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The weekend centred on the Investiture ceremonies, which consisted of two parts.

The first part, the Investiture Vigil was held on Saturday at St. John’s Lutheran Church, while the second part, the Investiture service proper, was held on Sunday morning at St. John the Evangelist Anglican Church as a part of the regular Sunday mass, with Pastor Eric Dyck (Chaplain-General of the Order of St. Lazarus in Canada) preaching and Fr. Marc-Philippe Vincent (Associate Priest at St. John the Evangelist and Commander of the Montreal Commandery of the Order of St. Lazarus) presiding.

These two events are normally held at churches of different denominations to emphasize the Order’s ecumenical nature and mission. During the Investiture the Rev. Joel Amis was received into the Order at the rank of Assistant Chaplain, and the Very Rev. Bertrand Olivier and the Rev. Marc-Philippe Vincent were among those members receiving promotions and commendations.

The weekend also included a visit to Maison St-Raphaël, a palliative care home and day centre in Outremont, supported by the Montreal Commandery. Support for palliative care is a core charitable mission of the Order of St. Lazarus in Canada.

The Order of St. Lazarus is an ecumenical Christian charitable and chivalric order of men and women, tracing its lineage back to the times of the crusader knights. The original mission of the Order was care for those suffering from leprosy (a highly stigmatized disease in the ancient world), but in modern times the mission of the Order has been expanded to include care for the poor, the marginalized, the sick, and the dying, promotion of Christian unity and ecumenical cooperation, and the preservation and promotion of the ideals of Christian chivalry.

As a Christian Order of Chivalry, membership in the Order of St. Lazarus is open to men and women who: identify as Christian and strive to follow Christ’s teachings, are of good character and standing in their community, and wish to help others. www.saintlazarus.ca

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God of truth and sorrow, we confess that we are not always as engaged as we could be with Indigenous issues. We pray that saying the land acknowledgement each Sunday will move us beyond words to action. Help us to affirm Indigenous people as equal brothers and sisters in Christ with inherent rights who are due respect, freedom and peace. Help us to listen to their stories of marginalization and inter-generational abuse with compassion and love, and move us to join with them in creating safe spaces for the healing Spirit to walk in. Help us to make every effort to investigate the mystery of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls and to become advocates in this search for justice. Help us to take seriously the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and to understand how it is being applied to Canadian law.

God of hope and possibilities, we thank you for instilling in His Majesty King Charles III a genuine interest in Indigenous practices and a sincere willingness to listen and learn. May his long-term commitment to the Indigenous People of Canada be an inspiration to others. We pray that this relationship continues to grow and to yield impactful change. From monarch to commoners, we are all called to serve one another and it is through this sacred act that the Kingdom of God will be lived out here on earth.

Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer. Amen.

Valerie Bennett and Stacey Neale

The post The Anglican Fellowship of Prayer – Canada appeared first on Montreal Anglican.

Linus returned to his family on April 30th, 2023. He will be back at Dio in August to complete his Bachelor of Theology and is on track to graduate in May 2024.

At the completion of his degree, he will return to his position as the Principal of St. Cyprian’s Theological College in Masasi. Fr. Linus’ education will strengthen the academic standards of teaching at St. Cyprian’s Theological College, which is on the same grounds as Rondo Junior Seminary, in Mtama-Lindi, Tanzania.

Bishop Mary and Mark hosted a supper to recognize Linus’ hard work and safe travels on April 28th.

Bringing Father Linus to Montreal is a major commitment of the Partnership Committee. The generosity of funds raised through last year’s Bishop’s Action Appeal, bursaries from Montreal Diocesan Theological College and the UK’s St. Augustine’s Foundation have made this project possible.

If you would like to help fund Father Linus’ education, visit the Diocesan website at www.montreal.anglican.ca and click on the “Donate Now” button. In the drop-down menu under “Fund” select “The Rev. Linus Buriani education”. If you would like Father Linus to visit your parish in the fall or next year, email The Ven. Michael Robson at mjrmtl@gmail.com to set a date.

The post Fr Linus Buriani Completes his First Year at Dio appeared first on Montreal Anglican.

The Rev. Linda Faith, former incumbent of St Paul’s, GFP, received a  RHSSPT STAR Program Award for outstanding contribution to the wellbeing of the Monteregie English-speaking community.

Linda Faith was nominated by Rev. Andy O’Donnell who had many wonderful things to say:

‘Linda Faith’s work has had a lasting effect on the wider community across several age and socio-economic groups. Although she had much help, her leadership was instrumental.“

Here is a small sample of improvements for the community:

Youth were cared for by a community children’s breakfast program at 3 preschools in the area.

Linda organized activity days and movie nights for youth.

During the Christmas season, the angel tree program purchased gifts for children whose households struggled financially.

