In developing this profile, the Nominating Committee conducted an online survey and focus group interviews in each diocesan congregation. Here’s what we discovered:

Strengths

• We are blessed with abundant financial resources.
• The Diocese of Utah is very welcoming and inclusive. We clearly see the imperative to live out our Baptismal Covenant to "respect the dignity of every human being."
• Our diocese has a rich tradition of outreach to the broader community and advocacy for social justice.
• We have been very intentionally remodeling, upgrading, and making our parishes accessible.
• Our colorful history and pioneering spirit is reflected in the vitality of our diocese. We are active and deeply committed.
• The natural beauty of the diocese we live in is unsurpassed. We have majestic mountains, red cliff deserts, and welcoming, clean cities. Our four distinct seasons give us a variety of opportunities to enjoy the great outdoors.
• Through the leadership of our current bishop we have recently completed a technologically sophisticated and eco-friendly Episcopal Church Center of Utah in downtown Salt Lake City. This beautiful building gives us a visible presence in Utah and allows us to provide a ministry of hospitality to the wider community.
• We have a highly successful, challenging ministry formation and education program that helps individuals discern and prepare for their spiritual journey.
• Throughout the diocese, our youth are active and resourceful. They serve as youth delegates to our Diocesan Convention and have attended General Convention as observers. They continually amaze us with their generous outreach programs.

Challenges

• Our relatively abundant financial resources have created a culture of dependency.
• We need to better address the communal implications related to how we allocate those resources.
• The geographical size of our diocese has contributed to an emotional disconnection among our congregations and clergy that sometimes makes us feel more distant from one another than we really are. And even within the more populated areas of the diocese, the relative lack of attachments among our parish communities has led to a sense of isolation.
  
  As a result, we clearly understand the need to:
  
• Cultivate a culture of trust, candor, and transparency throughout the diocese to redress historical patterns of secrecy.
• Equip clergy and other church leaders with strategies to reach new members.
• Take a leadership role in working with struggling churches.
• Reorganize the diocesan administrative structure to better utilize resources.
• Learn to resolve conflict constructively.
• Living as a minority church within a predominantly LDS religious culture presents situations faced by Episcopal leaders nowhere else.
• While attempting to understand the roots and deeply held traditions of the Mormon movement, we need to remember that the Holy Spirit finds many outlets for Christian expression.