Feature

Making connections in Nicaragua

amymaclachlan

When Annette Vickers first travelled to Nicaragua in 1996 as part of a small mission team looking for a project to support, she had no idea where the fact-finding journey would lead her. Nearly 10 years later, Vickers is active as the director of PAN—Presbyterians Aiding Nicaraguans—facilitating eight to 12 group mission trips to the Central American country each year. "I love it!" she said. "There's nothing more satisfying than seeing the fruits of your labour with your own eyes. That's why the teams like it, they get to leave something tangible behind and they bond with the people they meet."

Discovering possibilities for themselves

amymaclachlan

The Presbytery of Brampton, encompassing areas west and north of Toronto, is an eclectic mix of geography, history, demographics, characteristics and congregation size. Its 30 charges (and 34 congregations) make it one of the largest presbyteries in the national church, and with only four vacancies, its ability to attract ministers seems solid. And although its congregations see a huge range of Sunday attendance from 330 at Knox, Oakville, to 24 at Limehouse, the overall picture is one of general stability. In fact, between 2003 and 2004, membership jumped from 4,949 to 5,323, while both adherents and attendance increased at similar rates.

Tuesday mornings in the kitchen

Jane Docherty

Every Tuesday morning around 9:30 a.m., a group of people begin to gather in the kitchen at St. Andrew's, Owen Sound, Ont. We try not to be late so we can chatter about our week. What we have been up to, how the weather has been, what everyone's children and grandchildren are up to, where we have been this past week; rail at the price of gas, how to grow tomatoes, who is in the hospital, who is home from hospital; discuss local politics and upcoming concerts. We range in age from young children to seniors, and all are welcome, especially the best banana muffin maker in town. It really is the best time and we all look forward to it. Oh, yes, we gather to make sandwiches.

Following our Gospel values

Arthur Van Seters

Albert Einstein once said, "The world is not dangerous because of those who do harm, but because of those who look at it without doing anything." Can this language be applied to investment portfolios? Are investors, including corporate ones like churches, culpable for their reluctance or failure to be intentional in ensuring that their investments are more and more ethically responsible? I wondered about this as I recently re-read the 2003 Assembly Council Report.

Historical but evolving

amymaclachlan

The Presbytery of Huron-Perth is situated in an almost magical slice of Southern Ontario heaven. Tourists, summer cottagers, retirees and long-established small-town folks enjoy the perks of living in this paradise, and file through the doors of the presbytery's 24 churches (in 19 charges). Only three of those lie vacant. While some congregations attract 15 to 50 people on a Sunday, there are others, like St. Mary's that holds two services for its 230 weekly parishioners (in a town of 6,200) and Knox, Listowel, which welcomes 148 worshippers in a town of 5,400.

The most reluctant convert

Michael Coren

Clive Staples Lewis was a lecturer at both Oxford and Cambridge University and considered one of the finest minds of his generation. But it is Lewis the Christian who changed the world. His genius was the ability to convey highly complex ideas in a straightforward and understandable manner. Like some grand champion of common sense he sliced away at cluttered thinking and double-talk.

Teddies and tragedies

amymaclachlan

Teddy bears always manage to bring a smile to a child's face. Imagine how much bigger that smile must be when the bear is given to a child in need. Teddies for Tragedies sends knitted and crocheted teddy bears overseas to children in hospitals, orphanages and poor communities. The women at Westminster, Pierrefonds, Que., have been supporting the project for about two years, and just sent 300 bears away for distribution. "I look at these bears and I think, 'what a small thing and yet, what a big thing in a child's life,'" said Mary Lou De Silva, secretary at Westminster and part of the women's group that knits the bears. "Is this not what Christianity is all about?"

