The Saskatchewan Anglican, June 2019

Saskatchewan

anglican

The newspaper of the Dioceses of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon and Qu’Appelle • A Section of the Anglican Journal • June 2019

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Religious icons and analysis of gospels discussed at joint clergy retreat

By Rev. Peter Coolen

During the first two presentations of the 2019 clergy retreat, Fr. Vladimir Lysak talked about the history of, and the symbology contained in, religious icons, as well as a detailed explanation of the process for the design of icons and the preparation of the boards and the egg tempera paints.

Photo by the Very Rev. Scot Pittendrigh

SASKATOON — The Dioceses of Qu’Appelle and Saskatoon recently held a clergy retreat at the Queen’s House of Retreats in Saskatoon.

Bishops Rob Hardwick and Chris Harper were present for the retreat and presided at the morning Eucharists. In addition to the usual Holy Eucharist, Evening Prayer and compline services, the attendees had time for attending lectures, socializing, times of silence and meditation, and shared meals together.

During the first day, Fr. Vladimir Lysak gave three presentations on the history of, and the symbology contained in, religious icons.

He also gave a detailed explanation of the process for the design and preparation of egg tempera paints, gold and silver leaf and wooden panels for the painting (writing) of icons and their protection and restoration.

This was followed by a several-hours-long

demonstration of the preparation of the wooden board used for an icon and the techniques of grinding pigment, making egg tempera paint and painting, as well as demonstrating the beginning of creating, and partially painting, an icon.

The morning of the second day of the retreat provided time for Bishop Chris to give a talk on the issues, opportunities and problems related to native spirituality and the religious observance of these practices as a part of church life and as a part of the process of reconciliation in the public sphere — especially in large urban environments such as Toronto.

He also reflected on his life and practice in the church.

The bishop displayed and explained the significance of the various unique features of his crozier, which had been handmade for him by his family to reflect and symbolize, in its construction, his Indigenous spirituality.

Continued on page 8

Retired priest continues to stay in touch with his first parish

By Joanne Shurvin-Martin

Rev. Arthur Cuzner keeps in contact with the parish of St. Matthew, Regina, where he was ordained deacon 65 years ago and served as curate.

Photo contributed

REGINA — For many years, Rev. Arthur Cuzner had flowers in memory of his wife placed on the altar of St. Matthew’s Church, where he was ordained deacon and where he served as curate from 1954-55.

For the past three years, instead of flowers he donated to the St. Matthew’s restoration fund, in memory of Shirley.

With his most recent letter to the parish, he enclosed a photo of himself, wearing a red stole that had been given to him by Rev. Ronald Dow.

Cuzner and Dow both attended St. Chad’s Theological College, Regina. When Dow moved back to England in 1958, he gave the stole to Cuzner. Dow died in 2010.

Dow and Cuzner were part of the second-largest ordination in the Diocese of Qu’Appelle, on Ascension Day, May 17, 1954. Dow was ordained to the priesthood and Cuzner as deacon.

Bishop Michael Coleman ordained seven priest and nine deacons that day.

The largest general ordination was held on the Feast of St. Mark the Evangelist,

March 25, 1929, when 11 priests and nine deacons were ordained by Bishop Malcolm Taylor McAdam Harding in St. Chad’s College Chapel.

After serving as curate at St. Matthew’s, Cuzner was appointed vicar of Eston (1955-56), and then rector of St. George the Martyr, Moose Jaw (1956-60). He then moved to the Diocese of Calgary.

Cuzner reports that for the past 13 years he has been serving in the parish of All Saints, Bedford, Nova Scotia.

Thanks to Canon Trevor Powell, diocesan archivist, for his help with this article.

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The Saskatchewan Anglican

June 2019

General Synod 2019

Delegates discuss hopes, fears for General Synod Editor's note: The Saskatchewan Anglican invited every delegate from our three dioceses who are going to General Synod to contribute a column discussing what they are looking forward to this July.

These are the submissions we received.

Happiness in marriage for all

By Wendy Godfrey Lay delegate from St. Giles Anglican Church, Estevan, for the Diocese of Qu’Appelle

I

am honoured to have been chosen as a delegate for General Synod.

I’m excited to hear about the candidates for Primate and feel great to ultimately help decide who will take over for Archbishop Fred Hiltz, who has done a wonderful job in that role for the past 12 years. This is such an important task, as the role of Primate is a huge responsibility.

It will take the right person to fulfil the duties required to lead our church throughout this country.

I’m looking forward to the discussions around proposed changes to the marriage canon.

The theme of this year’s General Synod is “I Have Called You By Name.”

This line from the book of Isaiah is followed by the words, “You are mine.”

Indeed, each of us belongs to God, no matter who we are or who we love!

Throughout the Bible we are assured that we are loved just as we are. All we are asked to do in return is to love God and to love our neighbours as ourselves.

I take this to mean we should simply love everyone, and if we love them, shouldn’t we want happiness for them? My marriage has brought me many years of happiness.

I would also love to see everyone have the opportunity to have that kind of happiness. I don’t feel any of us have the right to judge who anyone chooses as a life partner. I know there will be strong opinions on both sides of this issue, but I’m hopeful we can discuss this subject openly and respectfully.

I am happy to be going

to General Synod and learning more about how the church runs at the national level.

It will be great to participate in discussions and decision-making with fellow Anglicans from across the country!

Stanley Park, a sunset stroll along English Bay Beach, and maybe even a meal at a favourite restaurant in Gastown.

Serving as a loving delegate

By John Rye Lay delegate from the Diocese of Saskatchewan

Rev. Dean Pinter Clergy delegate from St. Aidan, Moose Jaw for Diocese of Qu’Appelle

A

s I think about and try to prepare for this summer’s upcoming General Synod in Vancouver, I am reminded of the lines from a prayer by the Australian cartoonist, Michael Leunig. Leunig writes, “There are only two motives,/two procedures, two frameworks/two results./Love and fear” (When I talk to You: A Cartoonist Talks to God).

Love and fear. That sums up my thoughts about General Synod succinctly and accurately.

I love the Anglican Church, but I have fears when I think about some of the power dynamics at play in the Anglican Church of Canada; dynamics that will be worked out publicly during this General Synod – if the last synod is any indication.

In this environment, I want to serve as a loving delegate and not a fearful delegate. As best I can, I’m trying to give my fears over to God in prayer as I also lean into the love of God. Otherwise, what am I looking forward to at General Synod?

I’m looking forward to meeting with old friends, to pray and worship together with them, and to learn from them.

I’m looking forward to the opportunity to make new friends and to broaden my knowledge of the Anglican Church of Canada.

