After all the years of Convocation being at Swanwick, we finally had success. We were able to stop off on the way for a picnic lunch! After a quiet sandwich and bottle of wine, we arrived at the 148th Annual Convocation of the Free Church of England, in time to say a few hellos, sign in and find a seat.
We made a start on business at 2pm by welcoming new people and Bishop Royal Grote, visiting from the REC. The registrar made the head counting less tedious, when he said ‘here’ himself after calling names. This year there were 38 lay members and 17 ministers in attendance.
It was then time to elect a General Secretary for the coming year. Dad nominated Paul and as no one thought anyone else was good enough, he was elected unanimously.
There followed the usual things we have to do – letters, memorials (which included standing for a minute’s silence), more letters, and a response from the Presiding Bishop of the REC. It’s nice that our relationship with the REC has developed in recent years. After the standard work, we whizzed through the reports so fast I thought we’d finish business by the end of the first day.
We made a start on business at 2pm by welcoming new people and Bishop Royal Grote, visiting from the REC. The registrar made the head counting less tedious, when he said ‘here’ himself after calling names. This year there were 38 lay members and 17 ministers in attendance.
It was then time to elect a General Secretary for the coming year. Dad nominated Paul and as no one thought anyone else was good enough, he was elected unanimously.
There followed the usual things we have to do – letters, memorials (which included standing for a minute’s silence), more letters, and a response from the Presiding Bishop of the REC. It’s nice that our relationship with the REC has developed in recent years. After the standard work, we whizzed through the reports so fast I thought we’d finish business by the end of the first day.
Afternoon break came, along with time to move into our rooms. I had a twin so Eric could have had his own bed if he wanted. He didn’t though. After grabbing a cup of tea and a slice of cake, we went and sat in the sunshine for a bit (we as in people, not Eric; he stayed in his room).
When we got back into the hall, it was Dad’s turn for centre stage. He started by saying this would be the worst report he has had to present in all his years as treasurer. The investment income was still dropping and the quota had been £600 for four years. It would have to go up. There was a deficit of £5000, which could be recovered by increasing the quota to just over £900. Dad didn’t want to do that. He suggested setting the quota at £750, then appealed for donations to the General Fund to cover the difference. He had confidence that £2000 would be raised and set the ball rolling with a £250 donation. The accounts were accepted and all were in favour of increasing the quota to £750.
That finished business for the day and there was time for a break before going into dinner. By break, I mean popping into Mom and Dad’s room with an empty glass… After a tasty lasagne and chips, it was time for Evening Prayer and the Convocation Charge, given by the Bishop Primus. Bishop John spoke on 2 Timothy 4:1-5, which once again seemed a very apt passage: “They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.”
It was finally time for the bar, where the best part is not the beer but catching up with people and having long discussions you wouldn’t otherwise have (like, for example, talking to a bunch of Cannons from the Church of England). This time, Dad and I spent a while talking to Bishop Roy about his work for the REC. It was fascinating hearing about all the churches he has helped plant, and the growth of his Diocese.
The next day, business started with the election of officers. Most of them were the same as last year, except with John Leal leaving and Norma and Marlene stepping down, there were two vacancies. I was pleased to be elected as Webmaster, although we weren’t sure if that should be Web Mistress, and the nutcase who agreed to take on the Convocation Organiser role was, me.
We moved onto the motions, starting with second year approval to some cannons, and we then considered the last lot of Cannons to be reviewed. Hooray! Those changes were approved.
After a tea break, we elected the Bishop Primus, who is once again Bishop John McClean.
Back to the motions and the most difficult of them all – a statement setting out a scripturally based definition of marriage and confirming the FCE does not consent to any of its premises being used, or clergy taking part in, the registration or blessing of same-sex unions. After a lengthy discussion the motion was passed with 20 votes for, but there were 29 abstentions. The final motion was to write to the Government in protest against its current review to redefine marriage. This one was passed with 54 votes for.
The hard work done, we thought about next year being the 150th anniversary. A celebratory event would need planning! We agreed the venue could be Birmingham Botanical Gardens. The Primus and Secretary were to appoint a small committee to organise this event.
