Rodger Hunter of Boarding Homes Ministry, recipient of the E.H. Johnson award for being on the cutting edge of mission:
“Boarding Homes Ministry does not own or operate these homes but secures permission to join with the people who live there. Ten, 20, 30, 40 residents can live in a boarding home in a sad blend of overcrowding and isolation.
“Boarding homes can be found in all our cities, and sometimes in towns of just a few hundred people. There is a good chance you could find one close to your home congregation. Regrettably, because society does not always provide generous care for those who have a mental health condition, homes like these are simply part of the great Canadian landscape.
“Our ministry has the privilege of inviting members from churches to build relations with the people in a home. I think it will be a gift, for in the sparse environment of a boarding home the interactions are small enough to hold the enormity of the Divine. Pared away from the world’s distractions, that community in Christ can listen to all the cross – chatter of extremes: affliction and blessing, the chilling realities of enforced material poverty and spiritual riches, the whisper of Divine love, and the hard slap of stigma. It is our privilege to invite church members to become part of such a glorious holy communion.
“Team members who have visited for years, and have settled into these homes, say they have found new teachers in the residents. They have acquired, in the deepest sense, a new set of spiritual advisors.
“The residents are called in God to be our teachers and provide insights into the subtleties of how Spirit moves in community. Their call invites us to empty ourselves for a while, and rest in an afflicted space where holiness can be taken seriously.”
This is an excerpt of Rodger Hunter’s E.H. Johnson address.
The complete text will appear in an upcoming issue of the Record.
Matthew Sams, student representative, Knox College, Toronto:
“The key moment for me was a seemingly mundane moment. We are allowing, in certain circumstances, ruling elders and diaconal ministers to celebrate Holy Communion … In a very practical but deeply theological way, we’ve shown our sisters and brothers in Christ in remote congregations how dearly we love them; that we are willing to generously give to them what we have closely guarded for centuries: the privilege of administering the sacrament of Holy Communion. We are saying to them that their participation in Christ, that the growth of their faith, is more important than our grasping on to what has defined us as ministers. How generous is that?!
“We’ve done this wisely and responsibly. We’ve done this by respecting our traditions, respecting our subordinate standards, respecting scripture, but always looking to the Living Word to guide us to where we need to be.
“We’re beginning the process of no longer defining our roles in ministry by what we won’t let other people do. Almost 100 years ago, after Church Union, we began to define ourselves in opposition to the United Church, saying we’re not them. We became the antonym church. Now we are saying who we are as ministers of Word and Sacraments not by what we won’t let others do, but by what we bring to the church. This is an initial step in our long journey of allowing God to recast us into the church we are called to be in Canada. This is exciting!”
