Bishop Calls for Engagement in Christian Formation; Diocese Passes Budget, Holds Elections
By Joy Hunter, Director of Communications
Bishop Chip Edgar stressed the importance of intentional Christian formation in both his sermon and his address during the convention of the Anglican Diocese of South Carolina, which was held March 13-14, 2026 in Myrtle Beach. The theme of the gathering was “Becoming Fully Mature in Christ.” Hosted by Trinity Church and conducted at both the church, and the Marina Inn and Resort, the convention brought together more than 350 clergy and delegates from across the coastal and eastern parts of the state to hear from the Bishop, receive updates from various ministries, approve the budget, and elect individuals to serve in various offices.
Opening Service of Holy Eucharist
During the opening service of Holy Eucharist, which included the Clergy Renewal of Vows, Bishop Edgar told stories of two young people who had left the church after “deconstructing” their faith. “… “It’s worth noting,” he said, “that these kids typically are the generational result of churches that turned away from taking the teaching ministry of the church seriously.” He later added, “The church’s task is not simply to create powerful experiences. The church’s task is to call people to be immersed in the truth of the gospel until the heart begins to desire God rightly, the mind recognizes what is really true, and our lives follow in faithful obedience.”
Bishop Edgar Addresses Convention
In his address on Saturday, the bishop spoke about the current Provincial legal proceedings, celebrated recent fund raising successes, noting that in the last four years our churches have raised “$65 million dollars and urged those present to join in supporting both the Thrive Together initiative and Camp Jubilee, but his main thrust was again education. He called on churches to reinstate Sunday morning Christian Education programs; get involved with or build K-12 Christian schools and support Christian home-school co-ops. “Today I want to call all of our parishes to the critically important ministry of Christian education,” he said.
Business Meeting
The business meeting was preceded with a service of morning prayer led by our Youth Commission. Maggie O’Dell, a senior at the Charleston School of the Arts, and member of Church of the Holy Spirit, Daniel Island, gave a moving testimony about God’s redeeming work in her life.
Bishop Edgar recognized those who, since our last convention, were ordained to the priesthood: the Rev. Zach Barton, The Rev. Tom Cannon and the Rev. Hunter Myers; the transitional diaconate: the Rev. Debra Eident and the Rev. Camden Windham; and the vocational diaconate: the Rev. John Davis and the Rev. Roland Skinner. He also recognized those transferring into the diocese: the Rev. Jonathan Collins, the Rev. Dave Fisher and the Rev. Woody Volland. In addition, the Bishop remembered clergy who had died in the previous year: the Rev. Edwin Coleman, the Rev. Kay Fryman and the Rev. Kathie Phillips.
Susan Burns, who had recently retired as our diocesan Human Resource Manager and Finance Assistant after having served on staff for 19 years, was recognized for her many years of service.
The Bishop invited two residential seminarians, Dylan Moore who attends Nashotah House, and Coby Tucker who attends Trinity Anglican Seminary, to greet the convention. Both shared brief videos from each of their schools.
Archdeacon Hunter Jordan spoke briefly of his work with our diocesan canons; his partnership with Bishop Edgar and the Congregational Development committee; and the joy he has in assisting local churches in clarifying their vision, mission, and values. Jordan stressed that the Diocese exists to serve local churches, not the other way around. ”If there is any way I can serve you or your parish in this shared calling, I would be honored to walk alongside you,” he said.
One of the highlights of the convention came when the Rev. Canon Ken Weldon, Executive Director of Camp Jubilee, announced that during the gathering one of our churches offered to donate the funds required to build a camper cabin on our new camp property. Only five more cabins to go!
Elections
The Convention elected the following individuals to serve the diocese:Standing Committee: the Very Rev. Karl Burns, the Very Rev. Will Klauber, Susan MacDonald and Bradford Marshall
Diocesan Council: the Rev. Fred Ochieng Onyango, the Rev. John Sosnowski, Les Sease and Josh Wills
Ecclesiastical Court: the Very Rev. Gary Beson, the Rev. Chet Houston, Ashley Bryant Harbin, Mikell Scarborough
Provincial Assembly: the Rev. Canon Laura Bowman, the Very Rev. John Burwell, the Rev. Claudia Carucci, the Very Rev. Shay Gaillard, the Rev. Ryan Landes, the Rev. Cindy Larsen, the Rev. Canon Jim Lewis, the Rev. Zach Miller, the Rev. Hamilton Smith, John Benson, Janis Breazeale, Anna Bruner, Katherine Cannon, Ashley Bryant Harbin, Joy Hunter, Cathy Jacobs, Justin Johnson, and Jessica Smith.
Budget Approved
Following a report from Johnnie Wallace, the treasurer, the convention passed the nearly $3 million 2026 budget.
Resolution R1 Adopted
The Convention adopted Resolution R1, which was the second reading of a resolution first passed at the March 15, 2025 convention. This resolution edited our Diocesan Constitution to correct grammatical errors and inconsistencies and to clearly reflect existing practices in the diocese.
Inspiring Videos
This year the convention received several updates via inspiring videos. One, which featured students, teachers and administrators at Anglican schools currently in our diocese drove home the Bishop’s desire to see an Anglican K-12 school in every deanery; another provided an update from each of the clergy leading congregations which lost property in the litigation with the Episcopal Church. Another brought home the important work – and fun – going on at Camp Jubilee. All videos may be seen here.
Conclusion
Before adjourning the meeting, Bishop Edgar thanked the Youth Commission for leading Morning Prayer and for their assistance throughout the convention and the staff and volunteers of Trinity Church for all they had done hosting the convention. He announced that our next convention will be held at All Saints, Florence, March 12-13, 2027.
View all convention talks, videos, photos and other resources here.