Election of Primate One Important Event at General Synod
https://archives.anglican.ca/link/official5094
- Date
- 1970 December 15]
- Source
- Anglican News Service
- Type
- Press Release
- Text of motion
- Next month, 233 men and women will choose from 34 Bishops, the new Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada. He will represent the 1,175,000 Canadians who are on Anglican Parish rolls.
- The men and women who make the choice, clergy, bishops and laity, meet at the 25th General Synod, January 25th 1971, Niagara Falls, Ontario.
- The primatial election is described as probably the single most important event at General Synod since the Primate's responsibilities during one of the most crucial periods in the history of the Church will be enormous and the demands on his spiritual, intellectual and physical resources will be critical.
- The new Primate, succeeding Archbishop Howard H. Clark, who retired in August, will be presiding officer for General Synod and the National Executive Council. He will be the chief executive officer for the national headquarters and for the first time start his term with his office in Toronto at 600 Jarvis Street. He will be the chief pastor for the whole Canadian Church and at times he will be its spokesman and certainly he will hold heavy responsibility for initiating and developing strategy and policy.
- When delegates meet in Niagara Falls and after Synod is formally constituted, they will sit as an electoral college at 2 pm, January 25th at Christ Church. The assembly then elects two people from the more than two hundred lay and clerical members to act as secretaries of the Lower House. When this is completed, the Bishops leave to meet as the Upper House of General Synod. The remainder stay as the Lower House. Here, the delegates are seated with laity on one side and clergy on the other according to dioceses. A message is then sent to the Bishops that the Lower House is ready to receive nominations.
- The Bishops meanwhile have nominated from themselves three names which are sent to the Lower House, where ballotting is carried out - clergy first, laity second from each diocese.
- To be elected, a candidate must have a simple majority of both lay and clerical votes.
- After examination of the results, the Prolocutor or Chairman of the Lower House will announce either there has been no election or that a Primate has been elected.
- If there is no election after the first ballot, the Lower House may vote a second time on the same nominees or pass a resolution asking that the Upper House submit more names. If further names are send, these are added to the original nominees and a new vote is taken.
- If two ballots are held on the new list without achieving an election, the nominee with the lower number of total votes is dropped from the list. This occurs with all succeeding ballots until an election is achieved.
- The Bishops then return and the Bishop is proclaimed elected as Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada.
- Installation of the new Primate is planned for St. Thomas' Church, St. Catharines, Ontario on Sunday, January 31st [1971].
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- Subjects
- Anglican Church of Canada. General Synod (25th : 1971 : Niagara Falls, Ont.)
- Anglican Church of Canada. Primate - Election
- Anglican Church of Canada - Government