Minutes for
Mission 2012
Legend
These symbols indicate Minutes that are
● a global story
± a Canadian story
# for multiple readers
½ for a young reader
é available in French (online
only)/disponible en français (en ligne seulement) Visit www.united‑church.ca and
search for “minutes for mission.” Visitez le site www.united-church.ca et
recherchez “minutes for mission.”
> matched with a companion video View at www.youtube.com/unitedchurchofcanada, or download from www.united-church.ca
and search for “minutes for mission.”
Contents
January 8—Children’s Rights ●, é
January 15—Come to the Table ±, >
January 22—Hope for HIV/AIDS Patients ●,
>
February 5—The Journeys of Black Peoples ±, é,
>
February 12—M&S Goes to University ±
February 19—Silent Worship ±, >
February 26—Thankful Living, Joyful Giving ±, #
March 11—A Friend in Anxious Moments ±
March 18—Caring for Children in the Philippines
●
March 25—Just Solutions ±, #, é
April 22—Investing in Farming ●, >
May 13—Caring for Mothers ●, é
May 27—Walking the Path Together ●, ±
June 3—Into the Wilderness ±, é
June 17—Getting to Know One Another ±
June 24—All God’s Children ±, >
July 1—Learning about Neighbours ±, é
July 8—Ecumenical Church Loan Fund ●, >
July 29—With Schools, You Build Communities
●, é, >
August 19—Global Personnel ●, ±, >
August 26—From Nowhere to Nowhere ●
September 2—A Church with a Boat ●, >
September 16—Together in Life and Ministry ±, é
September 30—Speaking Out Together ±
October 14—Food for the Month ±
October 21—Mission and Service Angels ±, é
October 28—Los Quinchos ●, ½, >
November 11—Speaking with One Voice ●
November 18—Supporting Children and Families ±, é
November 25—Water for Life ●, ±, #
December 9—Peace in the Family ±
December 16—The Wheels on the Bus! ±, é
December 24/25—We Have Seen His Star ●, ±
December 30—Creative Generosity ±
We are called to seek justice and to resist evil, and a key to doing so
is awareness. Mission and Service partners and global personnel share stories
from communities around the world and call us to action. Global personnel Lynn
Macaulay writes from El Salvador.
Miguel
works near me at the Santa Marta Economic and Social Development Organization.
His brother was one of four people tortured and murdered because they
campaigned against a Canadian company mining in Miguel’s home town. El Salvador
has significant water shortage—much of the water is highly contaminated and
many people have no access to drinkable water. The Canadian mine would use in
one day the amount of water a household uses in 20 years. Claims that the
returned water will be clean have proven false in other countries.
“People
need water, not gold,” says Miguel. He passionately explains the grave concerns
echoed by many civil organizations, churches, and the scientific community.
They have had some success but a moratorium on mining has resulted in a
$100-million lawsuit from the Canadian mining company through its American subsidiary.
The
United Church asked for a complete investigation into the assassinations and
death threats and for increased protection for those who continue to be
threatened. We seek the best way to influence change and consider carefully our
church investment policies.
Through
Mission and Service, we become aware of injustice, and together we speak out
against it. Please give generously to the Mission and Service of the church.
Here’s a story about a Mission and Service–supported program for
children in Kenya.
Forget
soccer, drama, or music—it’s children’s rights that are important to kids in
Kenya. There are about 200 Children’s Rights Clubs in schools throughout the
country focusing on understanding and promoting justice for kids. The clubs are
also active in food drives, hospital and orphanage visits, and environmental
clean-up days.
The
Kenya Alliance for Advancement of Children (KAACR) is a Mission and Service
partner that represents 12 organizations working directly with children across
Kenya mainly through their Children’s Rights Clubs. The clubs are making
important strides in guaranteeing rights for children at a political and local
level, as well as with the kids themselves.
Friendship
Gavula Primary School is in the hills an hour outside Kisumu, Kenya. The
teachers find that club members are more disciplined and get better grades than
other students. Members are also raising funds to help fellow students buy
uniforms or pay fees. At nearby Kisumu Girls’ High School, club members address
the challenges they face as African students: HIV/AIDS, poverty, nutrition,
child labour, abductions, drug abuse, and social stigma.
Stella
is studying business administration in Nairobi, Emmanuel is studying law, and
David is a pastor in a small church in Nairobi. They are all club graduates who
maintain ties to the rights movement. The clubs have left an indelible
impression on them, and they have become young adults who are already leaders
for a better community.
Your
Mission and Service gift supports children’s rights in Kenya and paves the way
for change for kids in the future.
[available
in French (online only)/disponible en français (en ligne seulement) Visit www.united‑church.ca and
search for “minutes for mission.” Visitez le site www.united-church.ca et
recherchez “minutes for mission.”]
Mental illness and homelessness are serious problems that the United
Church addresses through Mission and Service. Here is one example from
Manitoba.
Ed
had been homeless for about seven years. His life as a husband, father, and
truck driver fell apart because of depression, alcohol, childhood trauma, and a
marriage breakup.
In
the midst of this turmoil, Ed discovered Oak Table Community Ministry in Augustine United
Church, Winnipeg, and started to visit regularly. He became a
“street dad” to the kids who showed up homeless, looking out for them, and
pointing them toward supports like Oak Table.
Oak
Table referred Ed to a research project focused on mental health issues and
homelessness. After completing the program, Ed moved into his own, furnished
apartment and is looking into becoming an Oak Table volunteer. Ed is absolutely
thrilled, transformed, and grateful.
Oak
Table serves between 40 and 60 people daily, many of whom are homeless. Some
struggle with mental illness; some are kids with addictions fleeing abusive or
unhealthy homes. Oak Table offers food, pastoral care, telephone and internet
access, and special activities and events. With a local health unit, the
ministry also offers workshops on nutrition and healthy living.
The
need is great. Oak Table is the only community ministry in its part of
Winnipeg. Oak Table counts on Mission and Service to sustain its ministry of
hospitality. Your gifts helped Ed regain control of his life, and your
continuing gifts to Mission and Service will help many others.
[matched
with a companion video View at www.youtube.com/unitedchurchofcanada, or download from www.united-church.ca
and search for “minutes for mission.”]
January
22—Hope for HIV/AIDS Patients
The United Church has a strong history in the struggle against HIV/AIDS.
Here’s a story about the ongoing work of a Mission and Service partner in
Tanzania.
The
Christian Council of Tanzania promotes the spiritual unity of churches in
Tanzania and speaks for member churches on the spiritual, moral, and
socioeconomic welfare of Tanzanians.
HIV/AIDS
strikes hardest at the poorest and most marginalized. For those living on the
edge of survival, food is a particular challenge because malnutrition limits
the effectiveness of antiretroviral drug therapies. As a result, people in
poverty become more seriously ill or die, leaving families at even greater
risk.
Through
its HIV/AIDS department, the Christian Council of Tanzania has developed income
generating programs such as small-scale pig and poultry farming. Such programs,
relatively easy to establish and sustain, have very positive results. In the
short term, family nutrition is immediately improved. In the long term, there
is an opportunity to increase family income.
The
coordinator of the program reports, “We have witnessed a positive
transformation from hopeless men and women to happy families with success and
ambitions.”
Your
gift to Mission and Service helps people facing hardship and disease. Through
Mission and Service we help families and communities in Tanzania find health
and hope.
[matched with a companion video View at www.youtube.com/unitedchurchofcanada, or download from www.united-church.ca
and search for “minutes for mission.”]
Mission and Service supports an award-winning program in Nova Scotia
that helps women. Here’s a story about its work.
Lisa
has turned to Coverdale several times in her life, first as a young incest
survivor and again as the mother of a troubled son.
“At
Coverdale, I received emotional and mental support,” says Lisa, “and I made
some lifelong friends.”
Lisa
has serious issues that make her life an ongoing struggle. She has worked with
many of Coverdale’s programs, and today she feels she has her life back. She
has her own home, and has learned many life and employment skills. “Coverdale
has been there for me and still is.”
Coverdale
staff and volunteers provide direct services to women of all ages who appear
before the courts, as well as counselling for the issues that have brought them
to this point in their lives. Crime prevention, risk reduction, and empowerment
programs help women and girls make positive changes in their lives.
Coverdale
has been nationally and internationally recognized for its long-standing and
exceptional service to female offenders through leadership, support,
counselling, and advocacy.
Your
Mission and Service gifts are life-giving and life-changing. Please give
generously.
February
5—The Journeys of Black Peoples
February is Black History Month. Here is one of the ways Mission and
Service supports anti-racism work in the church.
In
2005, The United Church of Canada held a national consultation called The
Journeys of Black Peoples in The United Church of Canada. The Journeys of Black
Peoples network came into being out of that consultation because of members’
concerns and the desire to live out the church’s anti-racism policy. That
policy states we will participate fully, organize for diversity, act justly,
and speak to the world.