I used to live in Vancouver for about five years in the 1990s and enjoyed the natural beauty and vibrant culture this city offers. I would be remiss, then, not to say that I’m also looking forward to a few good early morning walks around

Listen to what the Holy Spirit says

G

oing to General Synod in Vancouver 2019, we need to hear and act on what the Holy Spirit is saying, confirmed by Scripture and Scripturally validated traditions.

When there, we need to elect a primate, officers and council that will diligently do this too.

I think that our greatest problem is in reaching and sustaining Anglican faith in the 13 to 23-year-old age group, a time when most will have lived in multiple parishes and dioceses due to education and employment needs.

All too often, they will take everything but their church to college or the oil patch. Failure in this area means that we do not see families returning to our rural churches.

For more than 50 years, we have experienced a decline in numbers, finances and our ability to advocate for positive change in our communities.

We have frequently hurt those, including those we love most, so repentance is essential but not sufficient.

During this period, both number of Christians and the number of Anglicans in the world have increased faster than general population, primarily in East Asia and Africa, largely without abandoning either biblical orthodoxy or cultural integrity.

We need to intentionally listen to the growing Anglican churches of the global south as well as our veterans, new immigrants and the growing churches in our own country.

We must never again see our largest parish in the Anglican Church — St. John’s Shaughnessy, Vancouver — deprived of its building by its diocese

through secular courts.

We have been told that we need to tie our marriage canon to change automatically with Canadian law, however radical or reactionary it becomes.

We have been told that irrespective of the vote on the motion, everyone will do whatever they like without consequences locally or internationally. This is not the future for which those in my diocese long.

I am excited that the aboriginal part of our church is moving to be self-governing, selfpropagating and selfsustaining; I am excited about the closer working relationship with the Mennonite churches especially in disaster relief.

It may be this work will not be done during the more than 20 pieces of liturgy or the formal repeats of debates of issues discussed repeated for decades that feature on the agenda.

However, it could happen in conversations over meals, time of prayer in the prayer rooms of Anglican Fellowship of Prayer or the sacred circle, or enjoying the best and worst of Vancouver.

Most of all, we need a revival that starts but does not finish with us.

At our last meeting of the Council of General Synod, Primate Fred Hiltz called on us to pray for revival ref lecting the World Council of Churches’ Arusha Call to Discipleship, presented

by Bishop Mark McDonald.

If I may finish by quoting this, “We are called to proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ — the repentance and forgiveness of sin, and the promise of eternal life — in word and deed, in a violent world where many have not yet heard the gospel … .

“We are called to be faithful witnesses of God’s transforming love in dialogue with people of other faiths … .

“This is not a call that we can answer in our own strength, so the call becomes in the end a call to prayer.”

Thank you for trusting me with this ministry.

Published by the Dioceses of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon and Qu’Appelle.

Published monthly except for July and August.

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CONTACT INFORMATION Managing Editor: Jason Antonio SKAnglicanEditor@gmail. com 1501 College Ave Regina, Sask., S4P 1B8 Phone: 306-737-4898 Qu’Appelle: Joanne Shurvin-Martin joannesm@myaccess.ca 6927 Farrell Bay Regina, Sask.,

S4X 3V4 Phone: 306-775-2629 Saskatoon: Peter Coolen ptrcoolen@sasktel.net 820 Avenue I South, Saskatoon, Sask., S7M 1Z3 Phone: 306-244-0935, Saskatchewan: Mary Brown mary1949brown@gmail.com Box 25, Shellbrook, Sask., S0J 2E0 306-922-5159 Advertising agent: Angela Rush saskatchewan.anglican.ads@ gmail.com 905-630-0390 PUBLISHING DETAILS Published from 59 Roberts Place Regina, Sask., S4T 6K5

June 2019

Come, Holy Spirit, come

By Bishop Michael Hawkins

W

ind and Fire are the first signs of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost and they speak to us of something we cannot see and cannot control.

Jesus teaches us that God is a spirit, which means God is without body, parts or passions.

The Letter to the Hebrews reminds us that “our God is a consuming fire.” Fire speaks to the holiness of God, wind to the incorporeality. The fiery wind represents the Holy Spirit.

We all desperately need wind and fire, a breath of fresh air and fire in the belly. That is the breath of life, of new life, the fire that gives light to minds and warmth to hearts. It also gives new knowledge and love that burst forth in tongues of universal praise and proclamation.

A breath of fresh air and a new fire are reviving.

They are also what we need because the embers are few and growing dark and we are weary and faint. We need to be re-inspired.

God breathed into the dust the breath of life and we became a living being.

Now in this new creation, God’s saving recreation, we are born again by the inbreathing of the Holy Spirit.

It is the wind and breath of God that brings life to dead and dry bones.

We need to be set on fire, by the fire of God’s love. If you feel tired, out of breath, spiritually and emotionally drained, not sure of much and not interested by much, the promise of Pentecost is for you.

The first gift of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost had to do with communication.

This new communication was one of praise to God and proclamation to the

world.

Since the gift of the Holy Spirit has to do with relation, a relationship of knowledge and love, our new relationship with God and with one another, there is new and restored communication.

“In our own languages we hear them speaking about God’s deeds of power.” What was remarkable to the crowd was the communication barrier had been broken down.

The Gospel was preached in a way and a language, that all these different people could understand. They said as much as, Now you’re speaking my language. The message was not lost in translation.

This is the undoing of the curse of Babel. There is a new unity, the reunion of the human family, restored to communion and communication through Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit.

That unity, that oneness of heart, is also expressed in prayer, praise and proclamation.

We pray together in the Spirit, we praise together in the Spirit and we proclaim together in the Spirit.

It was later that morning that Peter preached simply and clearly about how God sent Jesus into the world, how Jesus taught and did so

The Saskatchewan Anglican

many wondrous things, was condemned, tortured and executed.

He was an innocent man who rose again the third day and ascended into heaven. His message to the people was also simply, your sins may be forgiven.

That means your relationship with God may be restored, and with one another and within yourself. It is a message of hope and healing for all.

But that day Peter said something equally remarkable. He told the people this gift of the Holy Spirit was not just for the Twelve or some select few.

He told them, “You will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

Jesus puts our relation to the Holy Spirit in two ways. One, He abides with you. Two, He will be in you. The Holy Spirit is the Lord, the Giver of Life, and we are aware of His presence and power. We know that in Him we live and move and have our being.

But there is something new promised here. He abides with you, right now, and He will be in you.

The Spirit of God is not just out there. God is not just up there, over there,

far off, not even just beside you — He will be in you.

