The Council of Advice

Council of Advice Report - February 2021
Council of Advice Report - September 2020
Council of Advice Report - June 2020
Council of Advice Report - January 2020
Council of Advice Report - September 2019
Council of Advice Report - June 2019
Council of Advice Report - January 2019

The Council of Advice is a canonical committee that advises the Bishop in charge in his carrying out his responsibilities in the Convocation.

The Convocation's canons call specifically for a “Council of Advice” to be elected at the Convocation's annual Convention. The Council consists of four clergy canonically resident in the Convocation and four laity who are active members of one of the Convocation's parishes or missions. Both clergy and laity are elected for a two-year term, or for the remainder of a resigned member's two-year term. Council members are eligible for one re-election. Members must first stand down for at least one year before seeking re-election. At the first meeting of a new Council, the members elect a Council President and the Council’s Recording Secretary.

The Council of Advice traditionally meets four times a year: winter, spring (early summer), before Convention and immediately after Convention. There may also be telephone conferences between these face-to-face meetings. The meetings take place at various locations within the Convocation.

Duties include:

to advise and support the Bishop on all important matters of policy.
to care for the Bishop and hold him accountable for his total health.
to prepare the annual budget for the Convocation, and oversee expenditures.
to raise funds.
to award grants.
to be the voice and ears of the Convocation.
to represent the Convocation on the parish level.
to represent the members of the Convocation in our meetings.
to pray for the Convocation.
to seek God's will and mission in all we do.

Although The Convocation is not a diocese, as a practical matter, it does function much like one. The Council fulfills some of the functions ordinarily assigned to a diocesan 'Standing Committee,' as described in the Constitution and Canons of The Episcopal Church.

The Council acts:

to give consent to the election and consecration of Episcopal Bishops
to certify that candidates have met all canonical requirements for ordination to the diaconate and the priesthood.
to give permission with the Bishop for congregations to take on debt and sell property.
to approve changes to congregational bylaws and statutes.

The Rules of Order of the Council of Advice many be found here

Council of Advice Members

Contact the Council of Advice at:

The Rev. Christopher Easthill
President

Rector, St. Augustine of Canterbury
Wiesbaden, Germany
Liaison to: Nuremberg, Weimar

Mr. Vincenzo Racana
Secretary

St. Paul's Within the Walls
Rome, Italy
Liaison to: Florence, Geneva

Mr. John Adam
Council Member

St. Augustine of Canterbury
Wiesbaden, Germany
Liaison to: Augsburg, Frankfurt,
Karlsruhe, Safeguarding Officer

Mr. David Case
Council Member

Church of the Ascension
Munich, Germany
Liaison to: Wiesbaden, COMC

The Rev. Deacon Richard Cole
Council Member and Secretary of Convention

Deacon, Emmanuel Church
Geneva, Switzerland
Liaison to: Paris, Rome, Orvieto, COMB

Mrs. Carole Ducastel
Council Member

All Saints' Church
Waterloo, Belgium
Liaison to: Charleroi, Namur, and Mons

The Rev. Canon Mary E. Haddad
Council Member

Paris, France
Liaison to:Clermont-Ferrand, Nice, Waterloo,
Mühlbach, Montpellier, Tblisi, Children & Youth