Violence within the family: Churches need to keep their ears open to calls for help

[WCC News] German churches’ experience with the issue of “domestic violence” will play an important role in a Peace Declaration of the World Council of Churches planned for 2011. “The churches have denied the existence of this issue for a long time”, said Georges Lemopoulos, deputy general secretary of the World Council of Churches (WCC), speaking on Saturday 28 June in Frankfurt.

Frankfurt was the first stop for a WCC team of six people led by Archbishop Bernard Ntahoturi from Burundi. The visit of the WCC team in Germany is one of several such team visits planned throughout the world between now and 2010 to prepare for the International Ecumenical Peace Convocation in 2011. The convocation is the culmination of the WCC’s Decade to Overcome Violence 2001-2010, in which the German churches have been particularly active and committed from the outset. In Frankfurt, projects and experiences from south-western Germany were presented to the international team.

Rev. Helene Eichrodt-Kessel, from the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Württemberg’s office for the Decade to Overcome Violence, told the WCC team that the protestant churches are pushing to have the issue of domestic violence included as part of the school syllabus in Baden-Württemberg and also to increase access to advice for victims. Domestic violence is an issue taken up both in theological training and in-service training. “In our jobs, we go into people’s homes and have the opportunity to speak with them,” she said. Congregations received calls for help from women and children. One in four women has been a victim of violence at least once.

The Rosenstrasse 76 exhibition by the development agency Brot für die Welt (Bread for the World) helps local congregations talk about the issue and is used both nationally and internationally – this year by the Evangelical Church of Westphalia. Janette Bächtold-Ludwig, director of the National Council of Christian Churches of Brazil (CONIC), praised the way the exhibition had been conceived and the accompanying events that rural and urban parishes organized around it.

“Domestic violence takes place behind closed doors. When we learn about it, it’s already too late,” said Archbishop Ntahoturi. In his home country Burundi it was seen as one of the results of war. Through its “focus on the family” project, his church had also found out about cases of sexual abuse, he added.

Answering a question from the delegation about the extent to which culture and religion influence “domestic violence”, the Rev. Eli Wolf, director of the Protestant women’s centre in Frankfurt, said that at the moment most of the women seeking protection had a migration background, although domestic violence affected all parts of society. She also talked about working with Muslim women who are working on changing male role models in their environment.

Through its international ecumenical network, the Association of Churches and Missions in South Western Germany, (EMS), has been getting people to read biblical peace texts together with partners abroad. “Everything had to be translated and that demanded a bit of patience”, said the Rev. Dorothea Frank, about the exchange with a student group from Cameroon. “We learnt that we have the Bible as our common treasure and that no one has the right to insist on just one way of interpreting it.”

The organizers of the meeting in Frankfurt have great hopes for the ecumenical declaration on just peace that will be issued by the peace convocation in 2011, said the Rev. Ulrike Schmidt-Hesse, deputy director of the EMS. She hoped that clear positions on current challenges would be taken up alongside more general reflections.

The day in Frankfurt was prepared by the Evangelical Church in Hessen and Nassau, the Evangelical Church in Baden, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Württemberg, the Württemberg ecumenical network and the EMS.

• Further information on the Decade to Overcome Violence
• Living Letters team visit to Germany
• Travel blog by two members of the WCC’s Living Letters team
• Association of Protestant Churches and Mission in South Western Germany (EMS)
• WCC Member Churches in Germany
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Essays assist Anglican discernment on human sexuality

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.

Anglicans who are interested in submitting an essay on one of the above questions, or in commenting on one of the other essays, should contact the Rev. Canon Alyson Barnett-Cowan, Director of Faith, Worship, and Ministry.

Essays in response to the commission’s questions

• Introduction by George Sumner, Catherine Hamilton, Peter Robinson
• What Would John Henry Newman Do? by George Sumner
• Scripture and Doctrine in the St. Michael Report and The Primate’s Questions: A Reflection on Scripture and Theology in the Canadian Anglican Context by Christopher Seitz
• Words Do Not Stand Still by Roseanne Kydd
• Sex and the Garden: Genesis 3 and the Sanctity of Human Relationships by Catherine Sider Hamilton

Some additional resources on this topic are available from the ACC Primate’s Theological Commission.
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Canadian Primate responds to GAFCON statement

[Anglican.ca] What follows is a statement by Archbishop Fred Hiltz, Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, in response to the Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON) statement issued in Jerusalem last weekend.

The Gospel of God in Christ is faithfully proclaimed by Canadian Anglicans today just as it has been by generations who have gone before us. I believe it is important to state this truth in response to the recent statement from the GAFCON gathering in Jerusalem, which suggests otherwise.

The GAFCON statement is based on a premise that there is “acceptance and promotion within the provinces of the Anglican Communion of a different gospel which is contrary to the apostolic gospel.” The statement specifically accuses Anglican churches in the Canada and the United States of proclaiming this “false gospel that has paralysed the Communion.” I challenge and repudiate this charge.

In my first year as Primate, I have visited many parishes across the country, attended synods and participated in gatherings of clergy and laity who care deeply for the church, its unity and witness. What I see is a faithful proclamation of the apostolic gospel in liturgy and loving service to those in need and in advocacy for justice and peace for all people.

The mission statement of the Anglican Church of Canada professes that we “value our heritage of biblical faith, reason, liturgy, tradition, bishops and synods, and the rich variety of our life in community.” And we do. The Anglican Church of Canada also values its role in the worldwide Anglican Communion. We are committed to constructive dialogue on all issues facing our beloved church and the Communion, including the blessing of same-sex unions. We remain convinced that as contentious as this issue may be, it should not be a Communion-breaking issue. We have a deep and abiding commitment to the Windsor Report, and the Communion-wide conversations regarding a Covenant among the provinces.

We cherish our relationship with the See of Canterbury and honour our Archbishop as “first among equals” and as a vital instrument of communion. At his invitation, our bishops and their spouses will participate in the Lambeth Conference 2008. They go mindful of the Archbishop’s hope that through this conference, our relationships in Christ will be deepened and our capacity as leaders in mission will be strengthened.

I do not believe the Anglican Communion is paralyzed by a false gospel. While we recognize that our relationships are bruised and broken the gospel calls us to be reconciled, to pursue healing and to seek the counsel of the Holy Spirit. It calls all those in leadership to use their authority “not to hurt but to heal, not to destroy but to build up” and “to unite the church in a holy fellowship of truth and love.”

As we continue to work our way through these times of tension in the Communion, I ask for the prayers of the church that we may be faithful to the gospel of Him in whom we are forever one.

Fred Hiltz, Archbishop and Primate
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LWF Council receives ecumenical reports

• LWF Council Approves Preparation of a Lutheran Statement to Ask Forgiveness for Anabaptists Persecutions
• Council Actions Affirm Ecumenical Dialogues and Conversations

[Arusha, Tanzania • LWI] The Council of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) voted to provide for preparation of a statement that will, on behalf of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF), ask for forgiveness for Lutheran persecutions of “Anabaptists,” in which many died as this violence was justified by appeal to the Lutheran Reformers’ theological statements.

Receiving recommendations from its Program Committee for Ecumenical Affairs, the Council also acknowledged with appreciation the communiqués from the Lutheran-Mennonite International Study Commission in 2007 and 2008, and commended the study commission for its thorough and important work. It encouraged the Commission to publish the final report of its work in 2009.

The committee, chaired by Prof. Joachim Track, Evangelical Lutheran Church in Bavaria, Germany, had discussed the outcome of the Lutheran-Mennonite study commission, and focusing on the 11th Assembly in July 2010, elaborated possible Assembly actions with regard to weighing the language of regret and asking for forgiveness.

The Council endorsed the committee’s recommendation that Rev. Dr Theodor Dieter, Institute for Ecumenical Research, Strasbourg, France; Rev. Dr Donald McCoid, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America; and Archbishop Nemuel A. Babba, Lutheran Church of Christ in Nigeria, prepare a draft of such a statement.

Lutheran – Roman Catholic Commission on Unity

Based on recommendations from the ecumenical affairs program committee on a fifth phase of the discussions on the Lutheran – Roman Catholic Commission on Unity, the LWF Council received with appreciation the report from the 2007 preparatory meeting, and noted it was looking forward “with hope” to the beginning of a fifth round of the Lutheran – Roman Catholic Commission on Unity.

The LWF governing body also approved the preparation of a “Text on the Anniversary of the Reformation in 2017”, and approved the theme of the Commission’s work, “Baptism and Growth in Communion.”

The Council approved the appointment of Lutheran members to the dialogue, taking into account gender and regional balances. They include co-chair Bishop Dr Eero Huovinen (Finland); Rev. Dr Wanda Deifelt (Brazil); Prof. Turid Karlsen Seim (Norway); Dr Fidon Mwombeki (Tanzania); Prof. Friedericke Nüssel; (Germany); Prof. Michael Root, USA; Prof. Hiroshi Augustin Suzuki, Japan; Rev. Dr Theodor Dieter as a consultant; and an additional woman from Eastern Europe.

Lutheran – Orthodox Relations

The Council received the Common Statement from the 2008 plenary of the Lutheran – Orthodox Joint Commission. It requested the General Secretary and the Office for Ecumenical Affairs to identify one or two additional members for the Commission in order to allow academic specialties necessary for its examination of ministry to be present on the Commission, and to strengthen its gender and regional balance.

The Council also received with appreciation the report from the 2008 conversations with the Oriental Orthodox churches.

Lutheran – Anglican

The Council received the 2007 and 2008 communiqués from the Anglican-Lutheran International Commission.

It also received the communiqué from the 2007 All Africa Anglican-Lutheran Commission (AAALC), and affirmed it would support efforts toward the goal of a full communion relationship among LWF members and those belonging to the Anglican Communion in Africa.

Lutheran – Reformed

The LWF Council received the communiqué from the Lutheran-Reformed Joint Commission 2007 with appreciation. It affirmed the continuation of the common efforts of cooperation between the LWF and its Reformed partners during the time of transition to the World Communion of Reformed Churches, which will unite the World Alliance of Reformed Churches and the Reformed Ecumenical Council.

International Lutheran Council

The Council received for information the communiqué from the 2008 contact meeting between the LWF and International Lutheran Council (ILC). It expressed appreciation for the continued consultative process between both global Lutheran bodies.

It affirmed the importance of the communication between the two Lutheran families on issues that are important to both of them and to their respective member churches.

Global Christian Forum

The Council received with appreciation the Final Message from the November 2007 gathering of the Global Christian Forum (GCF). It also received the report of the first subsequent meeting of the GCF committee, and expressed hope for the new expression of Christian unity, and encouragement for its ongoing structure.

Ecumenical Assemblies

The possibility for the Lutheran communion to find room to gather in the context of the “expanded space” foreseen for future assemblies of the World Council of Churches (WCC) was discussed by the program committee. The Council asked the general secretary to establish an ad-hoc group of about four people to assist in developing and articulating the LWF’s position in preparation for meetings of the WCC Discernment Committee and other discussions on the relation of LWF Assemblies to other ecumenical gatherings. (781 words)

* * *

Around 170 participants attended this year’s Council meeting including church leaders, officials from LWF partner organizations, invited guests, stewards, interpreters and translators, LWF staff and co-opted staff and accredited media.

The Council is the LWF’s governing body meeting between Assemblies held every six years. The current Council was appointed at the July 2003 Tenth Assembly in Winnipeg, Canada. It comprises the President, Treasurer and 48 persons elected by the Assembly. Other members include advisors, lay and ordained persons, representing the different LWF regions.
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Archbishop of Canterbury responds to GAFCON statement

[ACNS 4417 • Lambeth] The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, has responded to the final declaration of the Global Anglican Future Conference with the following statement:

The Final Statement from the GAFCON meeting in Jordan and Jerusalem contains much that is positive and encouraging about the priorities of those who met for prayer and pilgrimage in the last week. The ‘tenets of orthodoxy’ spelled out in the document will be acceptable to and shared by the vast majority of Anglicans in every province, even if there may be differences of emphasis and perspective on some issues. I agree that the Communion needs to be united in its commitments on these matters, and I have no doubt that the Lambeth Conference will wish to affirm all these positive aspects of GAFCON’s deliberations. Despite the claims of some, the conviction of the uniqueness of Jesus Christ as Lord and God and the absolute imperative of evangelism are not in dispute in the common life of the Communion

However, GAFCON’s proposals for the way ahead are problematic in all sorts of ways, and I urge those who have outlined these to think very carefully about the risks entailed.

A ‘Primates’ Council’ which consists only of a self-selected group from among the Primates of the Communion will not pass the test of legitimacy for all in the Communion. And any claim to be free to operate across provincial boundaries is fraught with difficulties, both theological and practical — theological because of our historic commitments to mutual recognition of ministries in the Communion, practical because of the obvious strain of responsibly exercising episcopal or primatial authority across enormous geographical and cultural divides.

