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Commission on Church Buildings – Report 2000

COMMISSION ON CHURCH BUILDINGS
REPORT 2000
Commissioners |
Dr R Stinson (Chairman) | Canon FGG Quayle
Rt Rev EF Darling, Bishop of Limerick | Mrs DM Burns
Mr RWH Kenny | Mr G Bradley
Very Rev TR Moore | Mr JT Stephens
Mr J Ashenhurst | Very Rev JMG Sirr
Mr JF Buttimore (Secretary to Commission) |
1.	The Commission was established by statute of the General Synod Chapter I of 1986.
Section 3 of the Statute states:
(1)	The diocesan council of any diocese may request the commissioners to schedule for enquiry in regard to the number of churches used for public worship the whole or any substantial area or areas of such diocese, and the commissioners after consideration shall determine whether to accede to such request, and shall notify the diocesan council and the Representative Body of its determination.
(2)	Where a diocese or part of it has been scheduled under subsection (1), the bishop, the diocesan council, the parochial authorities, and the Representative Body on the request of the commissioners shall furnish to the commissioners any information which may appear to the commissioners to be necessary to enable them to consider and determine any matter referred to them by this statute for their consideration and determination.
(3)	The commissioners shall not exercise any of their powers under this statute in any diocese except upon the request of the diocesan council.
2.	The Commission held one meeting during the year.
3.	grants
No grants were approved in 1999.
4.	general synod allocation
The Commission agreed that the General Synod allocation amounting to IR£15,000 would not be required in the current year.  The amount to credit is IR£43,606.
5.	membership
The Commission learnt with regret of the death of Rev CH Thomson on 26 December 1999.  Mr Thomson had been a member of the Commission since its inception in 1986 and had served on the enquiries carried out in the dioceses of Meath and Kildare and Cork, Cloyne and Ross.
6.	amendment of the statute chapter i of 1986
The General Synod at its meeting in May 1999 passed the following resolution:
That the Commission on Church Buildings be requested to take steps to widen its terms of reference to enable it to recommend grants (within its existing budget and where recommended by Diocesan Council) to make safe ruined or redundant church buildings which are either of historic importance or of visual significance in a local landscape.
The Commission, in accordance with the resolution, is submitting to the General Synod in May 2000 an amendment to the Statute which, if passed, will widen its terms of reference accordingly.