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In the ecclesiology of The Episcopal Church, the diocese is the basic missionary unit. The Bishop is the symbol of the Apostolic Church that spread the Gospel to every nation. Parishes are the front line of mission within the diocese and, in recent years have become increasingly involved in the support of mission projects and workers outside the diocese. Traditionally, however, dioceses of the Episcopal Church have fulfilled their outward missionary responsibility by empowering the Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society (DFMS) in its support of domestic and overseas missionary dioceses and in the last 30 years Anglican and ecumenical partners. Today, the needs and opportunities around the world so far exceed the resources of the DFMS and the uneven responses of individual mission. This section of the GEM Handbook is designed to help bishops and diocesan leaders with organization, communication, and where necessary, the coordination of resources within the diocese.

It is important for the Bishop and the Diocesan Council to have one organization through which they can relate to the variety of programs that exist at diocesan and congregational levels. Whether or not it is important in a given diocese for some kind of coordination of the energies and resources expended in this missionary outreach, it is always helpful to have a single information source where one can turn to find out who is doing what and where there are needs to be met. Normally such a body, or at least its Chair, is appointed by and is accountable to the Bishop. It needs to have enough members to keep in touch with every activity within the diocese that involves a global outreach, as well as to be aware of the national and international missionary program. This organization needs to know and be responsive to the Bishop’s missionary vision for the diocese.

What the diocesan mission committee is called is not nearly as important as what it does. Every diocese will have its own experience with missionary outreach and that will probably determine what this body is called. In some cases an existing Companion Diocese Committee will simply be expanded to give a more comprehensive view of what the diocese is doing. Note: Massachusetts calls its committee the Commission on World Mission; Southern Ohio, the National and World Mission Commission; New York, the GEM Committee; Los Angeles, the World Mission Group. It probably should not have a name that would be confused with the organization responsible for the internal mission of the diocese to persons within its own borders. This should now preclude, however, a linkage between this committee and aspects of cross-cultural ministry within the diocese. Since every diocese will determine what to call this organization, this Handbook will simply hereafter refer to it as "the World Mission Committee."

Whether it is a diocesan requirement or not, it is a good idea for the group that oversees the global mission of a diocese to work within a Mission Statement. The vastness and complexity of mission on the international scene is such that a group can be pulled in too many different directions if it does not have a clear focus. Before writing such a Mission Statement, it would be well for those involved to study the dimensions of the task, in terms of the activities suggested in the following pages.

One of the tasks that a World Mission Committee may well be called to perform is to help a congregation organize its own committee for global mission. Obviously, the more linkages there are like this within a diocese the better communication will be. A representative of the World Mission Committee meeting with interested persons in the congregation will need to sense the unique character of that congregation and not try to take a "cookie cutter" approach that says all congregations must organize the same way

Important considerations will be:

• Existing programs and contacts
• Resources known at the diocesan level that will be helpful
• Communications within the congregation
• Prayer
• People in the congregation with missionary, short-term or international experience.

Membership in the World Mission Committee needs to be determined by the scope of the work contemplated. Sub-committees can carry out much of the work, but all should be represented on the World Mission Committee. The usual consideration of age, gender and ethnic balance would obviously apply, but there may be some special consideration because of the importance of cross-cultural sensitivities involved in overseas relations. Persons who have lived in another country (and especially returned missionaries) can be useful in the membership of the Committee. Communication skills are important since much of the work of the Committee involves interpreting to the diocese needs and events quite outside the experience of the average parishioner. The two representatives appointed by the Bishop of the Global Episcopal Mission Network should also be on this body.