Two questions arise at once about what has been proposed. By what authority are Primates deemed acceptable or unacceptable members of any new primatial council? And how is effective discipline to be maintained in a situation of overlapping and competing jurisdictions?

No-one should for a moment impute selfish or malicious motives to those who have offered pastoral oversight to congregations in other provinces; these actions, however we judge them, arise from pastoral and spiritual concern. But one question has repeatedly been raised which is now becoming very serious: how is a bishop or primate in another continent able to discriminate effectively between a genuine crisis of pastoral relationship and theological integrity, and a situation where there are underlying non-theological motivations at work? We have seen instances of intervention in dioceses whose leadership is unquestionably orthodox simply because of local difficulties of a personal and administrative nature. We have also seen instances of clergy disciplined for scandalous behaviour in one jurisdiction accepted in another, apparently without due process. Some other Christian churches have unhappy experience of this problem and it needs to be addressed honestly.

It is not enough to dismiss the existing structures of the Communion. If they are not working effectively, the challenge is to renew them rather than to improvise solutions that may seem to be effective for some in the short term but will continue to create more problems than they solve. This challenge is one of the most significant focuses for the forthcoming Lambeth Conference. One of its major stated aims is to restore and deepen confidence in our Anglican identity. And this task will require all who care as deeply as the authors of the statement say they do about the future of Anglicanism to play their part.

The language of ‘colonialism’ has been freely used of existing patterns. No-one is likely to look back with complacency to the colonial legacy. But emerging from the legacy of colonialism must mean a new co-operation of equals, not a simple reversal of power. If those who speak for GAFCON are willing to share in a genuine renewal of all our patterns of reflection and decision-making in the Communion, they are welcome, especially in the shaping of an effective Covenant for our future together.

I believe that it is wrong to assume we are now so far apart that all those outside the GAFCON network are simply proclaiming another gospel. This is not the case; it is not the experience of millions of faithful and biblically focused Anglicans in every province. What is true is that, on all sides of our controversies, slogans, misrepresentations and caricatures abound. And they need to be challenged in the name of the respect and patience we owe to each other in Jesus Christ.

I have in the past quoted to some in the Communion who would call themselves radical the words of the Apostle in I Cor.11.33: ‘wait for one another’. I would say the same to those in whose name this statement has been issued. An impatience at all costs to clear the Lord’s field of the weeds that may appear among the shoots of true life (Matt.13.29) will put at risk our clarity and effectiveness in communicating just those evangelical and catholic truths which the GAFCON statement presents.

Resources:

• Canadian Primate responds to GAFCON statement
• Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church USA responds to GAFCON statement
• Final declaration of the Global Anglican Future Conference
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The Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON), which was held in Jerusalem from 22-29 June 2008, is a spiritual movement to preserve and promote the truth and power of the gospel of salvation in Jesus Christ as we Anglicans have received it. The movement is global: it has mobilised Anglicans from around the world. We are Anglican: 1148 lay and clergy participants, including 291 bishops representing millions of faithful Anglican Christians. We cherish our Anglican heritage and the Anglican Communion and have no intention of departing from it. And we believe that, in God’s providence, Anglicanism has a bright future in obedience to our Lord’s Great Commission to make disciples of all nations and to build up the church on the foundation of biblical truth (Matthew 28:18-20; Ephesians 2:20). GAFCON is not just a moment in time, but a movement in the Spirit, and we hereby:

• launch the GAFCON movement as a fellowship of confessing Anglicans
• publish the Jerusalem Declaration as the basis of the fellowship
• encourage GAFCON Primates to form a Council.
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Orthodox women: church participation improved but concerns remain

[WCC News] Over the last decade, Orthodox women reached significant milestones regarding their participation in church life, but many of their concerns have not yet been fully addressed, an international gathering of Orthodox women stated.

A long decade has passed since the last inter-Orthodox women’s consultation took place in Istanbul, Turkey in 1997. In the intervening years, the participation of Orthodox women in the life of the church has improved. Significant milestones range from the recognition of women’s issues by church structures to women’s participation in some church ministries and decision-making processes.

Many of the concerns of women, however, have not yet been fully addressed within the life of the church. A list of them includes: access to and funding for theological studies and subsequent employment opportunities within the church; supporting and equipping women for pastoral care and other church ministries; broader participation in church decision-making processes; taking a new look at prayers and practices associated with women’s biology.

These were amongst the main findings of a five-day long consultation, which brought together some 45 women from Eastern and Oriental Orthodox Churches in Europe, the Middle East, Asia, Australia and North America. Meeting from 8-12 June in Volos, Greece, they discussed the participation, ministry and concerns of Orthodox women in the church and in the ecumenical movement.

Participants at the consultation recommended undertaking a full assessment of the current situation and needs of Orthodox women, given the many changes that have taken place over the last decade, as well as the development of a framework for future action. “We see the need to identify, together with our church leadership, the ways and instruments to implement decisions and recommendations of women’s consultations in our churches”, the participants stated in a report on the deliberations.

The consultation took place at the Volos Academy for Theological Studies and was sponsored by the World Council of Churches Programme for Women in Church and Society and hosted by the Diocese of Dimitrias.

Resources

• Full text of the Report of the Inter-Orthodox Consultation
• WCC Programme for Women in Church and Society
• Diocese of Dimitrias, Church of Greece (in Greek)
• Volos Academy for Theological Studies (partially in Greek)
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Femmes orthodoxes: leur participation dans l’Eglise progresse, mais des préoccupations demeurent

[COE] Au cours des dix dernières années, les femmes orthodoxes ont franchi des étapes importantes dans leur participation à la vie de l’Eglise, mais bon nombre de leurs inquiétudes n’ont pas été totalement apaisées, a-t-il été déclaré lors d’un rassemblement de femmes orthodoxes.

Une longue décennie s’est écoulée depuis que s’est tenu le dernier rassemblement de femmes orthodoxes, à Istanbul, en Turquie, en 1997. Dans cet intervalle, la participation des femmes orthodoxes à la vie de l’Eglise a progressé. Les étapes franchies vont de la reconnaissance des thématiques féminines par les structures de l’Eglise à la participation des femmes à différents ministères de l’Eglise dans le mouvement œcuménique et dans le processus de prise de décisions.

Beaucoup de préoccupations exprimées par les femmes n’ont cependant pas été pleinement entendues. Parmi elles, on peut citer l’accès aux études théologiques – y compris leur financement – et aux possibilités d’emploi qui en découlent au sein de l’Eglise; le soutien apporté aux femmes pour l’accompagnement pastoral et d’autres ministères au sein de l’Eglise; la participation accrue au processus de prise de décisions; et l’adoption d’une nouvelle approche concernant les prières et les pratiques associées à la biologie féminine.

Il s’agit là de quelques-unes des principales conclusions qui ont été présentées à l’issue du rassemblement de cinq jours, qui a réuni plus d’une quarantaine de femmes des Eglises orthodoxes d’Europe, du Moyen-Orient, d’Asie, d’Australie et d’Amérique du Nord. Réunies du 8 au 12 juin à Volos, en Grèce, elles ont évoqué la participation, le ministère et les préoccupations des femmes orthodoxes dans l’Eglise et dans le mouvement œcuménique.

Les participantes à la consultation ont recommandé de réaliser une évaluation complète de la situation actuelle et des besoins des femmes orthodoxes, en prenant en compte les nombreux changements qui sont intervenus au cours des dix dernières années, et d’élaborer un cadre pour l’action. “Nous voyons la nécessité de déterminer, en collaboration avec les dirigeants de nos Eglises, les moyens et les instruments permettant de mettre en œuvre dans nos Eglises les décisions et les recommandations prises lors des rassemblements de femmes”, ont indiqué les participantes dans un rapport sur les délibérations.

Le rassemblement s’est tenu à l’Académie d’études théologiques de Volos. Il a été soutenu par le Programme du Conseil œcuménique des Eglises pour les femmes dans l’Eglise et la société et organisé par le diocèse de Dimitrias.

Ressources :

• Texte intégral du rapport du Rassemblement interorthodoxe (en anglais)
• Programme du COE pour les femmes dans l’Eglise et la société
• Diocèse de Dimitrias, Eglise de Grèce (en grec)
• Académie d’études théologiques de Volos (en grec)
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The question of how Christians can witness to their faith in an interfaith world is never easy — and the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) is hoping to provide guidance in that through a new ecumenical policy statement.

With little discussion, the 218th General Assembly approved the new policy statement on June 25 – listing 10 priorities ranging from peacemaking to bringing more ecumenical voices to the table.

The assembly also reaffirmed the PC(USA)’s commitment to continue working through the World Alliance of Reformed Churches, the National Council of Churches, and the World Council of Churches, while at the same time strengthening other ecumenical relationships.

And the document contains a biblical and confessional section and an historical overview of the PC(USA)’s long-time ecumenical involvements – putting the 10 priorities into context.

The statement is an effort to explain “why we do what we do” in ecumenical work, said Edward W. Chan, an elder from Los Angeles and chair of the General Assembly Committee on Ecumenical Relations.

The last policy statements were written before the northern and southern branches of the Presbyterian Church re-united in 1983, and the world has changed a lot since then, Chan told the assembly.
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Liturgies for Christian Unity: The First Hundred Years, 1908-2008

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
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LWF Conference on the Protestant Understanding of Church in an Ecumenical Horizon

The Confessing Church in the Contemporary World

[Geneva • LWI] The Protestant understanding of the church is the central theme of an international conference of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) Department for Theology and Studies (DTS) taking place at the Bossey Ecumenical Institute near Geneva, Switzerland.

Scholars from 11 countries are participating in the 12-16 June gathering, with the theme “The one holy, catholic and apostolic Church – reflections on the understanding of the church in an ecumenical horizon.” According to Rev. Dr Hans-Peter Grosshans, DTS Study Secretary for Theology, the meeting will help make the Evangelical Lutheran understanding of the church more visible. It is the “historical obligation of the Evangelical Lutheran church to make the ecclesiological consequences of Reformed theology clear to itself and to other churches,” he said prior to the meeting, being organized in collaboration with the University of Geneva Faculty of Theology.

Grosshans said the conference ushers in a new LWF/DTS study program, in which the phrase from the Nicene Creed “We believe in the one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church” will be interpreted from the perspective of the Evangelical Lutheran church and contemporary Protestant theology and given new life.

The study program’s first meeting in Bossey will focus on the significance of the Nicene phrase in its entirety for today’s Protestant churches. Follow-up meetings to be held in South America, Asia and Africa, will examine significance of the four hallmarks of the church–oneness, holiness, catholicity and apostolicity–for today’s Protestant churches. The program will address questions such as: “What is the importance for Protestant churches of achieving the ‘one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church? And what is meant, from a Protestant point of view, when referring to the church in terms of oneness, holiness, catholicity and apostolicity?”

Participants at the Bossey meeting come from Brazil, Denmark, Ethiopia, Finland, Germany, Greece, Malaysia, Myanmar, Switzerland, United States of America and Zambia.

Different Contexts

While many of them are specialists on questions of ecclesiology, their experience of the concept of “church” occurs in very different contexts and extremely diverse religious, political, legal and economic situations, said Grosshans. “They represent various theological styles, methods and approaches, and demonstrate the great diversity of theological thinking within the Evangelical Lutheran church,” he added.

In addition to Lutheran scholars, other confessional traditions represented at the conference include the Orthodox, Roman Catholics, Baptists and Reformed. For Grosshans, the Evangelical Lutheran understanding of the church must not seek to assert itself in opposition to other Christian confessions, but rather with them. Emphasis must be placed on ecumenical dialogue and pursuing contextual attempts to define what church is and make it a reality.

Since the signing of the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification (JDDJ) by representatives of the LWF and the Roman Catholic Church on 31 October 1999 in Augsburg, Germany, “church” has increasingly been the central theme of ecumenical dialogues, said Grosshans. The JDDJ reception made it poignantly clear that the main obstacle to church unity was the divergent conceptions of the church. The Evangelical Lutheran understanding of the church has, by and large, defined itself in terms of its difference with other confessions. Until now, Lutheran churches and Protestant theology have paid far too little attention to clarifying the understanding of church on the basis of their own principles.

He went on to say that the Protestant understanding of church therefore lacks a clear identity and consequently, an essential prerequisite toward making progress in ecumenical discussions on the topic of “church”. Until now Protestant churches have not been sufficiently successful in making clear how, based on their understanding of the church, they can bring about the one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church in accordance with the Gospel and the implications this has for the life and organization of the churches. In many ways, Protestant churches have regressed with regard to Reformation ideals, due to their understanding of their own ecclesiality.

