We have just experienced that time in the liturgical calendar, Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit is so visibly in evidence. The vivid imagery of Pentecost, as the Disciples become Apostles for the Gospel, and the church is born, captures the imagination and leaves us awe-struck. What if the outcome had been different? What if the Disciples/Apostles had not accepted the commission? 
Spiritual transformation is accompanied by a disconcerting reorientation that can have affirming/reaffirming outcomes, or a result that causes one to close down and retreat. The Apostles accepted their commission to share the Good News . . . and we are the beneficiaries!
There is a direct relationship between the outcome of a spiritual transformation and the quality of our inner life and spiritual practices, as we learned at Vital Church Maritimes (VCM) 2023, Setting Sail! Change happens – it is around us in every way – a fact that we really appreciate right now with the rebirth and renewal of the spring season in evidence in the natural world. But personal and organizational transformation is a process of immense uncertainty and considerable confusion, as we come to realize that there is much letting go involved and limited understanding of what lies ahead.
When I had the privilege and honour to be the speaker/facilitator at the Renewal Conference 2023 for the Anglican Church Women of the Diocese of Calgary in late April, I noted that the hymn for Anglican Church Women, The Love of Jesus Calls Us, invites us to challenge all that limits, to change, to learn, to grow . . . At that Calgary Renewal Conference, the Primate, the Most Rev. Linda Nicholls, emphasized that God invites us to choose to change, encouraging us to turn to Him so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord (Acts 3:19).
A change the Board has embraced is to partner with both the Anglican Foundation’s Say Yes! to Kids and Brigadoon Village, “Canada’s largest pediatric medical camp facility”, with a 2-month Person-to-Person (P2P) campaign, April 30 – June 30, Brigadoon Bound. All contributions for Brigadoon Bound, to support kids with extraordinary medical conditions to be “ordinary” for a week, are welcome. Give today: tinyurl.com/brigadoonbound Or, a cheque payable to the Anglican Foundation of Canada (Brigadoon Bound in the memo line) can be sent to the Anglican Foundation of Canada, 80 Hayden Street, Toronto, ON M4Y 3G2.
Learn more about the camp opportunities at Brigadoon: https://brigadoonvillage.org/ Thank you for your support.
VCM’s Setting Sail! provided an opportunity to explore where on the spiritual continuum we might be personally, and as a church, and to share Good News stories of a church on the move, taking risks, listening to where the Spirit is calling us. When I presented at the Calgary Renewal Conference, I emphasized that we need to develop a degree of comfort with risk-taking, disruption, and innovation; furthermore, that intellectual, emotional, and spiritual courage is needed. This is especially so when one is called upon to embrace a reality that is indicating a transformation is needed, a reality that calls into question the very existence of the organization.
The Anglican Church Women Diocesan Board has engaged in this challenging work of discernment, to shape a hope-filled future, resulting in an entity with a changed name, logo, composition, purpose, and function. The reality that we had to come to terms with in order to see how we might use our strengths and opportunities in new and wondrous ways involved an acceptance of the research on how volunteerism has changed in the church and community in the English-speaking world globally. Key elements of these shifts in volunteerism are:
- Membership in volunteer organizations, church and community, as we know them, has declined significantly over the space of decades; the majority of those who are sustaining the membership currently are either senior in age, or approaching senior age.
- There is limited interest among a younger demographic in “joining” organizations styled as we have been used to.
- To be involved, there is preference for less formality and structure, for an organizational structure called an adhocracy. There is limited interest in serving in a traditional “executive officer” position.
- Connecting for this younger demographic is predominantly electronic and accomplished in a compressed time frame, irrespective of Covid – think an identified event with a definable beginning and end, often one that is generated and promoted through social media.
- Connection and involvement are associated with a cause in order to have impact.
- There is definite reduced interest in gender-specific organizations. This is significant!
The process of rebirth and renewal for the Anglican Church Women Diocesan Board has resulted in a new, gender-inclusive/gender expansive mini foundation, launched at Synod 2023, with a focus on social transformation, entitled Anglicans Powering Potential (APP) . . . enhancing capacity for creative ministry. To learn more about APP and how to be involved, please e-mail [email protected] Meanwhile, the Board encourages you to . . . lay aside the old self . . . that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind (Eph. 4:22-23).
