January 31, 2008
To: All who are inquiring about the formation and purpose of
The Episcopal Community of Daughters of the King
Here's the rationale:
The Episcopal Community, a group of Daughters of the King from across the country, began after the 2006 DOK Triennial. The business sessions at Triennial raised red flags for many because of the meeting's climate, which discouraged honest dialogue and debate. Members who rose to address controversial issues were ruled out of order during the business meetings by the chair and her parliamentarian.
Members began to work together and to pray for understanding about their experiences and what appeared to be intentional distancing of the Order from its historic roots in the Episcopal Church. The DOK leadership attempted to improperly change the Order's Bylaws so Daughters leaving the Episcopal Church could remain voting members of the Daughters of the King. Instead of using the legally-adopted Bylaws, which provide an affiliate/international structure for these chapters, or creating a task force to vision an amicable future and write new bylaws to give direction to women leaving the Episcopal Church, the Council disregarded the affiliate/international structure in the Bylaws and moved ahead without clear instructions. This was done despite the requests of several previous Councils and a previous Triennial for further study of the subject.
Three past National Presidents (now part of The Episcopal Community) wrote to the Order's membership in February 2007 explaining their position. They also asked to meet with the National Council face-to-face, which took place at the Margaret Franklin Center on April 21, 2007. A joint statement about the meeting was published in The Royal Cross and on the national website. There has also been further correspondence sent to the National Council, including suggestions for the Bylaws Committee.
From the first letter and the National President's response, Daughters began to question the legitimacy of some of the business transactions of the Order's leadership. After the presentation in April 2007, some National Council members also felt the need to re-educate themselves about compliance with the statutes of the State of Georgia, where the Order is incorporated. When these National Council members attempted to inform Council on what they found, they were reprimanded as though they had done something wrong.
The National Council continues to deny any intentional move from the Episcopal Church and does not agree that the Bylaws have been purposefully manipulated or improperly amended. However, some actions indicate otherwise, such as moving funds from the management of the Episcopal Church Foundation to a small firm in Houston and choosing a 2006 Triennial site distinct from General Convention's. Additional concern was raised when the descriptive statement of the Order was changed to read that 'Daughters of the King is an order for women. We have chapters in the etc.' Traditionally the statement has read, "Daughters of the King is an order for women in the Episcopal Church with chapters etc." As members researched the presentation for the April 21 gathering, they found that Bylaws and history had been published in new (unauthorized) forms in the DOK handbook printings over the past several years. Whether intentional or unintentional, these discrepancies were unsettling. Even the Council's own parliamentary consultant, Eleanor Siewert (Coco), voiced her opinion to the Council that any attempted changes to the Bylaws at the 2006 Triennial were void because the proposed changes were not noticed to the membership as required by the Bylaws.
As support for National Council's accountability increased, so too did the number of Daughters who aligned themselves with these concerns. The Episcopal Community has been incorporated, but it will not recruit members, collect dues, or in any way compete with or knowingly damage the existing Order. Instead the Community will operate within the confines of the Order as an embedded group, creating program materials for the use of chapters and individuals, providing information about the history of the Order, and stressing primarily leadership development, spiritual formation, and education. Since these areas are where our priorities lie and members of our group have a strong calling to them, we consider this a stewardship issue.
From the growing number of Daughters who support The Episcopal Community, a group of 15 have become the Circle of Leadership. These Daughters support maintaining the Order's tradition within the Episcopal Church as established in the Order's Bylaws and seek to follow the legal obligations of a non-profit corporation in the State of Georgia and the moral obligation for fair treatment of all Members as sisters in Christ regardless of agreement on specific issues.
The Community will continue to provide The Episcopal Community newsletter and will use it as one of its primary communications tools, furnishing it electronically to all who add their names to the subscription list. Use of whatever materials are developed will be unrestricted; one does not have to "sign on" with the Community in order to have access to them. The Community seeks to be a safe and trusting place and to operate in a circular-leadership mode in which all voices are heard. Although no one can control the responses of another, it is the Community's hope that the elected leadership of the Order will welcome these efforts as positive contributions to the health of the body, not as an attempt to usurp authority that belongs to them.
And it is all a matter of perspective---
The Executive Board and others quickly reacted to the letter announcing the formation of The Episcopal Community with charges that the Community was exclusive, uncooperative, somehow secretive, bypassing elected officers rather than working with them, and rooted in a subversive agenda. In truth, all members of the National Council were informed of the Community's intentions at least one week prior to any other mailing. The letter and statement openly offered assistance in the ministry to which we are called. We acknowledged the tension but gave assurance that the purpose of forming the Community was to undergird and support local chapters and Daughters at Large and to maintain ties to The Episcopal Church. National Council members were offered support for the offices to which they were elected.
The frustration felt by the Community lies in the fact that other than the April 21 meeting, which was tightly controlled, the Executive Board has made no attempt to deal with legitimate concerns and inquiries, nor have they tried to contact Community members directly. Employing innuendo, motives have been questioned, assumptions made, and discredit attempted, all with no direct communication.
National Council members received with their letter a copy of the letter that would follow to chapters. The National Council letter closed, "We look forward to collaboration as you find appropriate. Please feel free to call upon us if we can be of assistance to you." The letter to chapters and members simply offered assistance. These statements do not imply duplication; they offer cooperation. These letters are posted on the Community's website.
The Community, in desiring to maintain the Order's ties with the Episcopal Church, does not denigrate or condemn those who joined the Order as Roman Catholics or Lutherans, or those who wish to leave the Episcopal Church and remain members of the Order. We simply see each group creating its own leadership with its own pastoral oversight, in an affiliate/international relationship as established by our Bylaws. The Episcopal Church welcomes all baptized Christians to the communion table. Affiliate/international chapter membership gives us the blessing of being together and having a venue in which to respect our differences.
Perhaps it is best just to say: The Episcopal Community is a group of Daughters of the King from various parts of the country, with diverse theological perspectives within the Episcopal Church, who have held or currently hold leadership positions within the Order (yes, even on the current National Council) and who are committed to Christ and the ministry of the Order. This Community will continue to encourage all to tell the truth in love. It will strive to be open and loving in communication and actions, giving each Daughter the respect and care she deserves as a child of God. The Community believes Daughters can agree to disagree with other Daughters while also loving one another as Christ.