The rich and diverse experiences in many Lutheran churches all over the world, which could deepen our interpretation of these hallmarks of the church, have not been brought to fruition, he added.
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Canadian churches welcome PM’s apology on residential schools

Church leaders in Canada hope action will follow a public apology by Prime Minister Stephen Harper to victims of a policy whereby aboriginal children were placed in residential schools run by churches under a government policy of enforced assimilation.

Archbishop Fred Hiltz, the leader of the Anglican Church of Canada, said he was moved by the apology given by Harper in Ottawa on 11 June in the lower house of the Canadian parliament on behalf of the government, followed by apologies from other party leaders.

“I was very encouraged by their determination to make sure that this apology is seen as a beginning, and that it will be accompanied by actions that will significantly improve the quality of life for First Nations people in this land,” Hiltz said in an interview with the Anglican Journal after the prime minister’s statement.

A law passed by the government of Canada in 1920 made it compulsory for aboriginal children aged 7-15 to leave their communities and live in residences at schools run by churches including the Catholic, Anglican, Presbyterian and United Church of Canada. The last of the schools closed in 1996.

During the 1980s former students began making allegations of sexual and physical abuse inflicted on them in the schools. In 2006, a class action suit on behalf of a group of students resulted in the awarding of the largest financial settlement in Canadian legal history.

“The treatment of children in Indian residential schools is a sad chapter in our history,” Harper said in his parliamentary speech. “Today, we recognise this policy of assimilation was wrong, has caused great harm, and has no place in our country. The government of Canada sincerely apologises and asks the forgiveness of the Aboriginal peoples of this country for failing them so profoundly.”

The moderator of the United Church of Canada, the Rev. David Giuliano said his denomination hoped the apology would spark a substantive grass-roots response. “The 11 June apology offers the opportunity to begin the process of healing, forgiveness, and reconciliation,” said Giuliano.

The 2006 settlement included provision for a Truth and Reconciliation Commission, the first time the model used after the demise of apartheid in South Africa has been applied in a stable democracy.

The commission, headed by an aboriginal judge, Justice Harry S. LaForme, has a five-year mandate to travel throughout the country to meet former students. LaForme, a member of the Mississauga tribe, is joined by commissioners Jane Morley, a lawyer, and Claudette Dumont-Smith, an aboriginal nurse from the Algonquin tribe.

“We know what occurred,” said LaForme. “What we now want to hear are the stories from themselves not so we can punish, but so we can walk forward into the future and build a new relationship.”

In Geneva on 13 June the general secretary of the Lutheran World Federation, the Rev. Ishmael Noko welcomed the Canadian government public apology to the First Nations, as a significant indication of the willingness to confront painful legacies of injustice against Indigenous Peoples.

“Honest examination of past wounds is a necessary step to the healing of memories. I pray that these apologies represent the beginnings of an open process of deeper reconciliation between Aboriginal and non-indigenous peoples,” said Noko, who is a Zimbabwean.
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Historic apology to residential schools students seen as a beginning

[Art Babych • Anglican Journal] Archbishop Fred Hiltz, the Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, today said he was moved by Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s apology to victims of residential schools and is optimistic that the historic apology – made on behalf of the Canadian government – will be followed by action.

“I was equally grateful for the apologies – and that’s what they were – offered on behalf of the other political parties,” he said in an interview with the Anglican Journal on Parliament Hill after Mr. Harper delivered the apology in the House of Commons June 11, followed by apologies from the other party leaders. “I was very encouraged by their determination to make sure that this apology is seen as a beginning, and that it will be accompanied by actions that will significantly improve the quality of life for First Nations people in this land,” the primate said.

The government’s apology was directed at the generations of victims of what Mr. Harper called “a sad chapter in our history” and asked for forgiveness for the students’ suffering and for the damaging impact the schools had on aboriginal culture, heritage and language.

Aboriginal leaders and abuse victims, among them Phil Fontaine, National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations, were in the chamber as Mr. Harper delivered the apology.

“Today, we recognize this policy of assimilation was wrong, has caused great harm, and has no place in our country,” said Mr. Harper. “The Government of Canada sincerely apologizes and asks the forgiveness of the aboriginal peoples of this country for failing them so profoundly.

“The Government of Canada now recognizes it was wrong to forcibly remove children from their homes … to separate children from rich and vibrant traditions,” he said. “We apologize for having done this.”

Mr. Harper also noted that while some former students have spoken positively about their experiences at residential schools, “these stories are far overshadowed by tragic accounts of the emotional, physical and sexual abuse and neglect of helpless children, and their separation from powerless families and communities.”

Several First Nations, Métis and Inuit leaders spoke in the chamber in response to the government’s apology with Mr. Fontaine – wearing a traditional aboriginal headdress – calling it “the achievement of the impossible.” He added: “Finally we have heard Canada say it is sorry.”

Clement Chartier, Métis National Council President thanked the government for the apology and said, “It has taken courage and conviction on the parts of many, many people to confront this dark period in Canada’s history.”

Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion said the apology “is about a past that should have been completely different.” But, he added, “it must be also about the future. It must be about collective reconciliation and fundamental changes.”

Native groups and leaders of the four churches that operated the residential schools on behalf of the federal government – Anglican, Roman Catholic, United and Presbyterian – had urged the government to consult with First Nations leaders in the drafting of the apology.

The government rejected the idea but Archbishop Hiltz said the groups seemed satisfied that the apology had the necessary ingredients. These included “acknowledgement of a policy of assimilation that was flawed and wrong in its inception, words of contrition on the part of the government for removing children from their families, (and) words of contrition for abuse which many of them suffered in the school,” he said.

Bishop Mark MacDonald, the national indigenous bishop of the Anglican Church of Canada, said he was pleased with the government’s apology. “I’m going to be processing it for a long time,” he told the Journal. “It was an extraordinary event and I was very happy with what I heard and moved by what I heard and I’m filled with all kinds of emotions. So it will take me a while to process it. But I thought it was an extraordinary day and one of the best days of my life.”

Bishop MacDonald and Archbishop Hiltz, along with other church leaders and scores of First Nations people watched the proceedings in the House of Commons on screens set up in two large meetings rooms nearby. Also in attendance were Archdeacon Sidney Black and the Rev. Gloria Moses, co-chairs of the Anglican Council of Indigenous Peoples.

More than 1,000 others watched from outside the House of Commons where a big screen television was set up. About 30 events marking the historic formal apology were organized in cities and communities across Canada. The Anglican Church of Canada urged parishes to ring their church bells at 3 p.m., the time Mr. Harper was scheduled to deliver the apology.

After the apology was delivered, Mr. Harper and Indian Affairs Minister Chuck Strahl led the procession from the House to one of the rooms for a smudging ceremony, the presentation of tobacco and tea to aboriginal elders, and the signing of the Statement of Apology.

Eleven of the special guests, including Mr. Fontaine and 104-year-old Marguerite Wabano, the oldest residential school survivor, were presented with a framed Statement of Apology from Mr. Harper, and congratulations and hugs from Governor General Michaëlle Jean.

The government’s apology to residential school students comes 15 years after the Anglican Church of Canada, through former primate Archbishop Michael Peers, issued an apology for its involvement in the schools. The church ran about 30 of the schools between 1820 and 1969. About 150,000 First Nations, Inuit and Métis children were taken from their communities over most of the last century and forced to attend state-funded but church-run boarding schools aimed at assimilating them.

(Art Babych is the editor of Crosstalk, the monthly newspaper of the diocese of Ottawa.)
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Prime Minister’s statement of apology to Aboriginal peoples

The following statement was read by the Prime Minister of Canada, Stephen Harper, in the House of Commons on Wednesday, June 11, 2008. The text below was released by the Prime Minister’s Office. French sections, which repeat the English text, have been excluded.

Mr. Speaker, I stand before you today to offer an apology to former students of Indian residential schools. The treatment of children in Indian residential schools is a sad chapter in our history.

In the 1870’s, the federal government, partly in order to meet its obligation to educate aboriginal children, began to play a role in the development and administration of these schools.

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.

Most schools were operated as “joint ventures” with Anglican, Catholic, Presbyterian or United churches.

The government of Canada built an educational system in which very young children were often forcibly removed from their homes, often taken far from their communities.

Many were inadequately fed, clothed and housed.

All were deprived of the care and nurturing of their parents, grandparents and communities.

First Nations, Inuit and Métis languages and cultural practices were prohibited in these schools.

Tragically, some of these children died while attending residential schools and others never returned home.

The government now recognizes that the consequences of the Indian residential schools policy were profoundly negative and that this policy has had a lasting and damaging impact on aboriginal culture, heritage and language.

While some former students have spoken positively about their experiences at residential schools, these stories are far overshadowed by tragic accounts of the emotional, physical and sexual abuse and neglect of helpless children, and their separation from powerless families and communities.

The legacy of Indian residential schools has contributed to social problems that continue to exist in many communities today. It has taken extraordinary courage for the thousands of survivors that have come forward to speak publicly about the abuse they suffered.

It is a testament to their resilience as individuals and to the strength of their cultures.

Regrettably, many former students are not with us today and died never having received a full apology from the government of Canada.

The government recognizes that the absence of an apology has been an impediment to healing and reconciliation.

Therefore, on behalf of the government of Canada and all Canadians, I stand before you, in this chamber so central to our life as a country, to apologize to aboriginal peoples for Canada’s role in the Indian residential schools system.

To the approximately 80,000 living former students, and all family members and communities, the government of Canada now recognizes that it was wrong to forcibly remove children from their homes and we apologize for having done this.

We now recognize that it was wrong to separate children from rich and vibrant cultures and traditions, that it created a void in many lives and communities, and we apologize for having done this.

We now recognize that, in separating children from their families, we undermined the ability of many to adequately parent their own children and sowed the seeds for generations to follow, and we apologize for having done this.

We now recognize that, far too often, these institutions gave rise to abuse or neglect and were inadequately controlled, and we apologize for failing to protect you.

Not only did you suffer these abuses as children, but as you became parents, you were powerless to protect your own children from suffering the same experience, and for this we are sorry.

The burden of this experience has been on your shoulders for far too long.

The burden is properly ours as a government, and as a country.

There is no place in Canada for the attitudes that inspired the Indian residential schools system to ever again prevail.

You have been working on recovering from this experience for a long time and in a very real sense, we are now joining you on this journey.

The government of Canada sincerely apologizes and asks the forgiveness of the aboriginal peoples of this country for failing them so profoundly.

We are sorry.

In moving towards healing, reconciliation and resolution of the sad legacy of Indian residential schools, implementation of the Indian Residential Schools Settlement agreement began on September 19, 2007.

Years of work by survivors, communities, and aboriginal organizations culminated in an agreement that gives us a new beginning and an opportunity to move forward together in partnership.

A cornerstone of the settlement agreement is the Indian Residential Schools Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

This commission presents a unique opportunity to educate all Canadians on the Indian residential schools system.

It will be a positive step in forging a new relationship between aboriginal peoples and other Canadians, a relationship based on the knowledge of our shared history, a respect for each other and a desire to move forward together with a renewed understanding that strong families, strong communities and vibrant cultures and traditions will contribute to a stronger Canada for all of us.
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Government of Canada apologizes to Aboriginal peoples

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.”

In addition to the general apology for the residential schools, the PM also expressed five specific apologies:

“Therefore, on behalf of the government of Canada and all Canadians, I stand before you, in this chamber so central to our life as a country, to apologize to aboriginal peoples for Canada’s role in the Indian residential schools system.

To the approximately 80,000 living former students, and all family members and communities, the government of Canada now recognizes that it was wrong to forcibly remove children from their homes and we apologize for having done this.

We now recognize that it was wrong to separate children from rich and vibrant cultures and traditions, that it created a void in many lives and communities, and we apologize for having done this.

We now recognize that, in separating children from their families, we undermined the ability of many to adequately parent their own children and sowed the seeds for generations to follow, and we apologize for having done this.

We now recognize that, far too often, these institutions gave rise to abuse or neglect and were inadequately controlled, and we apologize for failing to protect you.

Not only did you suffer these abuses as children, but as you became parents, you were powerless to protect your own children from suffering the same experience, and for this we are sorry.”

Resources:

• The full text of the PM’s apology
• Video of the PM’s apology (CBC.ca)
• In depth background information by the CBC on Residential schools and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission
• Historic apology to residential schools students seen as a beginning (Anglican Journal)
• After the Apology of June 11, 2008: A Prayer (United Church of Canada)
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Keffer re-elected directing deaconess of ELCA Deaconess Community

ELCA News Service • May 28, 2008
by Frank Imhoff

The Deaconess Community of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) elected Sister E. Anne Keffer to a second four-year term as its directing deaconess April 27 during its biennial assembly April 25-28 at the Carol Joy Holling Camp in Ashland, Neb. In the balloting for directing deaconess, Keffer received 29 votes, Sister Davia A. Baldauf, Mount Holly Springs, Pa., received 19 votes and Sister Carolyn R. Hellerich, Lincoln, Neb., received three votes. The community elected Baldauf, Sister Melinda A. Lando, New York, and Sister Amy M. Lindquist, St Paul, Minn., to its board of directors.

