Anglican Life is the official newspaper for the three dioceses of the Anglican Church of Canada in Newfoundland and Labrador.
Multicultural Fellowship at St. Mark’s
From the upcoming December issue of Anglican Life:
St Mark’s Church fellowship group in St. John’s hosted a welcome get together for the Multicultural Ladies Organization on Wednesday, October 9th, 2019. The ladies were interested in the display of items for outreach; extra items will be sold at the fall sale.
Newfoundland goodies, including molasses and partridgeberry tarts, went well with a cup of tea. China cups were there for anyone preferring a pretty cup over a mug!
There was a buzz of conversations as we exchanged ideas regarding quilting and knitting. And as we used to end our minutes in the old ACW, “a good time was had by all.”
The Ecumenical Congregation of St. Luke, as it is now known, is thought to be the first of its kind within the Anglican Church of Canada, and will hereafter be recognized as a stand-alone community within the Anglican Church, contributing to the collective ministry of its Diocese. The Rev’d Christopher Fowler was inducted as Vicar of the congregation during the celebratory Eucharist, and a post-service reception was enjoyed by all.
Bishop John went on to talk about the patience shown to his family as confused but enthusiastic members of the Anglican Church. He spoke of the generous ways that we today listen to the “pain of Indigenous peoples, oppressed women, sexual and industrial slaves, belittled minorities; people who have been and still are being trapped in the darkness of human greed and capitalist avarice.” He stressed that these conversations that are now taking place within the Anglican Church of Canada about LGTBQ+ people is about justice and about listening to the Holy Spirit.
As a newly ordained priest in my first parish consisting of congregations in Arnold’s Cove, Come By Chance, North Harbour, and Sunnyside, I spent most of the first year listening and observing. One morning while facing the congregation at Saint Michael and All Angels in Arnold’s Cove, I wondered “where are the men?” The community of Arnold’s Cove had a population of approximately 1,000 people and it was estimated that at least sixty percent had an Anglican background. Average Sunday attendance would be less than 35 people, the great majority of whom were female. While some were widows and there were a few men, there is an obvious disconnect in the number of men attending worship. Where were the men and why did they not come to church?
Dr. Koyle spoke of how the way that we look at things determines what we will see and how we need to let the future lead us just as much as we do the past. As Christians, we are shaped by what we will become—by where the Holy Spirit is leading, and by God’s promised tomorrow. He asked if we felt that we are living in a time of crisis for the church, which it is clear that we are. However, it was suugested that this is not a crisis of membership, but rather one of realising who needs to be relevant to whom. As the church, we no longer have a monopoly on religion, and so we must find our market niche. The problem that we have is not that the gospel has become irrelavant to society, but that the kingdom of God has become irrelevant to the church. Again, it is not about trying to attract people to us—not about creating programs and adapting to their needs—but about making ourselves more attractive people by how we live our lives. There are plenty of people of love in the world, and our job is to find them. Congregation is not a problem to be solved, but is a blessing to be released.