That indwelling of the Spirit is the gift of Christ at Pentecost.

What does it mean for us to have the Holy Spirit in us? By the indwelling of the Holy Spirit we have the presence of Jesus, the power of Jesus and the love and friendship of Jesus with us always and everywhere.

By the Spirit we know Jesus. We see Him, we hear Him, we feed with Him, we talk with Him in the Holy Spirit.

The Spirit brings us Jesus’ new and eternal life. The Holy Spirit in us makes us the temple of God, the dwelling place of the Father and the Son. By the Holy Spirit we are also taught, we are granted faith and we are recalled to the teaching of Christ. Finally, by the Holy Spirit Christ gives His peace to our hearts and minds.

Wind and Fire, the breath of life and the fire of love, these may be ours.

God is life and God is love. God is our life and our love, and the life and love of God may be ours through Jesus Christ and in the Holy Spirit.

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The Saskatchewan Anglican

June 2019

DIOCESE OF QU’APPELLE

Family Alpha provides creative take on film series program

By Julie Moser Diocesan Youth and Children’s missioner REGINA — The Alpha film series is a series of sessions about the Christian faith. Youth Alpha follows similar content and structure, however, the sessions are interactive; the presentation is paused at various times to allow for discussion.

Alpha is run for adults and Youth Alpha is run for teens, however, the first-ever Family Alpha for all ages was run for the St. Cuthbert Archdeaconry … actually it was the first Family Alpha for the Diocese of Qu’Appelle … no wait, the first Family Alpha for Canada … actually, make that the first Family Alpha in the world!

Well, we can’t really

verify if it was the first one in the world, but when Alpha Canada was approached to help answer some logistical questions on running a Family Alpha, it acknowledged that it had never heard of this being done.

The idea came from Jennifer Jacobs, a parent in the archdeaconry, who noted she would like to see a Family Alpha where people could bring their whole family to enjoy the Alpha experience.

The first “come and see” night, held at St Mary’s,

Regina, was held Feb. 17, while the series ran until April 7. Using the Youth Alpha Film Series, it was designed for families to attend together.

People were encouraged to come as a family for supper, followed by a Youth Alpha film and discussion time. Those under age 12 had a children’s program during the presentation discussion time.

Usually Alpha participants sit at the same table each week for the meal, presentation and discussion. However, since whole

families were attending, families would arrive and sit in their family groups.

When dessert was served, everyone broke into their table groups for the presentation. There were adult tables, a senior youths table and a junior youths table.

Since the Youth Alpha Film Series was being used, the adult table leaders were also provided with the adult discussion questions from the Adult Alpha Film Series for those wanting a more in-depth conversation.

These were just a few of the logistical questions that needed to be answered to create a Family Alpha scenario.

It was wonderful to see families joining in this faith journey together.

There were singles, couples, parents with children, and grandpar-

ents with grandchildren.

At the end of the series, one mother shared that she appreciated being able to watch the same presentation as her children and to ask them at home how they answered the questions in their group.

Organizers and participants thank St. Mary’s for hosting the event and Becca Sweetville and her team of volunteers who cooked up a storm for families every week.

They somehow managing to cater for every dietary need!

This Family Alpha was a pilot with an attempt to reach whole families and provide an environment where families could learn and grow together.

The hope is to see more parishes and archdeaconries try this and enjoy the intergenerational ministry of a family Alpha.

DIOCESE OF SASKATOON

Announcements for June 2019 Saskatchewan Anglican online!

You can read current and past issues of the Saskatchewan Anglican online at https://issuu.com/ thesaskatchewananglican or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ saskatchewananglican. g What is our bishop up to?

Check out the Bishop’s Calendar on the redesigned, new and improved diocesan website. g Prayer Breakfast: The Battlefords 2019 Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast will be held at St. Paul’s Anglican Church, 1302 95th Street, North Battleford on Saturday, May 25, from 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. (doors open at 8:00 a.m.).

Tickets are $25; guest speaker is Bill Adsit.

Contact Keith at 306-441-4322 or Kerry at 306-612-3025 for more information. Tickets are available from a variety of locations in the Battlefords, on the web or at the door. g Ministry for Survivors: An ongoing ministry open to anyone who is post-trauma in need of prayerful support is now available in Saskatoon.

This ministry includes/may include creative expression through dance and painting for healing of the inner child with Common Praise and Taizé Hymns, Psalms, sharing circle, grounding medita-

tion and weekly themes. Place is St. Matthew’s Anglican Church, Saskatoon.

Time is the first Monday of each month (except statutory holidays and the months of July and August), from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. The facilitator is Karen Walter. Phone 639-480-6274 for more information. g The 2019 National Indigenous Peoples Community Prayer Service: The service, which will be held on Sunday, June 23, at 3 p.m. at St. John’s Cathedral, Saskatoon.

This will be a multi-faith prayer service, where religious leaders from many faith traditions, politicians, and indigenous and non-indigenous community leaders and the citizens of Saskatoon will come together to recommit, as treaty people, to uphold and strengthen their relationships with their indigenous sisters and brothers and celebrate the richness and diversity of Saskatoon.

The speaker for this service will be the Right Rev. Christopher Harper, Bishop of Saskatoon. g The following events are open to the public and presented in co-operation with the Prairie Centre for Ecumenism, as it celebrates its 35 anniversary and in association with the PCE’s third Program of Ecumenical Studies and Forma-

tions Course.

While the curriculum classes are limited to registered participants, there are several events being held during the week to which the public is welcome and invited:

ceremony will also take place at the gala.

For more information on these PCE events please visit www. pcecumenism.ca or phone 306-6531633.

On Tuesday, June 21, at St. Stephen’s Anglican Church, 10 Grosvenor Crescent, Michael Kinnamon will make a presentation based on his literary works. The event begins at 7:30 p.m. with a wine and cheese reception to follow.

On Wednesday, June 22, at 7:30 p.m. at Mayfair United Church, 902 33rd Street West, a panel discussion is planned.

Panel members are Canon Alyson Barnett-Cowan, Rev. Jordan Cantwell, moderator of the United Church of Canada, and Roman Catholic Bishop Donald Bolen, a member of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity.

Coffee and dessert follow.

On Thursday, June 23, the third public event of the week is the PCE’s gala banquet at the German Cultural Centre. Tickets for the banquet are $50, available at 306-653-1633.

g Celtic Evening Service in Saskatoon: The Celtic Evening Eucharist Service continues in its second year at St. George’s Anglican Church, 624 Ave. I South, Saskatoon. Services are held every Tuesday night at 7 p.m.