The changing church

amymaclachlan

Multiculturalism isn't something one historically equates with the Presbyterian church. But the Presbytery of West Toronto is changing that. It boasts four congregations that cater to distinct groups — Ghanaian, Hungarian, Spanish and Portuguese. Several other congregations have significant multicultural contingents. They even have a church in Bermuda. "The Presbyterian church is currently holding services in 17 languages on a typical Sunday," said Gordon Haynes, associate secretary for Canada Ministries. "That's phenomenal. And West Toronto has picked up on that."

An Oprah moment

Michael Coren

The first question is why Celine Dion was on the Larry King show at all. Presumably Larry's team of producers did not sit around all day discussing who would be the most astute commentator on the New Orleans disaster, settling not on a state governor or a Nobel laureate engineer but on a singer from Quebec.

Experiencing the church

Nancy Devine

In the multicultural post-Christian era, theological schools across the country are taking a long look at how they prepare students for active ministry — changing not only the curriculum, but also how it is delivered to a widely diverse group of students.

Keeping ministry healthy and whole

amymaclachlan

Comprised mostly of small churches in rural areas or small towns, the Presbytery of Grey-Bruce-Maitland's outreach projects epitomize small-town living and the closeness, cooperation and interdependency found among the residents there. "It took me a while to sort of find my way here," said Rev. Jeremy Sanderson, presbytery clerk and minister at Knox, Walkerton. "Since then, they've been the greatest bunch of people in the way they relate to each other and support one another. It's a really great place to be."

Sacraments are not negotiable

Michael Coren

This summer NDP MPs Charlie Angus and Joe Comartin claimed to have been deeply hurt by the Roman Catholic Church. The first was told that he could not receive communion. The latter has been prevented from teaching marriage classes in his local church.

Seek and ye shall find

Mary Pat Elliott

How do we love others? That's the question we at Knox, Wallaceburg, Ont., asked ourselves. Motivated by our church's mission statement of Here We Grow In Christ, we were challenged by our minister's recent proclamation that church is "all about relationships — relationship with God, His Son, the Holy Spirit and other people." We informally adopted this new commandment, reflecting Jesus' thoughts on the most important call for Christians. Through this call to serve others, Christ opened our understanding to the truth that loving God and others is what gives life its purpose.

Jesus spoke out against self-righteousness

William Jeffrey

The attitude the letter displayed, reminds me of two young men who once attended worship in the congregation where I choose to worship. One member made it clear to them that "we do not want your kind here." Now we are all being told in print, by the writer of the letter, that he is obliged to speak on behalf of Almighty God, in order to set the church straight. How presumptuous to state that he is doing this before it is too late.

More prayer, fewer committees

Milfred Harper

In the April Record Ms. Eileen Shaw of Hamilton said in a letter that we need a more openness to worship and prayer. I agree with her on this point because when we open our hearts and minds in worship, we automatically become closer to Jesus Christ.

A united effort crowns righteousness

amymaclachlan

As one of the church's largest and richest presbyteries, East Toronto occupies an interesting spot on the landscape. Even though it was only created in 1949 (when the Presbytery of Toronto was divided into east and west), its history includes some of the oldest churches of the denomination in Canada. Despite its fabled past, the presbytery is in the midst of change. Encompassing a downtown portion of the city as well as its northern and eastern outskirts, the demographics of East Toronto aren't quite what they once were. Originally a destination for immigrants from the United Kingdom, the bustling city has grown to include immigrants from non-European countries, changing the community's makeup as well as the people in the pews. Toronto is the most multicultural city in Canada and the presbytery's 25 congregations reflect that fact.

Wesleyan foundations created Canada

Michael Coren

I'm about to make my annual visit to Britain, the land of my birth and where I spent the first 27 years of my life. Also the country of John Wesley, who was born a little over 300 years ago. Wesley was, of course, the founder of Methodism, an evangelical grouping that began within the Church of England but eventually found life more comfortable as a separate denomination. Today, sadly, it is in decline throughout most of the world. In Canada most Methodists joined the United Church, a denomination shrinking away before our eyes.