Dear Colleagues in Christ,
It was a delight to be with you in San Francisco for our annual C4SO retreat. James K.A. Smith imparted life-long lessons and key thoughts for leadership in our changing culture. I witnessed and participated in hundreds of conversations that are crucial for us as we create a mutual learning community with C4SO. Our days together were a source of Gospel strength and spiritual encouragement.
Our first evening together, l explained our vision and plan for the next ten years. With this letter I want to review that presentation and begin to organize the finances it will take to implement this plan.
To review, we articulated four goals:
- We intend, through the grace and power of God, to plant 100 churches and spin off 3 new Dioceses in the next 10 years. We chose this goal not because it is a good marketing slogan but because we believe new churches will help others find a God-saved life—and will ultimately serve the church at large. We are willing to innovate, take risks, look past peripheral issues, and ignore proprietary interests to plant churches to reach people with the gospel.
- We aim to recognize, recruit, train, deploy and nurture 200 leaders in the next 10 years. Significant numbers of young men and women are being drawn to an expression of evangelical faith that has historic roots, a sacramental worldview and incorporates liturgical worship. This makes the ministry of C4SO and of the ACNA particularly appealing. We hope these new leaders will be fruitful and effective in churches throughout the ACNA.
- We will create hi-tech and high-touch communications that facilitate our clergy life. We realize that our clergy want and need to be connected to each other. It is a priority for us to develop robust communication tools that facilitate a healthy diocesan life.
- We will create durable, functioning systems. We need a strong, stable and sustainable organization that will promote the flourishing of the ethos that we know and love. Healthy structures promote freedom and release Spirit-energy toward our goals.
Raising the Resources
One of my highest aims is to contribute to C4SO the knowledge that there is no scarcity of resources in the Kingdom of God. Thus we must derive our leadership attitudes from, and live within The Kingdom. We must resist, with our best faith, a spirit of poverty.
Is your church part of this effort financially? Will you lead your vestries/parish councils to express generous stewardship by giving to C4SO? It is time to get to work on this amazing future.
I am asking every church within C4SO to be a regular giver to the diocese. We want every congregation that is part of this vision to be part of the financial means to make it happen.
The standard for giving in the ACNA is 10% from each parish and congregation. Some of our churches are in the early stages of embracing this. Some churches are giving to other mission plants outside of our diocesan budget. Some churches are all in!
But we all need to be part of this great effort.
I’m writing you as the leaders of congregations. Please be sure that your church is a regular giver to the common mission of C4SO.
With you into the future,
Bishop Todd Hunter