Donald Burchell, a career banker, was named treasurer of the Episcopal Church by the national Executive Council during its meeting in Providence, R.I., Feb. 15-17. Mr. Burchell succeeds Ellen Cooke, who resigned Jan. 31, and is being investigated for possible misuse of funds [TLC, March 5].

Mr. Burchell, who had temporarily been in charge of the treasurer's office, also was appointed treasurer of General Convention. He was nominated by the Most Rev. Edmond L. Browning, Presiding Bishop, and Pamela Chinnis, president of the House of Deputies.

The new treasurer joined the Episcopal Church Center staff in May, 1994, following a career in banking and as a stockbroker in the Washington, D.C., area. He is a member of Christ Church, Alexandria, Va.

"We appreciate his openness and his wanting to be collaborative in the work of the (administration and finance) committee," said the Rt. Rev. Don Wimberly, Bishop of Lexington and chairman of the administration and finance committee.

Council's second meeting of the triennium was preceded by a planning and evaluation retreat Feb. 13-14. Council members and Episcopal Church Center executives were led in a one-day spiritual retreat by the Rt. Rev. Michael Ingham, Bishop of New Westminister in the Anglican Church of Canada. The second day was devoted to a preparation for the work of the council.

Because Rhode Island currently has no bishop, the Rev. Gary Lemery, president of the diocesan standing committee, welcomed the council on its first day of business Feb. 15 and said it was the first day the diocese was receiving names for its next bishop, who will succeed the recently retired Rt. Rev. George Hunt, now interim bishop in Hawaii.

The Rev. Marsue Harris, vice chair of the diocesan council, acknowledged a large delegation of visitors from Rhode Island who were present to hear the Presiding Bishop deliver his address from the chair. Gov. Lincoln Almond, a member of St. George's Church, Central Falls, R.I., was unable to greet the council because he was ill, but he sent his deputy, Scott Addison, a member of Trinity, Cranston.

Mrs. Chinnis, vice chair of the council, also addressed the group and spoke about recent appointments to the various interim bodies of General Convention. She said Bishop Browning appointed 52 bishops and she added 82 clergy and 107 lay persons to interim bodies.

Mrs. Chinnis said she was "reasonably satisfied with the balance" achieved by the appointments, noting 30 percent of the clerical members on interim bodies are women, and of those whose race or ethnicity is known, 22 percent are not white. She said 30 percent of the lay persons are women and 32 percent minorities.

"Only a few of the hundreds of people recommended could be identified as representing more conservative views, which severely handicapped my efforts to provide balance on individual interim bodies," she said.

Mrs. Chinnis spoke briefly about the 72nd General Convention in Philadelphia in 1997 and said it is planned the main convention Eucharist will be held on Saturday afternoon, July 19, in the Spectrum arena "to encourage the gathering of Episcopalians from up and down the Eastern seaboard."

She also announced that all interim bodies have been invited to hold their fall meetings at the same time and place, Oct. 12-15 in Minneapolis.

On the second day of the meeting, Judith Conley of the Diocese of Iowa was elected as the church's lay representative to the Anglican Consultative Council, succeeding Mrs. Chinnis. Seven persons were nominated and Ms. Conley was elected on the third ballot.

Two bishops who are not members of council reported on ecumenical progress on two fronts. The Rt. Rev. Frank Griswold, Bishop of Chicago, spoke of the pilgrimage to Canterbury and Rome by Anglican and Roman Catholic bishops, and of the progress of Anglican-Roman Catholic dialogue.

"Unity already exists," Bishop Griswold said. "Our task is to remove the impediments to that unity."

The Rt. Rev. Edward Jones, Bishop of Indianapolis, talked about work on the Concordat of Agreement between the Episcopal Church and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), which is to come before both churches' legislative bodies in 1997.

"I am a passionate advocate for what is being proposed," he said. "I believe we have the opportunity to share with another ecclesial community the gift God has bestowed on us - the episcopate."

The Rev. William Norgren, who recently retired as the church's ecumenical officer, presented a timeline of events involving the two churches between now and the summer of 1997, when both churches' governing bodies meet in Philadelphia.

John Harrison of Pennsylvania, who chairs council's planning and evaluation Committee, presented plans for council members and church center staff members to visit all 118 dioceses during the first six months of 1996, much as they did in 1993. "We're hoping to hear from a wider constituency this time," he said. "Perhaps more than the top leadership of the dioceses."

Among other business, the council adopted resolutions which:

’Ä¢ support participation in the Anglican Women's Network;

’Ä¢ react to legislation proposed in Congress;

’Ä¢ encourage host dioceses to council meetings to allocate to youth of the diocese part of their program presentation to council;

’Ä¢ plan for the inclusion of ELCA partners in future council meetings during this triennium;

’Ä¢ continue to emphasize world mission.

A series of shareholder resolutions also was adopted.

Council members participated in small-group Bible study each morning and on one evening they traveled to St. Paul's Church, Pawtucket, where they heard presentations about some of the important ministries in the host diocese.

The next meeting of the council will be June 12-16 in Seattle.