How much of the work of a diocesan organization that brings together various aspects of global mission needs to involve the Bishop - or bishops, if there are more than one? While this is a diocesan activity and, as such, is an expression of the Bishop’s vision and ministry, it should not be one more time burden on the Bishop’s schedule. There are a few areas, however, where the Bishop of the diocese should be involved. In particular, the recruitment and sending of a mission partner going forth from the diocese should be done with the Bishop’s involvement and blessing. Similarly, those who are understood to be missionaries received into the diocese from another Province of the Anglican Communion need to feel that they have been personally welcomed by the Bishop who is supportive of their ministry in the diocese. Whenever it is possible for the Bishop to personally meet with groups that go from the diocese on work projects or short-term mission visits, even though they are parish-based, the sense of a diocesan missionary committee is always enhanced. Small as it may seem, the Bishop's encouragement in the use of the Anglican Cycle of Prayer throughout the diocese makes a real contribution to the work of this committee.

The funding support needed for the World Mission Committee will obviously depend on many factors including the size of the diocese and the activities to be covered by the work of the group. The following items are some that might be included in the budget request to the diocese:

• Committee maintenance expenses - postage, travel, telephone, etc.
• Subsidies to participants in short-term mission visits
• Annual contribution to GEM
• Support of a missionary to the diocese
• Printed matter for distribution to the parishes
• Companion Diocese personnel exchange
• Two representatives to the annual GEM Educational Institute
• Interpretive and educational material on a Companion Diocese
• An annual planning retreat
• A diocesan mission directory
• Clergy subsidies for first-time mission travel
• Support of missionary speakers

The commitment of a diocese to global mission is not a fad - it is Mission. It should not be subject to the changing moods or different personalities within the diocese. Therefore, part of the organizing of the World Mission Committee should be ways to formalize it within the life, thinking, structure and prayer life of the diocese. There are several ways to do this, but here are four suggestions:

1. Where does it fit into the organization life of the diocese? To whom is it accountable? The Bishop or Diocesan Council will determine these, but it is important to the committee that it be recognized as having a place in the structure of the diocese.

2. A powerful symbol of the commitment of the diocese is established by an item in the annual budget. Maybe the Bishop could handle GEM membership out of his/her Discretionary Fund. But, when it is an item in the budget, everyone knows about it and it is voted on each year. The same goes for all the other expenses - keep them visible.

3. Many diocese have a prayer calendar by which clergy, congregations, institutions and other elements in diocesan life are lifted up periodically. It doesn't have to be the World Mission Committee that gets on that list. Perhaps some of the people in overseas service who are supported within the diocese could be supported, along with the country or diocese where they serve. Or, it could be a Companion Diocese. Somehow, weaving global mission into the prayer life of the diocese makes it real.

4. Related to number one above would be passing of diocesan canon or by-law that would define the mission of the World Mission Committee and reflect the diocesan intention to be involved in world mission. Again, as in the case of the budget and the prayer calendar, doing this makes a public statement to all who vote on it and all who read about it later on. This is not essential, of course, but helps to establish this dimension of diocesan life.

The following page is filled with a collage of interests that might fall within the purview of this World Mission Committee. These are developed more fully in the pages that follow in this handbook.

Publicizing Opportunities for Service

Companion Diocese

Anglican Prayer Calendar

Parish Work Project Overseas

Refugee Resettlement

Missionary Speakers

Hospitality to Christians From Abroad

Prayer Support

Congregations Organizing for Mission

Parish Contact Persons

Support Group For Invited Missionary to the Diocese

Short-Term Mission Visits

Volunteers For Mission Sub-Committee

GEM-Educational Institute

Tracking Parish Mission Projects

Sending Diocesan Mission Partners

Communication Telling the Story

Episcopalians Serving with Non-Episcopal Agencies

Missionary Deputation

Diocese Data Bank on World Mission

This publication of the Anglican Communion Council is published in the United States by Forward Movement Publications. It suggests prayer intentions for every day of the year and is an excellent means for involving parishes in global mission. Consistent use in Sunday morning worship within a parish is a excellent teaching tool.

