Some reflections on General Synod – Te Hīnota Whānui (GSTHW) 2018

This Sunday is Pentecost Sunday. My sermon will be a reflection on the work of the Holy Spirit at General Synod Te Hīnota Whānui last week. I wont read this out. But it will say something similar.

General Synod – Te Hīnota Whānui is the decision making body of the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia. In many ways it functions like any other Synod within the Anglican Church around the world. It has three houses – Bishops, Clergy and Laity. But unlike some all the houses meet together, discuss the issues together, and make the decisions together. Most votes are on voice vote alone. Rarely is there a vote in houses. Although for contentious issues some of the discussion has been in these houses.

One we layer not present in any other Anglican Province is that we also work in three Tikanga – or cultural stream. On a day to day basis we function with these semi-autonomous organisational entities. It means the Tikanga Maori can organise their life and make their decisions within a Maori cultural framework. So too Polynesia. And the rest operate within a European based cultural framework – which is slowly morphing into a New Zealand Pakeha culture. For more information go here - http://www.anglican.org.nz/. This has radically changed how GSTHW operates. Its not prefect. Most of the speakers are still white. But it also means that Tikanga can call a caucus at any time. And for contentious decisions to be agreed to, all three Tikanga have to ascent or abstain. If any Tikanga says no then the decision is no.

This was the fifth GSTHW I have attended. I have never been a diocesan representative. The first four were in my national youth ministry role helping run the youth stewards programme. This time I was there as part of the Religious Orders prayer presence and for a motion apologising for the gifting of the CMS land in Tauranga to the New Zealand Government in 1866. It was deeply moving to be there and to see the Spirit of God at work both during some historic moments and some really important moments (in my view).

One of the big moments for me was a young Maori from the East Coast moving a motion seeking to establish a Climate Change Commissioner. This motion came out or the 3 Tikanga Youth Synod. Part of my role about 9 years ago was to provide a place where young people from the 3 Tikanga could reimagine what they needed to function as a 3 Tikanga church. It was hard because there were and still are powers in the church that look at the money involved here and think about how they would use it just in their Tikanga. It’s hard because after nearly 30 years were are still not very sure what it means to work as a 3 Tikanga and too often it is seen as a very low priority. But, with others, I held that space open. And in that space the young people of Polynesia talked about the effect of climate change on their homes – both in terms of rising waters and increasingly severe storms. When people in this land talk about ensuring that our efforts to combat climate change don’t affect our economy too much, they generally mean – let’s not do anything. And they do that ignoring that climate change is already affecting our economy. And just as importantly, if not more importantly, is already having a devastating effect on our Pacifica brothers and sisters. One of the gifts of our church structure is that they are us, and we get to stand with Pacifica in issues like this. So out of that 3T Youth Synod, young people came to a previous GSTHW seeking to get support to set up programmes across Polynesia to help young people prepare their villages for the storms, and to ensure the most vulnerable are cared for. They have now been trained and have used their new skills in recent storms. This year they came back wanting the Commissioner. It was affirming to see that and to know that I played a wee part in that. Not that anyone knew that. But I did.

The “big” issue was the decision to allow bishops to allowclergy in their diocese to bless same gender marriages and civil unions, and the measures put in place to allow those who deeply disagree with this to still feel safe and to remain with us. This has been a contentious and hard fought issue. It has taken a series of whole church meetings   on how we read the bible(Hermeneutic Huis), a commission of eminent people who explored the issue for us with recommendations (Ma Whea Commission), other church gatherings on the issue, and now 3 GSTHWs to get as far as we have. For some like me not being able to offer marriage to LGBTI people is very disappointing. For others it is not good enough. And for some even this is too far and they will go. Some did at the GSTHW and sadness was expressed at this. Every effort was made to be hospitable to them but they chose to go. I noted we did not also express sadness at the LGBTI people who were forced out of their churches because they were LGBTI. We also did not note our sadness at those for whom this has been way too slow and they no longer felt safe or affirmed and left. We did not express our regret that for too long we have failed to affirm that LGBTI people are made in the image of God, and we have been unable to stand with them as they seek to work out how to live that out with integrity and love in committed long term relationships. But we can now do that. My daughter said not offering marriage is lame. It is. But offering a blessing and giving space for bishops to ordain and licence LGBTI people for ministry in our midst is huge, and way further than most other churches even want to go. The Spirit of God was at work.

The Spirit of God is also calling our church to take a much more up front role within our countries on big Social Justice issues like climate change – because this is God’s world and we need to lead the way in how to treat it as such; ethical investments; funding projects that help local initiatives in Polynesia (the carbon offset from people flying on church business is being used for these micro business loans); and calls for a Royal Commission on ourCriminal Justice system – because our current system is just not working. These were big and important and hope filled moments for me.

Lastly the moment the GSTHW stood with Archbishop Philip as he read out the motion apologising to Ngaitamarawaho and Ngati Tapu for the transfer of the CMS block to the New Zealand government for the establishment of a military settlement to representatives of those two hapu was deeply moving. There is much more to be done here, but that moment and that motion are very important for the place of Te Haahi Mihingare in Tauranga Moana. It may have big implications for us here at Gate Pa. It may not. We will have to wait and see on that one. But it provides a just and sound basis on which to have that conversation – which we have not had before. I am excited. The Holy Spirit was and is moving.

It was humbling to be able to pray for the Hīnota as it voted on some of the big issues. It was fantastic to see young people leading the Hīnota on several occasions. And it was so good to see our new Archbishop – Pihopa Mataamua Don Tamihere led the GSTHW. I was not there when the whole body travelled several hours by bus to attend the final day of commemorations for the 160^th anniversary of the establishment of the Maori Kiingitanga or to hear Pihopa Don preach. But I suspect that will also be one of the significant moments as well.

The Holy Spirit is at work in our church. As I ponder the questions that shape my understanding of being church, “Whose are we, who are we and what is ours to do?” I can see us working hard and living out our calling, empowered by the Spirit. Do we have a future? I hope so. But that is not ours to worry about. It is to do what is ours to do – and broadly that is to live Gods generous, hospitable and just love for all people in the power of the Spirit. And I experienced that last week.