We had got to the dates of the next meetings on day two! Next year’s Convocation would be at The Hayes, on 20-22 May. After a short break, we gathered for another important Convocation moment – the annual photo call.
When we got back into the hall, it was Dad’s turn for centre stage. He started by saying this would be the worst report he has had to present in all his years as treasurer. The investment income was still dropping and the quota had been £600 for four years. It would have to go up. There was a deficit of £5000, which could be recovered by increasing the quota to just over £900. Dad didn’t want to do that. He suggested setting the quota at £750, then appealed for donations to the General Fund to cover the difference. He had confidence that £2000 would be raised and set the ball rolling with a £250 donation. The accounts were accepted and all were in favour of increasing the quota to £750.
That finished business for the day and there was time for a break before going into dinner. By break, I mean popping into Mom and Dad’s room with an empty glass… After a tasty lasagne and chips, it was time for Evening Prayer and the Convocation Charge, given by the Bishop Primus. Bishop John spoke on 2 Timothy 4:1-5, which once again seemed a very apt passage: “They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.”
It was finally time for the bar, where the best part is not the beer but catching up with people and having long discussions you wouldn’t otherwise have (like, for example, talking to a bunch of Cannons from the Church of England). This time, Dad and I spent a while talking to Bishop Roy about his work for the REC. It was fascinating hearing about all the churches he has helped plant, and the growth of his Diocese.
The next day, business started with the election of officers. Most of them were the same as last year, except with John Leal leaving and Norma and Marlene stepping down, there were two vacancies. I was pleased to be elected as Webmaster, although we weren’t sure if that should be Web Mistress, and the nutcase who agreed to take on the Convocation Organiser role was, me.
We moved onto the motions, starting with second year approval to some cannons, and we then considered the last lot of Cannons to be reviewed. Hooray! Those changes were approved.
After a tea break, we elected the Bishop Primus, who is once again Bishop John McClean.
Back to the motions and the most difficult of them all – a statement setting out a scripturally based definition of marriage and confirming the FCE does not consent to any of its premises being used, or clergy taking part in, the registration or blessing of same-sex unions. After a lengthy discussion the motion was passed with 20 votes for, but there were 29 abstentions. The final motion was to write to the Government in protest against its current review to redefine marriage. This one was passed with 54 votes for.
The hard work done, we thought about next year being the 150th anniversary. A celebratory event would need planning! We agreed the venue could be Birmingham Botanical Gardens. The Primus and Secretary were to appoint a small committee to organise this event.
We had got to the dates of the next meetings on day two! Next year’s Convocation would be at The Hayes, on 20-22 May. After a short break, we gathered for another important Convocation moment – the annual photo call.
That left us with an afternoon off to enjoy the sunshine. I spent part of it learning what was involved in organising Convocation, and then I ended up playing croquet on one of the lawns. I’d never played it before and I didn’t do too badly, but I did come to the conclusion it was a bit of a fiendish game.
After dinner we had an impromptu entertainment show. Some of us told those present what we were grateful for and picked a hymn. I was grateful for getting my voice back in time for Convocation so that I would be able to properly socialise with people, which is, I think, just as important as the work part. Naturally, there followed another evening chatting in the bar and we were lucky to be allowed to gate-crash a birthday party! It was sadly lacking in Scotch though.
Day three was a nice easy day. We went through the minutes, then costs of Convocation which were down on last year. Dad was also happy to announce that donations to the General Fund had been rolling in and so far amounted to £1,360.
There followed the usual thanks and presentations, including thanks to Bishop Grote for his visit and giving the Convocation Sermon at Holy Communion, and gifts for Norma and Marlene as it was their last year as organisers. To my surprise they also had a gift for me, which included painkillers for the headaches, a bottle of wine to drown my sorrows, and an eye mask for much needed rest. Convocation business was concluded at 12:05pm.
It was another lovely sunny afternoon, so I sat in the garden with Lesley, going through the editing of the draft yearbook. That took a while. Then it was time to leave what had been another successful and enjoyable Convocation. I was a little sad to go…
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