A synopsis of the Bishops Report from the Diocesan Council Meeting, 9th May 2026. (by Cecilia Millar, Diocesan Resentative from Parish of Formosa Laity)
Theme: Walking together with Purpose – From Maintenance to Mission
Our attitude MUST CHANGE from a “Maintenance” Budget Roadshow. Bishop Edwin was talking about collective dreaming for the Dioceses to support the budget, to understand why there is a deficit budget, what do we have that we can utilize? to be continually optimistic – being bold in preparing budget for missions, preparing to take risks… In the past risks were taken and it worked!
Text : “THEREFORE, MY BELOVED BROTHERS AND SISTERS, BE STEADFAST,
IMMOVABLE, ALWAYS EXCELLING IN THE WORK OF THE LORD, BECAUSE YOU KNOW THAT IN THE LORD YOUR LABOUR IS NOT IN VAIN” 1 Corinthians 15:58
1. WHERE WE FIND OURSELVES
Some Parishes are still fragile. The formation of future clergy is not yet where it should be in attempts to redress the imbalances and fill the need.
Through Synod, Diocesan Council, Meetings of Structure of Governance, Consultations, Clergy Schools,, and our Lenten Pilgrimage, and the ongoing work of Parishes and Dioceses we have tried to listen carefully and act more responsibly.
We may not be in crises, but we are also not yet where we need to be
2. STEADFAST, BUT MOVING
The call in Scripture is to be steadfast, but also to keep working and maintain movement and gain ground. We cannot reduce ministry to maintaining what we have, without developing the broader picture.
3. WHAT WE HAVE LEARNED
Walking together needs structure.
It is clear we need to walk together with STRUCTURE and to have a willingness to make time to LISTEN and HEAR what we may not prefer, Listening deeply takes effort.
FORMATION is ESSENTIAL . Without forming leaders we do not have a future. (Formosa Parish put forth a motion pointing back to Jesus’s model for leadership structure Eph 4:11) That’s Gods instruction for shared leadership)
4. IMMEDIATE FOCUS .. Next 12-18 months.. Strengthening of Parishes, Formation of Clergy , Clergy wellness, Leadership and training, Equipping of Wardens and lay leaders CONSISTENTLY across the Diocese in an INTENTIONAL manner.
MISSION GROWTH .. The key is to encourage INTENTIONAL outreach NOT ONLY Sunday maintenance, with the help of growing the Church. Routed – in-Jesus, Discipling and implementing the 5 Marks of Mission. (Matthew 28:18-20)
SOCIAL JUSTICE Supporting of Provincial programmes led by Hope Africa.
WIDER CHURCH PARTICIPATION.. deliberate planning, budgeting and engaging on Provincial , International and Communion level
5. LEGACY and INFRASTRUCTURE
A Diocesan facility for conferencing, training and retreat is not optional.. Its a priority for formation and sustainability. For strengthening ministry, not creating status .
6. BUDGET AND STEWARDSHIP
Our Budget must reflect what we say… Maintenance to mission… Routine spending to intentionsl investment.. Priorities are Formation of leaders and training. Stewardship requires discipline, transparency and clear purpose.
7. THE NEXT 5 YEARS.
Vidion is for a Sustainable, Formational, Pastoral, Missional and United Diocese.
8. MAINTENANCE TO MISSION… Maintenance keeps things going, while Mission asks where God is sending us. WE CANNOT MEASURE OUR LIFE BY SURVIVAL AND MUST MEASURE IT BY FAITHFULNESS AND MOVEMENT THAT REQUIRES CHANGE, AND SHARED RESPONSIBILITY.
9. THE BISHOP gave a word of thanks and gratefulness for our collective leadership, clergy, layleaders, parishioners, and Dioceses Structures for their support, cooperation and commitment through demanding years
10n In closing Bishop Edwin said we are called to be steady but not STATIC, invest in people and act with purpose.
Bishop Edwin gave the Council five simple but probing questions to reflect on:
1. Where are we still maintaining structures instead of actively pursuing mission, and what would it take to change that in practical terms?
2. Which parishes or ministries in our Diocese need immediate strengthening, and what support are we preoaredcyo offer them?
3. How INTENTIONALLY are we IDENTIFYING, FORMING, ans SUPPORTING FUTURE CLERGY AND LAYLEADERS, AND WHERE ARE THE GAPS??
4. Does our current budget clearly reflect our stated priorities for mission, formation of leaders, and people, or does it mostly sustain patterns??
5. What is one concrete decision we can take in the next six months that will move the Diocese forward rather than keep it where it is??
