Fair Share and Synod’s Budget, Remuneration and Benefits, Church Owned Clerical Housing Guidelines, Sundry Benefits & Regulations, Performance Review, Registers & certificates of civil status, Marriage, Matrimonial Commission, Archbishop’s Guidelines for Christian Initiation, Guidelines for Services of Confirmation
Diocesan Synod
The Synod of the Diocese of Quebec was organized in July 1859 at Quebec and, in general, has met every other year. The Constitution states that Synod shall meet on a summons from the Bishop.
The Synod is composed of the Archbishop, other Officers of Synod, clerics and lay incumbents licensed by the Bishop, recognized postulants for orders in our Diocese; and the lay representatives elected annually at the local Vestry meetings who are able to take their seat at Synod and two youth elected by each deanery.
The number of Lay Delegates is governed by the number of regular (i.e. Easter) communicants in each congregation.
The Synod elects various boards, councils and committees, the membership of which is based on the principle of regional representation by Deanery. A Diocesan Executive Committee (D.E.C.) is elected to carry on the business of Synod between meetings and to see that the wishes of Synod are fulfilled and the various resolutions adopted by Synod are put into effect. Synod also elects members of the Programme Committee, the Gazette Board, and the Board of Triers.
Travel to diocesan meetings.
The Diocese of Quebec will reimburse members of diocesan committees for travel, accommodation and meals for diocesan meetings. The policy for all meetings except synods is set by the Diocesan Executive Council. Click here for a copy of the current policy and here for a copy of the official request for reimbursement form. Both the policy and form are also available via links on the diocesan download page.
The Diocesan Budget is approved either by Synod or the D.E.C. The budget includes the cost for Synod’s entire ministry - from the support of our Archbishop and maintenance of our Synod office and staff, to the work of Christian Education and internal mission work (conducted through the ministry of our Programme Committee and Deanery Councils). Synod’s Funds are raised from two principal sources - revenue from investments held by Church Society and Fair Share congregational assessments. Fair Share are calculated as a percentage of assessable parish income as stated in the Synod’s Annual Report, and are set annually by the Diocesan Executive Council. Fair Share revenue represents less than half of Synod’s revenue.
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Stipend, non-taxable travel refund, location and housing allowances are all part of the Stipend Scale of the Diocese, which is determined by Synod or the D.E.C. Stipends and applicable allowances will be paid directly from Church House on or about the 16th day of each month.
Non-taxable travel refunds are paid to all clergy in the diocese following the transmission of a monthly claim log (for kilometers driven for professional purposes, or for other travel costs - ferries, water taxis...).
Location Allowance
Location Allowance is part of the stipend scale and is paid to those clergy serving in Federally designated remote areas. This allowance is set from time to time by Synod
Housing & Housing Allowances
Housing is provided for stipendiary clergy where available. A copy of the Diocesan Church Owned Clergy Housing policy printed is below. In the absence of available housing, clergy will receive a housing allowance equivalent to the fair-market rental-value of the cleric’s house (but cannot exceed 50% of the cleric’s salary). Housing allowances may be increased to include the actual cost of utilities. Both the value of an allowance and of the utilities will need to be based upon actual third-party information (i.e. an appraisal of the rental value of the dwelling; remittance of utility bills for previous years…).
Furnished Rectories
Furnished rectories are provided in the parishes located in Federally Designated Remote areas: the Magdalen Islands, the Lower North Shore and Kawawachikamach
Moving into a furnished rectory
When moving into a furnished rectory, the following items are not included: in moving costs:
furniture, vehicles, kitchen and laundry appliances other kitchen equipment, such as pots, pans, dishes etc.
In addition to what is already required to be provided in any rectory (under the Diocesan Church Owned Clergy Housing Policy), the following must be provided in a furnished rectory:
adequate and appropriate furniture in good condition, for every room; carpets; blankets; kitchen equipment including cooking utensils, pots pans, bowls, dishes and cutlery.
Deanery Councils may provide grants from time to time to aid congregations in the maintenance and upkeep of furnished rectories in order to ensure that the rectories properly and adequately furnished (in accordance with community standards). Grants must be approved by the respective Deanery Council.