The World Mission Committee has access to a wealth of information coming from parish programs, the Companion Diocese, the Episcopal Church Center, workers in the field, and members of the diocese. The ability to feed this information to the diocese interestingly and on a regular basis will be a major function of an effective Committee. The diocesan publication, occasional newsletters, videotapes, and missionary speakers are all useful tools in this process. One person on the Committee could well assume this as a responsibility.

This program within the Anglican Communion is probably the most effective way to involve an entire diocese meaningfully in global mission. These relationships are appropriately set up for a designated period of time and submitted to the Executive Council for its blessing, giving them an official status. Renewable after three years, Companion Diocese relationships often get into a period of diminishing returns if they extend beyond six years and then reach a point where no one knows how to terminate them gracefully. However, while in their most effective stages, Companion Diocese relationships provide a window to the Church that enables people to see beyond their own culture into the realities of mission in another. A good Companion Diocese program takes a lot of work and absorbs major diocesan resources. It may involve both the Sending and Receiving of missionaries and certainly short-term mission visits are integral to its success. Organizationally, the Companion Diocese Committee and the World Mission Committee need to be closely linked but neither should restrict the vision and scope of the other.

There is generally more missionary involvement going on within a diocese than anyone realizes. A primary function of the World Mission Committee is to keep track of who is doing what within the diocese. One parish may be supporting a clinic in Haiti while another is contributing to the support of a missionary in Cyprus. A diocesan Youth World Project goes to the Dominican Republic or South Dakota while an ophthalmologist gives a month to Christian Eye Ministry in Ghana. A parish with no outreach of its own may somehow be on the mailing list for Prayer Letters from a missionary in Chile. The nature of the Church is such that there is no coordination of all these disparate and important activities, and yet it is important that they be know and, in a sense, monitored by someone at the diocesan level. Together they represent a greater experience of world mission than anyone realizes and, therefore, are a resource to the diocese.

For a variety of reasons, members of our Church who feel a missionary vocation sometimes find that the door to service opens through an agency outside The Episcopal Church. Frequently, these people find them selves cut off from their spiritual roots and even occasionally encounter a hostile reception hen they come home - as though they have somehow betrayed their Church. The more their parish and their diocese can keep in touch with the young person who goes out with Youth With a Mission (YWAM) or the Episcopal doctor who is sent by the Presbyterian Church, the stronger the fabric of mission for the whole Church becomes. These persons should be known to the World Mission Committee and, whenever possible, should feel spiritually supported by their Church.

Once a year, GEM sponsors an Educational Institute  which brings together representatives of all the member dioceses to share their experiences and learning with each other. This can be a great source of inspiration and new ideas for a World Mission Committee. It is important that there be an opportunity for the two Representatives from the diocese to report back to the Committee. Also, prior to this annual event every diocese is asked to submit a written report telling of its activities. These can then be available to the entire Committee.

Most Episcopalians do not even know what this is but, with the necessity for more and more of those who go overseas to raise their support, it is absolutely essential that they spend much of their furlough time back in the country reporting back to the parishes that have supported them. This is part of the Sending process for missionaries who go forth from a diocese, but frequently the missionary of deputation is from another diocese. The better the Committee is able to keep track of those who come into the diocese on deputation work, the more that its members can be of help to that person or couple, and the more they will learn of the missionary work of the whole Church.

There was a time when the missionary spirit of The Episcopal Church was largely sustained by the speakers who came back and told stories of what it was like "on the mission field." Television (which brings all those exotic places closer to us), the decrease in the numbers of mission workers, shorter furloughs and other factors have changed that picture. However, today we often have representatives of other Anglican diocese for speaking engagements when they are home. There are also lay people connected in some way with the Church in another country while working abroad, who can bring first-hand reports into congregations. These people can still feed the missionary vision of the Church and should not be ignored. This is a specialized part of communication to the diocese but one that should not be overlooked.