Families are also helped through involvement in the Christmas basket program for the wider community.

Seniors in the community received their Christmas meals and baskets, along with a wide range of community events.

The food baskets program and other supplies went to both men’s and women’s homeless shelters

St. Paul’s, under Linda Faith’s leadership, organized a collection drop-off and distribution centres for the 46 families made homeless after the October 2020 fire at an apartment building on Victoria Ave.

Linda Faith fostered working relationships with local schools, the Black Watch, the legion, local homeless shelters, and a food security program during the pandemic through ARC.

These examples are only a small fraction of the work she has done to improve the health and well-being of monteregie’s English-speaking community.

Thank you Rev. Faith for your leadership, commitment and for never backing down from a challenge. Your light shines bright in the community and we can’t thank you enough!

The post Rev Linda Faith Chalk Wins Award for Outstanding Community Service appeared first on Montreal Anglican.

It could be Bishop Mary, the Vicar General and Archdeacons who help lead all of us. As Anglicans, we are an episcopal Church, and that leadership is important. Perhaps the Diocese is the bishop working with the Diocesan Council and our annual Synod. We are, as the saying goes, episcsopally led and synodically governed, and those meetings when we all gather are necessary and significant expressions of our diocesan life.

Or maybe the Diocese is the Bishop and the staff who work at 1444 Union. Ours is a diverse and energetic staff all of whom care deeply about our diocesan family and can offer helpful, practical services to everyone. On the creative side we have gifts to share to help bring new energy and ideas and make them happen.

All of this is good, but I think there is something missing when thinking about the Diocese. Because the question suggests an “us” and a “them”, an institution that is remote from the reality on the ground. But maybe, the Diocese is the Bishop, the Synod, the staff, the leadership and all the parishes together. Maybe the Diocese of Montreal is all of us, the People of God, working together.

Some of the greatest encouragements I have seen around the Diocese this year all come from places where we have worked together and shared our time, energy and resources. A couple of examples.

This year at our annual clergy retreat, members of our Diocesan Spiritual Directors group led us in prayer and meditation. We have a wonderful group of spiritual directors who meet regularly and are willing and very able to work with you, individually in your own spiritual journey, or at your church. They can put on retreats and lead quiet days. At our retreat they brought many gifts which blessed us in new ways as a clergy group. They can do the same for you – so ask!

Last year I worked with the stewardship team at St George’s Place du Canada on a campaign that focussed on increasing participation in automated giving. We also used the Environics maps the Diocese commissioned to focus more upon who lives all around the Church and how the congregation might connect with them. The good news is that they significantly increased the number of people on automated giving which is making a difference. They also are finding new interest from the younger adults who live in condos all around them. With the arrival of the very energetic Rev Helen Liddell as their new priest and St Michael’s mission moving into the annex, St George’s is well positioned to move towards flourishing. So, we are planning a new stewardship campaign with many good news stories to tell. We share our time and resources and, together, are making a difference.

This year you will be hearing a great deal about the Bible Story Walk (see p.1), pioneered by Lee Ann Matthews. The basic concept is to create an installation for outside Church buildings that might appeal to people walking by and invite them into the ongoing story of faith. Using the creation story as told by Godly Play, Lee Ann has created a series of beautiful panels that combine art and wondering questions. We are interested in moving this installation around different locations in the Diocese – let us know if you are interested. We launched in May at St Paul’s Greenfield Park. There the priest Trevor Potter, together with the congregation, have embraced this project enthusiastically and we are very interested to see what will happen there.

These are a few of the ways all of us, working together, can make a difference in the lives of our parishes, and so in the life of the Diocese of Montreal. Because the Diocese is all of us and when we work synergistically we can have an impact. But it takes all of us: we all have gifts to share and, together, we can make a difference.

The post The Diocese: A Community Working Together appeared first on Montreal Anglican.

Who participates?: EfM is designed for lay people of all ages. At baptism we are all called to ministry. Although it is a four year program, don’t let the four years be overwhelming, as we only ask for a one year commitment at a time.

This year, Yvonne Bayne, Catherine Brown, Wendy Crooks, Hugh Mitchell, Susan Sioui and Mary-Ann Wood are graduating from the Dio/Lachute group which met online this year. Tom Edmonds and Linda Spear are graduating from the Sutton group at Grace Church. Congratulations!

Hugh Mitchell, a recent graduate, shared this about his experience; “I have benefited greatly from the four years of EfM. Firstly, there is the pure knowledge. I know a lot more than I did four years ago about the Old Testament, the New Testament, the history of Christianity and of current religious and theological thinking.

Secondly, my own theological and religious thinking has evolved, particularly in the last year. In previous years, my understanding of the Bible and Christianity evolved, but not so much my faith. In this last year, my thinking about my own faith was significantly impacted.

