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Elders’ conference has youthful flair

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The national conference for Elders and Lay Leaders in Edmonton was such a tremendous success that General Assembly unanimously approved a mandate to continue the pre-Assembly training sessions over the next five years. There was a record attendance of more than 150 people at the June 4th event at Dayspring, Edmonton.

Make Poverty History

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St. Andrew's, Ottawa, proudly displayed their support of the Make Poverty History campaign by hoisting a 20-foot white banner. Located in the heart of downtown Ottawa, just minutes from the Parliament buildings, the church was the perfect place for Presbyterians to tell the federal government they want more foreign aid for impoverished countries. Members of the congregation are pictured at the unveiling in June.

Telling the story; living the story

Douglas John Hall

Christianity is no longer the automatic or assumed religion of this society, and as Christian ministers we are no longer members of a professional guild which, like law or medicine, can assume that it has a well-respected place in society; we belong, rather, to a community of faith that is in many ways under duress, is frequently misunderstood and suspect within its social context and is itself rather uncertain of its mission and its place in its world. This is especially the case, I would say, with the old Protestant churches of what is called the ‘main-line' — not only, but more particularly, in their North American expressions. Like many other observers of the religious situation today, I am deeply concerned for the Protestant future.

Gospel gets real

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VisionTV is jumping onto the reality TV bandwagon with its new production, Gospel Challenge. Described as a lifestyle/documentary series, the show will give aspiring Canadian gospel singers a chance at their big break.

Youth Voice

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First the numbers: in 1984 there were 896 Sunday schools in the Presbyterian church with 44,891 students. A decade later there were 850 schools serving 33,238 students. And in 2003: 811 schools, 25,656 students. This is not merely attrition — the mainline churches' usual excuse. This is a profoundly disturbing collapse of, arguably, the most important mission assigned to the church.

Discovering the servant heart

Mary M. Wood

Since the age of nine I've been serving alongside my family on Tuesday nights at a homeless shelter at our church. Most nine-year-olds wouldn't want to be hanging around with homeless teenagers, but somehow it was something I looked forward to every week. Now, eight years later, I still keep in touch with youth I've met and enjoy watching some of them take steps to create better lives for themselves.

Can you see the church?

Rev. Kenneth Stright

So, there I was in the Superstore on a Friday night after the closing of the Bible School (we called it the Summer Church Camp 2005!) being asked a simple, yet profound, question by the cashier: "Are you building the church yet?" And without missing a beat, I smiled and said, "Yes, we are building it – one person at a time. Thanks for asking!"

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.

Megachurch or multiplex?

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An enormous church centre that will serve at least 15 churches is under construction in an Amsterdam suburb. The Candlestick Project, which broke ground in Bijlmer on July 6, will have five worship areas in its building catering to the needs of different and diverse faiths such as Greek Orthodox, Ghanian and Iranian. The centre will also house a nursery, apartments, offices and a café. It is due to be completed in 2007.

Economic Leverage

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The US United Church of Christ has joined the Presbyterian Church (USA) and the World Council of Churches in adopting a resolution to use "economic leverage" to promote peace between Israel and Palestine.

G8 does not Make Poverty History

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The global Make Poverty History campaign had great hope that the July summit of eight leading industrial nations would take a major leap towards alleviating the debt of poorer countries. "The Group of Eight started well with cancelling US$40 billion worth of debt," Anglican Archbishop Desmond Tutu wrote in an editorial prior to the summit. "Now let them continue in that direction and change the trade laws."

Facing the frightening

Laura Smith

Two altars of unhewn stone, a three-wick pillar candle surrounded by hundreds of tea lights, rocking guitars and a sanctuary full of church leaders worshipping God with abandon. These are my memories of the Generation Next conference held by Trinity Community, Oro, Ont., in June.

Mission is in her blood

Kendra Shaw

On July 4, I found myself in the departure lounge of Pearson International in Toronto, waiting to leave for Hungary, Romania and Ukraine. These were the destinations for the July Youth in Mission project. Getting here, for me, has been a lifelong journey. As long as I can remember I've had a passion and desire to travel to different countries and to participate in mission. Now I was combining these two longings.

Dirt roads to a greater faith

Harrison Smith

Last January, six adults and 10 teens from St. Paul's, Leaskdale, Ont., went to the Dominican Republic. After months of preparation, gathering supplies and getting to know each other, we set off for Hainamosa. After a long flight, we gathered our luggage and boarded a small bus with a smashed windshield and not enough seats. For half an hour, we travelled dirt roads — traffic laws seemed nonexistent.