April 29, 2026

ST. JOHN’S, NL — Queen’s College, a Christ-centred Anglican theological college founded in 1841 in Newfoundland and Labrador, is an inclusive community dedicated to theological learning, ordination training, spiritual formation, and sending forth disciples to transform society through God’s love.

As the Rev. Dr. Joanne Mercer retires as Provost in June 2026, the Corporation of Queen’s College and the three Anglican dioceses of Newfoundland and Labrador will launch a comprehensive strategic planning process. This initiative will clarify the College’s vision, strategic directions, and pathway to long-term sustainability over the next five to ten years.

The process will include broad consultation with students, faculty, staff, the three dioceses, partner denominations, other faith traditions, and Memorial University. To ensure strong continuity and stability during this important transition, the Corporation has decided:

Appointment of Interim Administrator: An Interim Administrator will be appointed upon Dr. Mercer’s retirement. The Corporation is pleased to announce the appointment of the Rev. Dr. Robert Cooke as Interim Administrator, effective 1 July 2026, for a two-year term. Dr. Cooke is a longtime member of the Queen’s College community, currently serving as Lecturer and Dean of Theology.

Strategic Planning Leadership: A skilled resource person, supported by a small advisory group, will lead the strategic planning process. This will include a review of other theological colleges and wide stakeholder consultations, with recommendations delivered to the Corporation by late Spring 2027.

Provost Recruitment: Subject to the findings of the strategic process, the recruitment for a new Provost will begin in early 2028, with an anticipated appointment by June 2028.

Operational Continuity: All current academic programs, student services, admissions, and daily operations will continue without interruption throughout the transition period.

Regular updates will be provided to the Queen’s College community as the process unfolds. Stakeholders are encouraged to participate in the consultation process; details on how to contribute will be shared in the near future.

Rooted in its rich 185-year tradition and open to diverse expressions of faith, Queen’s College looks forward with excitement to a renewed and sustainable vision committed to forming leaders and building a more just and peaceful world.

For more information about Queen’s College, please contact:

Queen’s College https://queenscollegenl.ca/contact-us/

Phone: (709) 753-0116

www.queenscollegenl.ca

The post News From Queen’s College appeared first on Anglican Life.

St. Columba (c. 521–597) is an Irish patron saint who also became a patron of Scotland. Alongside St. Patrick and St. Brigid, he is one of the most famous figures in the Irish Church. In addition to being the patron saint of the city of Derry and of bookbinders, he is the saint people pray to when there is a risk of a flood.

Born in County Donegal, Columba is believed to have been the son of noble parents, though much of his early life rests more in the realm of myth and holy tradition than in fact. We do know that his baptismal name, Colum, means “dove” in Latin.

Columba studied in Ireland and was ordained a priest around the year 551, subsequently founding several monastic communities and churches. Around 563, he and 12 followers traveled by small boat to the island of Iona in the Inner Hebrides, using that place as a base for the Christian conversion of Scotland. The religious community founded there was viewed as the “mother house” of his missionary expansion. He finished his days there, living a simple monastic life, and excavations have even found the cell in which he lived.

During his life, Columba played a significant role in religious politics, and met with Pictish King Bridei at Inverness (and won his respect, though he did not convert to Christianity). Columba also performed miracles, including banishing a water monster from the River Ness, sometimes considered to be the first recorded mention of the Loch Ness monster. He also was a great writer, and worked to preserve literacy in the region.

Columba’s final resting place remains a subject of debate. Some accounts say he was buried on Iona, while others place his burial in Saul, Northern Ireland, beside Saints Patrick and Brigid. Because of this uncertainty, both sites have become popular places of pilgrimage. In addition to those places, several of his relics are preserved in the National Museum of Ireland. So if you want a connection to Columba, you have a few places to choose from!

Today, the Iona Community carries on his legacy. The current community was established in 1938, and is made up of individuals from a wide variety of Christian backgrounds who seek to both reimagine and maintain the spirit of Columba’s mission. Through extensive preservation and restoration of the island’s monastic ruins, services are once again held in the rebuilt Iona Abbey, standing as a living example of “a community dedicated to prayer in action” (which is how they describe themselves on their website).

Over 1,400 years after his death, Columba’s vision of intertwined spiritual and material life lives on. His faith and witness remind us to go out into the world, to spread the Gospel, and put our prayers into action within our own communities.

A Prayer of Saint Columba, from the Church of Ireland:
Kindle in our hearts, O God, the flame of love that never ceases, that it may burn in us, giving light to others. May we shine for ever in your temple, set on fire with your eternal light, even your Son Jesus Christ, our saviour and redeemer. Amen.