Vacations
The vacation period will include one month (four Sundays or 30 days) in a calendar year, usually in the summer, and one Sunday (seven days) in the winter to compensate for missed holidays around Christmas and Easter. Vacation in an incumbent’s first year is to be pro-rated to their days in the parish (i.e., if engaged July 1, then 2 weeks vacation). Any other considerations for time away from the congregation must be approved by the Archbishop, following consultation with your congregation.
Moving
All Parishes are responsible for the costs of moving new clergy into their parish.
Agreed period of incumbency: re payment of moving costs
There should be an agreed minimum period of incumbency (typically three years) at the time of any appointment.
There should be a signed agreement (including a penalty clause) between the appointee and the churchwardens, and agreed to by the Archbishop.
When the agreed upon minimum period of an incumbency is abbreviated by the decision of, or by the action of, the incumbent, the costs incurred in the move into the rectory must be reimbursed on a prorated basis, to whoever paid the costs of the move in the first place.
The benefits package of the Diocese presently includes:
a. Quebec Pension Plan:
All employees are covered under the Quebec Pension Plan. The Quebec Government sets contributions rates for “employers” and “employees”. Contributions are automatically deducted from pay each month.
b. Quebec Health Insurance Plan:
All residents of Quebec are covered for basic medical and hospital costs, through a payroll tax. Health cards must be obtained from the Régie de l’assurance-maladie du Québec.
c. Employment Insurance:
All “employees” paid through Church House are covered by Employment Insurance at the rates and under the conditions prescribed by the Government. Contributions are automatically deducted each month. Maternity and parental leave are among the special benefits of the Employment Insurance.
d. Workman’s Compensation:
All “employees” paid through Church House receive the protection of CSST insurance.
e. General Synod Pension:
Membership in the General Synod Pension Plan will provide a pension based on years of contributory membership, up to age 70. It is no longer permitted for a cleric / staff person to ‘retire’ from his/her position, to receive his/her pension, and to continue working in the same vocation.
f. Continuing Education Plan:
All clerics / staff paid through Church House participate in the General Synod Continuing Education Plan. The “employer” pays 3/4 of the $600 annual premium; the “employee” pays 1/4.
g. Drug and Medical Plan:
The Diocese has a group policy with Blue Cross for extended health care. A benefits booklet is available from Church House. This is a taxable benefit. Application form for claims is on line at Blue Cross
h. Group Life Insurance:
The Diocese participates with a group membership in the General Synod Plan. Insurance coverage is currently at $200,000 for “employee”, and $25, 000 for the “employee’s” spouse. The “employer” pays for this benefit. Optional additional life insurance of up to $500 000 is available, paid for by the “employee”.
i. Dental Coverage:
The Diocese participates in the General Synod Plan, Option 111, which covers 80% of basic dental services, plus one-half of orthodontic and major work. A benefits booklet is available at Church House. Application form for claims is on line at Manulife Dental
j. Long Term Disability:
The Diocese participates in the General Synod Plan with Manulife. The plan requires that members pay the full cost of coverage themselves.
k. Vision Care:
The Archbishop has a very modest trust fund held by Church Society for him to aid with the cost of glasses, contact lenses and examinations carried out by optometrists and ophthalmologists. Please correspond with the Archbishop if assistance is required.
l. Car Loans:
As a Council of the North Diocese clergy & lay "employees" are able to apply for a low-interest car loan from the MSCC. Application is to be made through the Archbishop’s Office.
m. EAP
The Dioceses of Quebec & Montreal share in the provision of an Employment Assistance Programme. In Quebec, this confidential 1-800 help line is available to all licensed clergy, lay Incumbents, and all lay employees.
n. Supplementary Pension Gifts:
The Central Board of Church Society administers funds from which it gives voluntary supplementary pension gifts to retired lay and clerical “employees” of the Diocese (or their widows/widowers), based on years of service in the Diocese. There is no contribution to these funds, and the distribution varies from year to year.
o. Education Grants:
The Central Board of Church Society administers funds from which it makes grants to children of licensed clergy & other lay staff for post secondary education.
Sabbaticals :
While General Synod makes provision for Sabbatical grants and sabbatical leaves, however Quebec presently does not have a sabbatical policy.
Church Owned Clerical Housing Guidelines
(approved by DEC April 21-22, 2006)
The Canons of the Diocese provide for the oversight of Church Owned Clergy Housing by the Archdeacons. The Corporations of the Diocese of Quebec will need to accommodate regular inspection by the Archdeacons. Because housing is 33% of a cleric’s stipend package, the provision of adequate, secure, and well-maintained housing is both reasonable and necessary. The Archbishop may decline to appoint a cleric to a parish if a COCH is not compliant with this policy.
