Elliott's Blog

Sunday past was the Fifth Sunday after Pentecost. The sermon I offered on that day can be found (in both audio and text formats) by clicking HERE I'll be away on vacation for the next two Sundays. See you later in July.

I came to General Synod with a great deal of trepidation and fear. I had heard of what had transpired in 2007; had even watched some of it happen via the internet. I felt that it was ugly, painful, hateful, and filled with fear. So I came into this gathering carrying some of that baggage with me – some of those preconceptions. That being said I also wanted to approach this gathering with an open spirit and an open mind and an open heart. I was eager to meet new people and hear their stories – the extrovert in me was overjoyed! So I made my way into the event with mixed emotions – joy and fear; eagerness and trepidation; curiosity and doubt. I knew that there were going to be some very important issues discussed and debated. The opening worship, for me, set the tone for the rest of the event. The bishop from Cuba was the centre piece to that tone. He helped me to see a portion of Scripture unlike I had ever seen it before. “Jesus said, ‘I am the vine, you are the

Greetings! I write to you from my dorm room at St. Mary's University in Halifax as a member of the General Synod of the Anglican Church of Canada . I arrived on Thursday and due to some technical difficulties I was unable to get to the internet before now. Thursday we opened with a grand celebration of worship at the Cathedral Church of All Saints . The building was filled to capacity and beyond. The worship was joyful, lively and profound. The preacher was the Right Reverend Miguel Tamayo who is the Bishop of Cuba and Uruguay - one of the very few bishops who oversees two dioceses. His message was powerful and inspirational. He spoke about Jesus being the vine and we are the branches and when those branches are pruned it is not us who do that work, it is God. God prunes and does away with all that will not give fruit. The next day we began the business of Synod. Friday was a day full of presentations and resolutions. Lots of debate and discussion. We had fun as well.