.

Chinnis hopes for hospitable conversation

In her opening comments to the council, Pamela Chinnis, president of the House of Deputies, expressed her own appreciation for the opportunity to "experience the culture, language and warmth of the people of Honduras."

With next summer's General Convention clearly on her mind, she expressed encouragement with recent efforts at "hospitable" or "graceful" conversation when dealing with potentially divisive issues. It is hard work, she warned, "to remain open to the spiritual gifts offered by people with whom we have deep disagreements about important things."

At a meeting of Province IV, for example, participants began first by "discussing matters which unite the church -- the baptismal covenant, worship, youth work; and then by addressing some dividing issues such as authority and sexuality." That approach establishes "common ground and the commitments we share before talking about our differences," she said.

As General Convention approaches "the siren calls to preserve right-thinking by rejecting each other are becoming louder. We, as leaders of the church, must do our utmost to raise the hospitable option again and again, to model openness and welcome for 'the other,' whatever our perspective or vested interest," she said.

Opening the budget process

With persistent prodding by the church's treasurer, Steve Duggan, the council continued its efforts to design a more flexible budget process, one that can respond to emerging challenges. He expressed frustration with the resolutions passed at the Philadelphia General Convention that had financial implications with no way to respond. "Can we build a budget process that is flexible and accountable, one that expresses a dynamic church?" he asked.

Griswold asked a similar question in his opening remarks: "How is the budget a manifestation of the Gospel for the purpose of mission? How could we structure the budget so that it is possible to respond creatively to new opportunities?"

Council members received a draft of the proposed budget for the next triennium which it will review at its January meeting.

Several council members expressed concern over the role of the national youth office in a planned meeting of youth in Boulder, Colorado, at the same time as the General Convention. Tom Chu, director of ministries with young people, said that the triennial Episcopal Youth Event is based on diocesan delegations and put together with a set of criteria to guarantee balanced participation. The Boulder event is a different kind of meeting, with an open welcome, he said.

What bothered some council members was the apparent claim that the Boulder meeting was sponsored by the national church when, in fact, it is sponsored by the Diocese of Colorado and the American Anglican Council, an umbrella organization of conservatives. Chu said that his office had provided some encouragement but was not a co-sponsor of the Boulder meeting, as some had claimed. A letter from Sonia Francis, assistant to the presiding bishop for program, made it clear that the national staff was providing only technical support based on experience with EYE.

In other action the Executive Council:

Approved the formation of the Episcopal Partnership for Mission pulling together a wide range of organizations, agencies and networks that send missionaries;

Discussed proposed funding for provincial networks to encourage networking possibilities. Some felt that the funding should come from the province, not the national church;

Endorsed a resolution for General Convention that will ask parishes and dioceses to provide "a safe, hospitable environment for frank conversation with youth and young adults about sexuality...." It asks national and provincial youth networks to suggest guidelines and resources.