A: Church Owned Clergy Housing shall have:
plain text = necessary, Italic and bold text = recommended
•a living room
• a dining room
•a kitchen
•3 bedrooms (two bedrooms are required)
•1.5 bathrooms, with a fully functioning shower
(one full bath with shower is required)
•two entrances
•a basement (dry, clean, with storage shelving)
•a modern heating system (furnace filters and system checked annually, if hot-air,
ducts cleaned at least every three years)
•a 60 gallon water heater (purged and checked annually)
•smoke, carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide detectors in appropriate places
•2 ABC fire extinguishers
•in lieu of an office elsewhere, a functional, heated, wired and publicly accessible study with a separate entrance
•full-size washer, dryer, stove, fridge, and dishwasher in good repair
• 21.7 cubic foot freezer
•where there is no town water a safe and sufficient well (water quality to be
verified each April)
•a modern septic tank and field (where applicable), solids pumped every three
years.
•a water softener (where standard)
• a high speed internet connection (DSL where available).
• a cable or satellite television (basic cable) package
•an outside storage shed or garage with room for outdoor tools or space in the
basement for storage of tools, spare tires…
•external water and electrical outlets
•a place to park two cars
B: In communities on the Lower North Shore, the Magdalen Islands, and in Kawawachikamach, COCHs shall also be fully furnished. Clergy serving in these communities will be responsible for their own bedding, bathroom linens, kitchen linen, dishes, utensils, and pots and pans.
C The Corporation shall be responsible for the provision of the following utilities: heat, water, electricity, cable, phone and telephone rental (including caller ID and Voice mail). The Cleric will be responsible for providing his / her private phone line in the COCH, and for all costs associated with this separate, private line. Clergy are expected to use their private line for private calls, and the provided independent COCH line (with caller ID and answering service) for professional work. The parish-paid professional work line in the COCH cannot be an extension of a church phone line, nor can the COCH professional line have extensions in other buildings in a parish compound. Because COCH operational expenses are frequently the source of tension in a Parish, if they seem consistently higher when compared with average costs of similar dwellings in the community, the Archdeacon will be invited to investigate and the situation negotiated between the cleric and the corporation.
D: It is necessary that all COCHs be safe in all regards. Any situation which threatens the safety of the cleric or family living in a COCH shall be addressed immediately. This caution shall include concerns such as: ureaformaldihyde insulation and other identified dangers (i.e. asbestos, moulds, and basement water issues); and well and septic security. If a COCH is deemed unsafe for habitation, then the clergy family will be housed elsewhere at the corporation’s expense, until such time as the COCH is deemed safe and fit for habitation.
E: All COCHs shall meet current standards with regard to electrical wiring, and have a minimum 100 amp entrance. When any element of wiring, plumbing, sewage, well, insulation, or windows and doors are repaired or replaced, they shall be made to meet current code obligations. COCH should be upgraded so as to provide a 200 amp entrance, with said improvement to be accomplished by 2012.
F: A COCH shall be delivered to a cleric in a good state of repair.
G: A cleric shall inspect and sign for the COCH with any faults noted at occupation. The same inspection shall be done at departure, and a comparison made, ensuring that the COCH is returned in an equivalent condition as that in which it was delivered. The COCH and its grounds shall be left clean and tidy.
H: There shall be inspections of all COCHs by the Archdeacon, the wardens and the Incumbent every two years. A written report shall be prepared by the Archdeacon and lodged with the minutes of the corporation of such inspections, including recommendations for repairs, improvements, maintenance and redecoration. If there is need, the cleric shall inform the wardens of necessary repairs between inspections. Repairs shall be completed in a timely manner.
I: Regular wear and tear on the COCH shall be the responsibility of the parish. This includes damage by fire, lightning, tempest, or any other causes, or any other act of commission or omission on the part of the Parish, shall be the responsibility of the Corporation. The wardens shall have the right to hold the cleric inhabiting the COCH responsible for repairs due to negligence or any act of commission or omission on the part of the cleric. As the Archdeacon is responsible for overseeing the state of COCHs, the Archdeacon will investigate any matter regarding COCHs in which the wardens and the cleric are in doubt as to responsibility.
