On the evening of July 5, several dozen Episcopalians offered two-minute testimonies to the Joint Standing Committee on Program, Budget, and Finance in the JW Marriott in downtown Austin.
This gathering, among the first public meetings of PB&F in Austin, gathered comments without asking clarifying questions or engaging in dialogue, which comes later.
- The Rev. Scott Gunn and Laurie Brock spoke in favor of funding Resolution D016, to seek truth, reconciliation. and restoration amid sexual harassment, misconduct, and discrimination in the church.
- Hannah Wilder and Lisa Brown spoke in favor of funding Resolution A005, to continue a network for church planting.
- Aimee Bostwick, Andrea McKellar, the Rev. Paul Canady, and Elizabeth Scott spoke in favor of Resolution D030 to continue funding Forma.
- The Rev. Richard Mahaffy of the Episcopal Conference of the Deaf spoke in favor of increased funding for deaf ministries.
- Bishop John Tarrant, the Rev. Kim Fonder, the Rev. Rachel Taber-Hamilton, the Rev. Lauren Stanley, and the Rev. Leon Sampson spoke in favor of funding indigenous ministries and theological training.
- The Rev. Joseph Green Jr. spoke in favor of funding historically black colleges and universities.
Matthew Townsend is a Halifax-based freelance journalist and volunteer advocate for survivors of sexual misconduct in Anglican settings. He served as editor of the Anglican Journal from 2019 to 2021 and communications missioner for the Anglican Diocese of Quebec from 2019 to 2022. He and his wife recently entered catechism class in the Orthodox Church in America.