There will be a silent auction and the musical entertainment from Wires & Wood, a Latin/jazz ensemble.

The Ecumenical Studies and Formation course graduation

g Community Coffee House and Bible Study: The Parish of St. George’s, Saskatoon holds its weekly coffee house and Bible study every Thursday from 9 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.

The Bible study is held from 10:30 a.m. to about noon. All events are in the Parish Hall, 624 Ave. I South.

Deadline To be included in a timely manner, brief notices should be sent to the Associate Editor by e-mail or “snail mail” by the last week of the month, two months before the month in which insertion is desired (for example, December submissions will be in the February issue).

Detailed and longer texts of upcoming events will not be included here, but should space allow, could be the subject of article and notices elsewhere in the paper.

June 2019

The Saskatchewan Anglican

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Changes coming to Anglican Church this July

By Jason G. Antonio Managing Editor

T

he national church’s every-three-year General Synod takes place from July 10 to 16 in Vancouver, British Columbia.

I thought for this column I would touch on some of the issues General Synod will discuss and vote on. Delegates will have received a package with all the motions. If you want to see some of the motions, visit https://gs2019. anglican.ca.

Marriage Canon

The Marriage Canon and whether to change it to allow for same-sex marriage is the gigantic elephant in the room.

Since this is considered doctrine, a vote on this topic has to happen twice.

The first vote took place in 2016; this July will be the second vote. How it turns out — only God knows. However, either way, the outcome will not please everyone.

Should the vote not pass, then lawlessness will accelerate throughout the Church. What I mean is, dioceses that have been

waiting for the national church to authorize same-sex marriage will now go ahead. They will join about nine other dioceses that have decided to allow homosexual marriage even though it is not officially authorized.

When the initial vote failed in 2016, five dioceses went ahead with allowing same-sex marriages. They had already planned to do this if the vote failed, based on the news releases they put out saying they were disappointed and going ahead anyway.

These decisions went against the current canons, but they used the reason of pastoral care to do it anyway.

Now, should the vote pass, then same-sex

DIOCESE OF SASKATCHEWAN

Diocese remembers efforts of two women

By Mary Brown PRINCE ALBERT — The Rev Rachel Custer from St. Peter’s Church in Deschambault Lake died on |March 31.

About this time last year Rachel’s husband Joe passed away. Similar to many of our indigenous clergy, their spouses played an important role in their ministry.

Whenever Rachel would phone the Synod Office I would talk to Joe first. I would hear Rachel in the background telling him what to say, or he would yell to Rachel and ask her what to say.

Eventually Rachel would come on the line with her request.

Rachel and Joe were faithful students of the James Settee College.

Rachel was ordained a

deacon on Oct. 18, 1996 and a priest on Nov. 13, 2003. I will remember her humility, but also remember her as a feisty character.

We pray they are reunited in heaven.

Also, Evelyn Burns from St. Stephen’s Church in Fort a la Corne died on April 24. Burns was a recipient of the Order of Saskatchewan in 2015.

She was a lay reader for many years and a member of the elder’s council. She attended all of the James Settee College sessions and was a very learned and wise elder in her community.

She worked with residential school survivors, encouraging them to forgive and put their trust in God. Burns will be greatly missed by her church and community. We are grateful for her time with us.

marriage will be allowed.

However, what needs to be noted is, as part of the vote, there is also an amendment to protect those Anglicans who hold to the biblical, traditional historic view of marriage between a man and a woman. They will be allowed to continue teaching this view.

This amendment is important since it will give protection to clergy and lay people to hold these views in dioceses and parishes that don’t agree with them. While ostracism can still happen and people might be made to feel bad, the amendment will at least guarantee that these Anglicans still have a place in the ACoC.

Self-determination

The Aboriginal constituency wants to be a self-determining church, which it sees as part of reconciliation efforts.

How this is going to look is anybody’s guess. There has been much talk about what kind of independent Aboriginal church is wanted, but there has not been much that is concrete.

While First Nations want their own church, they still want to be part of the ACoC. However, for this to happen, the national church must change how it operates — including many of its operational structures — in order for a parallel Aboriginal church to spring up.

So, whether a fifth

ecclesiastical province is created, or the national church becomes one giant diocese for Aboriginals, we’ll find out in July.

Anglican Journal

One thing is for sure, the Anglican Journal and diocesan newspaper in print form likely have about three years left before they are phased out.

I say this with 90-per-cent certainty.

All the internal changes for the Journal — including a new governance board and new editorial mandate — have been created.

COGS voted in favour of these changes — I voted against them, but a consensus model doesn’t show this in the end — and sent the changes to General Synod.

Many people in the pews still enjoy reading the Journal and this newspaper, the Saskatchewan Anglican, in print form. The loss of the diocesan newspapers would create a giant communications hole in some dioceses.

Human trafficking and modern slavery

This one I am actually interested in and excited about.

General Synod is being asked to condemn human trafficking and modern slavery; urge the ACoC to engage governments at all levels on this topic; have the national church disseminate liturgical, theological and

educational materials around this; have dioceses and provinces work with networks to combat this issue; and maintain and support a national network.

It is understood that the pornography industry contributes to human trafficking and slavery. So, here’s hoping something gets into this motion to condemn porn use while also condemning trafficking.

Gender-neutral psalms

Apparently for the past five years, the faith, worship and liturgy committee has worked on a book of Psalms that removes all male pronouns to refer to God as He. I voted against this motion at COGS because it blows my mind that the national church would create an official document with this change.

Yes, I realize God is a spiritual being and therefore has no sex or gender. However, since Jesus said to refer to Him as Our Father, that’s good enough for me.

Simply because some people have rejected historic Christian teaching doesn’t mean the national church should participate in that delusion.

Those are some of the many topics to come to General Synod this July.

Be sure to keep an eye on the Anglican Journal and its website for regular updates.

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The Saskatchewan Anglican

June 2019

One of you will betray me

By Rev. Marie-Louise Ternier

“

Be the person who breaks the cycle.

If you were judged, choose understanding.

If you were rejected, choose acceptance.

If you were shamed, choose compassion.

Be the person you needed when you were hurting, not the person who hurt you. Vow to be better than what broke you — to heal instead of becoming bitter so you can act from your heart, not your pain.”

Lori Deschene I am writing this reflection in Holy Week, a time of intense spiritual scrutiny as we accompany Jesus in His final days. The above words from Lori Deschene echo poignantly Jesus’ summons to live into another way, to relate to each other in another way than the adversarial model of the world with winners

and losers.

