Bishop Sisks October 8, 2009 Letter to the People of the Diocese
recommending the Report of the Special Committee on the Diocesan Budget Process and Assessment
October 8, 2009
Dear People of the Diocese of New York,
Since the release on September 4th of the discussion draft of its report, The Special Committee on the Diocesan Budget Process and Assessment, has invited comments and held informational meetings at Trinity, Fishkill; St Mary’s, Scarborough; and Donegan Hall and received numerous emails discussing the draft . I am very pleased to report that the essential messages of the report have been met with wide support. Those messages are:
We, the Diocese, are a community bound to each other in prayer, service and action.
In order for that community to endure and thrive each member must contribute its fair share of financial and other resources.
Especially in these difficult economic times, the assessment process was not functioning effectively, and adjustments could not be made promptly. Some parishes were not pursuing the adjustment process and were paying assessments only in part or not at all.
An important mission of the Diocese is to help parishes to grow in the strength of their ministries. The assessment formula should be reduced, but assessments can be fair to all parishes only if every parish pays its fair share. If a parish believes it cannot pay its full assessment, it should work with the Adjustment Board. At the same time, the Diocese offers a broad range of assistance to parishes facing issues.
Several of the recommendations contained in the discussion draft have already been implemented: the 2009 assessment has been reduced by 20% (I am pleased to report that a number of parishes have chosen to decline the offered reduction and stated that they will be able to meet their the full original assessments); the Adjustment Board has been reconstituted; and the Trustees have amended the Adjustment Board guidelines to empower it to address current and, if necessary, future year assessments.
The message of the report and steps taken have been widely accepted and endorsed. The principle has also been accepted that, coupled with a reduction in the assessment formula, there needs to be some means whereby those very few parishes, who simply do not accept their responsibilities as a member of the greater community, can be drawn back into the life of the Diocese.
Following the discussions in the informational meeting and the review of emails received, the Special Committee changed its original recommendation for dealing with a parish that is not paying its assessment and is not working in a meaningful way with the Adjustment Board. The final report now provides for a three-year process at the end of which at the recommendations of the Adjustment Board, Trustees and Standing Committee and, upon my approval, the Convention would be asked to vote to convert the status of such a parish to a mission. Converting a parish to a mission means that the Bishop appoints a vicar (who could be the former rector or another priest) as well as an advisory board to replace the vestry. This process is designed to provide the Diocese with the ability to intervene and address the underlying issues of the congregation. The process is deliberately structured to be slow and deliberate. My hope and belief is that once the process was begun a parish would choose, and be supported in its efforts by its neighboring churches, to join as an active participant in diocesan life.
In November, the Convention will be asked to approve two changes in Canon 18 which are required to implement the recommendations of the Special Committee: the reduction of the diocesan assessment rates for the years beginning 2010 and the provision summarized above for the conversion of a parish to mission status. In view of the importance of these issues, I am proposing the provisions of the Diocesan Canons restricting the right of lay delegates to be seated and to vote, be suspended for this Convention, and that all the congregations of the Diocese be represented with their clergy and lay delegates.
I therefore now commend the report to you for your careful consideration and ask for your prayerful support. It is born of careful listening and reflection. I believe that it suggests a fruitful way forward. It asks of us a renewed and deepened commitment to our common life in service and witness to the Life of the Living God who has been made known to us in Jesus, the abiding Word.
May God Bless you and Keep You,
+Mark
The Rt. Rev. Mark S. Sisk
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