By Rev. Paula Lake, 11th Episcopal District
The Revisions Committee is another reminder of how rich our history and traditions are across the Connectional Church but are still and yet adjustable to our changing times while remaining relevant and effective.
Some of the highlights from the report:
Bill LCO04 – The Committee presented the AME Pulpit Altar Calendar. The rationale of this revision is to address the current ambiguity among the different Christian calendars, especially among other Christian denominations. The current reading in the Book of Discipline states that “the altar should be dressed with suitable clean, colored coverings.” The amended bill calls for churches to dress their pulpit and altar with colored coverings for the various seasons of the Christian year as prescribed by the African Methodist Episcopal Church seasonal calendar. Refer to Bill LCO04 for the AME Christian Seasons Color Calendar.
Bill MIN15 – The Renewal of the Love Feast – The rationale of this bill is that the Love Feast has lost its preeminence in churches today. The Love Feast, practiced in our AME churches since long ago, is a time to express our love for God, our intent to live out a holy life and to be in loving fellowship with our brothers and sisters in Christ. The water and bread symbolize purity and fellowship. This revision seeks to renew this ritual by encouraging Pastors to conduct Love Feast prior to Communion. Those who participate in Love Feast should be invited to the first table at Communion when feasible. -The Bill was passed.
Bill JAO5 – Child & Youth Protection Background Checks Bill was presented with much discussion among both our stateside and overseas delegations. The amendment called for adult employees and volunteers beginning work with or already working with ministries with children and/or youth or with organizations or agencies associated with the church that serve children and/or youth to have periodic national criminal background checks and training related to child protection policies and procedures. The discussion was focused on the frequency of background checks and the turnaround time and availability of the results, especially in our overseas countries. Recommendations were made to reduce the time frame from 2-year background checks to every year. Further debate was discussed on the securing of the background check results, whether it should be kept at both the Episcopal Office and the local church. This bill was postponed so that further discussion about the policies and restrictions of background checks in each Episcopal district could be ascertained.
A final highlight of the morning Business Session was
Bill GGBO8 – Change in Frequency of The Christian Recorder. As we have witnessed this Quadrennial, The Christian Recorder is a consistent source of information and inspiration to the Connectional church and beyond. The Revisions Committee presented the proposal for the Christian Recorder to be printed at least monthly instead of biweekly under the direction of the Commission on Publications of the General Board of the AME Church at the AME Sunday School Union. The bill was passed.