It seems that every activity at the diocesan level wants a parish counterpart to work with. This approach would be ideal for the World Mission Committee on global mission as well. But, unless the World Mission Committee can feed the parish contacts regularly with information and ideas, such a structure is not likely to last. However, those congregations that already have some missionary outreach are likely to already have one or more persons directly involved, and it is important that the World Mission Committee know who they are and find ways to keep in touch with them. This nourishes bottom-up organization and not top-down.

These will be dealt with more completely in the section on Short-Term Mission Visits but they need to be closely observed and reported on by the World Mission Committee. The people who come back into the diocese after a well-prepared and led work project in an overseas jurisdiction frequently have an infectious new vision and spirit about them that energizes both parish and diocese. The World Mission Committee can learn from people with this kind of first hand involvement and can also provide a real service to them by helping reflect on their experiences.

This is important! Too often, we pay lip service to prayer for others and then don’t do it. The more the global mission of the Church can be lifted up by the prayers of people all over the diocese, the stronger it will be. Individual mission partners are greatly supported in their isolation and unusual challenges by undergirdng prayer. Those who serve overseas refer to what we call "Newsletters" as their "prayer Letters." They are an expression of the prayers of those who write them and they are invitations to prayer by others who care about them in the Church. The inclusion of the names of persons from the diocese serving the Church elsewhere in a diocesan prayer calendar opens up a powerful ministry in itself. A longer list of concerns can be prepared and distributed to Daughters of the King, the Brotherhood of Saint Andrew, parish prayer groups and other prayers for people, concerns and events sets the tone for the meeting and grounds the proceedings in the reality of missionary outreach.

To remind members of a diocese of the needs that exist and where a bishop in another country is calling for help is like sowing seeds. Scatter these seeds widely and, every now and then, a seed takes root and a sense of vocation develops. Lists of opportunities are available from the Anglican and Global Relations Office and the Episcopal Church Center and from all of the agencies that send mission partners for the Episcopal Church. A Companion Diocese Bishop will often produce his own list of needs. These need to be shared periodically around the diocese where they may be posted on parish bulletin boards or made available in other ways. The constant reminder that there are needs which one could fill if called eventually seeps through to people who had never seriously considered a missionary vocation. God does the calling. All the Committee can do is scatter the seeds. This is another task that someone on the World Mission Committee assigned to communication will want to take seriously.

This activity is normally handled by another group in the parish or diocese and is not thought of in terms of global mission. However, it invariably involves cross-cultural communication and understanding similar to that which confronts a person going to another country in the service of the gospel. There are two ways this might touch the World Mission Committee. Through contacts known to the Committee, it may be possible for someone in the diocese who is familiar with the country, language or culture from which the refugee comes to be available in the transition process. Secondly, these people are often Christians who come out of a religious experience very different than that of the host diocese. To the extent that they are able to articulate their own religious journey they can serve as windows into the wider Christian world, much as missionaries Received by a diocese from another Anglican jurisdiction do.

In some ways, this is similar to what has been said about a database on world mission. But, in addition to general information about who is doing what, there will be some parish-based programs with a lot of activity and excitement. The World Mission Committee will want to learn from these and keep sharing the story. More of this will happen, perhaps, in larger diocese, but also as diocese of any size get more and more conscious of what they can do in support of the world mission of the Church. Responses to a natural disaster overseas, to the carrying out of a mission visit or work project, are examples of special activities that the Committee will want to follow. As in so many other instances cited, the sharing of this kind of information within a diocese stimulates the interest and the imagination of others.

This is the official name of a very successful program of the Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society that helps prepare and place short-term mission workers in overseas assignments. Short-term may mean one or two years. Because of the success of this program, some diocese have a Subcommittee just to work with Volunteers for Mission.

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Please send any comments about this website to the site deacon, Jim Heathcote  or telephone GEM Network President, the Rev. Bill Wood at (207) 276-5588 (williamjwood@hotmail.com) with questions or comments.

Last modified: January 12, 2008