Keffer is a graduate of Waterloo Lutheran University (now Wilfrid Laurier University), Waterloo, Ontario, and the Baltimore Deaconess School, Baltimore. She earned bachelor of education and master of education degrees from the University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, and a doctor of ministry degree from the Graduate Theological Foundation, South Bend, Ind. Keffer served as a director of Christian education and youth ministry in urban and rural team ministry settings across Canada, and as a chaplain on two university campuses and a retirement home. She was director of the Prairie Centre for Ecumenism, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, when elected directing deaconess of the ELCA Deaconess Community in 2004.

The Deaconess Community is a community of lay women consecrated by the church to a ministry of Word and service. Sisters in the community work in a variety of settings such as health care, Christian education and social services. Deaconesses are theologically trained and professionally prepared for their careers. They are called to ministry by congregations and synods of the ELCA and Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada.
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L’abbé Thévenot est nommé évêque de Prince Albert

(CECC – Ottawa) Le 26 mai 2008, le pape Benoît XVI a accepté la démission de Mgr Blaise Morand, évêque de Prince Albert, en Saskatchewan, et a nommé le Père Albert Thévenot, M. Afr., pour lui succéder.

Au moment de sa nomination, l’évêque-élu était Supérieur provincial de la Société des Missionnaires d’Afrique pour l’Amérique du Nord, dont les bureaux sont situés à Montréal. Quant à Mgr Morand, qui a été ordonné évêque en juin 1981, il prend sa retraite conformément au Code de droit canonique, ayant atteint l’âge de 75 ans en décembre 2007.

Né le 6 novembre 1945, à Somerset, au Manitoba, Mgr Thévenot a joint les Missionnaires d’Afrique en 1964. Après un temps de formation, il a séjourné en Tanzanie, de 1973 à 1976, où il a enseigné au Petit Séminaire de Katoke. Il a ensuite poursuivi des études en pédagogie à l’Université du Manitoba, à Winnipeg, et en théologie au Missionary Institute of London, en Angleterre.

Après son ordination presbytérale, le 2 août 1980, il a successivement œuvré en Tanzanie jusqu’en 1985, puis au Canada jusqu’en 1992, à nouveau en Tanzanie jusqu’en 1998, et à Rome jusqu’en 2004, comme membre du Conseil général de la Société des Missionnaires d’Afrique. Après une année de ressourcement à l’Institut des Dominicains de Montréal, il a été Secrétaire national de l’Oeuvre pontificale de la propagation de la foi, de janvier 2005 jusqu’au moment de son élection comme Supérieur provincial, en juillet 2006.

Le diocèse de Prince Albert compte 21 prêtres diocésains, 8 prêtres religieux et 90 religieuses au service d’une population de plus de 55 450 catholiques répartis dans 87 paroisses et missions.
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Fr. Albert Thévenot is new Bishop of Prince Albert

(CCCB – Ottawa) On 26 May 2008, His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI accepted the resignation of Most Reverend Blaise Morand as Bishop of Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, and appointed Father Albert Thévenot, M. Afr., as his successor.

At the time of his nomination, Bishop-elect Thévenot was the Provincial Superior for North America of the Missionaries of Africa (White Fathers), which is based in Montreal. Bishop Morand is retiring as required by Canon Law, having reached the age of 75 years in September 2007.

Born on 4 November 1945, in Somerset, Manitoba, Bishop-elect Thévenot entered the Missionaries of Africa in 1964. After a time of formation, he went to Tanzania from 1973 to 1976 where he taught in the Minor Seminary of Katoke. After a year of studies in Education at the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, he studied theology at the Missionary Institute of London, England.

After his ordination to the priesthood on 2 August 1980, he successively worked in Tanzania until 1985, then in Canada until 1992, again in Tanzania until 1998, and in Rome until 2004 as a member of the General Council of the Missionaries of Africa. After a period of renewal at the Dominican Institute of Montreal, he became the National Secretary for the French Sector of the Pontifical Society for the Propagation of the Faith from January 2005 to July 2006, just before his election as Provincial Superior.

The Diocese of Prince Albert has 21 diocesan priests, 8 priests who are members of religious communities and 90 religious Sisters serving over 55,450 Catholics in 87 parishes and missions.
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Christian-Jewish relations ‘difficult’

[The Tablet • Christa Pongratz-Lippitt] Cardinal Walter Kasper this week admitted that Christian-Jewish relations were going through a difficult period following the publication of the revised Good Friday Prayer for the Tridentine Rite, writes Christa Pongratz-Lippitt. Cardinal Kasper, president of the Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews, was speaking in an interview with the Ulm-based daily Südwest-Presse on the eve of the Katholikentag in Osnabrück. Several prominent German Jews will not be attending that event on account of the prayer.

Admitting the current tensions in Catholic-Jewish relations in Germany, Cardinal Kasper said: “Germany is, of course, particularly sensitive for historical reasons. This is a difficult period but I think we will be able to get back to the level of dialogue we have had up to now – at least that is what we would like to achieve.”

Asked why a German Pope “of all people” had been so “insensitive to German history” Cardinal Kasper said Pope Benedict “wanted to do something positive. He wanted to improve a prayer that the Jews found offensive and he succeeded. But that did not go quite as far as people wanted or expected. The Pope showed his good will as his unplanned visit to a synagogue in the US shows. This was seen as something most positive in America. In Germany things are different but we are doing all we can to overcome the difficulties.”

Asked why Pope Paul VI’s Good Friday Prayer for the Jews had not been adopted for the Tridentine Mass, Cardinal Kasper replied, “The present Pope wanted the language of the old prayer kept while improving the contents. He did not want to introduce a new liturgical form into the old, extraordinary form.”
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Anglican-Lutheran meeting focused on mission and ‘servant ministry’

[The Anglican Journal • Marites N. Sison] Archbishop Fred Hiltz, primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, said that “an emerging focus around mission” characterized a spring gathering of the third Anglican Lutheran International Commission (ALIC) in Chennai, India.

Meeting from April 28 to May 5, the group discussed “how Anglicans and Lutherans approach mission, how they understand it, how they carry it out,” said Archbishop Hiltz, co-chair of ALIC, which oversees Anglican-Lutheran relationships worldwide. “Within that focus there was yet another focus around diakonia, which is the servant ministry of the church,” he said.

In the three years that he has co-chaired the ALIC, Arcbishop Hiltz said that he has noted “movement and progress around a common understanding of what we call ecclesiology, that is, the nature of the church.” There has also been progress around such issues as, “What do we mean by the visible unity of the church? What does that really mean, what might that look like?” He added that they have also “gone deep on the ecclesiological question of, ‘what is the church in the world for, anyway?'”

The commission received reports from various regions where Anglicans and Lutherans are present and exercise ministry together.

“In some parts of the world, they’ve got agreements like we have in Canada, the Waterloo Declaration. (The 2001 accord brought the Canadian Anglican and Evangelical churches closer together in a relationship called full communion.) Different places have different agreements. Some places are not at a point where they actually have an agreement,” said Archbishop Hiltz. “We are at different stages in our dialogue.”

“Regional check-ins” are important because concerns and challenges are brought to light, he said. “As they do that, they may hear from other members of the commission from different regions who have already addressed a similar challenge.”

Archbishop Hiltz underscored the value of holding the ALIC’s meetings in different regions of the world, noting that the commission always creates space in its agenda to engage with the local church. “That engagement is everything from bringing in leaders from all over the church to tell us their story” to worshipping in local churches, he said.

In a communiqué released after its meeting, the ALIC welcomed the re-activation of the All Africa Anglican-Lutheran Commission. Archbishop Hiltz noted that when the commission first met in Moshe, Tanzania, the African members of the commission and the local bishops and clergy had reported that their regional grouping “was at a kind of low ebb, primarily because they were so absorbed in trying to cope with HIV–AIDS” in their areas. He added: “As they said, until the people and leadership of the church can see … Anglicans and Lutherans working together on the ground to address this immediate, in-your-face issue, dialogue doesn’t make sense. Why would we have this conversation if you’re not following through on action on the ground?” There was a recognition of “a bit of a need for some renewed leadership in the conversation,” he said. “Lo, and behold, at this meeting, we heard that (its) work has been rekindled … they’ve got a plan laid out for the next couple of years whereby Lutheran and Anglican bishops will meet, theologians and clergy will meet.”

The commission also discussed the proposed Anglican Covenant, which will be presented at the upcoming Lambeth Conference this July. “One of the big concerns at the joint commission (meeting) last year, as we heard from the other provinces, and certainly, from the Lutherans, was the concern around a growing authority for the primates’ meetings,” said Archbishop Hiltz. (At last year’s meeting, the commission said it had “extensive discussions” on the first draft of the covenant, and “offered a response from the perspective of the document’s potential impact on ecumenical relations between the two communions.”)

Archbishop Hiltz said that the commission has noted that, “the role of the primates as some kind of magisterium (doctrinal authority) is downplayed considerably,” in the second draft released early this year, known as the St. Andrew’s Draft.

The establishment of a covenant was one of the key recommendations of the 2004 Windsor Report, a document published by the Lambeth Commission on Communion, which was created by Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams to address a schism in the Anglican Communion over the issue of sexuality.

The Lutheran World Federation, in co-operation with the United Evangelical Lutheran Church in India, hosted the ALIC meeting.
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Station 20 West Will Go Ahead – With Your Help!

I am writing with my Board’s unanimous backing to ask your financial and personal support for the re-designed Station 20 West project. The project seeks to raise $1.675 million by December 31, 2008 in order to build in the spring of 2009.

Background
$8 million of provincial funding was withdrawn earlier this year from a project designed to bring food security, nutrition education and health services within the reach of residents of Saskatoon’s core neighbourhoods, many of whom cannot travel to get food and services.

Decision to go ahead
Public support since the announcement of the funding cut has been overwhelming. Saskatoon City Council unanimously agreed to give Station 20 West an extension on the time it has to begin building. The Station 20 West Board decided to go ahead with what was always at the heart of the project – a community grocery store, including a small café, with a commercial kitchen next door managed by CHEP to provide nutrition education and help for people wishing to develop small catering businesses. There will also be office space in the complex available for health and community services.

Why a community grocery store?
Access to affordable, quality food is difficult for those in the core neighbourhoods with no transport, and poor nutrition leads directly to poor health. The last grocery store closed over 10 years ago: the nearest one today is 2 kms away. Imagine a single mother trying to bring home a week’s shopping on the bus while managing 2 small children. Imagine an older person with arthritis waiting in the cold for up to half an hour for a bus, then struggling to bring heavy groceries home. This store is wanted and needed. Local people have already pledged to spend over $1 million at Good Food Junction during its first year.

Why a church-based appeal?
Church organizations and Christian people have been involved in Station 20 West from the outset, happy to partner with all who share this vision. A recent meeting of Saskatoon senior church leaders expressed strong support for the revised Station 20 West project. The Prairie Centre for Ecumenism wants to bring this need before the Christian community as a whole because:
• Serving and giving dignity to the poor was at the heart of Jesus’ ministry (Luke 4:18)
• The first apostles urged their churches to “remember the poor” (Galatians 2:10)
• Jesus loved bodies as well as souls – his healing miracles and feeding of large crowds (Matthew 14: 13-21) show his care for the whole person. As his followers, we take his example seriously.

Ways to give (and get a tax receipt)
• organize a fundraiser: e.g. St. John’s Anglican Cathedral recently had a community BBQ.
• have a ‘bakeless bake sale’, an event where everyone brings a financial gift instead of baking
• Invite a speaker from Station 20 West to your worship service, and take a special offering.
• If you have been blessed financially (perhaps through the recent increase in the value of your home) become part of the “Silver Dollars Club” – making a major gift in multiples of $1000.
• Contribute to the PCE Appeal online. Make sure to mark your donation ‘Station 20 West’ Cheques made out to ‘Prairie Centre for Ecumenism’ and marked ‘Station 20 West Appeal’ can be mailed to the PCE at 600- 45th St. West, Saskatoon S7L 5W9. 100% of all funds so marked will go to Station 20 West.