“One of you will betray me,” Jesus predicted at the Last Supper (John 13:21 - 33).

Only one betrayed Jesus? I’m afraid that all of us betray Jesus, all the time and in all places.

I see it most painfully among well-meaning Christians, especially when we disagree on how to live our sexuality in the context of Christian discipleship.

Anglicans have a particular duty to take Jesus’ summons seriously since we stake our unique contribution to Gospel discipleship on the quality of relationships, our bonds of affection. Paul Avis articulates this well in his book The Vocation of Anglicanism:

“Anglicanism seeks to hold together (often otherwise polarizing) truth in theology and practise in order that it may hold people together. (It does this by claiming) to be catholic and reformed, episcopal and synodical, universal and local, biblical and reasonable, traditional and open to fresh insight” (pg. 182).

We are heading into a most challenging General Synod. For those cherishing a traditional understanding of marriage, Jesus’ summons to relate differently is betrayed when regarding same-sex marriage supporters as heretics, and when convinced beyond a doubt of their own righteousness.

Supporters of same-sex marriage betray the same summons of our Lord when regarding opponents as homophobic, and when convinced beyond a doubt of their own righteousness.

Both sides dismiss the

good faith in the other.

Both dismiss the primacy of conscience in the other.

Both relate from a place of judgment and fear, anger and pain instead of trust, acceptance and compassion.

Then, in an uncanny look in the mirror, both reflect each other in their worst behaviours.

Acceptance in Christ runs deeper and is qualitatively distinct from approval and agreement.

Jesus brought a new way of belonging and relating to God and, by extension, to one another.

That new way challenges us to love radically in faithfulness to our God. This becomes particularly important in matters of deep disagreement. In his book A Letter to My Congregation, Ken Wilson writes:

that our convictions (...) differ, and those with whom we differ hold their convictions, as we do, unto the Lord.

“Inasmuch as this is not easy for us, we commit ourselves to bearing it as part of the disciple’s cross. (...) We recognize that human beings, made in God’s image, must strive for integrity and unity. Violating one’s conscience, even when it is mistaken, can do harm to that integrity. “(...) We must respect the measure of faith in a person without attempting to persuade them to act against it. (...) We practise this ... by recognizing that each of us stands or falls, lives or dies, unto the Lord. ... We ruthlessly practise the discipline of seeing those with whom we disagree in the best possible light, trusting God to judge their motives, intentions and heart better than we can” (pg. 114-115).

“The demands of acceptance require us to maintain a relationship of honour and respect with those with whom we may ardently disagree. We accept the fact

As Lori Deschene’s poem challenges us, can we vow to do better than what breaks us? Do we take seriously Paul’s words: “If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honoured, all rejoice together” (1 Cor. 12:26).

Can we muster the courage to appreciate that the Holy Spirit can draw us together in a powerful unity, despite very diverse perspectives and convictions? Only then do we offer a valid alternative to a world mired in polarization and controversy.

Trusting one another, presuming good faith, embracing instead of excluding; all this might feel like too heavy a cross to bear for proponents on both sides of the questions at hand. It will feel like dying to ourselves.

It will involve relinquishing the need to be right, and resisting the urge to use our pain and fear as weapons of mass destruction.

“Long before dogmas and doctrines, truth is a relationship of love patterned on the Trinity” (Pope Francis, 2016).

Let us not betray Jesus again as we engage the weighty disputed matters before us, lest the Anglican commitment to bonds of affection go down in history as a failed experiment.

I can hear the sighs of desperation and fear, impatience and frustration as I write this, in Holy Week.

And yet, do we, who profess Christ Jesus as Lord and pattern for our lives, have any choice?

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June 2019

Ecumenism provides a path forward

By Rev. Ron Rolheiser, OMI

I

was very blessed during my theological formation to have had the privilege of taking classes from two very renowned Catholic scholars, Avery Dulles and Raymond E. Brown.

The former was an ecclesiologist whose books often became textbooks that were prescribed reading in seminaries and theology schools.

The latter was a Scripture scholar whose scholarship stands out, almost singularly, still nearly 30 years after his death.

Nobody questions the scholarship, the personal integrity, or the faithcommitment of these men.

They were in different theological disciplines but what they shared, beyond the high respect of scholars and church persons everywhere, was a passion for ecumenism and a capacity to form deep friendships.

They also invite warm dialogue across every kind of denominational and inter-religious line.

Their books are studied not just in Roman Catholic circles, but in theological schools and seminaries in Protestant, Evangelical, Mormon, and Jewish seminaries as well.

Both were deeply respected for their openness, friendship, and graciousness towards those who held religious views different than their own.

Indeed, Raymond Brown spent some of his most productive years teaching at Union Theological Seminary in New York, even as he, a Sulpician priest, more than anything else cherished his Roman Catholic identity and priesthood.

After losing his own father and mother, he spoke of the Roman Catholic Church and his Sulpician community as “the family that still remains for me.”

What these two shared in their vision for ecumenism was this: The path towards Christian unity, the road that will eventu-

ally bring all sincere Christians together into one community, around one altar, is not the way of somehow winning the other over to our own particular denomination, of getting others to admit that they are wrong and that we are right and of them returning to the true flock, namely, our particular denomination.

In their view, that’s not the route forward, practi-

The Saskatchewan Anglican

ing and valuing what other churches have incarnated, of reading Scripture more deeply in search of what we have ignored and absented ourselves from, and of individually and collectively trying to live lives that are truer to Jesus Christ.

By doing this, by each of us and each church living the Gospel more fully, we will “progressively converge,” that is, as we grow closer to Christ, we will grow closer to each other and thus “progressively converge” around

Christ.

As we do that, we will eventually also find ourselves around one common altar and will see each other as part of the same community.

The path to unity then lies not in converting each other over, but in each of us living the Gospel more faithfully so as to grow closer to each other in Christ.

This doesn’t mean that we do not take our divisions seriously, that we simplistically assert Continued on page 10

cally or theologically.

The path forward needs to be, as Avery Dulles puts it, the path of “progressive convergence.” What is this path?

It begins with the honest admission by each of us that none of us, no one denomination, has the full truth, incarnates the full expression of church, and is fully faithful to the Home care Gospel.

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The Saskatchewan Anglican

June 2019

... Joint clergy retreat looks at religious icons, gospel analysis Continued from page 1 During the afternoon of the second day Bishop Rob, using his experience analyzing traffic accident reports in the police service in Great Britain, provided a forensic analysis of the four gospel Lenten narratives.

He created a stage of the Last Supper to explain the Gospel texts of that event in the time, space and

culture of Christ.