J: A COCH shall be regularly painted. A scheduled painting shall be arranged on a rotating basis, or a single occasion, the whole work to be completed every 6 years. So as to ensure good economic use of the painting, colours shall be at the discretion of the parish – ideally selected in consultation with the Incumbent – with muted colours (white, off-white, cream, pale beige…) as recommended colours. An Incumbent may paint over – at his /her expense – the parish-painted surfaces provided that, prior to the date of departure, the colours in the COCH are returned, accomplished once again at the departing Incumbent’s expense, to the previous muted colours. Carpets shall be cleaned by the corporation before the cleric moves in, and the cleric is responsible for carpet cleaning during their occupancy of the COCH. Hard-wood floors shall be sanded and varnished when needed, at the corporation’s expense.
K: The Corporation shall be responsible for ensuring that church owned clerical housing is maintained in good repair. The corporation shall be notified before any repairs are undertaken.
L: The Corporation shall be responsible for maintenance of the grounds. This shall include the cutting of the grass, trimming of the hedge, the maintenance of gardens, and snow removal. The Corporation shall be responsible for the installation, cleaning and removal of storm windows. Major landscaping changes will be by mutual consent of the cleric and corporation.
M: The family of a cleric who has died while in service in the parish shall have the use of the COCH for a period of three months, from the date of the death of the cleric; or until the end of a current academic year, when this is mutually agreed upon by the corporation and the Bishop.
N: A cleric required to resign a cure for reasons of ill health shall be entitled to a residency of three months from the effective date of resignation.
O: A cleric living in a COCH and on parental leave will continue, through the full term of their parental leave, to enjoy ALL of the benefits of the COCH.
P: Upon the resignation, retirement, or withdrawal of license, Incumbents in COCHs will vacate the COCH within 30 days of the date of resignation / retirement / license termination.
Q: All occupants of COCHs will provide the corporation with proof of insurance. Occupants must purchase their own CGL and tenants liability insurance, insure their own property, and provide the corporation with a copy of the insurance certificate. Minimum CGL is $2 000 000.
R: The sale of a COCH will only be considered when the corporation is able to guarantee a viable alternative means of providing housing for their stipendiary cleric. No sale of a COCH will be completed without the permission of the Bishop.
S: “Out-Rectories”, that is, smaller COCH (re: Entry Island, St-Augustine, Chevery) will be clean, properly equipped for short-term occupancy, and will be compliant with water, septic, and utility obligations as listed above.
Stole Fees :
In accordance with Victoria 6 14, the Bishop has the authority to set Stole Fees. The Bishop has stated that no Stole Fees shall be charged for Baptisms, First Communions, Confirmations or Home Communions.
Supply Work :
Lay and Clerical supply for worship in a neighboring parish is to be refunded at a rate of $75 for the first service on any one day, and $50 for any additional services on that same day in the same church, plus kilometrage at the Diocesan Rate – currently 0.35 cents per km.
Performance reviews for clergy are to be conducted every three to five years. The purpose of review is to challenge the lay and/or clerical employee to address weaknesses in his/her performance, so as to better address the responsibilities with which they have been entrusted.
Registers & certificates of civil status
With the introduction on January 1st 1994, of a revised Civil Code of Québec, the clergy and/or parishes are no longer custodians of Registers of Civil Status. As of that date, the Registrar of Civil Status is the only person authorized to register and publish Acts of Civil Status. As a consequence, the clergy may no longer issue copies of acts of birth, marriage or burial from any registers in their possession. Copies of entries in the registers deposited in the diocesan archives can be made by the Diocesan Registrar
The clergy will continue to perform the religious rites of Baptism, Marriage and Burial but will no longer register these events at the civil level, but they must do so in registers provided by the diocese. In the case of marriage, the clergy must be recognized as officiants and have the necessary certificate issued by the Minister of Justice, and will act only as declarant in declaring the Marriage to the Registrar of Civil Status.
In the celebration of a Marriage, the clergy are bound by General Synod Canon XXI ‘On Marriage in the Church’, and by the appropriate articles of the Code civil du Québec (Bill 125).
