The Church of Ireland General Synod is in the O'Reilly Hall, University College Dublin from Tuesday, 15 May 2001 to Thursday, 17 May 2001.

The Synod Press Office

The office will be open from 9am to 6.30pm each day

Synod Press Office staff numbers are:

Dublin: 7161597; 7161598; 7161599; 7162143

Synod Press Officer:

Brian Parker. mobile 07775 927 807

Press Officers.

Canon Sam Barton - Derry
Canon Bob Hanna - Limerick
Revd. David Johnstone - Armagh
Dr Valerie Jones - Dublin
Mrs Sybil Fuller - Cork
Mrs Denise Hughes - Cashel
Revd Greg Ryan - Kildare

Press Facilities.

Synod business hours are: Tuesday (15th) 11am to 6.30pm Wednesday (16th) 10am to 6.30pm Thursday (17th) 10am to 4.30pm

Press desks will be located in the hall at the front and to the left as you look at the platform.

Press offices are on the first floor with telephone lines including ISDN.

Synod Website.

http://synod.ireland.anglican.org

E-mail address.

General Synod Services

Press Room telephone numbers:

Dublin. 716 2176; 716 2180; 716 2181; 716 2188.

Primate's Presidential Address.

Tuesday, 15 May 2001.

The Primate will deliver his presidential address at approx 11am. Interview facilities will be available from 1pm by the Lake side. Photo facilities from 1pm to 2pm.

Synod Business Journalists and photographers are welcome in the O'Reilly Hall throughout the Synod programme.

Maxwell Photography will be available: tel. 087 2558147

GENERAL SYNOD BUSINESS PREVIEW

1. Things may never be the same again! This year the Synod will consider proposals across a range of topics and issues including structural reforms that, if passed, could mean a reduction of around 40% in the size of Synod. There are also a number of new services proposed for inclusion in the new Book of Common Prayer due in 2004.
2. Reports this year cover marriage, abortion, youth, the future shape of ministry and of the church itself. There are also issues of education and social concern as well as of political implication.

SEVEN BILLS

3. There are seven bills. Four deal with liturgies to be included in the Book of Common Prayer.

BILL 1 proposes minor changes in the 1926 Communion Service while retaining the traditional language of the service.

BILL 2 incorporates the 1984 Holy Communion Service with some changes made 'in the light of practical usage and of recent liturgical scholarship'. Following the presentation of the text by way of a resolution last year there are 43 amendments before this year's Synod.

BILL 3 also incorporates 1984 material similarly amended and concerning The Calendar, Collects and post Communion Prayers but with immediate effect.

BILL 4 seeks approval for The Canticles.

BILL 5 comes from the Synodical Structures Working Group which outlined its proposals in 1999 and 2000 for a reduction in the number of Synod members, a change in the distribution of members across the dioceses and the election of members by proportional representation.

BILL 6 at the request of the Pensions Board proposes substantial improvement in the benefits provided from the Pension Fund.

BILL 7 is to provide for the establishment of Provincial Mediation Panels and follows the White Paper on Pastoral Breakdown from the Commission on Ministry last year. The initiative in referring a case to the Panel will lie with the Bishop and the panel will make recommendations to him. Severance terms are envisaged.

NINE RESOLUTIONS

4. The Liturgical Advisory Committee will propose nine resolutions containing services for the new Book of Common Prayer. These are on services of initiation, marriage, funerals, sentences of scripture, and a Psalter.

EIGHT MOTIONS

5. A motion seeks leave to introduce a Bill at next year's Synod to allow baptised children to be admitted to Holy Communion prior to Confirmation. The House of Bishops has issued draft guidelines as to the circumstances where this may be possible. The other motions concern procedures, The Palace of Kilkenny, and the re-organisation of the Central Communications Board.

REPORTS

6. More than 300 pages in the Book of Reports represent the work of the Church's committees during the year.

Representative Church Body Report gives an account of the church's central finances. Thinking on the See Houses at Clogher, Kilmore and Kilkenny is outlined. It will probably be the last of these that will get most attention since there is also an appeal, a petition and a motion from people who are unhappy with the transfer of the Palace of Kilkenny to the Heritage Council and the provision of a new house nearby. A 'summary of events' along with legal opinion is provided in the report. There is also a reply from the Legal Advisory Committee of the RCB on the relationship between the Theological College, the House of Bishops and the Representative Church Body.

Pensions are detailed in the report of the Pensions Board.

The Standing Committee Report is wide-ranging. Of particular interest are:

• grants from the Priorities Fund and the Bishops' Appeal.
• The Concluding Document of the Porvoo Theological Conference for Anglican and Lutheran Churches in Northern Europe.
• the Church of Ireland response to the Roman Catholic document Dominus Iesus and to the 'Note' from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith as well as the introduction given by Archbishop Eames to the Church of Ireland response at the Inter Church Consultation on Dominus Iesus. There is also a detailed response to the ARCIC 2 document 'The Gift of Authority'.

The Synodical Working Group Report is included in the Standing Committee Report.

Abortion. The verbatim transcript of the Church of Ireland presentation to the Public Hearing on Abortion in the Republic of Ireland extends to 14 pages.

Central Communications Board proposals for change.

Role of the Church Committee proposals for change: 'in its present form it no longer serves the needs of the Church of Ireland'. The Committee report refers to medical ethics, social and economic concerns, political developments and European affairs.

Board of Education Report covers North and South and a wide range of activities.

Youth Department reports on a period of change and sets new targets.

The Council for the Church Overseas and the Council for Mission in Ireland both have large memberships and are working on some integration of their work. There is comment on a number of programmes being used in parishes.

The Committee for Christian Unity reports on a number of councils of churches in these islands and in Europe as well as the World Council of Churches. There is a report on the proposed Covenant between the Church of Ireland and the Methodist Church.

The Commission on Ministry is dealing with part-time deployment of stipendiary clergy, the appointment and tenure of cure, the auxiliary ministry, perceived needs and expectations of ministry as well as the place of The Diaconate. There is a proposal for a Summit on Ministry in 2002 which will look to the future of the Church in 2020.

The Marriage Council reports on a conference on marriage which reveals some radical views.

The Hymnal Revision Committee gives answers to questions commonly asked about the new Church Hymnal.

The Church's Ministry of Healing gives an account of their new constitution for Northern Ireland.

Christian Stewardship. The Allocations Committee has launched an in-depth review of the Christian Stewardship Organisation through the RCB.

The Board of Social Responsibility (NI) concentrates on adoption and on fertility counselling while the Board (RoI) refers to a number of concerns such as morality in high places, refugees in Ireland, young male suicide, teenage violence and other issues.