A View from St. Andrews
John Knox’s life is the stuff of historical television dramas—full of murder, politics and ecclesiastical power struggles.
Authorconniepurvis
Worship and Communion
On Sunday evening, hundreds of commissioners and fellow worshippers converged on Vaughn Community, a church complex in Thornhill, Ont. The thriving Korean-speaking congregation, which is […]
Friday’s Business in Brief
Two recommendations stirred some debate on the floor of assembly during the Friday evening sederunt. Option to Eliminate Synods An overture from the Synod […]
Communion of Saints
I sat in a quiet village in Switzerland in the footprint of a lost city.
Opening Worship
The 139th General Assembly began with song and prayer. A praise band summoned the more than 200 commissioners to the gymnasium of Seneca College in […]
Theological Conversation
The city of Geneva has not forgotten John Calvin. His name appears on street signs, plaques and bottles of beer (along with the slogan “in birae predestines.”)
Pension Board Explores Options
Faced with a $45-million deficit in the church’s pension fund, the Pension and Benefits Board is exploring options for how best to deal with the […]
Assembly Council Prepares for Future
The Assembly Council’s March meeting began with presentations from three ministers working in thriving churches. It continued with a time of silence the next morning; […]
First, Chatham, Ont.
Don Illman, 87, of First, Chatham, Ont., is pictured here with some of the pennies he has been collecting at the church since 2010. The […]
Walking With God – Mission
On Sept. 29, 2012, 90 participants from almost every pastoral charge in the presbytery came together to share how they planned to walk with God in their communities.
Courage & God’s Call
I can see why John Calvin wanted to come to Strasbourg. Calvin described himself as “a man of the country and a lover of shade and leisure.” He was seeking, he wrote, a place where he could enjoy, “unknown, in some corner, the quiet long denied me.”
Flemingdon Community Mission, Toronto
There were plenty of smiles at a service of recognition for Rev. Dr. Glynis Williams (centre), associate secretary of International Ministries. The service, which was held on March 6, brought together friends, colleagues, national office staff and members of the presbytery and Life and Mission Agency.
Our Lady of Scars
Notre-Dame de Noyon stands only a street away from the site of Calvin’s childhood home. He would have grown up with the sound of the church’s bells
and the shadow of its towers.
Head of WCRC pens tribute to John MacFarlane
John MacFarlane was a Presbyterian elder, a talented treasurer, and a strong believer in ecumenism. He passed away on Jan. 29 at the age of […]
Risen from the Ashes
Gary Shields, caretaker, stands in the rebuilt sanctuary of East Lake Ainslie. He holds a cross made from nails recovered from the ruins of the […]
Anatomy of All Parts of the Soul
What must it be like, I wondered, to found a church on the ashes of your brethren? To keep the faith at such a cost? To try to forgive other Christians who condemned your friends as heretics?
Water Beneath the Stones
It was an intimidating place to begin a pilgrimage. Standing beneath the arches of Saint-Étienne Cathedral in Meaux, France, I felt like I was lost in some great, petrified forest.
Assembly Council Budgets for 2014
The Assembly Council spent the bulk of its November meeting dealing with finances. It endorsed a number of changes to the church’s pension plan and approved a set of 10 “budget principles” to guide the creation of the national church’s 2014 budget.
‘We Made a Little History this Year’
Rev. Dr. Dave Sutherland will stand as sole nominee for moderator at this year’s General Assembly. This is the first time there has been only only one candidate for moderator of the church’s highest court.
Christian Magazine Reveals ‘Disturbing’ Letter from CRA
A Mennonite magazine has gone public with a letter from the Canadian Revenue Agency, which “reminded” the publication not to print articles that may be construed as partisan.