The
Journeys network continues the consultation’s work, aiming to achieve specific
goals, including having national gatherings in 2007 and 2010. The Journeys of
Black Peoples addresses the unique concerns of Black peoples in the United Church,
dealing with inclusion, and advocating for justice to enable Black peoples to
make more meaningful contributions to the whole church.
People
who attended the 2010 national gathering reflected deeply on what it means to
be African-born, Caribbean-born, and Canadian-born, to share a common racial
identity, common cultural characteristics, and yet multiple identities. The
group also considered relationships between Black and Aboriginal communities.
They affirmed that Journeys is indeed intercultural because of the multiple
cultures represented.
This
network of Black peoples can alleviate some of the isolation and
marginalization that many Black peoples express and will help us become a
racially just church. The church’s policy and the network gatherings and
programs are all supported by Mission and Service. Together, we can fulfill our
vision for the church.
[available in French (online
only)/disponible en français (en ligne seulement) Visit www.united‑church.ca and
search for “minutes for mission.” Visitez le site www.united-church.ca et
recherchez “minutes for mission.”]
[matched
with a companion video View at www.youtube.com/unitedchurchofcanada, or download from www.united-church.ca
and search for “minutes for mission.”]
February 12—M&S
Goes to University
The United Church reaches out to all ages through Mission and Service.
Here is a story from Kevin J. Bourque, Protestant Ecumenical Chaplain at the
University of New Brunswick.
What
an exciting year of campus ministry here at the University of New Brunswick! In
response to the ever-challenging question of how to make this ministry relevant
for university students, we decided to move in a radical new direction.
For
many, a campus ministry office can be a daunting place to visit, so we took the
chaplain to someplace more comfortable—the university pub. “Thursdays on Tap!”
was a pleasant success as students from across the campus became regular
participants.
We
also responded to students’ high levels of stress by offering the “Student
Exam-time Stress Buster Social.” Phew, that’s a mouthful! In the middle of
exams, we offered a timeout with free food, conversation with the chaplain, and
a chance to take a break from the stress of studying. It was a huge success
because it gave us an excellent opportunity to meet hundreds of students, learn
about their experiences, and talk with them about campus ministry! Really
exciting!
The
weekly gathering and exam-time social were only two aspects of a Christian
ministry that is visible, compassionate, and present. In the coming years, we
will continue to provide diverse and imaginative ways of drawing students to
campus ministry and ultimately to God!
This
ministry continues to thrive thanks to United Church Mission and Service. We
are abundantly grateful that you support student ministry with your Mission and
Service gifts!
The United Church celebrates and supports diversity. Here’s how Mission and
Service supports a ministry of personal growth and outreach to the Deaf
community.
Those
of us who can hear would be able to follow the Sunday morning worship at Quinte
Deaf Fellowship (QDF) since services follow a format similar to those we
regularly attend. Most striking for the hearing would be the absence of music
and the use of American Sign Language. The congregation joins in worship as the
leader signs the songs. Sermons are videotaped at QDF and kept in the church
library for people to take home. Drama is a very effective teaching method, and
everyone can get involved in practices, props, and acting.
Quinte
Deaf Fellowship began in 2006 and has moved into facilities in Belleville,
Ontario. Part-time pastor Helen Bickle, who was born Deaf and is therefore
considered culturally Deaf, says, “We are still small in number and our
offerings do not meet the need. The lack of funds could limit our ability to
further reach out to the Deaf Community. QDF is grateful for the financial
support of the Mission and Service of The United Church of Canada.”
The
mission of Quinte Deaf Fellowship is to grow in relationship to Christ and to
one another and to tell the good news to the Deaf community. Through Sunday
morning worship services, weekly Bible studies, prayer meetings, leadership
training, and pastoral counselling, each participant has witnessed tremendous
growth.
Your
gifts to Mission and Service help bring worship and unity to the Christian Deaf
community.
[matched with a companion video View at www.youtube.com/unitedchurchofcanada, or download from www.united-church.ca
and search for “minutes for mission.”]
February
26—Thankful Living, Joyful Giving
One:
The Margate Pastoral Charge, Prince Edward Island, shares its story
about giving to Mission and Service.
Church
member Donna Cobb returned home from the annual meeting of Maritime Conference
with a beautiful handmade quilt with the Mission and Service logo surrounded by
a sea of squares in the M&S rainbow colours. The quilt had graced the
meeting space in Sackville and been auctioned off as a fund-raiser for Mission
and Service.
Two: The quilt gave Donna
an idea. At worship on the first Sunday in Lent, members of Margate Pastoral
Charge found the quilt hanging on the wall but covered in dark fabric divided
into blocks, each with a dollar figure. If people wanted to see what was underneath,
they had to pay! The hope was to have the whole quilt uncovered by Easter
Sunday.
One: A large decorated can received donations, and a
thermometer on the wall measured weekly progress. The Sunday school children
brought gifts each week. The youth raised $300 with a bake sale and challenged
the Official Board to match it. Inspired by the children and youth, adults
donated generously. Each week there was anticipation as money was counted, the
step ladder brought out, and blocks uncovered.
Two: By Palm Sunday the waiting was over, and all
blocks were unveiled. The congregation enjoyed the beautiful gift throughout
the season of Easter and celebrated the $2,300 joyfully forwarded to our United
Church Mission and Service.
Both: How will we celebrate Mission and Service this
Lent and Easter?
Here’s your Mission and Service gift at work in Kenya.
The
food smells good at Lucy Nanjiru’s “hotel,” really a take-away and cafe.
Started with a loan of $1,000 that’s been repaid, Lucy’s “hotel” now employs
two others and sells more than 23 kg (50 lbs.) of grilled meat each day.
Down
in the market, Joyce sells used clothes—clothes that won’t sell at thrift or
second-hand stores in Canada and are sold to her “sight unseen.” Joyce almost
always makes a profit, though sometimes it’s slim. She can’t afford a real
kiosk, so she rents a tarpaulin on the ground. Yet even with slim profits,
Joyce paid back her loan with interest, so the fund can grow and help others.
Lucy
and Joyce are just two women in their micro-finance collective, which
administers loans to help support diverse businesses—potatoes, eggs, used car
parts, fish, cooked food, second-hand clothes, and even hairdressing.
The
women support their families, often employing others, and even extending
charity. Their generosity and spirit are compelling; their collaboration
overcomes the difficulties of gangs, tribal fights, and the destruction of a
decade of violence. Lives are transformed by what many North Americans would
spend on theatre tickets or dinner out.
Joyce
noted, “When we have the good fortune to be helped by The United Church of
Canada, then we can give a hand-up to others, so they can have a better life,
too.”
This
collective is possible because of Mission and Service partner the National
Council of Churches of Kenya. Your Mission and Service gift gives a hand-up to
hundreds of women like Lucy and Joyce.
March 11—A
Friend in Anxious Moments
We are called to love and serve others. With Mission and Service, we do
just that. This is a short story about how your M&S gifts care for the
sick.
They
say that in the second half of life people begin to look inward, not outward,
for meaning.
The
Rev. John Taylor finds that the number of people requesting spiritual support
is increasing. He meets them in his work as Coordinating Chaplain for the Rouge
Valley Health System, in Toronto, Ontario. The Rouge Valley Health System is
one of the most diverse multi-faith, multicultural health care facilities in
Canada with over 500 patient beds.
When
older people are hospitalized, and particularly during end-stage illness, they
ponder the meaning of their life and of dying, and they seek peace, observes
Taylor.
In
the midst of anxious moments, the hospital chaplain is a companion for both
patients and their families, offering emotional and spiritual support. The
chaplain provides a listening ear and an understanding and accepting presence—a
friend in anxious moments.
Mission
and Service provides the support needed for two pastoral care assistants at the
Rouge Valley Chaplaincy. This ministry is a reality thanks to the generosity of
Mission and Service donors. Thanks to your gift, this ministry is a blessing
for those in hospital.
March
18—Caring for Children in the Philippines
Through Mission and Service, the United Church supports programs around
the world that care for children and protect their rights. Here is an M&S
story from one of our partners in Asia.
The
Barangay Roxas District in Manila is home to many poor and vulnerable families.
It is also home to our Mission and Service partner the United Church of Christ
in the Philippines and its Faith Bible Congregation. As outreach ministry, the
Faith Bible Congregation works with children and their families to provide
physical, emotional, and spiritual support where it is needed most.
The
congregation offers a preschool program, a summer music and theatre arts
program for older children, and a one-week vacation Bible school. The entire
community joins in a Festival Day of Celebration showcasing the children’s
achievements through dramatic and musical presentations, food, and community
worship.