Find out more
• Station 20 West website
• Good Food Junction Grocery Store
• Look for Appeal updates on the Prairie Centre for Ecumenism website

Blessings

Rev. Dr. Jan Bigland-Pritchard, Director, Prairie Centre for Ecumenism
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May 21-24, 2008, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon

Each year, the Canadian Community Economic Development Network holds a national conference to bring together those who support community-based efforts to improve social conditions and create economic opportunities in Canada and beyond. The 2008 National Community Economic Development (CED) Conference is hosted by the Canadian CED Network in partnership with Quint Development Corporation.

As the premier CED event in Canada, the conference aims to:

• Strengthen CED practitioners and organizations
• Advance a pan-Canadian policy agenda for CED
• Contribute to skills development and capacity building
• Increase the profile of CED as a viable approach to the economic revitalization of Canadian communities.

Each year, the conference attracts over 400 CED practitioners, civil society representatives, civil servants, business and co-operative developers, and academics for dozens of learning and information sharing sessions, inspirational keynote speakers, networking opportunities, and local site visits. The annual conference provides an opportunity for participants to pause and reflect on our grassroots beginnings, while coming together to develop a vision for what we wish to achieve.

**Registration will be open mid-February 2008**
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Communiqué: Anglican – Lutheran International Commission

[ACNS 4405 • Chennai, India] The Third Anglican – Lutheran International Commission (ALIC) held its third meeting at Chennai, India, between 28 April and 5 May 2008, under the co-chairmanship of the Most Reverend Fred Hiltz, Primate of Canada, and of Reverend Dr. Cameron Harder, Lutheran Theological Seminary, Saskatoon, Canada, in the absence of Bishop Thomas Nyiwé, Cameroon, who was unable to attend.

The meeting was hosted by The Lutheran World Federation, in co-operation with the United Evangelical Lutheran Church in India. Its Executive Secretary, Reverend Dr. A. G. Augustine Jeyakumar, welcomed the group at an opening dinner, and the UELCI was host for an excursion to the temple sites at Mamallapuram and dinner there. On Sunday 4 May commission members attended the Broadway Congregation of The Arcot Lutheran Church and visited Chennai sites associated with the memory of the Apostle Thomas. On Ascension Day, the commission worshipped in the chapel of the Gurukul Lutheran Theological College and Research Institute and heard about ecumenical education in this setting from members of its faculty: Reverend Dr. Ponniah Manoharan, Director and Professor in Christian Ministry, Reverend Dr. Jacob Thomas, Professor of Systematic Theology, and Reverend Dr. David Udayakumar, Professor of Mission and Ecumenism. The commission was also welcomed by Bishop V. Devasahayam, Bishop in Madras of the Church of South India, who guided the group in a tour of St. George’s Cathedral and welcomed it to a programme of dance by children from the Cathedral’s Bible schools. He also challenged the commission and its communions to take seriously the injustices caused by the persistence of caste in Indian society.

The commission received reports from various regions where Anglicans and Lutherans live in covenanted relationship. It welcomed the re-activation of the All Africa Anglican – Lutheran Commission (AAALC), which had met in Johannesburg in December 2007, and received a report from the co-chairs, the Right Reverend Musonda Mwamba and Bishop Ndanganeni Phaswana. The commission sent greetings to Nippon Sei Ko Kai, a member of the Anglican Communion, and to the Japan Evangelical Lutheran Church, a member of the LWF, as they gather together for worship on Pentecost Sunday; commission member Reverend Professor Renta Nishihara will speak about the dialogue between the communions.

The commission’s work in Chennai continued discussions begun in earlier meetings: the character of the visible unity the commission seeks to commend, the developing ecclesiologies of the two communions, their understandings of ordained ministry in the context of the life of the Church, and the centrality of diakonia to the Church’s mission. Reflection on diakonia was enriched by presentations from Reverend Dr. Kjell Nordstokke, Director of the Department for Mission and Development at the LWF, and the Reverend David Peck, the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Secretary for International Development; they reviewed the work undertaken by the two communions in these areas and asked about ways in which this work might be helpful to the quest for greater visible unity.

At this meeting discussion centred on the shape and direction of the commission’s report, which is mandated to make recommendations about ways in which the two communions can move toward more visible unity. The commission recognised diakonia and communion as the central elements of their discernment. The challenge of proclamation and service embodied in diakonia, modelled on the ministry of Jesus, promises a fresh and dynamic entry point into questions of ministry and unity in the service of the Gospel.

We give thanks to God for the witness of the UELCI and the Church of South India in their country, and for the ministry of diakonia in which they engage. We were profoundly moved by their accounts of societal discrimination against Dalits which the churches’ ministry seeks to transform, and resolve to remember these issues as we return to our own contexts. We pray that God will bless and guide all we met here, and also the life of both communions as we seek to proclaim the Gospel in active service and mission.

The commission plans to meet again between 18-26 May 2009 at a venue to be identified by the LWF.

The members of the commission are:

Anglicans:

The Most Revd Fred Hiltz, Canada (Co-Chair)
The Revd. Dr Charlotte Methuen, Germany and United Kingdom
The Rt. Revd Musonda T. S. Mwamba, Botswana
The Revd. Professor Renta Nishihara, Japan (unable to be present)
The Very Revd. William H. Petersen, USA
The Revd Dr Cathy Thomson, Australia
The Revd Canon Gregory K. Cameron, Anglican Communion Office (Co-Secretary)

Consultants:

The Revd Canon Alyson Barnett-Cowan, Canada
The Revd Dr. Günter Esser, the Old Catholic Churches of the Union of Utrecht, Germany

Lutherans:

Rev. Dr. Cameron R. Harder, Canada (Acting Co-Chair)
Professor Dr. Kirsten Busch Nielsen, Denmark
Rev. Angel Furlan, Argentina
Landesbischof Jürgen Johannesdotter, Germany
Rev. Dr. Thomas Nyiwé, Cameroon (Co-Chair; unable to be present)
Rev. Helene Tärneberg Steed, Sweden and Ireland
Professor Dr. Kathryn Johnson, Lutheran World Federation (Co-Secretary)

Consultants:

Professor Dr. Kenneth G. Appold, USA
Bishop Ndanganeni P. Phaswana, South Africa

Administrative support was provided by Ms. Sybille Graumann of The Lutheran World Federation and the Reverend Terrie Robinson of the Anglican Communion Office.

The Commission was established by the Anglican Consultative Council and The Lutheran World Federation to continue the dialogue between Anglicans and Lutherans on the world-wide level which has been in progress since 1970. ALIC is building upon the work reflected in The Niagara Report (1987), focusing on the mission of the church and the role of the ordained ministry, The Diaconate as Ecumenical Opportunity (1995), and most recently Growth in Communion (2002), the report of the Anglican – Lutheran International Working Group (ALIWG), which reviewed the extensive regional agreements which have established close relations between Anglican and Lutheran churches in several parts of the world.
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New Anglican bishop ‘will play by the rules’

[Don Retson, edmontonjournal.com] Edmonton’s new Anglican bishop won’t be bending the rules in the local diocese for gay couples wishing to exchange marital vows in church.

“Basically, I’m a play-by-the-rules girl,” the Rt. Rev. Jane Alexander said.

“At the present time the national church has said we’re going to talk about this and we will vote again and look at this in 2010. And so that’s what we’ll do.”

At All Saints’ Anglican Cathedral last Sunday, Alexander was consecrated and installed as the 10th bishop of the Diocese of Edmonton.

Alexander succeeds the Rt. Rev. Victoria Matthews, currently residing in Toronto, who is the designate-bishop of Christchurch, New Zealand. It is the first time in the history of the church that two women bishops have served back to back.

At certain points during the service, Alexander was moved to tears as elements of the past and present came together amid the pomp and ceremony. But the event was as spiritually uplifting for her as it was emotionally draining.

“There was just an incredible feeling of the Spirit in the cathedral,” she said, adding she felt so supported by the 700 people who packed the cathedral and spilled into the hall.

The Alexander family moved here from Newcastle-Upon-Tyne in 1980. Husband Tim is a radiologist at University Hospital. The couple have four children.

Alexander breaks the traditional mould of church leaders.

Her father was so anti-church that he forbade young Jane from attending religious classes at her school in England. It was while singing hymns and oratorios in choirs and school assemblies that Alexander said she heard “the first whisperings of God.”

She was baptized at 25 along with her infant son Mark. At 37, while working as a professor of educational psychology at the University of Alberta, Alexander felt the call of ministry.

After theological studies, ordination in 2001 and serving several local parishes, Alexander in 2006 was inducted as rector at All Saints and installed as dean of the diocese.

On March 8, Alexander was elected on the third ballot as spiritual leader of the roughly 77,000 Anglicans in the Diocese of Edmonton.

She prides herself as a good listener and being very collegial, skills surely needed now more than ever considering the rift over the same-sex issue. More than a dozen parishes have voted in recent months to split from the church over the ongoing controversy.

Only 49, Alexander could potentially serve as bishop until mandatory retirement at 70.
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Interim editor appointed for Anglican Journal

[ACC News] Keith Knight, a former communications director for the Presbyterian Church in Canada has been appointed interim editor of the Anglican Journal, the Anglican Church of Canada’s independent newspaper.

The appointment, announced to Journal staff by Communications and Information Resources director Vianney (Sam) Carriere, follows the resignation of Leanne Larmondin, who has been editor for five years.

Mr. Knight’s appointment is for a six-month term ending in January, 2009. In the fall, a formal search process will be undertaken to hire a successor to Ms Larmondin.

Mr. Knight left the Presbyterian Church position last year. Since January, he has been working as Communications Coordinator for the Primate’s World Relief and Development Fund, the Anglican church’s development agency.

Mr. Knight has also worked as communications coordinator for the Christian Reformed Church in North America.

He has extensive journalism experience with the secular press, having worked as city editor of the Welland Evening Tribune, editor of the Lindsay Post, managing editor of the Bobcaygeon Independent and Fenelon Falls Gazette and managing editor of the Wallaceburg News.

He is the author of numerous articles on religious communications and of a book on churches and the Internet. Mr. Knight is the current president of the North American chapter of the World Association for Christian Communication.

The award-winning Anglican Journal is published 10 times a years and distributed to every recognizable giver to the Anglican Church of Canada. Though partly funded by the church, it has an independent editorial voice and is incorporated separately from General Synod.
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Communiqué: Anglican-Old Catholic International Co-ordinating Council

[ACNS 4404] The Anglican-Old Catholic International Co-ordinating Council (AOCICC) met in Schloss Beuggen, Germany, from 14 to 18 April 2008. The Council welcomed the new Old Catholic Co-chair, the Rt Revd Joachim Vobbe (who also served as the Co-chair from 1998 to 2003), and the new Old Catholic member, the Revd Henriette Crüwell, both appointed by the Old Catholic International Bishops’ Conference (IBC). The Council awaits the appointment of a representative of the Convocation of American Churches in Europe.

The members received reports from developments in each Communion and reviewed the present ecumenical dialogues, with which our Communions are engaged.

A draft text for a common statement of ecclesiological understanding, including missionary dimensions of the Church’s life, which was commissioned at last year’s meeting of the Council, was discussed at length. Practical implications will be considered in due course. Intense discussion also took place concerning a canonists’ report on a proposal for a shared bishop of Deventer (NL). Thus we reflected on the common mission of our churches and on the fact that we both exist in diaspora situations in continental Europe. Concrete examples of “fresh expressions” of church were also discussed.

Attention was given to the agreed statement “Growing Together in Unity and Mission“, of the International Anglican-Roman Catholic Commission for Unity and Mission (IARCCUM).

Morning Prayer was celebrated daily with the community of Schloss Beuggen. The Eucharists during the meeting, and a Bible study each morning, were led by members of the Council. The late Rt Revd Dr Jan Lambert Wirix-Speetjens, Bishop of Haarlem, who served as the Co-chair from 2004 to 2005 was remembered in prayer. On Wednesday 16 April, Solemn Vespers were celebrated at the Old Catholic St Martinskirche in Rheinfelden (CH) with the Bishop of Switzerland, the Rt Revd Fritz-René Müller officiating. Bishop Müller served as the Old Catholic Co-chair of the Council from 2005 to 2007. Afterwards the Council attended a dinner generously hosted by the Old Catholic Church of Switzerland. The next meeting of the Council will take place 26 – 30 October 2009.

For further information, please contact the Revd Professor Dr Angela Berlis, tel +31 (0)23 532 68 78, email , or the Revd Canon Gregory K Cameron at the Anglican Communion Office, tel +44 (0)20 7313 3900, email .

