Incline Our Hearts

Selling 815

Part of the job of the Bishop is to serve as a point of connection among our congregations, our diocese, and the wider Church. And so, from time to time, I like to share with our diocese items of note from the Episcopal Church as a whole (for those wanting to keep fully informed on wider Church matters, I recommend subscribing to the free emails from Episcopal News Service, in addition to our weekly diocesan email).

At this week’s meeting of the Episcopal Church’s Executive Council, they authorized the sale of the Episcopal Church Center building in Midtown Manhattan, colloquially known as “815” because of its address (815 Second Avenue, New York). For several decades, various leaders of our Church have considered selling the building, and in 2012 a General Convention resolution stated that it was the Convention’s will to do so, but it has never been acted on until now. Where the new offices will be remains to be seen (for a time they will be renting). I hope there will be consideration of eventually moving to a less costly area, perhaps in the middle of the country.

Why sell the building? It is a very expensive building to maintain, with millions of dollars in maintenance needs. And as the churchwide staff has gotten smaller and moved to more remote work, less than half the building is currently used by church-related staff and organizations. Beyond the financial and staffing aspects, there is the larger question of whether we need to hold onto such symbols of status and proximity to worldly power, even as our denomination gets smaller and smaller. 

The current plan for the proceeds of the sale of 815 is that much of them would go into a fund for the revitalization and planting of congregations. In much the same way that, in our Diocese of Oklahoma, our primary focus is on the vitality of congregations, so too our Presiding Bishop is casting a vision for more support of ministry at the local level, instead of what used to be called “the National Church.” I think this is right. We are (or are meant to be) in the business of sharing the Gospel and connecting people with Jesus, for their transformation, and as witnesses to God’s kingdom. That happens mostly at the local level.

One of our significant priorities as a diocese within the category of congregational vitality is the creative use of property for mission (using the land and buildings entrusted to us for greater vitality and viability). I’m glad to see our wider Church doing the same.

Bishop Poulson