Faith
Bible Congregation also supports families through a family feeding program, a
medical and dental mission offering basic care, and a Christmas program sharing
worship and gifts of food and essentials. This is in addition to ongoing
pastoral care, support, and worship within the community.
Your
Mission and Service gifts support many partners like the United Church of
Christ in the Philippines that are ministering to children and their families.
One: Here’s a story
about Mission and Service help for newcomers trying to make their way in
Canada.
Some
of the work supported by Mission and Service helps newcomers to Canada make a
better life for themselves. One partner is the Montreal City Mission, which
runs a program called Just Solutions.
Two: Some people come to
Canada to escape dangerous situations. One woman said, “As soon as we came to
Just Solutions, we felt that God was with us this time. It was the first time
in eight years! Thank you Just Solutions for everything!”
Three: Another client at Just
Solutions wrote this note: “Just Solutions and the Montreal City Mission were
always there for me. They were patient, kind, and understanding and tried to
help in whatever way they could. I really appreciated their help.”
One: The Just Solutions
staff are always inspired by the perseverance and determination of their
clients as they tackle the many obstacles along the way. Just Solutions gives
information and assistance to help newcomers turn the safe haven Canada has
offered them into a permanent home.
Two and Three: A program like Just
Solutions is a blessing for people trying to find a safe and better life for
their families. Please give to Mission and Service to continue supporting this
good work.
[available in French (online only)/disponible
en français (en ligne seulement) Visit www.united‑church.ca and
search for “minutes for mission.” Visitez le site www.united-church.ca et
recherchez “minutes for mission.”]
Across the country, Mission and Service supports those who are living in
poverty and who face a multitude of challenges in their lives.
“Can
I stay here? I don’t want to go home.” Eleven-year old C. had fled a chaotic
home where addictions sometimes dominated the lives of her mother and
stepfather. She needed to save herself, so she sought refuge in the Southdale
Chaplaincy in London, Ontario.
Working
in a large public housing complex, Southdale Chaplaincy helps connect people
with resources and acts as an advocate for Southdale families. The chaplaincy
runs afterschool programs that may include a hot meal, a free store, and
Internet access for job searches and homework. The chaplaincy established a
community garden and a dental clinic, and advocated for the re-establishment of
a family health clinic. Southdale Chaplaincy has an emergency food cupboard and
babyfood bank and also sponsors kids at camp.
But
sometimes even all that isn’t enough. Sometimes the chaplaincy becomes a safe
haven as it did for C. She knew that at the chaplaincy she would receive care,
love, support, and, most of all, safety. She knew this, because she had been
participating in the chaplaincy’s programs for two years. Now in the care of
Children’s Aid, C. is doing very well.
The
financial support of Mission and Service helps make all this work possible.
Thank you for your continued generosity.
This is a story about a collective in Nairobi, Kenya, supported by
Mission and Service with the Organization of African Instituted Churches. The
collective’s goal is to bring people together to work for a better life and for
peace.
Welcome
to the Kiambio-Deuteronomy collective, a group of micro-entrepreneurs with
businesses such as restaurants, chemists, bicycle repair, and kiosks for
selling mandazi (fried bread), fish, used clothing, fruit, and vegetables.
The
collective’s main work is the administration of micro loans and mutual support
for its members. When inflation threatened their livelihood, members started to
purchase supplies such as charcoal in bulk. Because water was expensive and
inaccessible for some businesses and many homes, they pitched in to get a water
spigot installed, and now provide water to members and the public.
Members
are advocating for a new school so the local kids won’t have to walk miles to
the nearest one. In the meantime, they’ve set up a childcare for two- to
six-year-olds, so mothers can get to their jobs.
Not
far from the members’ shops is a low mud and corrugated-metal building with a
bright-blue front and bold signage: “The Great Glory Cathedral: All Are
Welcome!” Its very name and colour are a shout of hope and optimism amid the
grey sheet-metal and muddy-brown streets surrounding it.
Kiambio-Deuteronomy,
a Mission and Service–supported collective, is itself a shout of hope and
optimism in one of Africa’s largest slums. Please make a generous gift to
Mission and Service to keep that hope alive.
You might be surprised by what you make happen when you give a gift to
Mission and Service. Here’s an example of M&S in action.
It’s
that time of year again—gathering receipts, filing your tax form, writing the
cheque, or hoping for the refund! Not filing an income tax return can have
serious implications for people. For some, the challenges of filing can be
harder than you can imagine.
Those
who are mentally or physically ill or those who are deeply addicted find filing
a tax return almost impossible. Others with active psychosis and those who are
illiterate, lack records, or have periods of homelessness struggle greatly with
the process. Yet not doing so might mean being deprived of income assistance.
Brunswick
Street Mission in Nova Scotia is able to offer an income tax return service
with a qualified volunteer for those who live in poverty or on the streets. In
2009, Brunswick Street Mission helped 200 clients file over 408 tax returns.
One client had over 10 years to claim and not one document!
Yes,
living out the call of Jesus Christ can involve filing tax returns!
We
support Brunswick Street Mission through gifts to Mission and Service. Please
make a gift to Mission and Service to support Brunswick Street Mission and
other Canadian outreach programs that offer a ministry of care.
[available in French (online
only)/disponible en français (en ligne seulement) Visit www.united‑church.ca and search
for “minutes for mission.” Visitez le site www.united-church.ca et recherchez
“minutes for mission.”]
These days many of us are investing in seeds and plants, expecting to
see great results over the coming months. Mission and Service is investing in
agriculture in a bigger way. Here’s a story about conservation farming in
Zimbabwe.
Christian
Care, a Mission and Service partner in Zimbabwe, is part of an exciting project
helping farmers produce more maize on less land and also work independently of
global farm corporations. All that’s needed is mulch and a hoe.
Farmers
in Zimbabwe have faced seven droughts in eight years. Their soil is less
viable, and they have become dependent on chemicals and unreliable hybrid seed
on the bad advice of commercial seed corporations. As a result, up to 80
percent of households have needed food aid donations in recent years to
survive.
The
Christian Care conservation farming program has significantly improved the
situation for over 500 families by training farmers and organizing farm
exchange visits and community seed banks. The results have been extraordinary.
The farmers produced ten times as much, even in drought conditions, and were
able to save and share huge amounts of seed. The techniques are simple: create
an organic layer of mulch over all the ground; fertilize with manure; and
prepare the fields well during the dry season for planting. Another partner
supported by United Church congregations and Mission and Service, the Canadian
Foodgrains Bank, collaborated with Christian Care in this project.
Your
gifts to Mission and Service are supporting conservation farming in Zimbabwe.
Together, we can focus on people’s right to food.
[matched with a companion video View at www.youtube.com/unitedchurchofcanada, or download from www.united-church.ca
and search for “minutes for mission.”]
The United Church of Canada has a long history of active participation
in the public arena in Canada. Through Mission and Service, we continue to
speak on issues affecting Canadians.
Through
the temperance movement of the late 1800s to the anti-apartheid movement of the
1980s to the current day, our church lives out our faith in the world.
The
United Church prays, speaks, and acts for a moral, sustainable economy and a
peaceful world. At each triennial General Council, church members consider the
issues of the day and form the policies that guide ongoing action and witness.
As
people of faith we have a deep commitment to justice and peace that calls us to
speak out about the burning issues of today, adding our voice to Mission and
Service ecumenical partners—groups and causes we support. We have a deep
commitment to speak for vulnerable communities and people living at the edges
of society wherever they may be in the world. We count on our Mission and
Service global partners to share their lived experience in local communities,
and we are informed by the wisdom of our Mission and Service partners around
the world.
Advocacy
is a way to publicly and prophetically witness to our belief in the reconciling
love of God for all creation found in the life, death, and resurrection of
Jesus.
Your
gift to Mission and Service supports the United Church in being a voice for
justice and peace.
Mission and Service is the way the United Church loves and serves
others. Here is one story about how we are improving health for Canadians
living in poverty, thanks to the gifts you make to M&S.
Chalmers
Community Services Centre is part of the emergency food network in Guelph,
Ontario. At two outlets, one can obtain clothing and household items,
refreshments, and a caring community.
Chalmers
is unique in its approach to food services. First, guests choose what they want
to fill their supply box. Chalmers thinks that people should be able to choose
their food and meet dietary restrictions.
Second,
Chalmers made a conscious decision to improve the quality and nutritional value
of its food by lowering salt content, monitoring fats and sugars, and most
importantly, providing fresh fruits and vegetables.
The
centre has also developed community gardens on the property of Three Willows
United Church and plans to have collective kitchens where individuals cook
together for their families. By sharing in the purchases, people can also take
advantage of bulk buying, and they can store food in the kitchens’ freezers,
too.
Chalmers
contributes to people’s health and well-being in other ways. For instance, four
times a year the centre holds dental days when every guest gets a toothbrush
and toothpaste. At Christmas, gift bags are distributed with dental supplies
and other personal care items.