The members of the Anglican-Old Catholic International Co-ordinating Council are:

Anglicans

The Rt Revd Jonathan Gledhill – Co-chair
The Revd Canon Gregory K Cameron – Co-secretary (absent)
The Rt Revd David Hamid, Suffragan Bishop of the Diocese in Europe (absent)
Mrs Maryon Jägers
The Revd Dr Jeremy Morris
Administrative Support: The Revd Terrie Robinson

Old Catholic

The Rt Revd Joachim Vobbe – Co-chair
The Revd Professor Dr Angela Berlis – Co-secretary
The Revd Henriette Crüwell
The Revd Professor David R Holeton
The Revd Dr Harald Rein (absent)
The Revd Dr Dick Schoon

Administrative Support and Interpretor: The Revd Lars Simpson
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The Third Anglican-Lutheran International Commission (ALIC) held its third meeting at Chennai, India, between 28 April and 5 May 2008, under the co-chairmanship of the Most Reverend Fred Hiltz, Primate of Canada, and of Reverend Dr. Cameron Harder, Lutheran Theological Seminary, Saskatoon, Canada, in the absence of Bishop Thomas Nyiwé, Cameroon, who was unable to attend.
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Nouvel évêque des Ukrainiens à Saskatoon

Père Bryan Bayda, C.Ss.R.(CECC – Ottawa) Sa Sainteté le pape Benoît XVI a procédé aujourd’hui à la nomination du Père Bryan Bayda, C.Ss.R., comme évêque éparchial de Saskatoon.

Le Saint-Père a accepté en même temps la démission de Mgr Michael Wiwchar, C.Ss.R., qui occupait ce siège épiscopal depuis 2001. Conformément au code de droit canonique fixant l’âge de la retraite à 75 ans, Mgr Wiwchar avait présenté sa démission au Souverain Pontife lors de son 75e anniversaire, le 9 mai 2007.

Mgr Bayda est né à Saskatoon, le 21 août 1961. Après ses études secondaires au Petit Séminaire Saint-Vladimir, à Roblin, au Manitoba, il a poursuivi sa formation académique à l’Université St. Michael’s College, à Toronto, où il a obtenu un baccalauréat en philosophie, en 1982, et une maîtrise en théologie, en 1987. Il a aussi obtenu un baccalauréat en éducation à l’Université du Manitoba, en 1990.

Mgr Bayda a prononcé ses vœux solennels au sein de la Congrégation des Pères rédemptoristes en 1986 et il a été ordonné prêtre en 1987. Il a ensuite occupé divers postes dans le domaine de l’éducation et de la formation à la vie spirituelle, en plus d’exercer un ministère pastoral dans plusieurs paroisses de l’Ouest canadien. Au moment de sa nomination, il était pasteur de la paroisse Our Lady of Perpetual Help, à Yorkton, en Saskatchewan.

L’éparchie ukrainienne (diocèse) de Saskatoon compte 21 prêtres diocésains, 8 prêtres religieux, 3 diacres permanents et une vingtaine de religieux et religieuses au service d’une population de près de 18 000 catholiques répartis dans 87 paroisses et missions.
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New Bishop of Saskatoon for Ukrainian Catholics

(CCCB – Ottawa) – His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI today appointed Father Bryan Bayda, C.Ss.R., as the Ukrainian Catholic Eparchial Bishop of Saskatoon.

The Holy Father also accepted the resignation of Most Reverend Michael Wiwchar, C.Ss.R., who held the position since 2001. Conforming to the mandatory age of retirement at 75, Bishop Wiwchar formally requested retirement following his 75th birthday in May 2007.

Father Bayda was born in Saskatoon on August 21, 1961. Upon completing high school at St. Vladimir’s College Minor Seminary in Roblin, Manitoba, he pursued studies at the University of St. Michael’s College in Toronto, where he obtained a Bachelor of Arts in philosophy in 1982 and a Master of Divinity in 1987. Further studies included a Bachelor of Education from the University of Manitoba in 1990 and a Diploma in Eastern Christian theology from the Sheptytsky Institute in Ottawa in 1997.

The newly appointed Eparchial Bishop of Saskatoon made his final profession as a member of the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer on September 13, 1986 and was ordained to the priesthood on May 30, 1987. Redemptionists assignments have included serving as a teacher and director of St. Vladimir’s College and formation director of the major seminary of his community, and serving as parish priest in a number of parishes throughout Western Canada. Most recently, he was the pastor of Our Lady of Perpetual Help Parish in Yorkton, within the Eparchy of Saskatoon.

The Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy of Saskatoon includes 21 diocesan priests, three permanent deacons and more than 20 men and women religious who serve a population of 18,000 Catholics in 87 parishes and missions.
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Joint declaration from Catholic-Shi’a Muslim colloquium

The Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue (Vatican) and the Centre for Inter-religious Dialogue of the Islamic Culture and Relations Organisation (Tehran, Iran) held their sixth Colloquium in Rome from 28 – 30 April 2008 under the joint presidency of His Eminence Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, President of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, and His Excellency Dr. Mahdi Mostafavi, President of the Islamic Culture and Relations Organisation.
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United Methodist Church Adopts Full Communion Proposal with ELCA

[ELCA News Service • Fort Worth, Texas] — By a vote of 864-19, the General Conference of the United Methodist Church (UMC) adopted an implementing resolution April 28 that will establish full communion with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Full communion will be fully realized by both churches should the same proposal be adopted at the next ELCA Churchwide Assembly, which meets Aug. 17-23, 2009, in Minneapolis.

The UMC General Conference, meeting here April 23-May 2, is the Methodist’s chief legislative body and meets every four years. The ELCA Churchwide Assembly is the ELCA’s chief legislative authority, meeting every two years. The ELCA and UMC have been in formal theological dialogue since 1977, which led to beginning a relationship of “Interim Eucharistic Sharing” in 2005. That relationship called for members to pray for and support each other, to study Scripture together and to learn about each other’s traditions in anticipation of achieving full communion.

Full communion means the churches will work for visible unity in Jesus Christ, recognize each other’s ministries, work together on a variety of ministry initiatives, and, under certain circumstances, provide for the interchangeability of ordained clergy.

April 28 was “a banner day” because of the UMC General Conference vote on full communion, said the Rev. William Oden, ecumenical officer, UMC Council of Bishops, at an April 29 news conference. “This has been a long time coming. A lot of careful work has been done,” he said. Oden emphasized that the proposal is a relationship between the two church bodies and not a “church union.”

The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, ELCA presiding bishop, Chicago, said he eagerly awaits the ELCA Churchwide Assembly vote in 2009 and hopes that it, too, will be a strong affirmation of full communion with the UMC. Hanson also preached at an April 29 worship service at the UMC General Conference.

“This is about revival of two church bodies that are deeply committed to re-presenting themselves in a pluralistic, dynamic changing culture for the sake of mission,” Hanson said.

The two church bodies must consider what they can do together as full communion partners that was not possible before, Hanson said. He suggested possible cooperative ministries in campus ministry, global mission, advocacy for justice and peace, to name only a few. He also agreed with Oden’s assertion that full communion cannot be successful if it is considered to be a “top down” action. Full communion should be a relationship in which mission initiatives should “bubble up” in the two churches, Hanson said.

“I always think of full communion as merely a step along the way toward a new, possible future because of the relationship,” Hanson said. “That new, possible future is the for the sake of the world. It’s for the sake of mission. Full communion calls for ecumenical, missional imagination.”

Full communion also gives “formal expression” to what is happening in both churches already, said the Rev. Greg Palmer, president, UMC Council of Bishops. “In one way we’re leading, and in another way, we’re following. We are catching up with people on the ground who are doing things in partnership, in mission and in ministry,” he said.

Christians “must find meaningful, significant and substantive ways of honoring the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ in one another and together, living that before the world. We must live before the world what God intends for the world,” Palmer added.

Assuming the full communion proposal is adopted by the ELCA Churchwide Assembly in 2009, a coordinating council with representatives of both churches will be appointed, said the Rev. Donald J. McCoid, executive, ELCA Ecumenical and Inter-Religious Relations, Chicago. That council will coordinate how the two churches will plan for mission together and consider practical matters such as interchangeability of ordained ministers, he said.

The ELCA’s five full communion partners are the Episcopal Church, the Moravian Church in America, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), Reformed Church in America and United Church of Christ.

While the ELCA has successful cooperative ministries with its full communion partners, it must improve how it receives and implements full communion agreements, McCoid said. “We need to do better with how we are able to be intentional (in) sharing ministry. Grassroots sharing is really very critical, and I’ll just echo that again and again and again. The best way we can do that is by giving people permission and encouragement.”

If adopted by both churches, this will be the UMC’s first full communion agreement outside of the Methodist tradition.

The ELCA is one of 140 churches in the Lutheran World Federation and is the third-largest Lutheran church in the world with 4.8 million members. The United Methodist Church is a worldwide church with nearly 8 million members in the United States.

—

Audio of comments made at the April 29 news conference in Fort Worth:

The Rev. William Oden • media.ELCA.org/audionews/080429a.mp3
The Rev. Mark S. Hanson • media.ELCA.org/audionews/080429b.mp3
The Rev. Greg Palmer • media.ELCA.org/audionews/080429c.mp3
The Rev. Donald J. McCoid • media.ELCA.org/audionews/080429d.mp3

Information about the Lutheran-United Methodist Dialogue is on the ELCA Web site.

Information about the UMC General Conference is on the Web.

For information contact: John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or • www.elca.org/news • ELCA News Blog
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Justice LaForme chosen to chair Truth and Reconciliation Commission

[Marites S. Sison • Anglican Journal] Justice Harry S. LaForme, an aboriginal Ontario Court of Appeal judge, has been appointed by the federal government to chair an independent commission that will hear the stories and promote public education about the 150-year legacy of the now-defunct Indian residential schools.

“This is an important step in our commitment to the Indian Residential School Settlement Agreement, and another example of our government doing the right thing for former students, and all Canadians,” said Minister of Indian Affairs Chuck Strahl who announced on April 28 Justice LaForme’s appointment as chair of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) in Ottawa. Mr. Strahl said that Justice LaForme, who is a member of the Mississaugas of New Credit First Nations in southern Ontario, “brings a wealth of respect and leadership experience and is the most senior aboriginal judge in the country.”

Assembly of First Nations chief Phil Fontaine hailed Justice LaForme’s appointment saying, “Not only is he a proud First Nations citizen, he is an outstanding jurist and a compassionate and understanding person.” He added: “I have no doubt he will leave no stoned unturned in his investigation of exactly what happened in residential schools, the harm caused, why and how it happened and who was responsible. At the same time, he will bring the grace and compassion required in the truth commission’s work so necessary for healing to begin.”

The Canadian Press quoted Justice La Forme as having said that the TRC is important “not so we can punish, but so we can walk forward into the future.” He also said he was proud to live in a country that was willing to examine a “horrendous” chapter of its history.

Archbishop Fred Hiltz, primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, sent his envoy for residential schools, retired Archishop Terence Finlay, as his representative to attend the announcement of Justice LaForme’s appointment in Ottawa. Archbishop Hiltz is currently attending a meeting in Chennai, India of the Anglican-Lutheran International Commission.

Last March, Archbishop Hiltz and Bishop Mark MacDonald, national Anglican indigenous bishop, joined other church leaders in a national tour to raise awareness about the commission.

Justice LaForme was unanimously chosen from more than 300 nominees by a panel composed of representatives from national native organizations and parties to the revised settlement agreement that came into effect last September. He will help select the two other members of the commission, which is part of the revised settlement agreement between the government, representatives of former residential schools students and churches who operated the boarding schools.

The TRC is meant to provide former students and their families with a chance to share their experiences in a “holistic, culturally-appropriate and safe setting.” Representatives of government and churches that operated the schools will also be invited to share their stories. (The Anglican church operated 35 of about 130 boarding schools attended by aboriginals from the mid-19th century into the 1970s. In recent years, hundreds of former students have sued the church and the federal government, which owned the schools, alleging physical and sexual abuse.)

During its five-year term, the commission will produce a report and recommendations, and establish a national archive/research center regarding residential schools.

Justice LaForme, 61, began his law career as an associate of a corporate commercial law firm before specializing in aboriginal law. He has litigated and focused on matters involving the Constitution and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

He was appointed a judge of the Ontario Court of Justice, now the Superior Court of Justice, in 1994. At the time of his appointment, he was one of three native judges appointed to this level of trial court in Canada. He was appointed to the Ontario Court of Appeal in 2004.

In 1989, he was appointed commissioner of the Indian Commission of Ontario, and in 1991, as chief commissioner of the Indian Specific Claims Commission on Aboriginal land claims.

Justice LaForme has taught “The Rights of Indigenous Peoples” course at Osgoode Law School, where he graduated in 1977.

He has been awarded with the National Aboriginal Achievement Award (1997) and aboriginal elders have, on three occasions, presented him with an eagle feather, symbolizing the virtues of honesty, integrity, and respect.
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Bishop Burton to move to Dallas
This Pastoral Letter was read in churches across the Anglican Diocese of Saskatchewan on April 20th.