The post St. Columba: Who Was The Abbot of Iona? appeared first on Anglican Life.

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Without wanting to spoil anyone’s well-deserved downtime, it is worth remembering that food insecurity, wars, and other conflicts and natural disasters don’t take vacations; long after the story has faded from the front sections of our news sources and our own minds, the needs of women, men, children, and the rest of creation continue unabated. And, of course, there will likely be new crises as the 2026 wildfire season ramps up.

One story that we haven’t heard much about for several months is Hurricane Melissa and the massive damage it inflicted upon Jamaica last fall. From our partners in Jamaica we have learned that after hurricane made landfall, the Diocese of Jamaica and the Cayman Islands immediately put its emergency response into action supporting urgent needs. Alongside Hope and other Anglican agencies met with the diocese to see what help and support would be useful as it recovered. Donations began pouring in.

The earliest needs identified across the affected western regions of the country were access to drinkable water, food, and temporary shelter materials such as tarpaulins. Many communities were difficult to reach due to damaged roads, unstable terrain, and blocked access routes. To address this, the Diocesan Task Force established satellite distribution points in the most affected regions, enabling teams to reach remote and underserved communities that were otherwise inaccessible.

With communication infrastructure severely disrupted, church congregations became critical information hubs. Church members relayed updates, often through sporadic mobile signals or messages sent via community contacts, which were essential for guiding Task Force decisions. These timely field reports helped identify urgent hotspots, prioritize areas where support was most needed, and inform the deployment of supplies and personnel. Local congregations served as trusted access points for communities. Their established relationships made it easier to identify vulnerable households, verify needs, and ensure that assistance was delivered safely and respectfully. In many cases, congregations also provided temporary storage, meeting spaces, and staging areas for relief operations.

Church volunteers formed the backbone of the operational response. They sorted, packaged, and labeled care items; loaded vehicles; and supported deliveries to remote and hard-to-reach communities. Their willingness to work long hours under demanding conditions significantly reduced logistical costs and enabled the Diocese to expand the speed and geographical reach of distribution efforts. With additional supplies and support made available from the local and overseas partners, the immediate needs for food, water, and personal care items were largely met.

Now, attention has gradually shifted to the more long-term concern of shelter. The Diocese recognized that tarpaulins, while useful for emergency shelters, were insufficient in the face of continued rainfall and high winds. As a result, plans for the construction of permanent shelters have begun and this will take significant human and financial resources to accomplish.

The Jamaica Emergency Appeal that Alongside Hope established back in the fall remains active and accepting donations, either online at:
https://wl.donorperfect.net/weblink/WebLink.aspx?name=E344492QE&id=113, by telephone at 1-866-308-7973, or by mail to 80 Hayden Street, 3rd Floor, Toronto, ON, M4Y 3G2. And, please, continue to pray for the resilient people of Jamaica as they attempt to rebuild their homes and their lives.

Your parish might like to organize a summer fundraiser specifically for Jamaica, or for Alongside Hope more generally. Summer is a great time to do something like this while many regular church activities are on a break. Personally, you may wish to consider becoming a member of Partners in Hope, the name given to our band of monthly donors. Let’s try to grow this group into a strong partnership that will allow Alongside Hope to know where its next dollar is coming from and respond more quickly as needs arise.

May God bless you all with a time of rest and refreshment this summer.

Donate to Alongside Hope’s Jamaica Emergency appeal. Give online or by phone at. Or you can mail a cheque to Alongside Hope, 80 Hayden Street, 3rd Floor, Toronto, ON, Canada, M4Y 3G2. Please indicate “Jamaica” in the memo field.

The post In The Good Old Summertime, Come Alongside Alongside Hope appeared first on Anglican Life.

However, this year, all parishes in our community—and indeed most of Eastern Newfoundland—suffered an interruption to this special worship. Due to a severe winter snowstorm on February 18th, the ceremony had to be rescheduled. A similar weather event on Sunday, February 22nd, necessitated a second cancellation. Fortunately, thanks to modern technology, Canon Jotie was able to livestream the sermon from his home.

During the forty days of Lent, Canon Jotie delivered an appropriate lesson each Wednesday and Sunday leading up to Easter Day on April 5th. Each delivery was focussed on the Light of the World, while at the same time recognizing the brokenness and God’s grace and mercy in prayerful healing and restoration.

On Tuesday, March 31st, our ACW ladies assembled and held a 7:00 pm service, which was arranged by president Betty Hiscock in compliance with our regular Lenten celebrations.