Chalmers
Community Services Centre is supported by the Mission and Service of the United
Church. Your generous gifts are needed to continue this and other food programs
in Canada.
Here is a Mission and Service story from our partner the Christian
Council of Tanzania, which offers programs that address rights and concerns of
women, as well as women’s health.
Maternal
health is a terrible problem in Africa. About 1,500 women on the continent die
every day in pregnancy or during or after childbirth.
Mission
and Service partner the Christian Council of Tanzania operates the Morogoro
Women’s Training Centre. In an effort to improve maternal health, they are
working with the Tanzanian government to develop a program to train and equip
250 community-based maternal health care workers each year for the next three
years. The workers will care for women from remote communities in Tanzania and
will act as first-response community health care workers.
The
Christian Council addresses other women’s concerns as well at the Morogoro
Women’s Training Centre. Residential courses support women in leadership roles
within their communities. These courses focus on practical skills immediately
useful in women’s daily lives. Looking at both short- and long-term skill
development, the centre offers training in home-based businesses, such as
tailoring, or longer-term programs such as computer skills or business
management.
Your
gift to Mission and Service cares for new mothers and mothers-to-be in
Tanzania. Your Mission and Service gifts help women improve their skills to
care for their communities.
[available in French (online
only)/disponible en français (en ligne seulement) Visit www.united‑church.ca and search
for “minutes for mission.” Visitez le site www.united-church.ca et recherchez
“minutes for mission.”]
Mission and Service stories are filled with the exciting work that we do
together in the United Church. This Sunday school teacher has a story about her
Mission and Service kids.
Ms.
McLuskey is the Sunday school superintendent at St. Paul United Church in
Westville, Nova Scotia. Every Sunday the 35 children in the Sunday school hear
the Minute for Mission, and they decided that they could do something as a
Sunday school to help raise money for Mission and Service work.
“We started our project
after Christmas with a notice in our church bulletin that the children were
raising money for M&S and that for every dollar they raised they would get
an angel on the wall in their classroom,” described Ms. McLuskey.
“The senior class made the
angels, but they soon couldn’t keep up. They made special $50 angels for some
of the classrooms because they had collected so much money. One student even
brought in $73 on her own!
“The adults wanted to help
the kids and gave the children envelopes of money and even socks full of change
that they had been saving. We collected money until Easter Sunday and that day
we gave Mission and Service a total of $470.78! That was not even including the
regular gifts from the congregation and Sunday school. We were amazed and proud
at how well we did.”
Congratulations
to St. Paul’s Sunday school for their Mission and Service fundraising. Even the
youngest can make a difference, and when we give to Mission and Service
together we make the biggest difference in the world.
May
27—Walking the Path Together
Where in the world is M&S making a difference? Here’s a story about
our Mission and Service work in Africa.
“During
difficult times, the Église du Christ au Congo and
The United Church of Canada have walked along the path together, a sign of
solidarity of the children of God,” says the Rev. Nzeba Kalombo Berthe.
Mama
Nzeba, as she is called, was on a Face to Face visit to Lindsay Presbytery in
Ontario. She coordinates her church’s work for women and children affected by
the continuing war in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Women and children
suffer violence and sexual assaults that can leave them traumatized and cast
out of their families. Église du Christ au Congo
creates employment and microcredit systems for women and encourages women’s
leadership throughout the church. They educate children to understand and
support gender equality.
Mama
Nzeba brought a powerful message to the church and to political leaders. She
discussed small arms and global debt; she called for churches to be more
actively engaged with the Canadian government in speaking out against the
pillage and polluting of mining companies.
Your
gifts to Mission and Service support our strong partnership with the Église du Christ au Congo,
and you support women and children in this war-torn country. You enable mutual
sharing such as this visit by Mama Nzeba.
With
Mission and Service, we are walking the path together. Please make a generous
gift.
We support struggling church congregations with Mission and Service,
keeping a church presence where it is strongly needed. This Mission and Service
story is from Fort Nelson, mile 300 on the Alaska Highway, a place surrounded
by trees, bears, and stars.
Hillcrest
United Church in Fort Nelson is a mission church kept alive—and kicking—for the
past five decades through determination, strength, and pioneering spirit.
Hillcrest is a shared Anglican-United sanctuary, and it is supported by a
Mission and Service grant.
Fort
Nelson supplies the oil and gas that drives much of North America’s desired
needs. The minister and congregation of Hillcrest know that Mission and Service
dollars are also a resource, just like the trees, the water, the oil, and the
people’s spirits. They want you to know that they appreciate the support of
Mission and Service as they tenaciously hold on to what’s deeply special about
the United Church.
The
newly settled minister from the Prairies sent you this message:
As I look around,
I am proud that this is where The United Church of Canada chooses to continue,
striving in a secular, deeply materialistic world to live out who it is:
joyful, challenged, justice-based, and deeply incarnational. Thank you.
Your
Mission and Service gifts help keep God’s word alive in areas of the country
where the church is needed. Your M&S gifts are making a difference in Fort
Nelson.
[available in French (online
only)/disponible en français (en ligne seulement) Visit www.united‑church.ca and search
for “minutes for mission.” Visitez le site www.united-church.ca et recherchez
“minutes for mission.”]
The Rev. Wendy MacLean shares a Mission and Service Minute today about
an experience she had while visiting another congregation.
While
visiting a small country church, I was listening to the Minute for Mission when
something yellow caught my eye. Tucked into the shelf with the Bible and an
extra hymnbook, was a small pile of envelopes. Actually, they were only half
envelopes. One half had been used for offering. What was left was the half of
the envelope designated for Mission and Service.
Sometimes
when I have encouraged giving to Mission and Service, I have heard the comment,
“Charity begins at home.” My question is, “Should it stay at home?” On the
contrary, the future of our local churches depends on the breadth of our
vision.
Jesus
calls his disciples out into the world to share the good news. The more
generous we are in the world, the more our local church is blessed by the
abundant gifts of the great family of God. Our neighbours both far and wide are
included in the gifts we bring, and we become rich in ways we cannot imagine.
My
home church encourages 50-50 giving. Half of what we give helps to support our
local church. The other half supports the work of the church across Canada and
around the world through our Mission and Service. With M&S we participate
in the work of the Spirit in ways beyond the strength and resources of our own
congregation.
I
put my Mission and Service offering in one of those yellow envelopes. Thanks to
whoever left them, others will feel the blessing.
June
17—Getting to Know One Another
In 2000, then-Moderator the Right Rev. Bill Phipps said that the work of
justice and right relationships with Aboriginal people would be our church’s
great work for the coming decades. Here is an account of one program that we
support through Mission and Service.
Knowing
each other and building trusting relationships are at the heart of living
justly in peace together. Tatamagouche Centre is a United Church education
centre in Nova Scotia. The Peace and Friendship Project there offers
opportunities to build relationships between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal
people.
The
Peace and Friendship Project develops cross-cultural programs about treaties,
legal issues, Aboriginal culture, peace-building, language, and spirituality.
An Aboriginal participant noted, “When I went to Guatemala, it was the first
time I felt at home, because being indigenous meant being in the majority. At
the Tatamagouche Centre was the first time I felt at home in my own country.”
One
opportunity in the project is a four-day Peace and Friendship Gathering that
explores leadership and relationship-building to strengthen peace and justice.
One United Church participant remarked, “For me, it is a really hopeful moment
to be together with First Nations neighbours in peace and friendship. It encourages
me to see the possibility of what can be.”
Your
Mission and Service contributions open up opportunities that make a real
difference to both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal communities. Please continue
to support the Mission and Service of The United Church of Canada.
Interculturalism is part of our Mission and Service in the United
Church. We celebrate Canadian Multiculturalism Day, June 27.
The
United Church is committed to being an intercultural rather than multicultural
church. Multiculturalism may be a celebration of fun, food, and festivals,
while interculturalism is a reciprocal sharing of racial, ethnic, cultural, and
linguistic gifts.
Mission
and Service creates opportunities for the church to celebrate and grow in its
journey toward becoming an intercultural church. Since 1993, Sounding the
Bamboo events have created a safe space for diverse racial-ethnic minority
women and Aboriginal women in the United Church to gather and connect. Racial justice
workshops are offered to ministers in the church, face to face as well as
online.
Mission
and Service supports The United Church of Canada’s major conference on
intercultural ministries. Behold! is always an exciting event with
intercultural worship and workshops, keynote speakers, and many ideas for
ministry.
As
we focus this week on our intercultural church, consider these words from a
Behold worship service. BEHOLD: be compassionate, examine assumptions, harbour
honesty with yourself and others, open both hearts and minds, listen deeply,
and delight in God’s presence!
