The Rt. Rev. Shane Parker, Bishop of Ottawa, was elected the 15^th Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada on June 26, 2025, at St. Paul’s Cathedral in London, Ontario, during the 44^th session of the General Synod.

Primate-elect Parker has served as the Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Ottawa since 2020. Prior to that, he was dean of the Diocese of Ottawa and rector of Christ Church Cathedral in Ottawa for two decades. He has a master’s degree in sociology from Carleton University, as well as an honorary doctorate from Saint Paul University, where he has served as a part-time professor of pastoral ministry and chairs its Anglican Studies Advisory Committee.
… Read more » … lire la suite »

The Christian Reformed Church’s Indigenous Christian Fellowship (ICF) in Regina, Sask., is pleased to announce the appointment of Joe Elkerton as its new director, effective July 21, 2025. Elkerton will replace Bert Adema, who is retiring after 32 years of service.

“This appointment marks a pivotal moment for the Indigenous Christian Fellowship,” said Albert Postma, the CRCNA’s executive director-Canada. “Joe’s diverse background and his clear sense of calling to this specific role truly excite us. We believe his leadership will bring vibrant new energy and direction as we continue to grow and serve the community in Regina.”
… Read more » … lire la suite »

In a statement, the World Council of Churches (WCC) central committee commemorated 80 years of the United Nations, particularly its founding principle of multilateral cooperation.

“The Pact for the Future, adopted by the UN General Assembly in September 2024, lays out some important directions and needed reforms,” notes the statement. “But even deeper and more fundamental reform will be required, including of the Security Council itself, in order to restore the organization’s credibility and to address the historic exclusion of nations still under colonial domination at the time of the 1945 San Francisco Conference.”
… Read more » … lire la suite »

Long-time Bridgefolk participants remember the booming voice of the late Ivan Kauffman celebrating historic moments that have marked the development of closer relationships between Mennonites, Roman Catholics, and other divided Christians: “It’s a miracle!”

Kauffman would almost shout it. But he had a solidly empirical definition for miracles to match his exuberance: “Things that everybody agreed could not happen, but that happened anyway.”

If Kauffman could have been in Zurich, Switzerland on 29 May 2025, we would surely have heard his booming voice again. Commemorating the 500th anniversary of the Anabaptist movement that began in January of 1525, its spiritual descendants in Mennonite, Amish, Hutterite, and related churches gathered at the city’s Grossmünster cathedral there at the invitation of Mennonite World Conference (MWC).
… Read more » … lire la suite »

Between 2014 and 2024, the proportion of students of European descent at Montreal Diocesan Theological College (often abbreviated as Dio) went from about 60 per cent to 25 per cent, says the Rev. Jesse Zink, the school’s principal.

“We have been moving in a direction that’s much more diverse along lines of immigration status, country of origin, racial, and ethnic identity. And I would just say, I think this is wonderful,” he says. “I was teaching a three-hour class last week. We took a break, and I noticed that students were having little side conversations during our break, and there was one that was happening in English, and there was one that was happening in French, and there was one that was happening in Swahili.”
… Read more » … lire la suite »

“Several concrete solutions have been proposed that, while respecting the principle of Nicaea, would allow Christians to celebrate together the ‘Feast of Feasts,’” the Holy Father said.

Pope Leo XIV on Saturday said the Catholic Church is open to establishing a common date of Easter among all Christian churches, echoing one of the aims of the Council of Nicaea that met 1,700 years ago.

The Pope spoke to participants of the symposium “Nicaea and the Church of the Third Millennium: Towards Catholic-Orthodox Unity,” which took place this week at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome.

The Holy Father called the 325 Council of Nicaea “foundational for the common journey that Catholics and Orthodox have undertaken together since the Second Vatican Council.”
… Read more » … lire la suite »

The Commission on Faith and Witness of The Canadian Council of Churches invites you to explore Towards Wellbeing: Mental Wholeness in Church, Person, and Community — a new ecumenical study guide designed for faith communities.

Developed through rich dialogue among 14 Christian traditions in Canada, this resource offers

• deep scriptural and theological grounding in the Christian understanding of the human person
• practical insights for ministry, pastoral care, and community life
• engaging questions for small group discussion and personal reflection

… Read more » … lire la suite »

La Commission Foi et Témoignage du Conseil canadien des Églises vous invite à découvrir Atteindre le bien-être : l’intégrité mentale pour soi, la communauté et l’Église, un nouveau guide d’étude œcuménique conçu pour les communautés croyantes.

Née d’un dialogue de qualité entre 14 traditions chrétiennes au Canada, cette ressource offre

• un ancrage scripturaire et théologique profond dans la conception chrétienne de la personne humaine,
• des idées pratiques pour le ministère, la pastorale et la vie communautaire,
• des questions engageantes pour les échanges en petits groupes et la réflexion personnelle.

… Read more » … lire la suite »

Representatives from 16 world Communions gathered in Assisi from May 5-7, to discuss the development of a common liturgical celebration focused on creation. This included the Anglican Communion, Baptist World Alliance, Roman Catholic Church, Lutheran World Federation and Eastern Orthodox churches.

Christian traditions have a yearly cycle or liturgical year, with different seasons and events, including feasts and holy days. They commemorate important aspects of Christian history and theology.

The ecumenical dialogue in Assisi explored whether a new liturgical feast of creation could be developed and celebrated across a number of Christian calendars. It was a continuation of discussions that were held in Assisi in 2024.
… Read more » … lire la suite »

A news story last Saturday announced that a Roman Catholic had been appointed to represent King Charles at the Scottish General Assembly. This would seem to be a very strange story from a Canadian perspective. Canadians hold a variety of opinions about the role of the monarchy, but we don’t expect the monarch to be part of the decision-making bodies of our churches. This is just one of the interesting aspects of having a “national” or established church that we have not experienced in Canada.
… Read more » … lire la suite »