To the clergy and people of the Diocese of Saskatchewan

Dear friends,

This is a difficult letter to write but I must let you know that I have submitted my resignation to the Metropolitan of Rupert’s Land effective September 1, 2008. I begin that day a new ministry as Rector of the Church of the Incarnation in Dallas, Texas.

I cannot begin to express my gratitude for the privilege of serving with you these past 17 years, first as Dean and, since 1993, as Bishop. Our sense of call to Texas is a positive one but at the same time I felt that it would be an opportunity for the Diocese to be overseen with a fresh pair of eyes, and to enjoy the excitement and momentum a change of bishop brings.

Archbishop Clarke will soon be in touch with our Executive Committee to start the process to elect a new Bishop. The person you will choose to carry this ministry forward will be greatly blessed. This Diocese is well known for the singular spirit of cooperation, good will, and thoughtfulness you bring to the challenges of the day. I have good hope and every reason to believe that God has another fruitful season in store for you.

It was said that St. Paul had a thousand friends and loved each as his own soul, and died a thousand deaths when the time came for him to leave them. I suppose every departing bishop feels something of this sense of loss but I feel it acutely today because of the exceptional generosity and openness of heart with which you have consistently encouraged me. I hope to visit with many of you before we go.

Anna, Caroline, Peter and I wish you God’s blessing as you continue steadfast in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in the prayers.

Yours in Christ,

Anthony Burton
Bishop of Saskatchewan
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[New York | NCC News] Krister Stendahl, a tireless ecumenist who was dean and a member of the faculty of Harvard Divinity School and a former bishop of Stockholm, Sweden, died April 15 in Boston. He was 86. Harvard Divinity School immediately issued a statement expressing “immense sadness” and “immense thankfulness for a singular life
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Saskatoon Anglicans narrowly reject same-sex marriages

[Anglican Journal] The diocese of Saskatoon, at its biennial synod held April 4-6, narrowly defeated a resolution that would have allowed clergy to bless same-sex civil marriages.

The vote was 41 against, 38 for and four abstentions, said Lorea Eufemia, secretary/treasurer of the diocese.

Moved by Canon Colin Clay and seconded by Cathy Hartsook, the resolution said: “Be it resolved that this 68th Session of the Synod of the Diocese of Saskatoon request the bishop to allow clergy, whose conscience permits, to bless the duly solemnized and registered civil marriages between same-sex couples, where at least one party is baptized, and to authorize rites for such blessings.”

It was the first time the issue had come before the Saskatoon synod, and the debate lasted nearly an hour and a half, said Ms. Eufemia. Opinions did not divide along urban and rural lines, she said. “Some members of urban parishes voted against it and some rural parishes were for it,” she said. She also noted that the debate was characterized by “respect, kindness and love.” The bishop of Saskatoon, Rodney Andrews, who could not immediately be reached, was pleased by the tone of the debate, she said.

The diocese has been discussing the issue of same-sex blessings for the past couple of years, she said. Members of the gay support group Integrity have spoken at diocesan council, the St. Michael report (which considers whether it is a matter of church doctrine) has been distributed to parishes and parishes have held consultations on the issue.
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As the Executive Director of an inter-church agency working in Saskatchewan to promote inter-church cooperation, I am writing to express my surprise and grave concern about the decision to cut $8 million of promised and committed provincial funding to the Station 20 West project. At a time of healthy budget surpluses, I cannot understand the provincial government’s reasoning and assume it must be based on lack of reliable information about the project.

This is no “throw-more-money-at-the-inner-city-quick-fix” solution, but rather a very well planned partnership between local community based organizations, social service providers, the Saskatoon Health Region, the University of Saskatchewan, the city of Saskatoon and local businesses. Its purpose is to address the very well documented discrepancies in social and health care provision between different areas of Saskatoon.

As last year’s Saskatoon health outcomes study showed, people in the core neighbourhoods have greatly increased likelihoods of serious illness and a much lower life expectancy. The main reason is poverty and the things that go with poverty, like no access to transport, lack of education and poor nutrition. The poor cannot easily travel for services, and a subsidized bus pass is of little use to a single parent hauling several young children around in the cold of winter.

Station 20 West is designed to address these issues, providing a free or low-cost dental clinic (through the U of S department of dentistry), a not-for-profit grocery store featuring good food at affordable prices (in an area where there hasn’t been a grocery store for 10 years), a library and other valuable facilities, along with much-needed affordable housing. The project will offer people living in the core neighbourhoods a chance to help themselves and raise themselves out of poverty. The long-term savings to the government in social service and health care costs, emergency room visits, welfare and corrections facility costs would far outstrip the promised and committed $8 million government investment.

Thousands of volunteer hours have been expended on this worthwhile project by community groups, businesses, church groups and the university. It has widespread community support and credibility. This project is far too important to be made into a political football.

My understanding of the Saskatchewan Party is that it is a grass-roots party which encourages community engagement and the promotion of self-sufficiency. Thus supporting Station 20 West fits with the Sask Party’s core values. It would put tools in the hands of the poor to help them to help themselves.

The Saskatchewan Party also, I think, believes in fairness and integrity. A decision to cut funding which has been promised and committed, and on the basis of which so many organizations and businesses have expended time and resources, appears to lack both fairness and integrity.

I urge the provincial government to reconsider.

Yours sincerely

Rev. Dr. Jan Bigland-Pritchard
Director, Prairie Centre for Ecumenism
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Community Walk for Station 20 West

All-Community Walk: Lets Keep Building Our Community
Support and Celebrate Station 20 West

Bring friends, family, and neighbours!!

Saturday April 5th, gather at 10am
Station 20 West Site, 20th Street West and Avenue L South

Station 20 West is a Community Enterprise Centre being constructed in the heart of Saskatoon’s core neighbourhoods.

The project will strengthen the economy and create skills and employment, provide much needed services and amenities, reduce poverty and health disparities, use LEED environmental design, and help revitalize the Westside core neighbourhoods.

The Provincial government has pulled their $8 million in promised and committed funding from the project, effectively stopping construction.

We will walk together to show community support to reinstate funding and let this innovative and much-needed community-building project reach its full potential.

Resources:
• Community Walk Poster – download, print, and post in a public location
• Join the Station 20 West Facebook Group – for the latest information on the campaign to reinstate funding
• Community Walk invitation on Facebook – send invitations to your friends
• Sign the online petition to reinstate funding
• Visit the Station 20 West website to read about the project, see artistic renderings, and contribute to the capital campaign
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The Rev. Dr. Michael Kinnamon is general secretary of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the USA. He was ordained in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in 1976 and has served as a pastor, seminary professor and dean, and staff to such ecumenical bodies as the World Council of Churches and Churches
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Chrétiens et musulmans doivent souligner ce qu’ils ont en commun et reconnaître leurs divergences, préconise le COE

L’amour du prochain est “un élément essentiel et une partie intégrante de la foi en Dieu et de l’amour de Dieu” pour l’islam comme pour le christianisme. La manière dont chrétiens et musulmans peuvent réfléchir ensemble à cet amour constitue le thème central d’un commentaire publié par le Conseil œcuménique des Eglises (COE) le jeudi 20 mars 2008. Rédigé par des experts chrétiens du dialogue avec l’Islam, il suggère aux Eglises de réponses possibles à la lettre intitulée “Une parole commune”, signée par 138 responsables musulmans en octobre 2007.

Ce commentaire, intitulé “Apprendre à approfondir l’amour ensemble”, s’inscrit dans le cadre des consultations en cours que le COE a lancées auprès de ses Eglises membres et des partenaires œcuméniques en novembre 2007 en les invitant à “approfondir avec les musulmans l’amour de Dieu et l’amour du prochain dans leurs contextes respectifs”.

“Nous encourageons nos Eglises à considérer l’invitation lancée par les responsables musulmans comme une nouvelle occasion de dialogue interreligieux”, déclare le pasteur Samuel Kobia, secrétaire général du COE. “Nous espérons que ce commentaire constituera un outil utile aux Eglises dans leur réflexion sur ‘Une parole commune’ et facilitera leur dialogue avec la communauté musulmane.”

Le document invite les Eglises à réfléchir aux deux grands thèmes mentionnés dans “Une parole commune”: l’amour de Dieu et l’amour du prochain. Il souligne les défis historiques et les nouvelles promesses des dialogues de ce genre et esquisse un processus permettant de poursuivre les échanges entre responsables chrétiens et musulmans. Il est “absolument indispensable que, tout en trouvant comment souligner ce qu’ils ont en commun, chrétiens et musulmans imaginent aussi comment reconnaître et respecter les divergences qui existent entre eux”.

“Ce texte marque le début d’un processus”, déclare Rima Barsoum, responsable du dialogue entre chrétiens et musulmans au COE. “Il invite à constituer un groupe mixte de planification qui jettera les bases d’un dialogue et invitera les responsables et théologiens chrétiens et musulmans a y participer dans le cadre de manifestations propres à encourager la coopération interreligieuse aux niveaux mondial et local.”

Le processus de réponse à “Une parole commune” a été approuvé par le Comité central du COE lors de sa réunion de février 2008 à Genève.

• Texte intégral de “Learning to explore love together” (en anglais)

• “Une parole commune”, lettre de dignitaires musulmans aux responsables chrétiens

• Pour plus d’informations sur le Programme “coopération et dialogue interreligieux” du COE
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[Rome] Le baptême par le pape Benoît XVI d’un journaliste italien musulman d’origine égyptienne – connu pour être un virulent critique des restrictions à la liberté religieuse dans les pays musulmans – suscite des interrogations de la part de responsables musulmans en Italie.

Magdi Allam, chroniqueur et rédacteur en chef adjoint du quotidien milanais Corriere della Sera, était l’une des sept personnes de cinq pays différents à avoir été baptisées par le souverain pontife pendant la messe de la veille de Pâques à la basilique Saint-Pierre, au Vatican, le 22 mars.
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Christians and Muslims must enhance common ground and acknowledge differences, says WCC

Love for one’s neighbour is “an essential and integral part of faith in God and love of God” for both Islam and Christianity. How Christians and Muslims can engage in reflections of this love together is the central theme of a commentary issued by the World Council of Churches (WCC) on Thursday, 20 March. Compiled by Christian experts in Christian-Muslim relations, it addresses the churches and offers suggestions on responding to the widely noticed letter “A Common Word” by 138 Muslim leaders in October 2007.

The commentary entitled “Learning to explore love together” is part of on-going consultations in which the WCC has engaged its member churches and ecumenical partners since November 2007. It invites them “to explore together with Muslim fellows the love of God and the love of neighbour in their respective contexts”.

“We are encouraging our churches to consider this invitation offered by the Muslim leaders as a new opportunity for interreligious dialogue” said WCC general secretary Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia. “It is our hope that this commentary will be a helpful tool as churches reflect on ‘A Common Word,’ and begin to engage in dialogue with the Muslim community,” he said.

The document invites the churches to reflect on the two major theological themes of “A Common Word,” love of God and love of neighbour. It points to the historical challenges and new promises of such dialogues and outlines a process for continuing dialogue among Muslim and Christian leaders. It is “a pressing necessity that while Christians and Muslims must find ways of enhancing what they hold in common, they must also find ways of acknowledging and respecting the differences between them,” the document states.

“This document signals the initiating of a process,” said Rima Barsoum, WCC program executive for Christian-Muslim Dialogue, “it calls for a joint planning group that will carefully prepare and jointly invite Muslim and Christian leaders and scholars for continuing dialogue events that will encourage interreligious cooperation at the global and local levels.

This process of response was affirmed by the Central Committee of the WCC at its meeting in February 2008, in Geneva.

• Download the document “Learning to explore love together” (pdf, 46 KB)

• “A Common Word”, a Muslim letter to Christian leaders

• More information on the WCC Programme on Interreligious Dialogue and Cooperation
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[Rome] Pope Benedict XVI’s baptism of an Egyptian-born Muslim Italian journalist, known for being a strident critic of restrictions of religious freedom in Islamic countries, has been questioned by Muslim leaders in Italy.

Magdi Allam, a columnist and deputy editor of the Milan-based Corriere della Sera newspaper, was one of seven people from five countries baptised by the pontiff at the Easter Vigil Mass in Saint Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican on 22 March.
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[Toronto] A Canadian church magazine has become the first North American sponsor of a travelling exhibit of the life and work of natural scientist Charles Darwin, whose theory of the evolution of species has long been a source of conflict between scientists and Christians who take the Biblical account of creation literally.