Thirdly, my ability to preach as a Lay Reader was improved by my increased knowledge and by the better understanding of faith in general and my own faith in particular.

Lastly the social interaction with the other members of the EfM group was both enjoyable and supportive. The group bonded (as one would expect over four years) and evolved positively as new members came in at the beginning of the fourth year. Well worth the effort.”

EfM DETAILS

Costs:

Annual fee of $350 plus $100-$150 on textbooks with opportunities to purchase them second-hand.

Registration and Open Houses:

Registration in late spring and summer to begin in September. We will offer a hybrid EfM group, meeting in person at Montreal Dio on the McGill campus and online. Open Houses are listed below. If a group at your parish wishes to have an individual presentation please be in touch.

Zoom Open Houses (contact Nancy for the link):

Wed May 24, 8-9pm

Monday June 12, 8-9pm

Tuesday August 29, 8-9pm

For more information:

Nancy Greene-Gregoire 514-862-5367 or ngreene@acm.org.

The post EfM; Integrating faith and life and asking questions appeared first on Montreal Anglican.

We have had a couple book groups meeting by Zoom; one group reading Our Home and Treaty Land, by Matt Anderson and Ray Aldred, the other reading Am I Just My Brain?, by Christian neuroscientist Sharon Dirckx. Dr Dirckx joined us from her home in Oxford, England, for the final session.

Liturgically, we have recently made some changes to reflect the multilingual nature of our congregation and of our location in St Laurent. Our opening greeting on Sunday mornings is now in French, English, and Arabic.

The other change we have implemented is that, every Sunday, the Psalm is now led in one of the mother-tongues of our congregation members (on a rotating basis, ranging from Mandarin to Malagasy).

The way this works is the text of the Psalm appears in English (on the front video screens, since we project our liturgy using PowerPoint), but the Psalm leader reads the initial, then alternate, verses of the Psalm in their mother-tongue. Everyone understands what is being said because they read the English on the screen; then, when the reader stops, everyone responds together with the next verse; and so on, alternating between mother-tongue and English, for the duration of the Psalm. It sounds awkward, but it actually works well and people find it quite a moving representation of God’s inclusiveness of all nations (ethne in Greek) in worship.

Following the ice storm, CMP had electricity for Easter Sunday, but not for Maundy Thursday or Good Friday, so these services were cancelled and replaced with a Good Friday service by Zoom. Easter Sunday was a wonderful joy-filled service.

After Easter, for the second year in a row, we are offering a series of evening Zoom meetings called “Monday Discussions.” These are on a variety of topics – most – though not all, led by members of CMP.

Topics include Understanding Homelessness, My work with Afghan Refugees in Albania, Mennonite Peacemaking Theology, What it Means to be Cree, and Meeting with Residential School Survivors, among others.

The last two topics are part of a process in which CMP and St Barnabas Anglican Church of Waswanapi Cree Nation, QC, are exploring the possibility of a relationship together. (Waswanapi is about a nine-hour drive north of Montreal). Diocesan College has also had connections with this community in the past.

Other recent events included a group of CMP members building vegetable-garden boxes on our property and a bowling fundraiser for the CMP youth group. Remarkably, over 50 parishioners came out for the bowling–we had no idea the event would generate so much support from the congregation!

The last Sunday of April, CMP joined with other churches in St Laurent for a spaghetti lunch at St Sixte Roman Catholic Church—it was a fun opportunity for local church communities to get know each other, in both English and French.

The post The Church of St Mark & St Peter Tries Something New appeared first on Montreal Anglican.

It was quickly obvious that huge numbers of Ukrainians would be displaced and would be seeking refuge away from war. At All Saints, declining numbers and a retiring minister meant the rectory would be empty by August. In March, it was unanimously agreed that the big old house with its five bedrooms should be offered to needy refugees. The word was put out to our Federal MP and to the community at large.

Nothing happened initially and the path ahead was unclear.

Then, a Ukrainian Canadian couple who had chosen to have their two children baptized at All Saints suggested a connection with a private charity which was sympathetic to the project. Then in mid-summer, the community grapevine brought forth a Ukrainian Canadian, Anton, from a nearby town who asked if he could see the rectory because he had contact with an extended family seeking to escape the war. He sent photos to the family who had hoped to find a quiet, green destination that could accommodate all nine of them, two grandparents, five related adults and two teenagers. It was an instant fit.

This family had sought refuge beneath the Mariupol Steel Works amidst the merciless Russian bombardment. It was from there that an evacuation team extracted them under cover of darkness on a perilous escape across an active war zone to Poland where Anton had managed to secure a small apartment. Charities stepped forth with airfare, and, with help from our MP, paperwork was eventually completed for their immigration to Canada.

