We hope that you can join us for our 100th Anniversary celebration worship service at 3 pm on Sunday. This is a joint service with St. John’s United Church and Hope United Church, and choirs and ministry personnel from all three churches will be taking part in the service.
On June 10, 1925, The United Church of Canada held its inaugural worship service at Mutual Street Arena in Toronto. The UCC is the largest Protestant denomination in Canada. We minister to over a million people in about 2,500 congregations. The history of the United Church is closely entwined with the history of Canada itself. There is a fascinating historical timeline on the website at:
Historical Timeline | The United Church of Canada
This is also from the website: “The United Church was inaugurated on June 10, 1925 in Toronto, Ontario, when the Methodist Church, Canada, the Congregational Union of Canada, and 70 percent of The Presbyterian Church in Canada entered into a union. Also joining was the small General Council of Union Churches, centred largely in Western Canada. It was the first union of churches in the world to cross historical denominational lines and received international acclaim. Each of the founding churches had a long history in Canada prior to 1925. The movement for church union began with the desire to coordinate ministry in the vast Canadian northwest and for collaboration in overseas missions. Congregations in Indigenous communities from each of the original denominations were an important factor in the effort toward church union.”
Today, more than 20 of those Indigenous communities have been evacuated due to wildfires. Our Moderator, Right Reverend Dr. Carmen Landsdowne has written a pastoral letter to those communities affected. You can read this letter at:
We Pray for Families Displaced by Fire or Threat of Fire | The United Church of Canada
In her letter Carmen refers to our line in the UCC New Creed, which states that we are called to “live with respect in creation”, an addition to the New Creed in recent years, which comes from indigenous teachings. She says that this line is also an acknowledgement that these wildfires are a result of a lack of respect for creation.
Being part of the United Church of Canada means that we care for each other from coast to coast to coast. Our offerings received at the celebration service on Sunday will go to the United Church’s Mission and Service Fund. If you want to know how that fund is spent, there are tons of stories on the UCC website and videos on our Youtube channel. In particular this week, here are two stories of how the M&S fund supports Indigenous communities.
Here’s a story about a sacred space where Indigenous children, youth, and families reconnect with culture, language, and one another:
Gathering to Remember, Reconnect, and Renew | The United Church of Canada
And … read about a theatre group who tell the true story of 6 boys who stood up against the systemic mistreatment and abuse they endured at an Edmonton Indian Residential School in St. Albert, Alberta.
A Story of Cultural Resilience | The United Church of Canada
Next Sunday, June 15, we will commemorate Indigenous Day of Prayer and in our worship service we will focus on the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s calls to the church and see how we might be doing.
This week, we are called to hold these northern communities, regions, and the congregations within them in prayer.
Credit: ©libertygal / iStock