There is no ‘Marriage licence’ in the Province of Quebec. The procedure for the declaration of a marriage begins at least twenty days before the date of the marriage with the completion of the ‘Act of Publication of Marriage’ form (Bill 125, art 368). The completed form is to be posted in the Church for a period of twenty days, but for ‘serious reason’ the posting may be dispensed by the officiant. In either case the form must eventually be kept in a file, which then becomes the ‘Banns Book’ required by Canon XXI. A copy of the act of publication of Marriage form is included under ‘Documents’.
The above government regulations does not replace, but are in addition to any publication of Banns required by Ecclesiastical authority.
‘Declaration of Marriage’ (DEC-50) and Return of Marriage (SP-2) must be completed. They are signed, together with the parish register, at the time of the marriage, and the Declaration of Marriage (DEC-50) must be mailed by the officiant within thirty days to the Registrar of Civil Status. Page 2 is the Return of Marriage (SP-2) and must be mailed to the Bureau de la statistique du Québec within eight days of the solemnization of the marriage.
Article 374 of Bill 125 must be complied with, and a paper testifying that articles 392 to 396 have been read so to be signed and witnessed. The officiant keeps this signed form on file.
The Archbishop has stated that the performing or blessing of same sex unions is not to done by clergy in this diocese.
Ecclesiastical Matrimonial Commission of the Diocese of Quebec
Marriage, in the Anglican Church of Canada, is governed by General Synod Canon XXI (On Marriage in the Church). When a person who is divorced and whose former spouse is still living, wishes to marry in the Church, the cleric is to decide if an application for permission to marry will be submitted to the Diocesan Matrimonial Commission or if the cleric will go over the preparation for marriage with the couple including a review of the former marriage as outlined in the forms without going to the Matrimonial Commission.
The intention of the procedure governing Matrimonial Commissions is to ensure that the couple are ready for fulfilling their obligations to their former partners and are continuing to exercise their responsibility to their children. Secondly, they have prepared personally for their marriage. This means, in addition to preparation in terms of communication and spirituality, which they have worked through feelings about their former marriage (particularly the disappointment and grief that may be associated with the relationship). The forms are one way to gather the information that is necessary for the Commission to make a fair judgment. It is important to remember that the forms should be used only after a relationship of trust and acceptance has been built up between the couple and the minister.(Cotter, G. Marrying in the Church, ed. ABC, 1983, p. 105 )
The above-mentioned procedure consists of filling in the Application for Permission to Marry form produced by the Matrimonial Commission of the Diocese of Quebec, and available from Church House in Quebec City, in English & French.
In addition to the above, please note that:
You may photocopy the application form.
Archbishop’s Guidelines for Christian Initiation
There is plurality of practice in the Diocese of Quebec, as in the rest of the Anglican Church of Canada, around some aspects of the celebration of Baptism, First Communion and Confirmation - particularly concerning the chronological order for First Communion and Confirmation and the appropriate ages for those events in the life of parishioners. These guidelines are written to encourage and give permission for some practices in this diocese.
Baptism
Baptism is to be considered the sacramental sign of full incorporation into the Church.
Baptism, as indicated in rubrics in both the BCP and the BAS, should take place at the principal service on a Sunday or other day when the congregation gathers for worship.
The celebration of Baptism should be preceded by some course of preparation and instruction with the candidates, and in the case of children, with the parents and as far as possible the sponsors as well.
The most appropriate liturgy for the celebration of Baptism today is that in the Book of Alternative Services because it assumes a public service, and provides for congregational renewal of vows in a more explicit way than does the Book of Common Prayer baptismal rites.
Communion
Because Baptism is complete sacramental initiation into membership in the Church, it leads to participation in the Eucharist. Confirmation and other rites of affirmation have a continuing pastoral role in the renewal of faith among the baptized, but are in no way to be seen as completion of baptism or as necessary for admission to Communion.
Baptized adults who have not been confirmed, who are regular worshipers and who wish to receive Communion, should be encouraged to do so.
Baptized children may receive Communion prior to Confirmation with the consent of parents. Because Communion before Confirmation is still an unknown practice in some congregations, and where this is the case, some congregational discussion and education about the change in practice is necessary.
Young children receiving Communion should be those who regularly attend services with parent of parents. No particular age is set for young children to receive Communion. An appropriate age may differ from child to child.