Although the final day of the retreat was unfortunately cut short by a water main break, the retreat provided a valuable mix of information, spiritual support, collegiality and reflective down-time for all participants prior to the start of the busiest part of the church year.

The retreat was held April 8 to 11.

At the annual gathering of Anglican Church Women, Rev. Dale Gillman described the work of many Christian organizations in Regina that support Aboriginal people.

Photo by Joanne Shurvin-Martin

ACW members encouraged to be bold and strong

By Joanne Shurvin-Martin REGINA — Women from across the diocese gathered to learn from the experiences of many others, such as First Nations lay women and a priest; Bishop Rob Hardwick and his wife Lorraine on their cross-Canada cycle pilgrimage last summer; how the Diocese of Mishamikoweesh was created and elected its first bishop; children and youths in the diocese; and a former refugee family that is thriving in its new home.

The meeting was April 13.

Bishop's bike tour

Diocesan ACW president, Sally Bishop, acknowledged that the meeting, at St. James the Apostle, Regina, was taking place on Treaty 4 land. Many of the speakers dealt with the history and current situation of First Nations peoples in the Anglican church.

Bishop Hardwick and Lorraine gave the first presentation of the day. With a slideshow to illustrate, they described their journey from Victoria, British Columbia to St. John’s, Nfld, with the bishop cycling and

Lorraine driving the SUV while towing the camping trailer.

The bishop described the three years of preparation for the pilgrimage — physical training and many logistical arrangements — as well as some of his experiences on the road and with people they met along the way.

Lorraine said much of her time was spent waiting with the vehicle and in campgrounds, while those times gave opportunities to share her faith with many individuals.

She referred to Joshua 1:9, Be strong and courageous; do not be frightened or dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.

“I could not have done it without God; He gave me courage,” she said.

Lorraine mentioned “earthly angels” who assisted them along the route, and the bishop asked, “How many angels do we miss each day because we are too busy?”

In Thunder Bay, they met with two chiefs, who said they had their hopes dashed many times, but were reassured that the bishop was praying all the time on his pilgrimage, because “we know God answers prayer.”

Uplifting the church

Bishop Hardwick concluded that much had been accomplished as a result of his pilgrimage, including building a medical centre in Burundi; money raised for Living the Mission; for diocesan children and youths’ programs; Qu’Appelle School of Mission and Ministry; and for national church programs for Indigenous peoples.

“But we still need to pray,” continued Hardwick, “for the long-term journey of reconciliation.”

In the third presentation given at the 2019 retreat, Fr. Vladimir Lysak gave a demonstration of the process of icon painting writing.

Photos by the Very Rev. Scot Pittendrigh

Answering God's call

Rev. Dale Gillman described her life, and said, “I was very blessed to not have experienced discrimination,” which she knows many other First Nations people have and continue to experience.

She credits some of that to having been well educated off the reserve. She also noted that she was the first native woman from Gordon’s First Nation to complete high school and the first to attend university.

Her grandfather had attended residential school, so he refused to let his children and grandchildren attend residential school. “I am so grateful for this.”

Continued next page

Bishop Chris Harper gave a presentation on native spirituality and reconciliation in an urban context, and explained the unique features of his crozier.

The Saskatchewan Anglican

June 2019

9

... ACW members encouraged to be bold and strong Continued from page 8 Gillman and her husband lived all across Canada during Bill’s 31-year career in the Canadian Forces. They retired to Comox, B.C., “but God had different plans,” says Gillman.

She says that in 1996 “God called me into ministry in the Anglican way, but first I had to be healed. I was embarrassed of being ‘Indian.’” When she told her husband that she felt she was called to move back to Punnichy, he said he wouldn’t move.

Gillman recalls, “I said to the Lord, ‘nothing I can do; you’ll have to do it all.’”

One day later, Bill agreed to the move.

Becoming ordained

Gillman was ordained deacon in 1999 and priested the following year. She has been serving St. Luke’s, Gordon’s First Nation, and says she hopes to retire at the end of this year.

In 2005 the diocese hired her to work with urban First Nations, while she investigated the many Christian organizations in Regina that minister to and support First Nations people in the city. She described the organizations and the wide variety of services they provide.

While visiting 36 different programs, Gillman says she received reconciliation herself, while the diocese also reconciled with the organizations because she represented the church and the diocese.

Learning the culture

Norah Wasacase from Holy Trinity, Yorkton, introduced herself as a retired registered nurse.

“Now that I’m retired I’m learning to be an ‘Indian.’”

She has become a fluent Cree speaker, is learning traditional dancing, and completed a four-day vision quest.

She said that her Cree name means Eagle Woman Flying in a Circle, and referred to the eagles that Bishop Rob Hardwick saw on his cycle pilgrimage, plus the theme of the gathering.

“I am strong,” said Wasacase, “but I’m not bold — I’m humble.”

Unlike Gillman, Wasacase received some of her education at residential school. Born

Norah Wasacase of Holy Trinity, Yorkton, told women from across the Diocese of Qu'Appelle about First Nation spirituality.

Photo by Joanne Shurvin-Martin in northern Manitoba, she attended the residential school at Dauphin, and then went on to nursing school.

She says she is grateful for the education she received. She credits her husband’s family with teaching her much of the prairie way of life as she listened to their stories and learned their traditions and culture.

Loving the Earth

“First Nations people are always grateful and appreciative of all that Mother Earth provided,” explained Wasacase.

She described how the nomadic peoples “carried their church in a bundle” and showed examples of some of the important items in the bundle: a pipe, eagle feather, sweet grass, sage, tobacco, a bowl for charcoal, and a piece of fur from the animals that guard the four directions of the circle.

Feeling guilty

Vivian Lewko of Holy Trinity Kamsack sent a written report, which was read by Sally Bishop.

Lewko began by writing, “I have had many sisters in Christ. Still, while I have been a blessed native woman, I am aware of the extremely unfair,

damaging situation that too many native women have had to endure.”

She said she feels guilt over her own blessedness, but wants to “give glory to the many sisters in Christ who have nurtured me – those Christ-filled friends.”

Lewko wrote, “I personally was blessed by being the godchild of one who took the godmother status more seriously than most.

This was Jennie Wright, a missionary teacher who was a close friend of my mother.”

After her mother died delivering her eighth baby, Lewko was the one who wrote to inform Wright.

“In due time, she wrote to Dad inviting him to allow me to attend the Qu’Appelle Diocesan School for Girls, in Regina, at her expense.

“It was a sacrifice for Dad, because he really needed his oldest to help raise the other six.

