The Moderator of the United Church of Canada issued a letter to congregations calling for a commitment to outreach and serving others, and to abandon a preoccupation with declining membership.

ENI — The rising popularity of religious pilgrimages stems from a modern lifestyle linked to a constant search for new experiences, according to the bishop of Tarbes and Lourdes, the site of the famous Roman Catholic pilgrimage site in France.

ENI — “Although the Bible doesn't say that Jesus laughed, I think that the evangelists didn't need to write about it because he would always have been laughing,” said Rev. Nobuhisa Yamakita, chairperson of the Japan Confederation of Christian Churches, which links Roman Catholic, Anglican and Protestant denominations.

ENI — The Protestant Church in the Netherlands has apologized to Pentecostals for negative attitudes held towards them in the past.

ENI — Churches in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe's second largest city, have begun to supply residents with water for domestic use in an attempt to lessen the effects of shortages made worse by a struggle over control of the water supply. City authorities have imposed water-rationing measures that permit residents access to water for only a few hours every three days.

Joseph C. McLelland, professor, teacher, pastor and mentor for 50 years at Presbyterian College, Montreal, was honoured by having the college library named for him […]

Yonge Street Mission's annual Christmas market will open from Dec. 12 to Dec. 22, enabling hundreds of families to shop affordably. A 20-year-plus tradition, the Toronto mission's gymnasium will be packed with items donated for this purpose. Clients register in November to be eligible. This year, through various distribution programs, YSM will serve more than 4,000 children and adults.

A new online teacher training program is available, free to Presbyterian congregations. The Opening Doors to Discipleship program is suitable for both seasoned and new teachers, can be completed in any order and at any pace. It is hoped that teachers in a congregation will take the course with their minister or a mentor from their church.

A fire reportedly set by a local young offender who was out on bail has destroyed Knox, Cannington, Ont. The 128-year-old building in the Presbytery of Lindsay-Peterborough was set ablaze on the morning of Oct. 7. The remains of the building were demolished before the unstable walls could fall down on their own. No one was injured.