Parts of New York City September 25 were more awash than usual with diplomats, business leaders, royalty, advocates young and old, Episcopalians and Anglicans as the United Nations convened a day-long “high-level event” aimed at gaining a recommitment from the world’s leaders to the Millennium Development Goals.
Archbishop Fred Hiltz, the Anglican Primate, and Bishop Susan Johnson, National Evangelical Lutheran Bishop, have asked Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper to restate his support for the Millennium Development Goals.
On Sept. 25, Canadian Anglicans and Lutherans, along with ecumenical partners, will march in Ottawa, Ont. to urge the Canadian government to meet their commitment to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The “Walk of Witness: Bringing it Home” was inspired by a July 24 walk in London, England, when 1,500 bishops and others marched in support of the MDGs as part of the 2008 Lambeth Conference.
“How can we put some meat on the bones of this relationship?” This question propelled a Sept. 3 and 4 meeting between staff from the Anglican Church of Canada (ACC) and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC). Since 2001, the two denominations have been in “full communion,” a relationship that allows for interchangeability of clergy, and other commitments outlined in the Waterloo Declaration.
Victoria Matthews, former Bishop of Edmonton, was installed as Bishop of Christchurch New Zealand on the weekend.
This Saturday, Aug. 30, National Indigenous Anglican Bishop Mark MacDonald will preach at the installation service of Victoria Matthews as diocesan bishop of Christchurch, New Zealand. Bishop MacDonald and Bishop Matthews are friends and former colleagues in the Anglican Church of Canada. Bishop Matthews served as bishop of Edmonton for ten years and was a candidate for Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada at General Synod 2007. She was named the eighth bishop of Christchurch in March 2008.
The Primate and the General Secretary of the General Synod are pleased to announce, on behalf of the Anglican Church of Canada, that Dr. Holland Lee Hendrix has been appointed Executive Director of Philanthropy.
As the Lambeth Conference of 2008 comes to an end, I want to offer some further reflections of my own on what the bishops gathered in Canterbury have learned and experienced. Those of you who have been present here will be able to share your own insights with your people, but it may be useful for me to add my own perspectives as to where we have been led.
As 1000-plus youth joined together singing the poignant words to “Holy Moment,” the 2008 Canadian Lutheran Youth Gathering (CLYG) concluded its four days among the picturesque backdrop of the mountains in Whitehorse, Yukon. During the gathering, youth from across the country came together for fellowship and a time of reflection and left the gathering with a call to action to be leaders in their communities and a light of Christ in the world.
On Nov. 1, the Pension Office Corp. of the Anglican Church of Canada will move from the national office at 80 Hayden St., Toronto, to a new site one block away.
Bishop Terry Michael Brown of the Diocese of Malaita officially retired August 18 as spiritual leader of one of the largest dioceses in the Church of Melanesia in the Solomon Islands.
Returning to Canada after three months in laidback, humid Belize was a bit of a jolt, but Chelsy Stevens is feeling positive. “I certainly learned a lot about my faith, about Christianity, and hospitality,” she said in an interview after her return on Aug. 9. “It was a great experience and I’m glad I had the opportunity to form a partnership with brothers and sisters across the world.”
Over 1,000 youth from across Canada will travel to Whitehorse, Yukon, to take part in the 2008 Canadian Lutheran Youth Gathering (CLYG) August 14 to 17 and participate in a variety of events, acts of service, advocacy and prayer that organizers hope will encourage participants to think consciously about the burden our unsustainable lifestyles have imposed upon the environment and the urgency of learning to travel lightly. CLYG will provide youth with an opportunity to explore what role they can play in Travelling Lightly both individually and in their communities.
When Bishop Sue Moxley got back to Halifax after the Lambeth Conference, she was surprised at how popular her blog (online journal) had been. People in her diocese, particularly those under 35, were quite excited, and friends further afield, in Ireland and South Africa, had enjoyed keeping up. “Even when I went to get my hair cut, the hairdresser had been reading it!” she said.
When someone becomes a Christian, how does the church make sure they are properly educated before they are baptised? When Christianity was the dominant religion, knowing the faith was not a problem, but in post-Christendom Canada, people often need a refresher (or an intensive seminar) when they convert, return to faith, or present their children for infant baptism.