Nevertheless I went and they managed and I thrived in the glorious atmosphere of loving Sisters of St. John the Divine, and teachers and girls from all walks of life.”

Ugly truths

Writing of her almost 60 years at Holy Trinity Kamsack, Lewko said, “I thank God for being part of a small but active group of believers. ... As for my native brothers and sisters, I feel the joy of many good things happening.

“Surely our eyes have been opened to the ugly truths that have damaged individuals and families with injustice too cruel to easily accept.

I look enviously at young educated aboriginals who speak forth courageously and confidently.”

Cultural traditions

Retired Bishop David Ashdown spoke about the creation of the Diocese of Mishamikoweesh in 2014 and how its first bishop was elected.

Mishamikoweesh includes more than 25 First Nations communities in northwestern Ontario and northern Manitoba.

He recounted how an elder, Rev. Joel Bighead, said, “God has chosen a bishop for us and we have come today for Him to tell us who it is.” Instead of using paper ballots,

delegates stood behind the candidate they supported, but the candidates had their backs to the people so they could not tell how many people were in each line.

Ashdown, who returned to the Diocese of Qu’Appelle after serving as bishop of Keewatin and archbishop of Rupert’s Land, described “the four horsemen of assimilation” that are still serious issues in Canada.

He explained how in the days of colonial settlement, the church felt that peoples had to be assimilated into English society.

Assimilation

There were four main points to assimilation: 1) Loss of language: Ashdown said language is of course used to communicate, but also there are certain concepts that are not translatable. Without understanding the language, it is not possible to properly understand history.

2) Loss of family: At residential schools, no matter if staff had good intentions, it was impossible to give each child the love and attention he or she required. Generations grew up without knowing how to be a good parent.

3) Loss of community: while Europeans considered community as a collection of individuals, for many First Nations peoples, individuals exist only in community.

4) Loss of connection to creation: while Europeans see themselves in competition with nature, First Nations society sees itself as one with creation. “We have a responsibility not only for creation, but also to creation,” said Ashdown.

Youth work

The gathering also heard from Julie Moser, youth and children’s missioner. While she acknowledged many children leave the church when they become teens, she listed three reasons young people have given for why they didn’t leave: * They had a leader or adult who cared and invested in youth * They were spiritually fed * They had a group to which to belong Moser said, “Ladies, you

can be those adults, you can spiritually feed youth, and you can help create those groups.”

She thanked the ACW for supporting camps and events for children and youth in the diocese.

Moser reported that every single year the number of young people participating in camps, retreats and other events has increased.

Refugee family

Jamie Halpenny, from the host parish of St. James, gave an informative talk about the Moussa family, who arrived in Regina in December 2011 as refugees sponsored by the diocese.

As Christians in Iraq, they had a certain amount of protection, but that disappeared with the fall of Saddam Hussein. They fled Iraq for Syria, where their first daughter was born.

In Regina they have been involved in the whole community, especially in the church and with the Regina Open Door Society, helping other new arrivals. They have found a spiritual home at St. James, and recently moved into their own home, which they acquired through Habitat for Humanity.

(See the article in the March 2019 issue of the Saskatchewan Anglican.)

Anglican awards

Recording secretary Sharon Gibler reported on the 2018 National ACW conference in Prince Edward Island. As part of the financial report, there was discussion about the Anglican Merit Award, which started more than 40 years ago. It was agreed to move funds to earn a better interest rate for this bursary fund for youths.

The silent auction raised $152, due to those who bid and those who donated items. Along with the offering of $175 from the closing Eucharist service, the money was divided between the Bishop’s Discretionary Fund and Children and Youth Ministry.

ACW Diocesan Executive for 2019

President: Rosemary Barley Vice-president: vacant Secretary: Sharon Gibler

10

The Saskatchewan Anglican

June 2019

DIOCESE OF QU’APPELLE

Saltcoats looking after distribution of 2020 calendars

Back in the saddle again

On Easter Sunday afternoon, the Bishop Rob Hardwick, Rev. Michael Bruce and Nigel Salway took to their bicycles for a training ride around Wascana Lake. The bishop was schooling Michael and Nigel for possible participation in the 2019 Bishop’s Pilgrimage Cycle Ride. The ride will visit 10 churches in 7 days commencing July 30, 2019. Above, Bishop Rob shows Michael how to replace a bicycle saddle.

Photo by Nigel Salway

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g 2020 Church calendars St. Augustine Anglican Church, Saltcoats, will be handling the ordering of 2020 Church Calendars.

At this time the cost of the calendars is not known, but if you would like to place an order please contact Edith Maddaford at 306-744-2216 or esmadd@sasktel.net, or Sharon Gibler at 306-7442901 or s.s.gibler@sasktel. net.

Please place orders before July 31. g Gospel service Everyone is invited to an Old Time Gospel service on Saturday, June 29, at 3 p.m. at St. James the Apostle Anglican

Church, 1105 Empress Street, Regina.

The theme of the service will be based on I Saw the Light by Hank Williams.

Please bring your Bibles. Donations of canned cat and dog food will be collected for animal rescue centres.

See the St. James website for complete details at stjamestheapostleregina.wordpress.com. g Tea and bazaar St. Matthew’s Anglian Church Women will hold a tea and bazaar on Saturday, June 8 beginning at 1:30 p.m. at 2161 Winnipeg Street, Regina.

The annual fashion show will be held in October; watch for the date.

... Ecumenism Continued from page 7 that all denominations are equal, or that we justify our divisions today by pointing to divisions that already existed in the New Testament churches.

Rather, we must all begin by admitting that we do not possess the full truth and that we are in fact far from being fully faithful.

Given that starting point, Raymond E. Brown then gives this challenge to all the churches: “Recognition of the range of New Testament ecclesiological diversity makes the claim of any church to be absolutely faithful to the Scriptures much more complex.

“We are faithful but in our own specific way; and both ecumenics and biblical studies should make us aware that there are other ways of being faithful to which we do not do justice…in short, a frank study of the New Testament ecclesiologies should convince every Christian community that it is neglecting part of the New Testament witness ... .

“I contend that in a

divided Christianity, instead of reading the Bible to assure ourselves that we are right, we would do better to read it to discover where we have not been listening.

“As we Christians of different churches try to give hearing to the previously muffled voices, our views of the church will grow larger; and we will come closer to sharing common views.

“Then the Bible will be doing for us what Jesus did in His time, namely, convincing those who have ears to hear that all is not right, for God is asking of them more than they thought.”

Indeed: God is asking more of us than we think.

Used with permission of the author, Oblate Father Ron Rolheiser.

