East Tennessee perspectives:
Day One ...

Bishop vonRosenberg, members of the East Tennessee deputation and East Tennessee visitors to the General Convention used these pages throughout the convention to share with the "folks back home" their impressions, activities and insights:

Settling in  •  Day One  • Day Two  • Day Three  • Day Four
Day Five  •  Day Six  •  Day Seven  •  Day Eight  •  Day Nine

• East Tennessee photo gallery at the convention
• "Suzanne discovers Columbus" - a blog by the Rev. Suzanne Smitherman, an East Tennessee deputy

Other pages related to the convention:

• Episcopal News Service convention coverage
• June 21 "unofficial" ENS round-up of legislation
• Official record of legislation
• "Windsor Process" background materials

At this General Convention, I am delighted to be serving on the legislative committee for the Church Pension Fund. Reports of activities of the Fund indicate that leadership of that important group continues to be in good hands. In fact, in the information that has been shared about the Fund's performance and in the testimony offered before our committee, the Pension Fund provides wonderful examples of excellent stewardship, effective results and appreciative clients.

Of course, clergy and lay employees whose pensions are in the Fund are very interested in such reports of performance. However, our parishes also have a stake in this matter, for annual church budgets provide clergy with pension benefits. Therefore, all of us can rejoice together and give thanks for the good work of our Church Pension Fund! This surely is an organization of the Episcopal Church of which we may be especially proud.

Greetings from the second full day of General Convention and the first full legislative day.

With some hearings beginning at 7 a.m. and some beginning at 7 p.m., the days can get very long indeed. While today was busy, there is no doubt that the pace will pick up. The hearings on the Special Commission's response to the Windsor Report are attracting a great deal of interest, as expected. I have been attending those hearings today. The hearings have been moved to a larger room. Tomorrow night's hearing has been moved to an even larger room, the Hyatt's Grand Ballroom with seating for 1,500. Tomorrow night's hearings are on Resolutions A160-A163. These resolutions are titled as follows: A160, Expression of Regret; A161, Election of Bishops; A162, Public Rites of Blessing for Same-Sex Unions; and A163, Pastoral Care and Delegated Episcopal Pastoral Oversight.

All four of these resolutions deal with our church's response in each area to issues raised in the Windsor Report

I continue to pray for the guidance of the Holy Spirit as we attempt to deal with these highly divisive issues with love, compassion and understanding.

As someone else has mentioned, we participated in conversations yesterday about what each of us hold so dear about being a Christian and about the Episcopal Church. The 10 people at my [worship] table had many different stories to tell about their being both Christian and Episcopalian. Our stories and abiding love for Christ and the church give me great optimism that most peoples want to find common ground. I believe that the Lord will show us a way. That might not happen at this convention, but I believe that over time, it will happen. We are clearly less patient than our Lord.

Don't let me lead you to believe that the Windsor Report is all that is going on here. It is simply where I spent most of my time today.

Please continue to pray for your deputies, all the deputies and your Church.

Hello again!

As often happens on the first legislative day of General Convention, there were a lot of "teaching moments" and rushing into session, then waiting for something substantive to happen. Deputies learned how to vote - electronics may not be all that helpful, after all - and how to electronically sign up to speak for or against something. We had our opening Eucharist and Bishop Griswold preached, quoting Bernard of Clairvaux who said there are two books for us: the book of knowledge and the Bible. He asked that we dare to pray for a deeper knowledge of our feelings, hopes and experiences. In my table discussion group, we talked about the gifts we have been given to strengthen us. As was yesterday's discussion group, this is a diverse group of men and women, black and white, young and not all that young. One of the African bishops is at our table. We spoke of diversity as a strength when we respect and appreciate our differences. One of the women said, "sometimes it is enough to say we are different and keep on walking together."

