The Acts of Convention

House of Deputies

The House of Deputies Committee on Evangelism presented its Report #4 on Resolution A066 (Evangelism Toolkit for the 21st Century) and moved adoption of a substitute.

Original Text of Resolution:

(A066)

Resolved, the House of Bishops concurring, That the 76th General Convention direct the Center for Evangelism and Congregational Life to create a comprehensive toolkit to support and inspire congregations and dioceses to engage in culturally-appropriate evangelism and mission with groups under-represented by the church including, but not limited to, people of color, immigrants and refugees, youth and young adults, gay and lesbian people, people living in poverty, people with disabilities and those who do not attend church; and be it further

Resolved, That the toolkit might include video/DVD, an online resource center and a downloadable resource pack (in Spanish and English, with subtitles in other languages). The content could include the following: videos of church leaders’ compelling stories about evangelism and mission in emerging, multicultural contexts; tools and resources for change-planning, identifying a community’s demographic make-up, and training to prepare congregations to engage in cross-cultural evangelism and mission. Such training might include, but not be limited to, anti-racism, welcoming poor people, gay and lesbian people, youth and young adults, immigrants and refugees, people with disabilities and those new to/returning to church; and be it further

Resolved, That the toolkit be presented to the House of Bishops and the Executive Council in their first meetings in 2011.

Committee Substitute:

Resolved, the House of Bishops concurring, That the 76th General Convention direct the Center for Evangelism and Congregational Life to create a comprehensive toolkit to equip congregations and dioceses to engage in culturally-appropriate evangelism and mission; and be it further

Resolved, That the toolkit support congregations and dioceses in their work to fulfill Christ’s Great Commission with special attention to provide resources to evangelize people historically underserved by the church, for example, people of color, immigrants and refugees, youth, young adults, people who are gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgendered, people living in poverty, people with disabilities and/or all others who are alienated from the church; and be it further

Resolved, That the toolkit be presented to the House of Bishops and the Executive Council in their first meetings in 2011 for their comment and review; and then be distributed throughout the church.

Motion carried

Substitute resolution adopted

(Communicated to the House of Bishops in HD Message #123)