Preparation and instruction for children to receive Communion need not be intensive because the experience of being a communicant is more important than intellectual understanding. Congregations are encouraged to prepare for First Communion children of five or six and older who are regular attendees. This might be done in groups called a First Communion Class using material such as the ‘Life in the Eucharist’ programme offered by the Anglican Book Centre. A First Communion Sunday can be a wonderful event in the life of a parish when a First Communion class first receives Communion.
For young children to become communicants before Confirmation is far more desirable than lowering the age of Confirmation so that the age for Communion can lower.
From time to time, young children who have been communicants in one parish move to a parish where Communion prior to Confirmation does not happen. It is an important principle, established by the Canadian House of Bishops some years ago, that anyone admitted to Communion in any part of the Anglican Church be acknowledged as a communicant in every part of the Anglican Church and not be denied Communion on the basis of age or lack of Confirmation.
Confirmation
The Laying on of Hands in Confirmation is to be encouraged for those young people and adults who wish to make a mature and public ratification of renewal of baptismal faith and vows.
As more and more young people become communicants prior to Confirmation, there should be less and less pressure to force the age of confirmation downward to establish communicant status at younger ages. There is much to be said for the raising of the ‘traditional’ age of Confirmation for children to ensure an opportunity for a more ‘mature’ renewal of baptismal faith in Confirmation.
Confirmation in the diocese should be conducted according to these Confirmation guidelines:
n preparation of these guidelines, the Bishop acknowledges the value of the booklet entitled "Christian Initiation in the Anglican Communion": the report of the 4th International Anglican Liturgical Consultation held in Toronto in 1991, from which he has quoted on occasion in these guidelines.
Archbishop’s Guidelines for Services of Confirmation
The following are some guidelines for services of Confirmation in the Diocese of Quebec, which Archbishop Stavert offers to the clergy to assist in the planning of Confirmation services. They reflect his experience of several Confirmation services in a variety of churches in the Diocese.
1. The clergy are asked to indicate to the Archbishop’s secretary, at least two weeks ahead of the service of Confirmation, the number of certificates which will be required. After this request is made, the Archbishop’s secretary will send to the clergy an adequate number of certificates, as well as two copies of the form for listing the names of Confirmation candidates with the information about their date and place of Baptism. The clergy are requested to complete the Confirmation certificates and the listing of candidates prior to the service so that they are ready for the Archbishop’s signature following the service. One copy of the list of candidates and any surplus Confirmation certificates should be given to the Archbishop after the Confirmation service. The Archbishop will sign the Confirmation certificates, assign a number to the candidate which he will mark on the certificate, and will ask the Confirmation candidates to sign his Confirmation book. All of that can be done in the Church at a convenient table immediately following the service or at any reception following the service.
2. In preparation for the service of Confirmation, a chair of reasonable size, which can be easily moved by one person, should be placed to the side near where the laying-on-of-hands will take place. That chair should be placed in the center at the chancel step for the laying-on-of-hands only just prior to the presentation of the candidates. The chair can than be removed from the centre following the Confirmation and before the Offertory. This chair should not be the Archbishop’s chair from the sanctuary, since it is usually too large and because the Archbishop prefers to conduct the first part of the liturgy from his place in the sanctuary, not from a chair placed in front of the altar. If an extra chair for the laying-on-of-hands is not convenient, and there are very few candidates, it is also quite acceptable for the Archbishop to confirm the candidates while he is standing rather than sitting.
3. Prior to the Confirmation service, it is helpful for the clergy to make some arrangements about how photography following the service will be organized. The Archbishop is happy to pose with candidates for photographs after the ceremony, but suggests that prior arrangements be made for this to occur in an orderly fashion. Often a great deal of time is wasted in arranging the confirmands for photographs, and also for parents and relatives to take them. A little prior work done on this matter can save a great deal of time after the service is over, and thus allow the Archbishop to spend more time with parents, relatives, and congregation.
Normally, as well, it is appropriate for the parish priest, servers, lay readers, etc., to be included in any group photograph, as well as any lay people who might have been involved in the preparation of the candidates for Confirmation. In order to facilitate the process of photographs, the Confirmation candidates should be asked prior to the service to remain at the front of the church at the end of the service rather than leaving the church after the recessional, and then having to be gathered together again.