I attended three hearings on legislation today, beginning with the Prayer Book, Liturgy and Music Committee's deliberations on the new rite for the Renewal of Ministry with the Welcoming of a New Rector. It is simply amazing the amount of work that goes into the production of a new rite in our church! Essentially, the committee was reviewing and revising the work of the Standing Liturgical Commission which has already written the rite. Discussion was lively, many possible ways to say things were suggested, digested and kept or tossed out. Someone even asked "should there be a comma there?" Honest! This is a hard-working group of people.

This afternoon, I went to the Canons and Constitution Committee hearings on the revised Title IV, the disciplinary canon for clergy. The proposed canon also includes disciplinary measures for bishops and lay people. Several people spoke on this piece of legislation, and none of them were in favor of the changes. Interestingly, several folks felt that at this time in our church life, when we are engaged in the process begun by the Windsor Report, changing the disciplinary canons in any way might enable parishes and/or dioceses to bring action against those who are out of step with the parish/diocese on Windsor-related matters. In any case, the committee chose to go into executive session so visitors were asked to leave the meeting - just when it was going to get interesting!

This evening's session was about changes to Title III: the ordination, life and work of deacons, priests and bishops. For those of us who are Commission on Ministry members - Suzanne Smitherman and I went - this is interesting stuff. For almost everyone else, it is not, so I won't go into detail.

The beginning of convention is heavily weighted with committee meetings and hearings. Some committees, like Program, Budget and Finance will meet until the very last day. Most will be through with the bulk of their work by Monday, and then the legislative sessions in both Houses will be where the action is.

And that's all for Tuesday.

Have you ever had Mango Lassi ice cream? How about Thai Chili? These are just a couple of the exotic flavors that can be had just steps away from the convention center at the North Market's ice cream shop. After today, I can personally vouch for the Mango Lassi!

Today was my first day to attend legislative committee hearings. These committees are where the bulk of the work at General Convention gets done - resolutions are discussed, amended and finally passed on to one of the Houses or not passed on at all. I am helping to track what is undoubtedly the most popular committee, the Special Legislative Committee on the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion. This is where the resolutions responding to the Windsor Report are being considered. Today's hearings were relatively tame: an afternoon hearing on a resolution affirming our commitment to be part of the Anglican Communion and an evening hearing on three resolutions having to do with the listening process called for by the Windsor Report, the development of an Anglican Covenant also called for by the Windsor Report and a resolution from the Diocese of Newark asking that additional funds not be given to the Anglican Consultative Council until certain conditions are met. These hearings did not attract that much attention, particularly the evening session.

Tomorrow, however, will be a different story, indeed. The committee will hold an evening hearing on what will probably be the most challenging or controversial of the resolutions responding to Windsor. These include expressing regret for the impact of the 2003 General Convention's actions on the larger communion, urging everyone involved in episcopal elections to exercise extreme caution when choosing bishops, asking that the church not proceed to authorize rites for the blessing of same-sex unions and finally, a resolution concerning the House of Bishops' procedure for providing alternative episcopal oversight in situations where that is deemed necessary. Each deputation has been given five tickets for tomorrow's hearing, one for the bishop and one for each of four other deputies or alternates. Open seating for 1,000 more people also is being provided. The entire convention could be there! It should be an interesting experience.

Surely, before tomorrow night's hearing, additional ice cream will be needed. I think I'll try a different flavor, though. Maybe the Thai chili ...

Today being the first full day of General Convention, things begin very early. Many of us have committee hearings at 7:30. (That means for me to get in daily exercise I have to get up at 5:30). I am following World Mission and the Special Legislative Committee on the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion. I went to one hearing at 7:30 this morning and another at 2:00 this afternoon, and several of us went to the special committee meeting at 7:00 tonight.

The daily Eucharist is always something exciting with various musical and liturgical settings. The presiding bishop preached today on listening to the proddings of the Holy Spirit, who often takes us places we wrould rather not go. The president of the House of Deputies was the celebrant. There were at least three different languages used during the service.

The legislation at this point is still fairly basic and noncontroversial.

Part of the fun for me is discovering old friends whom I have not seen in years and catching up on one another's lives. In spite of all the work, there is plently of time to catch up on each other and find out what has happened since we last saw one another.

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