The Good Friday service on April 3rd, was focused on the Stations of the Cross. The line of parishioners, led by Canon Jodie, marched, then stopped to acknowledge each station, and read an applicable scriptural passage for each one. It was a special time for those who witnessed and participated in this rich tradition.

With snow in the air and flurries on the ground, we gathered at 7:00 am on Easter Sunday to welcome the morning with the Service of Light, New Fire, and Holy Eucharist, followed by the traditional Easter breakfast downstairs.

Then at 10:30 am, all the parishioners who were present, engaged in the Renewal of Baptismal Vows and Holy Eucharist.

It was a rewarding finale to the forty days of Lent, and the birth of another Easter Day.

Then God said, Let there be Light.
And there was Light.
– Genesis 1:3

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On average, 60 people are served weekly by 20 volunteers from across the city’s churches. In the summer months, the congregations from the churches in Pasadena and the Bay of Islands provide respite as they serve a takeout meal of sandwiches or a BBQ.

We strive to provide a nutritious meal served with respect and dignity, as well as a welcoming space to congregate for those who are hungry, lonely, or simply wish to gather around the table with familiar faces. The need continues to grow, but so too does the response of those who provide the food, come to serve, or donate monetarily to allow this valuable ministry to thrive during difficult times.

“we serve until all are fed”.

The post Humber Deanery’s Open Door: Twelve Years of Hospitality appeared first on Anglican Life.

When inserted on the tabletop of the altar, known as the “mensa,” it gives continuity from the Church of the past to the Church of the present and the future. Often, the relics used in these stones are that of a martyr, someone who died for their faith. This is done to hold true to the belief that the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church. This symbolized the martyr’s tomb, where the early Church celebrated the Eucharist. This was specially the case before Christianity became a publicly recognized religion by the emperor Constentine in 381. Underneath the stone is normally held the documentation concerning the consecration of the altar itself.

The first Good Friday that I went to Howley was 2022. When I approached the altar, to my surprise, there was an altar stone! People would not normally know that it is there because every day, with the exception of during the Easter Tridium when the altar is stripped, the altar stone is not visible to the worshipping community. This year (2026), going to Howley for the Celebration of the Lord’s Passion, before the arrival of the worshipping community, I took this photo of the altar stone, so that I could share it with you.

If anyone knows any of the history behind the current altar in the Church of the Ascension in Howley, I would certainly love to find out the story behind this beautiful piece of our faith.

The post Sacred Foundations: The Altar Stone in Howley appeared first on Anglican Life.

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One Sunday morning, a mother went in to wake her son and tell him it was time to get ready for church, to which he replied, “I’m not going.” “Why not?” she asked. “I’ll give you two good reasons,” he said. “One, they don’t like me, and two, I don’t like them.” His mother replied, “I’ll give you two good reasons why you should go to church. One, you’re 54 years old, and two, you’re the priest!”

Yes, even clergy have those moments when it seems more appealing to pull the covers up and steal a few more precious moments of sleep than to “go to church.”

And yet, that familiar phrase, “going to church,” may point to part of a deeper problem.

For many, church has come to feel like one activity among many, one destination among others: we go to the bank, go to the store, go to a game… and, if it suits us, we go to church. But from the beginning of the Christian faith, “Church” has meant something far more.

In the New Testament, Church is not primarily a place we go, but a people who are gathered. More to the point, it is a people gathered by God. The initiative does not rest with us. God is the one who calls, who draws, who brings people together so that, together, they may become something in and for the world.

The apostle Paul gives this vision its most powerful expression in the image of the Church as the Body of Christ. Across the centuries, Christians have returned to that image again and again, along with others like it: a family, a community, a spiritual house built of “living stones.” (1 Peter 2:5) Each points to the same truth: the Church is not a static institution or a weekly appointment, but a living, breathing reality, an organic gathering that owes its existence to the One who gathers.

This is why the absence of gathering in our time matters more than we might think. When gathering becomes occasional or optional, something essential is diminished, not only in our own lives, but in the life we share with one another.

Some of these thoughts found their way into my annual message to the congregations in the Parish of Salvage, where I currently serve. Here is a brief excerpt:

“…gathering for worship has always been more than attending an event. It is an act of care for one another. The Letter to the Hebrews urges Christians to meet together so that they may ‘encourage one another.’ Often, we do not know who needed to see us that day – or whom we needed to see—until we arrive.”

You may be reading this on a weekday. But even now, God is at work, drawing you and others together for that shared encounter with the risen Christ. And when Sunday comes, we do not simply go. We are gathered.

Someone may be waiting for your presence… though neither of you knows it yet.

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