Meanwhile, back in Dunham, the rectory was vacated in mid-August and a small army of volunteers collected and delivered all the donated furnishings needed for the big house. Brooms and paintbrushes were busy.

The first three family members arrived to help organize the house in late August and the remainder made their way to Dunham by mid-September. All of the family members were profoundly relieved and grateful though quietly traumatized by their ordeals. None spoke much English or French but they were eager to learn so they could become self-sufficient as quickly as possible.

Four months later, the father – who is a master electrician and mechanic – was employed full time in a local sawmill. Three of the women are working at a local ski resort. The granddaughter, who was studying medicine in Ukraine, has found part time work in a retirement home and the two teenagers are enrolled in high school. Adult Education has set up language courses in the church hall. The grandfather spends his time searching for things to fix at the rectory and he is very skilled. Plans are afoot for a vegetable garden in the spring. Two cars have been donated so the family can travel to work and back.

The aging congregation of All Saints can no longer muster the energy to continue its long and popular tradition of homemade community dinners, but the local folk turned out to put on a ‘full house’ welcome dinner at the church for our new Ukrainian friends.

Even in their darkest hour, with the loss of their minister and a dwindling flock, this congregation was able to turn a new page and live a real Christian experience.

The post A Small Congregation Takes a Big Leap appeared first on Montreal Anglican.

Since 2017, I have been a member of what is now known as St. Martha’s Chapel, one of the largest young adult ministries in Canada that is affiliated with the Anglican Church, and one of the fastest growing ministries in the diocese of Montreal.

St. Martha’s is an ecumenical chaplaincy for university students and young professionals that is affiliated with the Anglican and United Churches, and the Disciples of Christ.

Before the pandemic, we regularly had up to 70 people at our evening worship service hosted bi-weekly at Christ Church Cathedral. We now have around 30 as we rebuild, with new people attending each month.

St. Martha’s also has a weekly Bible study, annual retreats, and provides free pastoral care to young people regardless of their faith or participation in our group. St. Martha’s as it now exists represents a confluence of previous ministries from decades ago, including St. Martha’s of the Basement at Montreal Dio, and the McGill Ecumenical Chaplaincy, as well as century-old student ministries at both Christ Church Cathedral and St. James United.

The current form, under the name St. Martha’s Chapel, began in 2020, is deliberately bilingual and open to all young adults regardless of university affiliation. The Rev. Jean-Daniel O’Donncada has been chaplain since 2014, and before him The Rev. Gwenda Wells was chaplain for over twenty years.

While those of us in our 20s and early 30s are coming of age in an era of declining religious affiliation and increasing cynicism toward institutionalized power, we are still drawn to community and the truth of God’s forgiveness and eternal love. The heart of the Christian faith is alive and well in many young people, but there is a desire to re-imagine how that faith gets expressed. St. Martha’s is a malleable space that allows us to explore how we might bring about the kind of transformation that will keep the Gospel message alive as the institution of the church as we know it continues to decline. There is an openness to the structure of St. Martha’s that makes it an easy access point for young people who are curious about the Christian faith.

As a community, we prioritize education, often explaining why we engage in certain rituals during our services and drawing on our collective knowledge for rich debate and conversation during Bible study. Every week I am met with new perspectives that expose God’s presence in unexpected places.

As a ministry that caters largely to university students, many of whom are not from Montreal and will go on to other places once they graduate, one of St. Martha’s key strengths is building discipleship for the wider church. The fruits of discipleship begin in Montreal. Many members are actively involved in other parishes, often leading children’s ministry, music, volunteering to help at coffee hour or to serve at the altar. Some even go on to seminary, discerning a call to ministry during there time at St. Martha’s.

I have also witnessed how this ministry builds discipleship through affirming LGBTQ+ people and celebrating their identities. Young people, spiritually and emotionally damaged by their treatment in previous Christian communities give St. Martha’s a chance and find that there is a place for them in God’s Church. If this is the experience people are having of Church and of God’s presence in their lives while they are in Montreal for a time, no doubt, they will go out into the world prepared to spread that light to others and plant the seeds of God’s kingdom.

There will always be people looking for spaces and communities that ask the big questions. When young people are reaching into the unknowable, toward God, and they stumble across St. Martha’s, they have found a community that embodies God’s purest love. It is a place that gives people the tools to grow, to think outside the box, and to spread God’s love deeper and wider than we can ask or imagine.

St. Martha’s is currently in a time of transition as we continue to build back our ministry post-pandemic. In addition, The Rev. Jean-Daniel is beginning a new full-time ministry position so, we are preparing to search for a new director.

We ask for your prayers and financial contributions as you are able. You can donate at the following link by selecting “St. Martha’s Chapel” in the dropdown: https://www.canadahelps.org/en/charities/the-anglican-diocese-of-montreal/

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