The exhibit, which opened at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto on 8 March, had failed to find support from the museum’s usual sponsors. Museum officials said none disagreed with Darwin’s theories but cited concerns about a potential backlash from Christians opposed to the idea of evolution.
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Prendre un Congé Sabbatique de Carbone

Notre dépendance à l`égard de pétrole tue des personnes et la planète… parfois à petit feu par la dégradation progressive de l’air que nous respirons et des écosystèmes dont nous dépendons toutes et tous, et parfois rapidement à la suite des nombreuses violations des droits humains et des conflits liés au contrôle et à l’usage de l’énergie fossile. Y-a-t-il des alternatives?

Oui! KAIROS – initiatives œcuméniques canadiennes pour la justice pense qu’il est temps que nous réexaminions, à titre individuel et comme societé, notre dépendance à l’égard des combustibles fossiles. Joignez-vous à notre campagne d’action Repenser l’énergie : Il Est Temps de Prendre un Congé Sabbatique de Carbone et servez-vous de notre site Internet pour découvrir comment il vous est possible de changer vous-même, de changer votre milieu et d’aider à changer le monde en repensant tous et toutes ensemble de l’énergie!
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March 29 is a Carbon Sabbath

KAIROS wants you to turn off your lights for an hour at 8 pm on Saturday, March 29!

Why? Because our use of fossil fuels -symbolized here by a light bulb- is contributing to global climate change. In 2007, the people of Sydney, Australia, decided that they could send a powerful message for change by turning off all their lights at the same time. More than 2 million citizens and businesses did so. Now, the World Wildlife Fund is taking Sydney’s history-making moment global by encouraging people, businesses, and communities all over the world to turn off their lights and demand action on climate change.

KAIROS asks you, your church, and your community to join in this global effort as part of your commitment to the Re-Energize: Time For A Carbon Sabbath campaign. Use this time to reflect on your use of fossil fuels and their connections not just to climate change but to human rights and conflict as well. Build community around these issues. Advocate with local and federal governments to change their policies and practices related to fossil fuels.
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10 a.m. Good Friday, March 21

This prayerful walk through the streets of Saskatoon features a reflection on the Way of the Cross focusing on justice and peace issues in the world today. For information, contact Tony Haynes at the Roman Catholic diocesan Justice and Peace office, 306-242-1500 or toll-free 1-877-661-5005.
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New Anglican coordinator for ethics & inter-faith relations

[Anglican Journal] Rev. Isaac Kawuki-Mukasa, who serves as a consultant in congregational development for the diocese of Toronto, has been named co-ordinator for dialogue: ethics, congregational development and inter-faith relations, for the Anglican Church of Canada’s faith, worship and ministry department.

One of Mr. Kawuki-Mukasa’s responsibilities will be to staff conversations about the issue of sexuality as mandated in 2007 by General Synod, the national governing body of the Anglican Church of Canada. He will also staff the human life task force, which looks at issues of ethics, and will represent the Canadian Anglican church at inter-faith dialogues and “foster the network of practitioners of congregational development,” according to the announcement.

Ordained a priest in the Church of Uganda in 1985, Mr. Kawuki-Mukasa has been exercising his ministry in Canada since 1992. He has served in the ecumenical shared ministry parishes of Lynn Lake and Snow Lake, Man., diocese of Brandon. He was also a member of the faculty of the Centre for Christian Studies and a consultant for ethnic ministries for the United Church of Canada.

Mr. Kawuki-Mukasa completed a PhD in theology and interdisciplinary studies from the Toronto School of Theology in 2005. He has a masters degree from the University of Zimbabwe, a master of divinity from the Nairobi School of Theology, and a bachelor of arts in political science from Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda.

Recently, he has been helping the diocese of Toronto develop relations with Anglican dioceses in Africa, said Canon Alyson Barnett-Cowan in a notice announcing Mr. Kawuki-Mukasa’s appointment. “He has written extensively and participated in many events discussing issues in the Anglican Communion today. He will bring an important perspective into the work of the General Synod at this time,” she added.

Mr. Mukasa will assume his new portfolio on June 1. He succeeds Linda Nicholls, who was elected a suffragan bishop of Toronto last November.
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It all began in the middle of the night, sometime in December. The previous day I had email to say that very senior aboriginal and church leaders were going to cross the country together to promote the work of the Indian Residential Schools Truth and Reconciliation Commission. This was exciting. The TRC struck me as a courageous way to help heal this wound in our national soul.

My heart sank, however, when I read the proposed itinerary. No mention of Saskatchewan. “How typical”, I thought, the chip on my prairie-girl shoulder well in place. I thought: it doesn’t matter to those people ‘down east’ that Saskatchewan has a very large native population, that many residential schools were located here. With a fatalistic sigh, I went to bed.

And woke up in the middle of the night. There was no question: I had to write to the organizers and urge them to come to Saskatchewan. A few minutes on the internet brought up the email address. I wrote at once, urging our case and offering the Prairie Centre for Ecumenism as the local partner.

How could I make such a commitment in the middle of the night, with no hesitation and no consultation? It was simple: the amazing PCE network. 24 years of building inter-church partnerships paid off. The PCE’s Restorative Justice Committee usually just do one workshop in November, but 2007 was different. Our focus was the continuing racial divide in our region. The question we asked was how can we, as native and non-native people, walk together to heal our communities? It was clear that this would not be a one-off event, but a process. We began to seek aboriginal partners and found them. There was a growing sense that God was taking us somewhere, well out of our comfort zones. The stage was set.

On January 11 we got word that the national tour, impressed by the strength of our invitation, was coming to Saskatoon on March 9. Hastily the Restorative Justice committee assembled, and others were invited on board — including Ethel Ahenakew of the Saskatoon Native Ministry, Alan Jacques, who ministers on the Dakota Whitecap First Nation, Mary Ann Assailly, of the Anglican diocesan outreach network.

We were excited. Someone asked how many people will come. I said I wasn’t sure, but we should prepare for up to 400. There was incredulous laughter. (We are used to disappointment.) But we persuaded ourselves to think big, and got to work — especially Carol Zubiak our chair, and Carol Penner, our office manager. We were delighted when FaithLife Financial stepped up to the plate and gave us $1,000 to help.

Four churches ran residential schools on behalf of the federal government — Anglican, Presbyterian, Roman Catholic and United. Their local church leaders were enthusiastic about the March 9 visit, and promoted the event among their people. Chief Lawrence Joseph, head of the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations, flew to Ottawa to check out the national launch of the tour. That convinced him that the churches were sincere. He agreed to speak in Saskatoon, and promoted the event with Saskatchewan native leaders.

Invitations went out far and wide — oh the wonders of email. The press releases went out. We held our breath.

Then the phone began to ring. The computer went crazy. Media said they were coming. By the week of the tour, we were arranging overflow seating and urging the Western Development Museum to squeeze in more seats and stand by with extra food.

On the day we counted 471 going past the registration desk. People were streaming in, white and native, old and young. There was a line-up of those wanting to smudge. The perfume of sweetgrass filled the air. People sat at round and long, tables, filling the hall. Expectant and a little nervous.

On stage the national tour’s display featured a young native boy’s face, with a very institutional haircut. His face appeared on the podium as well. When Ted Quewezance, residential school survivor and head of the survivor’s society, stood at the podium and told his story. I felt I was time travelling, for Ted — a man in his fifties or sixties — bore an uncanny resemblance to that little boy.

Each church leader spoke well, with words of clear apology for a very serious wrong. Chief Joseph had called it a ‘holocaust’. The uncomfortable truth, new to me, was that many children never came home from those residential schools. Many died or disappeared. We must remember. There is so much that most non-native people don’t know.

The program ran long, but the audience stayed with it. There were tissues placed on each table. They were needed. Many were touched — the audience, the museum serving staff, the media people, the local sound technician. A young Métis prison worked shared her sense of delight about the event. A school survivor in her sixties told me about the great sense of lightness and peace that had come upon her as the afternoon unfolded.

We finished with a meal and a round dance. When I went to the microphone and asked “Who’s ready for some singing and dancing?” there were whoops and shouts and applause. As ‘Young Thunder’ drummed and sang, a circle of people formed, holding hands, dancing around the edge of the hall. Native and white together, moving to the drum, a ring reaching not just once around the hall, but in places two lines thick. A moment of declaration. A moment of hope.

People asked me, “Are you coming back next year?” The question was about whether the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, when it shapes its itinerary for the major city events, will remember to come to Saskatchewan. We need them to come.

At the PCE, we’ll be standing by for the phone call.

—

• For background on the Truth & Reconciliation Commission go to www.residentialschoolssettlement.ca
• The tour website is www.rememberingthechildren.ca
• A Most Holy Day – The Most Rev. Fred Hiltz, Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, reflects on the Saskatoon stop of the tour.
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CECC : une lettre pastorale sur l’environnement

(CECC – Ottawa) – Dans le cadre de l’Année de la planète terre, telle que proclamée par les Nations Unies, la Conférence des évêques catholiques du Canada (CECC) vient de publier une lettre pastorale dans laquelle elle en appelle à la conscience collective face aux graves problèmes environnementaux qui frappent la planète.

Produite par la Commission épiscopale des affaires sociales, la lettre pastorale a comme titre : « Notre rapport à l’environnement : le besoin d’une conversion ».

Les auteurs de la lettre ne manquent de souligner qu’en dépit des importants engagements pris lors des rencontres de Rio, Kyoto, Johannesburg et Bali, le Canada représente un « cas extrême » de non-respect de ses engagements.

« Après avoir signé le protocole de Kyoto [en 1997], dans lequel nous nous engagions à diminuer nos émissions de gaz à effet de serre à 6 pour cent de moins que celles de 1990, nous les avons plutôt augmentées d’environ 25 pour cent », peut-on lire dans la lettre.

Les évêques notent que la société canadienne n’est pas suffisamment consciente de l’héritage appauvri qu’elle léguera aux générations à venir. Ils souhaitent donc que des ajustements soient apportés dès maintenant afin d’améliorer la situation actuelle, pour le mieux-être des prochaines générations et des populations de l’hémisphère sud.

En vue de rétablir les liens avec la nature, la lettre pastorale identifie un certain nombre d’actions qui pourraient être entreprises afin d’atténuer les effets de cette crise écologique, y compris :

• retrouver le sens de la limite et ajuster notre mode de vie aux ressources planétaires disponibles;
• se libérer de l’obsession de posséder et de consommer et opter plutôt pour « une austérité joyeuse » ou une simplicité volontaire; et
• consentir des efforts personnels en faveur de l’environnement.

Au dire des évêques, il incombe à chaque personne de rétablir les liens qui ont été détériorés avec la nature, de revoir sa conception de la possession et du confort personnels. C’est donc à une solidarité accrue et à de nouvelles formes de partage que sont invités tous les citoyens du Canada.

Déjà, en octobre 2003, la CECC avait publié une première lettre sur l’environnement intitulée : « L’impératif écologique chrétien ». Ce texte, de même que celui qui vient d’être publié, est disponible sur le site Web de la CECC. Des copies imprimées peuvent également être obtenues en s’adressant à mchabot [at] cecc [dot] ca.
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Canadian Catholic Bishops pastoral letter on environment

(CCCB – Ottawa) – As part of the United Nations’ International Year of Planet Earth, the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) has published a pastoral letter which calls for a collective consciousness to face critical environmental problems affecting the earth.

Produced by the Episcopal Commission for Social Affairs, the pastoral letter is titled “Our Relationship with the Environment: The Need for Conversion.”

The Commission asserts that despite important commitments at summits held in Rio, Kyoto, Johannesburg and Bali, Canada represents “an extreme case” of non-compliance.

“After signing the Kyoto Protocol [in 1997], in which we agreed to decrease our greenhouse gases to six per cent less than those of 1990, we have instead increased them by approximately 25 per cent,” the letter explains.

The Bishops state that Canadians are not sufficiently conscious of the impoverished inheritance they are leaving for the generations to come. As a result, the Commission for Social Affairs calls for immediate adjustments to improve the current situation, particularly for the well-being of future generations and the Global South.

In order to restore humanity’s bonds with nature and lessen the effects of ecological breakdown, the pastoral letter proposes several ways Canadians can change, including:

• Regaining a sense of limit and adjusting our way of life to the planet’s available resources
• Freeing ourselves of an “obsession to possess and consume” and instead choosing “joyful austerity” or voluntary simplicity
• Making personal efforts in favour of the environment

The Bishops insist that responsibility for restoring a healthy relationship with nature falls on each individual, who must re-examine his or her perceptions about possessions and personal comfort. This will demand greater solidarity and new forms of sharing among all Canadians, they said.

In October 2003, the CCCB Social Affairs Commission published an earlier letter on the environment entitled “The Christian Ecological Imperative.” This text, as well as the recent pastoral letter which has just been published, is available on the CCCB website www.cccb.ca/. Printed copies may be ordered from mchabot [at] cecc [dot] ca.
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