3. Reports on surplus and deficits
Income : A shortfall because some Parishes are paying a less than agreed budget. Donations and bookroom income are also behind. Parishes are encouraged to support the bookroom and look for more donation opportunities. Admin expenses showed surplus and within the budget. Provinvial assessment was incorrectly budgeted
3. A new philosophy regarding allocation of receipts has increased transparency and assisted in the collection of income. We allocate against the month received.
4. Conclusion.. Overall, the first 3 months of 2026 have been a strong start. All the Parishes were thanked as we journey together through our migration to a new, accounting system
With constant attention and communication we will be able to keep witbin budget, empowering everyone in our Diocese to continue their good service
Introduction
Looking back over the last year, on the one hand we had a difficult year because we
lost both our Rector and Assistant Priest to ill health at exactly the same time. I wrote
a letter to all parishioners in July explaining the predicament we were in. I asked
everyone to be in prayer for our beloved priests, to ask our Lord to comfort them and
bring them peace and healing; also to strengthen them so they could come back and
minister to us and, as the Bible says, deliver them and us from every kind of evil
work.
Then on the 28th October Rev’d Sue organised a Day of Prayer here at St Peters. It
was well attended. The Lord answered our prayers by bringing back our beloved
Rev’d Melany as Rector and she continues to grow in strength as we witness today.
Also our beloved Rev’d Carol was given a clean bill of health and returned as
Assistant Priest.
So it has also been a year that, as we prayed, we have been drawn closer to God.
He has blessed and we have so much to thank and praise Him for! The Lord
answered our prayers in so many different ways. For instance the Archdeacon, the
Venerable Rudy Law, became temporary rector for a period of about 3 months. Each
Sunday the gospel continued to be preached, and services were held on schedule
without a break, not only at St Peters, but at all chapelries through the Parish.
As I go through my report for the year, you will agree, our Lord is amazing!
Clergy
We continue to have 2 full-time priests in the parish, the Reverend Canon Melany
Adonis and the Reverend Tertia Meyer, whom we very recently welcomed from the
Parish of Belvedere. Then we are very thankful for the Reverend Sue Ray continuing
to serve here in her retirement, and for Rev’d Ian Fihla’s serving as Deacon.
In January last year I wrote a letter to the Bishop about the pressure on our clergy,
and we spoke about it quite a few times. We asked for an extra priest to be
appointed to the Parish, in particular a young priest, someone who is at the same
level, as it were, as young people, who can preach the gospel to them heart to heart
and develop special rapport with them. Well, what do you know, we now have the
young Rev’d Tertia standing here among us! Thank you, Lord!
However, I believe the Parish still needs a third priest, and we will continue to ask for
one. Realistically though, we know there is a significant shortage of ministers in the
Diocese. It continues to be a matter of concern and prayer.
Worship
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We were blessed to have Holy Communion services here each Sunday and
Wednesday through the year. Average attendance on Sundays for last year was 63
and 7 on Wednesdays, compared to 57 and 6 last year.
We continue to enjoy traditional services at St Peters, and we are very grateful for
Ann Fermor and the choir for inspiring us each Sunday and leading the worship so
beautifully. However our traditional congregation is aging, and we are trying to reach
out to families and young people more and more. Please pray about this.
On the 23rd November the Parish Thanksgiving service was held here at St Peters. It
was very memorable and enjoyable, well attended by people from all the chapelries.
It is always good when people from different backgrounds and culture come together
to praise the Lord. It is inspirational as we encourage each other in the faith. We
bear witness to how the Lord can change us, reconcile us, and bring us together in
unity. I think we need more joint services like this.
Finance
We are extremely thankful for the continued generosity and faithfulness of the St
Peters congregation. Just about every income category has been above budget and
St Peter’s had a Surplus for the year nearly R57000.
As well we had two or three very generous bequests, including one for over R1
million. We praise and thank our God for these people who remembered the Lord in
their will. Surely this a good example to us! Let us remember and include God in our
wills. It is a matter for reflection and prayer.
A quick summary of Parish finances is as follows. Total income for the Parish was
just over R2.59m about R140000 above budget. Total expenses were about
R160000 above budget, mainly because of the fence at St Peters and because of St
Monicas hall roof, which had to be replaced. So in summary the Parish had a loss of
about R92000, against a budgeted loss of about R84000. As every year, there were
several months when the available cash balance on the Parish books came close to
zero, and we had to manage some payments carefully.
We are fortunate that the Parish owns Formosa Place on Main Street. It provides an
essential supplement to parish income which makes all the difference. It is very
important for us to look after this building. Fortunately last year we had enough
savings in the Formosa Place account to carry out a major refurbishment and
repainting of the building. You may have noticed how good the building looks now,
including the Hospice building at the back. As a result in October we were able to
increase office and shop rentals significantly above inflation, and we have now
brought the rentals to be more in line with the market. This means that in future the
parish should be able to draw enough income from Formosa Place to just about
meet our monthly commitment to the Diocese. Last year it was R56000 a month.
