Reflections on a Unicameral General Convention for the Episcopal Church

Recently a proposal has surfaced for changing the General Convention of the Episcopal Church from its traditional bicameral nature to a unicameral.  More information can be seen at the Episcopal Cafe.  I can support this in theory as a means to both make church governance more nimble and focused on real discernment.  Pulse, it would cut the outrageous expense of GC and hopefully limit the political (non-spiritual) machinations of our present system. However I need to see certain factors very carefully balanced and protected.

The balance of power must be protected. The present proposal appears to give bishops the trump card. Bishops, clergy and laity should each have the power "voting by order" to block actions that might otherwise function as power plays.

The present proposal also seems to weight Numbers in attendance in favor of the Bishops. This is an issue because, at even though voting by order allows minorities to block bad legislation, the sheer volume of those speaking (pro or con) on an issue can Wield an undo influence. Numerical representation at convention should reflect the churches memberships as a whole.  From this perspective the greatest numerical representation would be, listed from greatest to least, thus:

1. Representatives of the laity (greatest number present)
2. Representatives of the clergy (second greatest in numbers)
3. Bishops (least greatest numbers present)