Behold,
we are all God’s children. Please support an intercultural church with a gift
to Mission and Service.
[matched with a companion video View at www.youtube.com/unitedchurchofcanada, or download from www.united-church.ca
and search for “minutes for mission.”]
July
1—Learning about Neighbours
The Rev. Ellie Hummel is the chaplain at Concordia University in
Montreal. She shares this story about how Mission and Service helps students
explore spirituality as part of their university experience.
What
do you know about Zoroastrianism?
The
group of students and staff from Concordia University who were invited to a
Zoroastrian ceremony last winter knew very little. We followed, with interest
and a sense of awe, the colourful ceremony, the prayers and words in a language
foreign to us. We thought of our own spiritual traditions and the stories of
our faith. Afterward, we were able to ask questions and learn more, and then we
celebrated with a feast of laughter, good food, and friendships renewed and
formed.
As
we left, we marvelled that, as much as this was a new experience, we also saw
something very familiar: hospitality and welcome, the celebration of sacred
stories, and the joy of gathering in community.
We
have attended other sacred ceremonies: a Quaker worship, a Jewish community
centre, a labyrinth, an orthodox church. Every time, we discover something
about our neighbours in this great city and in the world, and we learn about
ourselves and our own spiritual path.
Sacred
Site Visits is one of the programs offered by Concordia Multi-faith Chaplaincy
that helps students explore ethics, values, faith, and spirituality. Your
donations to Mission and Service ensure that this program, and similar ones at
universities across Canada, will remain strong and life-giving.
[available in French (online only)/disponible
en français (en ligne seulement) Visit www.united‑church.ca and
search for “minutes for mission.” Visitez le site www.united-church.ca et
recherchez “minutes for mission.”]
July
8—Ecumenical Church Loan Fund
The United Church supports programs to help people help themselves.
Here’s a story of how Mission and Service assists people with their finances.
Bank
accounts, credit cards, mortgages, online banking: most of us use financial
services on a regular basis. Yet, an independent research centre* reports that
an estimated 2.7 billion people lack access to basic financial services.
Without credit or savings, they have little hope of improving their living
conditions.
Microfinance
is one way to support those living in poverty, and it helps families and
communities build better lives. Sometimes, even a small loan can help people
create their own business, send their children to school, buy medicine,
purchase nutritious food, or fix a leaky roof.
The
Ecumenical Church Loan Fund (ECLOF) in India gave just such a loan to Ms.
Selvi. With it, she purchased a loom to make saris and increased her family
income. With ECLOF training, she improved her skills as a business woman. She
reports, “I can now handle my own finances independently.”
In
2009, Ms. Selvi was one of 10,650 women working with ECLOF India, which is
supported by Mission and Service. Together, we use micro-finance as a tool to
relieve poverty and restore human dignity. Working with partners in 21
countries across three continents, your Mission and Service gift helps people
build healthy families and communities.
*Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP), “New
Indicators of Financial Access,” 2009, www.cgap.org
[matched with a companion video View at www.youtube.com/unitedchurchofcanada, or download from www.united-church.ca
and search for “minutes for mission.”]
Our church feeds the hungry and nourishes the soul across Canada through
Mission and Service. When you make a gift to M&S you tie on an apron, come
into the kitchen, and feed the hungry at Brunswick Street Mission in Nova
Scotia.
Grocery
list for the 18,850 hot breakfasts Brunswick Street Mission cooked in 2009:
10,000 eggs
2,600 loaves of bread
15,000 L of coffee and
tea
Liam
is one of the kitchen staff who gets up early to help cook the breakfasts six
days a week. He enjoys cooking, but even more he respects the clients of
Brunswick who appreciate his efforts and enjoy a good meal. They take time to
say thank you; it means a lot to them and a lot to Liam.
Your
gift to Mission and Service puts you in the kitchen at Brunswick Street Mission
and the many other kitchens like it that we support across Canada. Your gift is
a hearty breakfast, a hot cup of coffee, a good start to the day, a lifesaver
for many. So, “thank you” from all those who enjoyed a good meal today from
you!
The
organizations that you support with your Mission and Service gift provide
services for people who are homeless and vulnerable. Please make a special gift
to Mission and Service today to continue feeding God’s children.
More and more, the rights of small-scale farmers and farm dwellers are
being violated and undermined in South Africa. Your Mission and Service gift
supports an organization that works for justice and equal rights in rural South
Africa.
People
should be able to produce or get healthy food and help determine agricultural
policies. Yet that is not the case in South Africa. The export-driven model of
agriculture there encourages using agro-chemicals, genetically modified plants,
and fuels that negatively affect health and the environment. Farm dwellers face
evictions or dispossession, violence, human rights abuses, and rural
displacement. They are among the poorest and most vulnerable sectors of society
and face myriad challenges.
Mission
and Service supports the Surplus People Project (SPP), which works with the
rural poor to fight poverty and improve livelihoods. A key to this goal is
access to and control of land, water, and seed, as well as access to local
markets. SPP also works with farmers to promote ecological agriculture to
minimize farming’s effect on the environment and to maximize the use of
available and renewable resources.
Your
gift to Mission and Service supports planning, research, and lobbying; raises
awareness through education; and helps South African men and women in rural
areas to improve their quality of life.
Have
you made a Mission and Service gift lately?
July
29—With Schools, You Build Communities
Mission and Service supports partners in Haiti providing education.
In
Haiti, the state is largely absent from education and health care. Our Mission
and Service partners are stepping in to provide services.
After
Haiti’s devastating earthquake in January 2010, education became a top priority
for local church leaders. The Methodist Church of Haiti runs primary and
secondary schools, as well as health clinics. The Methodist Church is
rebuilding nine community-based schools and has launched a scholarship fund for
postsecondary students with support from Mission and Service.
The
Karl Lévêque Cultural Institute is another Mission and Service partner in Haiti
organizing, training, and supporting grassroots networks to build an economy
where employment, housing, education, literacy, and health care are available
to all. In the wake of the earthquake, the Institute focused attention on
rebuilding rural education. It is working in four communities to rebuild
schools, support salaries for teachers, and pay for ongoing costs and supplies.
Make
a gift to Mission and Service to continue supporting education for children in
Haiti.
[available in French (online
only)/disponible en français (en ligne seulement) Visit www.united‑church.ca and search
for “minutes for mission.” Visitez le site www.united-church.ca et recherchez
“minutes for mission.”]
[matched with a companion video View at www.youtube.com/unitedchurchofcanada, or download from www.united-church.ca
and search for “minutes for mission.”]
When there is a disaster in the world, the United Church is able to
quickly contact Mission and Service partners to learn the needs of the
community. Through M&S, we can respond immediately without waiting for
donations to arrive.
Our
hearts ache when we witness the devastation of a humanitarian crisis—disaster
triggered by climate, political instability, war, or violence.
How
does the United Church respond when disasters happen? Through Mission and
Service global partners working in affected communities who are able to
coordinate a response that reaches the grassroots. We also respond through the
ACT Alliance that brings together churches and agencies from around the world
in response to crisis.
The
United Church of Canada nurtures long-term partnerships which mean that we are
present before, during, and after crisis. Through Mission and Service
partnerships, the United Church is made aware of, and responds to, many
situations that don’t make TV or newspaper headlines. Thanks to Mission and
Service, the United Church is able to commit to partners for the long—and often
challenging—tasks of rehabilitation and reconstruction.
Your
gift to Mission and Service strengthens the United Church response to
humanitarian crises around the world.
[matched with a companion video View at www.youtube.com/unitedchurchofcanada, or download from www.united-church.ca
and search for “minutes for mission.”]
United Church congregations prayerfully set annual goals for Mission and
Service because they know that the work of the church around the world relies
on faithful regular gifts. Sometimes a little “fun-raising” can raise both
spirits and money. An M&S Enthusiast from Woodlawn United Church in
Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, shares a “fun-raising” story with you.
Our
congregation had not met its Mission and Service goal for several years. To
change this pattern, we came up with a project that was simple and easy to
carry out.
Would
you believe that there are still photo centres that develop film? A local
centre was glad to save empty film canisters for our project. We decorated the
canisters with Mission and Service logos and inserted a label marked with name,
address, and offering envelope number for folks to fill out and stick on the
canister before turning it in.
On
a Sunday in late October, folks distributed the empty Mission and Service film
canisters with instructions to collect as many toonies as possible for three
weeks. About 180 people picked up a canister, and on the appointed day,
volunteers carried forward the full canisters to be offered with praise and
thanks to God with the regular offering.
Five
or six enthusiastic people accomplished the counting in hardly any time at all.
The congregation had fun taking part in the project, and over $2,600 was raised
in extra gifts for Mission and Service. Yes, indeed, we did meet our goal for
2010.