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For the current year 2026 we have pledged to pay the Diocese R58800 per month, a
5% increase over 2025.
One other point is to remember that when paying accounts or making donations, you
can pay via the website, the QR code on the pew leaflet, and via the YOCO machine
kept in the church office. We encourage everyone to use these new methods of
payment because they are actually cheaper and easier to control than cash.
Property
At St Peters we spent some R75000 on property maintenance. We continued to
suffer from brass thieves who came in from time to time at night and stole many
brass plaques from grave stones and also our beautiful brass sundial. In response
we installed extra lighting outside the church and a security camera at a cost of
some R10000. However this was insufficient, because one night in November the
situation suddenly got out of hand. Thieves got to the main Eskom switch board and
switched the power off. They then ripped out electric cabling and smashed 2 outside
lights. We were suddenly in emergency mode, and fortunately Retief from Secura
Fence was able to quickly install Clear-vu fencing at the back of the church. This
cost some R60000. There have been no more robberies since. We plan to paint it
black which will make it nearly invisible.
However we believe we are still at risk from thieves and robbers. Therefore the
Council is looking at alternatives to see what fencing and/or walling is available that
will not distract from the beauty of our old St Peters church. It will be a major
expense, so no decision will be made before a proposal is drawn up for the
congregation as a whole to consider.
I must mention we are very thankful for 2 very kind donations made by friends of St
Peters. One is the new Sun Dial by Henry Timme, and one is big banner that you
see from Market on Main saying “Come and Join us at St Peters” – from Nick
Rabjohn.
Outreach
The Parish continued to support and provide help in whatever ways were necessary
to the creches under its care: Greenhill Educare in Kwanokuthula, Pinelands in
Kranshoek, Flamingo in Wittedrift and Siyakula in Bossiesgif. Feeding schemes at St
Chads, St Michaels, St Monica’s and St Paul’s were also funded by members of St
Peters congregation through the “Veggie 365” project where people donate R1 or
R10 per day. We also get help in food distribution from 2 Non-Profit Organisations,
Building the Walls and Soul Food. We are very grateful to all the people who support
and contribute and assist in this work, but I must mention Ann Walburger in particular
who really gives her heart and love to helping provide for the poor among us.
In what can also be considered “outreach”, we hosted a number of social and fund-
raising events during the year, including the Opera Angels and Mike Bhayibhile,
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Shrove Tuesday pancake and quiz evening, the Roast Lamb-on-the-spit Sunday
lunch, Jersey Sunday, the Bridge and Mahjong drive, the BATS play, Rodney
Groskopff’s talk about St Andrews church and a number on men’s breakfast
meetings.
Thanks
We are very thankful to our 3 priests for their faithful ministry among us, and the
love, dedication and care shown to all, including visiting the sick and elderly, not only
at St Peter’s but also throughout the other 5 chapelries of the parish.
We appreciate how they lead the Sunday services, how they focus on the gospel
message, how they build us up in the faith, and the way they welcome the many
visitors and swallows who come back year after year, and are made to feel part of
our congregation.
I must express my sincere thanks to the Rev’d Melany in particular for the way you
overcame ill-health in the second half of last year, caused by the very heavy work
load that comes with our parish. We know how dedicated and passionate you are to
provide each of us ministry, love and care. We owe all the clergy a great debt of
gratitude.
I also wish to thank Amanda for her continuing passion and dedication to serve not
only the people of St Peters, but also everyone from the other 5 chapelries. As well,
she has to meet with all the visitors who stroll in, some just to enquire about services
or use of the hall etc, but others who enquire about weddings or baptisms, events
which require a lot of planning. Please read her 11-page job description which ends
with a special task for December: “Try not to go insane!”
Similarly we thank our Parish Accountant, Genevieve, for the calm and professional
way she handles all the financial problems that arise, and then meet the month-end
deadlines.
Next, I must thank Philippa Sauvenier for serving as Parish Treasurer, Cecelia as
Chapelwarden and then all the Councillors for their dedication to serve and support
the church here at St Peters. And all the many others who give of their time and
talents in so many ways. I wish to note how much we miss Herbert and Beverley
Hobbs who had to return to Joburg. Then thanks go to Jacques van Rooyen who
lives overseas but serves us by looking after the website “Plett Anglican” for us, with
continuous improvements and updates
May the Lord bless you all indeed!
Richard Houston, Church Warden, Parish of Formosa, February 2026
