The Rev. Gwenda Wells, of the Diocese of Montréal, has been appointed Chaplain for General Synod ‘98. As well as assisting with the liturgy and worship, Gwenda will be available to General Synod members who would like to have a pastoral person to chat with.

There are many things that members should do before leaving home and heading to General Synod: read the reports and Convening Circular, pray, reflect on the issues facing our church. Another important piece of advance work is to meet with the members of your diocesan delegation (wherever possible, given time, distance, etc.) This is a great opportunity to discuss the issues and agenda, to decide which members will attend which forum and schedule times to "check-in" with each other during the nine days of General Synod. We encourage diocesan groups to have a pre-GS get-together over a meal (what a fabulous way to do some team building!) Most dioceses will be sending some people who have attended General Synod before and some people who will be attending for the first time. GS veterans can offer some practical tips and perspectives to the rookies.

A special, pre-General Synod edition of Ministry Matters is in the works for distribution to the regular subscription list and to all General Synod members in the early spring. The special edition, which will focus on Church House and the work done out of the National Office, is a series of departmental profiles. Enough copies will be printed so that dioceses and parishes wishing to have a resource on the National Office can order extra copies afterwards. It is hoped that, with periodic updates, the special edition will have a shelf life of approximately three years. For more information contact Sam Carriere at: [email protected]

Did you know that the travel budget (the cost of getting delegates to and from Montréal) for GS ‘98 is a whopping $125,000?! A great number of people will travel by air. Our central travel agent, UNIGLOBE Vector Travel is ready and willing to assist travelers to make their arrangements. We strongly urge you to use the central travel agent when booking your travel plans. Among the benefits we earn, by using the central agent, are complimentary tickets. The Church (that’s you and me) will receive complimentary tickets based on a ratio of 1 for every 30 paid, plus 1 additional ticket for every 100 paid - resulting in 4 for every 100 paid. This helps lower our costs. UNIGLOBE is committed to seeking out the lowest available fares for GS members. In the next few months members will be receiving detailed information about booking travel arrangements. Please remember to use the central travel agent!!

For the past twelve years Canadian Lutherans and Anglicans have been meeting and discussing our shared faith and spirituality. In recent times our two churches have taken steps leading to a sharing of the eucharist. In 1995 our General Synod and the Evangelical Lutheran National Convention advanced the journey that will move our two churches towards full communion by 2001.

The city of Montréal has an area of 117 square kilometres, the island of Montréal 494 square kilometres and the greater metropolitan area 3,509 square kilomtres. 1,730,000 people live on the island and 3.3 million people live in the greater metropolitan area. Montréal is the largest French-speaking city outside of France. The average temperature during the month of May is 19°C/66°F. The public transit system (S.T.C.U.M.) operates buses and subway (Metro). Adult fare is $1.85 per ticket or $8 for 6 tickets.

Pat Henshaw is the Executive Assistant to the General Secretary at the National Office and she attends the meetings of the 1998 General Synod Planning Committee, held in Montréal. Prior to General Synod, one of her many responsibilities is preparation and mailing of the Convening Circular and its Supplement to all members. At Synod, Pat will record the Minutes and, following the meeting, will produce the official Record of Proceedings. This will be the fourth consecutive meeting of Synod in which Pat has participated.

The 34th General Synod (Ottawa ‘95) adopted a new direction for the Anglican Church of Canada. The priorities articulated in Preparing the Way have laid the foundation for the work of the church at the national level. At General Synod ‘98 there will be plenty of discussion about the priorities/goal areas:

Jim Boyles,