2009 marks the 50th anniversary of the announcement by Pope John XXIII of the Second Vatican Council, one of whose two main aims was the advancement of Christian unity. It is also 50 years since Fr. Bernard de Margerie received his call to the ministry of ecumenism, and 25 years since the founding of the Prairie Centre for Ecumenism. The theme running throughout our 2008-09 programs will be The Ministry of Christian Reconciliation and Unity: Giving Thanks for the Past, Committing to the Future.

A number of our regular programs have been dedicated to this theme, and some special projects are being planned as well. Here are some dates and preliminary information for this year:

• Ecumenical Contacts Workshop
• Week of Prayer for Christian Unity
• 6th Annual Ecumenical Scripturefest
• Summer Ecumenical Institute

On Monday, the General Synod of the Church of England voted to proceed towards the ordination of women to the episcopate. The vote begins a process that is expected to take three years before a final synodal vote. The earliest ordination would likely be in five years. The fallout from the decision is expected much sooner, both at the Lambeth Conference in late July and in the ecumenical dialogues with Roman Catholics and the Orthodox.

The Church of England is not the first province in the Anglican Communion to make this decision. It does, however, come at a time of tension in the Anglican Communion. The Lambeth Conference meeting later this month will address numerous strains on the Communion, including those arising from the ordination of homosexuals and women, and the blessing of same-sex unions. Women's ordination has been a controversial issue in the Communion since 1976 when the Anglican Church of Canada and the Episcopal Church in the USA decided to ordain women as priests. In the intervening years, many of the other provinces in the Communion have followed their path, including the Church of England in 1992. Once women were ordained as priests, questions were immediately asked about whether women would be ordained as bishops as well.

North American Academy of Ecumenists to meet in St. Louis -- on September 26, 27 and 28th, the Academy will hold its annual meeting at the Crowne Plaza Hotel St. Louis-Clayton (Missouri). The theme will be Ecumenical Ecclesiology: One Church of Christ for the Sake of the World. Michael Kinnamon, Peter Bouteneff, David Daniels and Jeffrey Gros will be among the distinguished speakers. The Academy includes ecumenically active clergy and laity as well as professors and students. Members have a shared concern for theological reflection and scholarship. They value hospitality and conversation. For more information or to register online visit www.naae.net.

In our continuing task to assist Canadian churches to comprehend each other, we share with you the following internal Anglican discernment project. Contributions to this project are invited from Anglicans, but other Christians may be interested in the discussion within the Anglican community.

At the last national meeting, General Synod 2007, the Anglican Church of Canada decided that same-sex blessings were not in conflict with core doctrine but still did not allow individual parishes to bless these unions. The Synod also acknowledged that deep theological reflection on the topic was needed. Specifically, the Primate's Theological Commission, a group of 12 Canadian Anglican theologians, was mandated to consider these topics:

1. The theological question of whether the blessing of same-sex unions is a faithful, Spirit-led development of Christian doctrine
2. Scripture's witness to the integrity of every human person and the question of the sanctity of human relationships

The Commission was asked to consult with the wider Canadian Anglican church as it prepares responses. As part of this consultation, the Commission has invited Canadian Anglican theologians to write essays that address the two topics above. Some of these essays on human sexuality are now available for your consideration, as part of the Anglican Church of Canada's ongoing discernment about the blessing of same-sex unions.

Earlier this year, Canadian Council of Churches announced their latest publication, an anthology of prayers for Christian unity. Featuring a foreword by retired Anglican Archbishop Michael G. Peers, Liturgies for Christian Unity is an anthology of the very best approaches to celebrating common religious ground. Containing prayers and texts from the past 100 years of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, it offers a wide range of ideas for liturgies of all forms and sizes. Its inclusiveness and its usefulness make it a required resource for parishes, retreat centres, chaplains, and educators in all manner of situations.

This resource is the fruit of rich editorial work by the Faith and Witness Commission of the Canadian Council of Churches, under the guidance and leadership of Rev. Judee Archer-Greene, Rev. Richard Vandervaart and Dr. Mary Marrocco.

ISBN-13: 978-2-89507-958-3 • Price: $27.95 • Paperback, 200 pp., 8.5 x 11

In what has been widely described as an historic opportunity for reconciliation with aboriginal peoples, the Prime Minister of Canada rose in the House of Commons on Wednesday to apologize to aboriginal peoples for the residential schools operated under government supervision by the Anglican, Presbyterian, United and Catholic churches. The apology was carried live on television and radio across Canada, and provided an opportunity for Canadians to pause to reflect on the legacy of these schools and the policies that they enacted.

Residential schools were developed in the 1870s as part of a policy of assimilation. As the PM explained: "Two primary objectives of the residential schools system were to remove and isolate children from the influence of their homes, families, traditions and cultures, and to assimilate them into the dominant culture. These objectives were based on the assumption aboriginal cultures and spiritual beliefs were inferior and unequal. Indeed, some sought, as it was infamously said, 'to kill the Indian in the child.' Today, we recognize that this policy of assimilation was wrong, has caused great harm, and has no place in our country."