Archive for June, 2011

I've often heard this said as proof of our multiculturalism. It's usually easy to connect the idea of diversity with the existence of difference without looking deeper at...

We are a diverse group, a welcoming family that actively tries to live the teachings of Jesus every day in the ways we care for one another, for...

Radio Proudly proclaiming "The truth will set ye free," Pirate Christian Radio is an online radio station that sees itself as a beacon of truth. According to the...

1. "The pulpit," Barth said, "is the real arena of the Kingdom of God". In the busyness of your parish ministry and the many demands that are made...

We are probably all familiar with the definition of "parable" that I was taught in Sunday school: "an earthly story with a heavenly meaning." That definition certainly fits...

Tricia Dykers Koening and Michelle Ready, observers at the PC(USA)’s 2010 General Assembly, smile as the church votes to relax a ban on the ordination of homosexuals. The majority...

Ayeeeeeee! Haaaayahooooo! Blamn, blam, blamidy blamn blamn! Three blonds crested the hill, two running flat out as fast as their short legs could carry them; the third, game...

New Models of Mission The way the church has done mission with indigenous peoples in the past has to change, said Mary Fontaine, a Canadian Presbyterian minister and...

There are a few words that come to mind when I think about how I feel as a new graduate entering into ministry. I assume many would like...

Re Prayer and Great Things!, February As I read this article I was troubled by the implicit argument that if we pray more, and more faithfully, God will do...

Calvin, North Bay, Ont., hosted Rev. Dr. Richard Topping in March for an excellent and well-attended workshop, Holy Scripture: Artifact, Literature and Living Voice. Seen here, Topping with...

Albion Gardens, Etobicoke, Toronto, provides a monthly Toonie Lunch—attendance ranges from 70-85 people who each pay $2, making the mission self-sustaining. These ladies are the missionaries who prepare...

Thank you for the Progressive Lectionary by Laurence DeWolfe. I always enjoy reading these thoughtful articles for his no nonsense, concrete way of making complex theological ideas accessible....

We published an article in the April issue which involved a daughter accusing her father of incest. The offence occurred before he was a minister. She has not...

Rev. Helen Smith welcomed a baker’s dozen of new members last December to Centennial, Calgary. And, of course, in true Presbyterian tradition, there was cake: God Bless our...

Ministry is a churchy word used regularly but imprecisely. More often than not, Presbyterians use it to describe what clergy do. If done well, such ministry is considered...

Petawawa, Ont., has an annual Cabin Fever Carnival in late February, and this year the Presbyterian church in town was the winning closing act by providing an old-fashioned...

The Old Testament has a lot to say to these questions. When we read these ancient scriptures we find a variety of stories, poems, prophecies and proverbs that...

Re College Convocations, April In announcing the May convocations at the church's three colleges, we misspoke regarding one. St. Andrew's Hall does not have convocation. The Vancouver School of...