The United Church of Canada joins with others around the world
in the struggle for justice, peace, and care of creation. You may
not realize that one way the church does that is by sending and receiving
people.
Mission
and Service global partners ask the United Church to send personnel for many
reasons. The request may be for a particular skill, such as theological
education. It may be providing a Christian presence, such as through the
Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel. Or, it might be a
desire to deepen a partner relationship with the United Church. Requests might
be for a few weeks—or several years. Whatever the length or nature of the
request, The United Church of Canada continues its historic tradition of
sending people to support God’s mission in the world.
In
turn, the United Church may ask Mission and Service partners to send personnel
to us. It may be a short-term request for a global partner to live and worship
with a community in Canada, exploring issues of faith and justice from a
different perspective. Other times, it may be a longer term placement in Canada
that deepens our church’s understanding of global mission.
Your
gift to Mission and Service helps the church to send and receive mission
personnel in the spirit of global partnership.
[matched with a companion video View at www.youtube.com/unitedchurchofcanada, or download from www.united-church.ca
and search for “minutes for mission.”]
August
26—From Nowhere to Nowhere
Your Mission and Service gifts raise local awareness of human
trafficking in India and save those at risk.
Trafficking
is a word used for a contemporary form of slavery. Human trafficking violates
basic rights and unfortunately is growing nationally, regionally, and
internationally. Political instability in many parts of the world makes the
problem worse, and vulnerable communities are at greater risk, especially women
and children.
The
Church of North India is a Mission and Service partner that uses several
approaches to combat the buying and selling of human beings. Church members
have created and maintain safe houses for adolescent girls called Balika
Sanghas. The church also runs popular education programs to raise local
awareness of human trafficking issues. Members visit villages and offer
training programs for alternate livelihoods. They work with community leaders
and nongovernmental organizations to identify prevention strategies.
At
a global consultation on human trafficking in India, all the delegates
unanimously agreed to stand together in opposition to this crime and to declare
that trafficking should occur “From Nowhere to Nowhere.”
With
your Mission and Service gift, we also stand in solidarity against this
violation of women and children. Your generosity is needed.
September
2—A Church with a Boat
The Moravian Church of Nicaragua is a Mission and Service–supported
partner. It has established schools, hospitals, and a development agency. Here
is a story about how our M&S support is used in a unique way.
The
Moravian Church of Nicaragua is Central America’s largest Protestant church.
Most of its members live in small communities scattered along rivers and the
rugged Atlantic coast, and most struggle with poverty—the regional unemployment
rate is 80 percent.
The
local congregations of the Moravian Church offer worship and meet pastoral
needs through trained clergy and specialized ministries. But they are also
invested in stimulating healthy local economies.
Church
members know how hard it is to raise crops for a family with enough extra to
sell to make a living. In Nicaragua, transportation is also a serious challenge
and expense for farmers living along the coast with few, if any, roads. Boats
are often small dugouts that make transport difficult, especially when farmers
are concerned about getting the best quantity and quality of crops to market.
Likewise, lack of reliable transportation makes it extremely difficult for the
church’s development agency to transport portable saw mills and well-drilling
equipment to communities in need.
The
Moravian Church is planning to do the only logical thing—buy a large boat with
an outboard motor to resolve these transportation issues.
Your
Mission and Service gifts help partners find creative solutions to local
problems. Please give generously.
[matched with a companion video View at www.youtube.com/unitedchurchofcanada, or download from www.united-church.ca
and search for “minutes for mission.”]
Mission and Service fosters ministry for all ages, including university
students who may be seeking spirituality and missing close family support.
Mission and Service chaplaincies include McMaster Campus Ministries Council in
Hamilton, Ontario.
“Students
are keen to try to understand and act on their faith in a world where there are
many inequalities,” says the Rev. Carol Wood, McMaster University’s Ecumenical
Chaplain. “We regularly share a meal together in a small group where they are
nurtured and encouraged to ask questions and to share experiences.”
The
social justice group meets to discuss food security, wages, and homelessness.
In 2010, they coordinated a music night to assist a local food bank and youth
shelter. Some students performed in the concert, while others baked for the
refreshment table. About 70 kg (150 lbs.) of food was collected for the
shelter, and $100 donated to the food bank.
When
the group later learned that the youth centre needed youth-appropriate clothes,
they organized another music night to collect clothing. This event coincided
with news about the tsunami in Japan, so “Change for Japan” donation cans were
added to the evening, and $351 was donated for Japan.
The
McMaster Campus Ministries Council has been supported by Mission and Service
for 40 years. Mission and Service funding ensures that the chaplain is present
to provide pastoral care for individual students and to help group members
relate their faith to the world.
Your
Mission and Service gift helps young adults across the country continue their
faith journey.
[matched with a companion video View at www.youtube.com/unitedchurchofcanada, or download from www.united-church.ca
and search for “minutes for mission.”]
September
16—Together in Life and Ministry
The United Church celebrates diversity in the church and in the
community. Your gift to Mission and Service supports programs and partners that
honour the strengths, assets, and riches of the community.
The
Jane Finch Community Ministry is in the public housing community of Firgrove,
serving the Jane Finch neighbourhood in Toronto. Despite issues of poverty, the
community is blessed with the culture and diversity of 110 nationalities in
which 70 languages and dialects are spoken.
Here’s
one example of how this ministry recognizes and responds to the area’s
diversity. When a young man was stabbed to death in Firgrove, it sent shock
waves through the community. With resident leaders and other organizations, the
ministry held two talking circles to bring healing. A First Nations youth from
Firgrove smudged the circle to facilitate the grieving process and to help
others learn from this tragedy.
Jane
Finch Community Ministry works in partnership with several networks, providing
food days, income tax advice, a learning centre, school supplies, scholarships,
and microcredit loans.
Funding
from Mission and Service contributes to the minister’s salary, administration,
and program budgets. With Mission and Service support, Jane Finch Community
Ministry honours the diversity of the neighbourhood and stands in solidarity
with its constituents.
Please
make a generous gift to Mission and Service to help programs like Jane Finch
Community Ministry.
[available in French (online
only)/disponible en français (en ligne seulement) Visit www.united‑church.ca and
search for “minutes for mission.” Visitez le site www.united-church.ca et
recherchez “minutes for mission.”]
Today we hear a story about how through its Mission and Service the
United Church helps Canadians who are in trouble.
Many
of the most hurtful things in our communities are cyclical. Typically, the
bully has been bullied, the abuser has been abused, the attacker has been
attacked, the one who takes from others has had much taken away. Now imagine
throwing all the bullies, abusers, attackers, and thieves together in a
confined space. That’s called prison.
Considering
that violence and abuse beget violence and abuse, it is not hard to imagine
that prison life often intensifies issues rather than addressing them. Some
people in our prisons want out of this cycle of pain and self-destruction, but
that is hard to do in such surroundings.
At
Springhill Federal Institution in Springhill, Nova Scotia, options are available.
Inside the prison gates, Concilio Prison Ministry operates the St. Luke’s
Renewal Centre, a yellow bungalow with a kitchen/dining area, a living room, a
meditation room, and five small bedrooms. Here, an inmate seeking to explore
and resolve issues can take a half- or full-day retreat and attend workshops on
healthy spirituality and relationships. Here, an inmate can find a listening
ear and a welcoming heart, a safe place to open up and be vulnerable. Here, an
inmate can experience a home-like atmosphere where they are a person rather
than just another inmate.
St.
Luke’s Renewal Centre is an outreach program supported by Mission and Service.
Please make a generous Mission and Service gift to keep this vibrant ministry
going.
September
30—Speaking Out Together
Mission and Service supports KAIROS, a coalition of justice groups in
Canada. Together, we learn about international ethical issues and call
attention to injustice. Here’s one example.
Canadian
global mining was on the minds of 100 church leaders from around the world.
They were at a 2011 ecological and social justice meeting in Toronto sponsored
by KAIROS.
“It
was the world church coming to talk with Canadian churches about the behaviour
of some of our resource companies,” said Jim Hodgson, South America/Caribbean
program coordinator for the United Church.
Canada
has led the world in mining exploration spending since 2004, and the outlook
for mining in Canada remains strong. However, some Canadian mining companies
are involved in human rights violations and environmental abuse. These
companies do not respect international law regarding the right of indigenous
communities to free, prior, and informed consent.
The
United Church has a serious role to play in calling these companies to account
on matters of human rights and environmental protection. Your gift to Mission
and Service ensures we have that voice.
The
KAIROS meeting was just one way that the United Church seeks to address issues
related to justice and environmental issues. Working with groups like KAIROS,
we can explore concerns and learn from and support each other. With Mission and
Service, we build strong relationships and we speak together on rights for all
creation.
Many people in the world give thanks for the support of The United
Church of Canada, while others are grateful for their new life unaware of
United Church help. That’s because through Mission and Service, we work behind
the scenes with agencies across Canada.
