For three days in mid-June, Anglican and Lutheran deacons from all over Canada converged on the Sorrento Centre, in the interior of BC, for a conference entitled Beacons of Hope in a Messy World. Every three years, Anglican Deacons Canada holds a conference for professional development and relationship-building amongst deacons. Because of COVID-19, this was the first in-person conference since 2018, when our own diocese was host. It was also the first time that Lutheran deacons were invited to join in the planning of the conference.
The Anglican Church of Canada is committed to restoring the diaconate as a robust order of ministry, clearly distinguishable from that of priests and bishops. The role of deacons is to ignite the church’s attentiveness to the needs of the world, and to help the church enact the gospel imperative to align itself with those who are most vulnerable. Their focus is thus quite different from that of the parish priest.
The growing importance of the diaconate in our two churches was evident in the participation of our Primate Linda Nicholls, National Indigenous Archbishop Chris Harper, National Bishop Susan Johnson, and Kathy Martin, bishop of the BC Synod.
A highlight of the conference was keynote speaker Christian Harvey, deacon, who is a passionate advocate and provider for those who are street-involved in Peterborough, Ontario. Harvey called deacons to wise, informed and wily interventions, rooted in the principles of non-violence set forth by Dr Martin Luther King. He had participants laughing and crying by turns — and motivated to take up the work of advocacy for the vulnerable.
The Diocese of Islands and Inlets was particularly well represented at Sorrento, with four Anglican deacons, one Lutheran deacon, two individuals in discernment, and the diocesan director of deacons. Our diocese also contributed well to the leadership of the conference, with both Nancy Ford, retired deacon to the city of Victoria, and Ed Hayley, Christ Church Cathedral’s director of finance, serving on the planning committee. In addition, Ian Alexander, member of the cathedral management team, has served as the consultant on a strategic planning project which was presented to the conference; and Cindy Hayley kept an eye on vineyard provisions for the opening reception and closing banquet. All in all, we punched well above our weight.
