Reflections From a Lay-Delegate on ANiC Synod 2023

By Emily Charter

Synod 2023 is a wrap! It was a week full of worship, training seminars, connecting conversations, celebrating milestones, and future planning.

In case you don’t already know me, I work for the Table Church as the Administrator. I’ve also been attending The Table for more than seven years now. This year I attended Synod as a lay-delegate (that is, a participant who is not a member of the clergy) representing our local parish. The Table doesn’t often send lay-delegates to Synod, but there are lots of reasons that it’s important for our community to send lay-leaders to events like this.

So, what IS Synod?

Synod is an annual assembly (literally, the Greek meaning of the word synodos is “assembly”) for those within our national diocese, the Anglican Network in Canada (ANiC), to gather for training, edification, and some business. Think our Table Annual General Meeting, but for 4 days, and with a lot more robes and vestments.

This past Fall, between November 14 and 17, more than 200 clergy and lay-delegates from across Canada gathered in Vancouver at the Church of the Good Shepherd for a sort of “state of the union” gathering: it was also a significant year because we held an Episcopal Election to elect a new Suffragan Bishop for Western Canada.

• noun. episcopal /əˈpiskəp(ə)l/

  of a bishop or bishops; (of a Church) governed by or having bishops

• noun. suffragan bishop /ˈsəfrəɡən/

  a bishop appointed to help a diocesan bishop

This was of special interest to us in Victoria, and we may receive a visit from our newly elected Bishop, Mike Stewart, at the Table in the near future! You can learn more about ANiC’s bishops here.

Sent by Jesus

The theme for the week was “Sent by Jesus,” guided by John 20:21 - “Jesus said to them again, ‘Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you’.” Our special focus was on evangelism, and especially on how to share the good news of Jesus in an ever-changing cultural landscape. The consensus in the teaching was two-fold: we must continually innovate to meet the challenges of the day, while remaining faithful to the word of the Lord, trusting that ultimately, our work comes second to the gospel and the work of the Holy Spirit.

Our Diocesan Bishop, Reverend Dan Gifford, presided over the events of the week, and shared many stories of new and continuing ministries across our national diocese, from coast to coast. It was exciting to hear about the many and varied ministries breaking ground in surprising ways!

Takeaways

• You may have joined the Table because you grew up in the Anglican church; but if you’re new (or new-ish) to Anglicanism, it’s worth learning about those characteristics that unite global Anglicans. We have a few copies of “The Anglican Way” by Thomas McKenzie in the Table library, if you ever want to borrow one. Or, take a really fast crash course on ANiC’s website.

• Let Andy know if you’re interested in attending a future Synod as a lay-delegate! It’s a fascinating look behind the scenes, and a great way to participate in the life of our national church.