Michael
got another chance at life when he was 55. It happened at the Claremont House
program run by Wesley Urban Ministries in Hamilton, Ontario, which receives
funding from Mission and Service.
Michael
comes from a large, close family and has a good education, as well as success
in several career paths. He is also an alcoholic. Michael was a patient of many
centres and programs over the years with no long-term success. He consistently
relapsed, lost his job, money, and home, and stayed at Wesley Centre for
extended periods.
In
2010, a social worker recommended the Claremont House program. This special
care unit supports people with chronic alcoholism who have had little success
with traditional addiction programs. Three weeks after arriving at Claremont
House, Michael contacted his son and slowly reconnected with other family
members as he learned to moderate his alcohol intake. Today, Michael abstains
from alcohol and works to understand his issues and to communicate more openly.
Thanks
to Claremont House and Michael’s determination, he is rebuilding his life. He
knows that it is a long journey, but he feels he is now on the right track and
very lucky to have been given another chance.
Your
generous gift to Mission and Service will allow us to continue funding
life-giving programs like this one. Happy Thanksgiving!
Our church addresses the issues of hunger and food security in many ways
through Mission and Service. Here is a story about how Mission and Service
helps feed the hungry in Canada.
For
many, balancing the costs of rent, food, electricity, and other bills against
the size of the paycheque is impossible. Costs far outweigh revenue, and
something has to give. Often that means not enough food for the month.
According to Food Banks Canada’s own tracking, nearly 900,000 people, many of them
children, visited food banks across Canada in March 2010 alone.*
In
Ontario, the Minden Food Bank provides emergency food to families unable to
purchase adequate food from their income. From a church basement 20 years ago,
the food bank has grown into its own rented premises with 30 volunteers and a
board of directors.
Since
2007, the Minden Food Bank has received an annual grant from Mission and
Service that helps serve 75 to 80 families each month, providing each family
with an average of seven bags of groceries. Minden Food Bank also contributes
to Community Care Meals on Wheels for seniors and the Food for Kids program at
local schools. At Christmas, they provide hampers of food and gifts to over 150
families.
When
you give a gift to Mission and Service, you help feed Canadians in need. With
Minden Food Bank, you buy formula for babies, food for 200 children every
month, and put groceries in the cupboard for struggling senior citizens.
Please
give generously to Mission and Service.
*Food Banks Canada, “Hunger Facts 2010,”
www.cafb-acba.ca/factsandstats.htm
October
21—Mission and Service Angels
Mission and Service is the work we do as The United Church of Canada
around the world and in Canada, and it is funded by voluntary gifts. Keeping
the stories alive and the giving regular are duties of a group of volunteers
called the M&S Enthusiasts. Here are two Enthusiast stories from Montreal
and Ottawa Conference.
Cheerleaders,
angels, spokespersons—they go by many names but the contribution is invaluable.
Sometimes called “Mission and Service Angels” because of their devotion to
Mission and Service, they feel passionate about bringing Mission and Service to
life in their congregations.
At
Riceville-Pendleton Pastoral Charge, Seaway Valley Presbytery, for example,
it’s all in the family. For 50 years, Mary Clemens was the faithful Mission and
Service spokesperson and now her daughter Karen Hovey has the job. Mary
introduced many fundraising ideas over the years, some of which are still on
the go. She also suggested that the loose offering on the first Sunday of the
month go to Mission and Service. This pastoral charge is fortunate to have
dedicated M&S Enthusiasts.
Charles
Curtis was chair of the Valois United Church Mission and Service Committee in
Montreal Presbytery for 33 years and is still an active committee member.
Charles helped involve the Sunday school in sharing stories of Mission and
Service. The Juniors read a Minute for Mission in worship once a month, and
each year they undertake a project to raise money for Mission and Service.
How
are you supporting the Mission and Service of the United Church, with your
talent, time, treasure, or passion?
[available in French (online
only)/disponible en français (en ligne seulement) Visit www.united‑church.ca and search
for “minutes for mission.” Visitez le site www.united-church.ca et recherchez
“minutes for mission.”]
Many children don’t get an education. Sometimes, it’s because they are
poor, and without schooling they may continue to live in poverty. Mission and
Service partners are working to make sure kids learn.
In
Managua, Nicaragua, many children support their families by working as street
sellers. Sometimes, they also live on the streets. Sometimes, they are helping
to earn money because their parents can’t find enough work to look after their
family. Our Mission and Service partner, Los Quinchos School, gives an
education and job training to 900 such children—children who would otherwise
not be able to go to school.
Los
Quinchos is aware that working children and their families have different
problems and needs than regular families. The school has flexible schedules so
that kids can work and still go to class. Teachers make special efforts to
involve moms and dads in their children’s education. The school offers a meal
program because the breakfast or lunch served there is the only meal many of
the children will get all day.
The
Los Quinchos program focuses on basic education and also teaches attitudes and
behaviour. The staff try to teach kids to be responsible, to be generous, and
to respect rules and other people. They also teach moms and dads how to be
better parents and show them how important it is for their children to stay at
school.
Your
Mission and Service gift makes it possible for street kids in Nicaragua to get
an education; it makes it possible for them to get a better life.
Please
give generously to Mission and Service so we can keep helping this important
school.
*Pronounced “lohs keen chose”
[matched with a companion video View at www.youtube.com/unitedchurchofcanada, or download from www.united-church.ca
and search for “minutes for mission.”]
Through Mission and Service, we become aware of global conditions and
can better speak out against injustice. With Mission and Service support,
Sherry Ann Chapman worked with the Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in
Palestine and Israel and shares her perspective.
The new Jerusalem light rail train (JLRT) has a sleek
design and is part of a supposed improved infrastructure in East Jerusalem, but
it is a bizarre sight amid the crumbling environment there. Despite paying into
the same tax system as people from West Jerusalem, residents of East Jerusalem
are watching their area fall apart.
East Jerusalem is occupied, yet through the JLRT,
illegal settlers are being given easy access to work, school, and other
activities. By creating this people-mover system, the Israeli government is
proceeding to annex East Jerusalem, which is illegal under international
humanitarian law. To build the JLRT tracks, the Israeli government expropriated
Palestinian private property, roadways, and parking spaces, and shoppers are
now less able to support local businesses. Only three of the 23 stops on this
first JLRT line are in Palestinian areas; the rest serve West Jerusalem and
illegal settlements.
Violence is not only about war; it can include control
of roads, destruction of infrastructure, and economic exclusion. After three
months of riding the bus in East Jerusalem, I see that this is mind-bendingly
subtle, silent violence.
Through
Mission and Service and global personnel such as Sherry Ann, we can hear about
these silent forms of violence as much as we hear news headlines. With
increased awareness, we are better able to contribute to a just peace as global
citizens.
November
11—Speaking with One Voice
Marking the end of the World Council of Churches’ Ecumenical Decade to
Overcome Violence, over 1,000 people attended a convocation in 2011 in Jamaica.
Thanks to Mission and Service, the United Church was there.
Glory
to God and peace on Earth form a common dream and prayer in Christian liturgy.
“Yet in addition to dreams and declarations of peace,” says the general
secretary of the World Council of Churches, “we must do everything in our power
to promote justice and peaceful cooperation among peoples and nations.”
Peace
builders from around the world travelled to Jamaica to declare peace as a gift
and responsibility. The conference celebrated achievements of the decade and
encouraged individuals and churches to renew their commitment to nonviolence,
peace, and justice.
Conference
participants were unified in the hope that war should become illegal and peace
central in all religious traditions. “Our journey must continue,” said the
conference moderator. “We shall hold each other accountable. The church is
either accepting the call to just peace or it is not the church at all.”
A
delegation from The United Church of Canada attended the convocation and shared
stories of peace building in Canada and contributed to the development of the
Ecumenical Declaration on Just Peace.
Through
Mission and Service, we work with others to bring peace to the world. Your
gifts to Mission and Service make it possible for the United Church to
participate in ecumenical and interfaith events as partners of the church in
the world.
November
18—Supporting Children and Families
The United Church supports the rights of children around the world
through Mission and Service. Here’s a story of Mission and Service work for
children in Canada.
They
say that it takes a village to raise a child. That village becomes especially
vital if you are a single parent, living in poverty, with no family support, no
access to child care, and suffering from your own health or emotional problems.
Mission
and Service allows us to be part of the village. Centenary-Queen Square Care
Centres in Greater Saint John, New Brunswick, use Mission and Service funds to
operate a child development centre for socially and economically disadvantaged
children.
Families
living in poverty cannot always provide proper nutrition so that their children
develop physically, emotionally, and cognitively. Centenary-Queen Square
provides a well-balanced breakfast, hot lunch, and afternoon snacks, and its
child development program has a positive and lasting effect on these young
lives.