4. As the Archbishop prefers to have the service of Confirmation in the context of the Eucharist, and as the Archbishop is always the celebrant of the Eucharist, he will normally wear chasuble and mitre, and will carry his crozier. The Archbishop will look after putting on and taking off his mitre, and would be grateful for someone at the service to look after handing him the crozier for the blessing at the end of the service, and also standing with the crozier beside him during the laying-on-of-hands. The colour for Confirmation will normally be red, though on occasion, such as during Lent or on a white festival, another colour might be used. If there is any question about using a colour other than red for the Confirmation, the Archbishop should be consulted some time before the day of the service.
5. The liturgy for Confirmation should be that found beginning on page 623 of the Book of Alternative Services. If, however, the service of Confirmation happens at the same time as a Baptism, the liturgy should be that for Holy Baptism from the Book of Alternative Services, beginning on page 151, with the laying-on-of-hands happening at the end of the Baptism. The readings for the service should be the readings for the day from the Common Lectionary (the lectionary in the Book of Alternative Services) or in the case of a weekday services, the BAS reading for the previous Sunday, unless the weekday happens to be a saint’s day or major festival, in which case readings appropriate to the festival would be used. The readings from the Sunday lectionary are almost always appropriate for a Confirmation, but sometimes it may be felt appropriate to change one or two of the readings. If it is desired to change some of the readings, the clergy should discuss this with the Archbishop well ahead of the day of the Confirmation. The Archbishop has a preference for the use of the NRSV or the RSV for readings in the liturgy, but will not be opposed to readings from other translations if that is the tradition of the parish. The Archbishop will normally preach the sermon which will follow immediately after the Gospel reading. The presentation and examination follow immediately after the sermon. The prayers following the baptismal covenant may be done by a lay person if desired, and the litany can be expanded to include the regular weekly cycles of prayer, special local intentions for the sick, etc. If it is desired to have a hymn invoking the Holy Spirit prior to the laying-on-of-hands, it is appropriate for that hymn to be inserted between the end of the prayers and the Archbishop’s prayer prior to the laying-on-of hands. That hymn can be sung standing or kneeling, depending on the desire of the clergy. Following the Peace, at the end of the Confirmation, the service moves to the Offertory with normally an offertory hymn. The celebration of the Eucharist to follow would appropriately be from the modern rite in the BAS, beginning with one of the Eucharistic Prayers, beginning on page 194 of the BAS. However, parishes unfamiliar with the BAS may prefer to move to the 1962 Prayer Book language Eucharist for the second part of the service, the Offertory beginning at page 240 in the BAS.
For parishes which do not have copies of the Book of Alternative Services, a booklet containing the rite for Confirmation, as well as the Prayer Book language (1962) Eucharist, has been prepared, and the Archbishop will bring copies of that service to the parish for the service, should they be needed . If desired, enough copies of this service for the clergy to familiarize the candidates with it can be sent to the clergy at the time they request certificates. This will allow the clergy prior to the service to indicate to the candidates what their responses will be during the liturgy.
6. At the presentation of candidates in the service, it is quite appropriate for representatives of the congregation and better still, godparents of candidates, to join with the clergy in the presenting of candidates. For the laying-on-of hands, candidates should come forward one by one to kneel in front of the Archbishop. One of the presenters, probably the parish priest, should stand reasonably close to the Archbishop and say to the Archbishop, quietly but distinctly the Christian name, without nicknames, used by the candidates. After the laying-on-of hands, the candidate should stand and face the Archbishop who normally will shake hands with the candidate. The candidate will then bow slightly and return to his or her place. If the candidates being represented are also receiving Communion for the first time at the service, the clergy are asked to remember the importance of preparing the candidates for this activity as well, particularly the mechanics of receiving the Sacrament at the altar rail.
7. There has been a long tradition in the Diocese of Quebec that the open offering taken at a service of Confirmation be given to the Archbishop’s Discretionary Fund. This practice was begun many years ago by Archbishop Carrington, and has been an enormously valuable tradition in terms of the Archbishop having a discretionary fund which is used in a variety of ways to aid people within the Diocese for a variety of needs and causes for which there is no particular budget. The most convenient way of continuing this practice is for the congregation’s treasurer to send the money to the Archbishop’s office by means of a cheque, rather than giving it to the Archbishop immediately after the service.
Call to Ministry: Lay & Ordained
Church House
31 rue des Jardins
Quebec, QC, G1R 4L6
Tel: (418) 692-3858
Fax: (418) 692- 3876
© JTS, 2002-07