How
important are your Mission and Service gifts for this work? The need is great:
statistics say that despite great improvements one in eight children in New
Brunswick still live in poverty. Children make up more than a third of those
served by food banks.* Mission and Service helps cover the difference between
the fees for a child development program and the provincial daycare subsidy.
Your gifts to Mission and Service make sure that kids in Saint John have a
chance at a better life.
*Human Development Council and Campaign 2000,
“Child Poverty Report Card: New Brunswick, November 2010,” www.campaign2000.ca
[available in French (online only)/disponible en
français (en ligne seulement) Visit www.united‑church.ca and search for “minutes for
mission.” Visitez le site www.united-church.ca et recherchez “minutes for
mission.”]
(You need 4 readers, 4 glasses, and a medium jug of water. At the start
of the skit, without speaking, One begins filling glasses but runs out of
water.)
One: Oh, great! Now what?
Two: It’s not really a big deal. The tap is just down the hall! Not
everyone in the world is so lucky. Did you know that almost 900 million people
don’t have enough clean water daily and that 80 percent of all sickness is
because of unclean water?
One: Yikes! Are we doing anything in church about world water problems?
Three: Mission and Service partners work on safe water all over the place!
One M&S partner, the Department of Service to Palestinian Refugees, builds
cisterns to collect water for Palestinian communities and trains people how to
look after them.
Four: Another Mission and Service partner, People’s Action Forum,
works with villagers in Zambia to plan how to find and deliver safe, clean
water closer to homes.
Two: A Mission and Service partner in Nicaragua,
the Moravian Church, has a water purification plant in the city of Bilwi.
Three: Our Mission and Service partner, The Ecumenical Water Network,
brings together churches to work on water problems in places like Uganda,
Kenya, and Nigeria.
Four: Mining companies have really messed up water sources in places
in El Salvador, the Philippines, and even in Canada. Mission and Service
partners try to prevent it.
One: Thank goodness, we are trying to make sure people stop dying
for a glass of water. Let’s go fill up the jug, and (looks at the congregation)
next time you have a glass of water, you might think about what a good job your
Mission and Service gifts are doing addressing the world’s water problems.
All: Cheers!
On this first Sunday of Advent, it is fitting hear a Mission and Service
story about hope through The Hope Centre of Welland, Ontario, which has
received Mission and Service funds for many of its 37 years.
Dave
and Sharon, a married couple with their own home, never thought that they would
be homeless. The trouble started when Dave was injured on the job and they
could no longer make their mortgage payments. With a promise of work for Sharon
in Quebec, they packed just the essentials and set off to a job that never
materialized.
Living
from shelter to shelter, they arrived at Hope Centre in Welland, Ontario, where
they were helped to finding housing and connected with other community
resources. Sharon is now attending an adult learning centre, Dave volunteers in
the Hope Centre food bank, and they are involved with a local church. Their
life is getting back on track!
Hope
Centre services include an emergency hostel, soup kitchen, food bank, community
garden, housing support programs, and a literacy and basic skills classroom.
The area served by The Hope Centre is economically depressed with major
unemployment. In fact, some of those who financially supported The Hope Centre
in the past now need the services themselves. Mission and Service funds are
vital to Hope’s quest to grow to serve the needs of the area.
The
Hope Centre is grateful for your generosity to Mission and Service and vows to
be an intentional, focused steward of the Mission and Service gifts entrusted
to it.
Give
a gift of hope today.
December
9—Peace in the Family
On the second Sunday of Advent we think of peace. Today’s Mission and
Service story is about a young woman who found peace in her life thanks to a
Mission and Service partner. She asks that we just call her PH.
“Thank
you from the bottom of my heart,” PH writes. “I am so grateful for my new life
and I know that it is only possible because of the donations of caring people.”
PH
and her family moved to Canada from the Middle East, where they were persecuted
because of their religion. She and her sister wanted to get an education and to
make a better life for all of them. “I made some mistakes,” admits PH. “I was
shocked to find myself pregnant and abandoned by my boyfriend. Yet at the same
time I knew how blessed I was to be living in Canada with my baby instead of
Iran.”
“Nothing
was peaceful in my life after that,” she says. “My parents were devastated. I
tried living with my sister and her family, but there was too much tension and
stress. I was in a downward spiral until I found Bethlehem Place.”
Support
workers at Bethlehem Place found her affordable housing, furniture,
counselling, and educational opportunities. Her son is now a happy, healthy
baby, and PH is attending night school and getting along better with her
family.
Mission
and Service supports the programs of Bethlehem Place in St. Catharines,
Ontario. Please make a generous gift to Mission and Service this Advent season.
December
16—The Wheels on the Bus!
Today we light the candle of joy. Mission and Service gifts bring joy to
people every day. Enjoy this delightful Mission and Service story.
Right
on time, a bright yellow school bus turned the corner.
Overcast
and windy, it would have been a dreary day except for the palpable excitement
of dozens of Camp Cosmos campers at St. James United Church in Montreal,
Quebec.
As
the kids scrambled onto the bus and the counsellors did a head count three times
for good measure, the sun broke through the clouds. “Look! Train tracks!” cried
one camper. “Maybe we’ll even see a train!” exclaimed another. Just as amazing
was the contemplation of another, usually agitated, child. Full of wonder, he
quietly soaked up the sights as they got closer to Quinn Farm on Île-Perrot.
« C’est la première fois que je sors du centre-ville, » he whispered.
(“It’s the first time I’ve ever left the city.”)
The
joy of the bus ride paled in comparison to the thrill of feeding farm animals!
The kids were rapt with attention learning about beekeeping and honey
production, and they were proud to take home corn that they had harvested
themselves. As the bus neared St. James at the end of the day, one camper asked
earnestly, “Are we back in Canada already?”
This
trip offered city campers brand-new experiences of life outside downtown. It
filled them with a sense of life, wonder, and possibilities.
Camp
Cosmos is a project of the Montreal City Mission, supported by Mission and
Service. Please give generously and bring joy to a child.
[available in French (online
only)/disponible en français (en ligne seulement) Visit www.united‑church.ca and
search for “minutes for mission.” Visitez le site www.united-church.ca et
recherchez “minutes for mission.”]
Today, as we light the candle of love, we think of a new family in
Bethlehem—we think of our own family. Today’s Mission and Service story tells
how we are offering family love and support to many who would otherwise be
alone and lost.
These
days, Our Place is a safe refuge for hundreds and a home to 45 men and
women—people like Ed who lost touch with his family over the years and has seen
his share of hard luck. Ed has been clothed and fed at Our Place and now is in
its transitional housing to be near cancer treatment facilities. Our Place is
home to Steve who is battling drug and alcohol addictions and who receives
support that enables him to continue rehab. It is home to Jim who spent a
lifetime working at dangerous jobs and who paid for it with his health and his
family. Now despite the falls and accidents and heartbreaks, Jim has found a
home at Our Place.
Our
Place is a Mission and Service partner in Victoria, British Columbia, providing
transitional housing and a hand-up to the men and women who inhabit its
residential rooms. The dining room and nutrition bar serve over 1,200
nutritious meals a week. The drop-in centre offers a multitude of programs, as
well as being a place of welcome and shelter. Sixty people take a hot shower
each day at the hygiene area.
Our
Place is a place of hope and belonging. Reflecting on his retirement from Our
Place, the Rev. David Stewart said, “Affordable housing is vital, but housing
isn’t the be-all and the end-all. Having a home is!”
[matched with a companion video View at www.youtube.com/unitedchurchofcanada, or download from www.united-church.ca
and search for “minutes for mission.”]
December
24/25—We Have Seen His Star
Karen and Bill Butt were Mission and Service global personnel who served
in Mozambique for 12 years. As they visited the Maritime Conference on their
return, they had many stories to share, but they also have a message for us
about what they saw in our church.
All
through Maritime Conference we met enthusiastic Mission and Service supporters
in vibrant congregations. Many people said they felt encouraged at seeing how
Mission and Service dollars are put to work in Mozambique. We ended our mission
education tour encouraged and inspired at what United Churches are achieving.
In
Matthew’s gospel, the eastern star was about new energy and vision. That was
the case for us throughout the Maritimes where United Churches remain strong.
The ones we saw keep an innovative sense of mission:
Local
congregations that hold up the Mission and Service of the church while
supporting local outreach and their local congregations; thriving youth groups
who actively participate and fundraise; conscious efforts to education and
inspire United Church children with Sunday school lessons and vacation Bible
schools focusing on Mission and Service; sharing space and events with
ecumenical and interfaith groups to share stories of mission.
We
thank God for 12 years in Mozambique, with all its challenges and blessings,
and thank all those who supported that Mission and Service work and who shared
our stories through the years.
In
Mission and Service,
Karen and Bill Butt
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