Currently, Father Rolheiser is serving as president of the Oblate School of Theology in San Antonio Texas.

He can be contacted through his website, www. ronrolheiser.com. Follow on Facebook www.facebook. com/ronrolheiser.

The Saskatchewan Anglican

June 2019

11

There are many roads to a moral theology

By Rev. Dr. Iain Luke Principal, College of Emmanuel & St. Chad

W

hat’s the right thing to do? This is a basic question of Christian faith, and it defines a part of the theological curriculum known as ethics, or moral theology.

Of course, it’s not just Christians who wonder about the right thing to do, so one of the key elements of this topic is identifying what we share with people of other faiths (or none), and what makes our ethics distinctively Christian.

The shared aspects show up in the various ways we frame, or think about, ethical questions.

For example, some forms of ethics are rules-based: consider, say, the Ten Commandments. Actions that follow the rules are moral, while breaking the rules is wrong. This is a way of thinking about ethics that shows up in many traditions, including Christianity.

Ethics can also be based on outcomes. Actions are good when they lead to good outcomes, and bad when they produce bad outcomes.

That’s a simplified version, to be sure, since you can’t always guarantee your action will get the intended effect, but you can build that uncertainty

into your ethical judgment.

The ethic of the Epistle of James reflects this focus, as does the secular ethic of the “greatest good for the greatest number.”

A third model of ethics, which predates Christianity and persists in the 21st century, is the virtue model. Here, the focus is on character, not actions: we aim to become better people, because then we will naturally do the right thing.

So you can ask yourself, is this what a good person would do? Answering that question doesn’t just guide your behaviour, it shapes who you are for the future as well.

Along with these shared models, there are shared problems posed in many ethical traditions. One of these is “the problem of the good,” which asks how we even know (or care) what right or wrong is, in the first place.

In a Christian account, good cannot be separated from God. This can be a challenge, if we make it seem arbitrary, as though good is only good, “because God said so”. That attitude takes us away from the shared human sense of right, and the struggle to follow it.

On the other hand, belief in the ultimate goodness of God can offer some positive contributions. It

Ministry plans urban farm at Toronto church Submitted TORONTO — A Diocese of Toronto ministry has partnered with a church to grow and distribute food to those in need.

In 2017, the Rev. Beverly Williams and her staff at Flemingdon Park Ministry had a conversation about the need for fresh, healthy produce for residents in Toronto’s Don Mills neighbourhood, which is home to many newcomers to Canada who struggle to make ends meet.

Williams had the idea of growing food, and by looking at Google Maps, she discovered that the Church of Our Saviour,

Don Mills, had a large swath of grass next to its church building.

With the blessing of the church and priest-incharge, the ministry team installed six raised garden beds on the property.

With donations and a $5,000 grant from a local natural food market, they were able to buy supplies to grow a variety of vegetables, herbs and fruit.

In the first month of operation, 227 families registered, totalling about 1,200 people.

The six raised garden beds have been replaced with 16 larger beds dug right into the soil.

— The Anglican

compels us to acknowledge the limitations on our ability to comprehend our own behaviour, while it challenges us to see ourselves as God sees us.

Similarly, ethicists draw the lines in different ways between one individual’s choices and larger social phenomena.

Are you responsible only for your own decisions, or are we all jointly responsible for the social system we create together?

Christian theology offers resources that can hold those two extremes together, affirming both personal responsibility and the human community.

The study of ethics, though, is not a theoretical exercise. It always comes down to the real-life decisions people have to make.

The role of faith in shaping these decisions should not be under-estimated.

When you wrestle with your conscience, you recognize that your convic-

tions make a difference in deciding what you are going to do.

You might seek out advice from friends who share your beliefs, or from clergy who can help you reflect on them.

On a broader scale, a congregation or a national church may build energy around a common understanding of what faith compels us to do, leading to action and advocacy.

Running through all these considerations is a common theme of relatedness. We care about the right thing to do, because we are connected to the people around us, and to the Earth on which we walk.

A human does not exist in isolation, but is always part of something larger.

For people who profess the Christian faith, our web of relationship includes God, while it includes the risen Christ.

More than anything, these are what characterize a

distinctively Christian angle on ethics.

Since God is a part of our ethical framework, we know we are not our own highest good, while we know our perception of the good is always incomplete.

So Christian ethics aims beyond what we can even imagine in the moment. We don’t always act with the humility that should accompany such a goal, but when we do, we do well!

Perhaps most practical of all, the companionship of the risen Christ is at the heart of genuine Christian decision-making. Knowing Jesus is alive, we do not need to count fear or selfprotection as part of our moral calculation.

Self-giving, even the offering of one’s life, takes on a positive value. Jesus’ on-going, present focus on the poor, the hungry, the grieving and the persecuted, also summons us to make our choices with those same people in mind.

12

The Saskatchewan Anglican

June 2019

Bishop Rob Hardwick gave a presentation during the 2019 clergy conference in Saskatoon that used police forensic analysis techniques to examine and develop the Lenten story, and created a stage set to explain the arrangement of the table, seating and the events of the Last Supper as detailed in the Gospel texts. He gave a similar presentation on Maundy Thursday at Living Spirit Centre in Regina.

Photo by the Very Rev. Scot Pittendrigh

Brent Langenburger from Bread of Life Lutheran Church played the role of Jesus at the Last Supper, reenacted in part at Living Spirit Centre.

Photo by Joanne Shurvin-Martin

A policeman's observations on The Last Supper

By Joanne Shurvin-Martin REGINA — Before Bishop Rob Hardwick wore a bishop’s mitre, or even a clerical collar, he wore the hat of an English Bobby.

On Maundy Thursday,

he used the observational skills from 13 years as a police officer to delve into details of Jesus’s Last Supper. His presentation took the place of a sermon at an ecumenical service at Living Spirit Centre.

Bishop Hardwick began

his presentation by saying that police know “if you get two or three witness statements that agree perfectly, you know that it is concocted.”

Therefore, it stands to reason that the four gospels do not record identical accounts of the Last Supper.

Four narrators read, each from one gospel, and Hardwick stopped the narration to give explanations. He pointed out that the earlier gospels — Matthew and Mark — are vague on details.

When Luke’s gospel was written a few decades later, persecution of

Christians had lessened, and it was safer to include names.

Hardwick also clarified that Leonardo da Vinci got almost all the details wrong in his famous painting. In Jesus’s time, diners reclined on cushions, leaning on their left elbow, at very low tables arranged in a sort of unequal U shape.

Tradition dictated where the host, guest of honour, bodyguard or friend, and steward would be placed.

Using details from all the gospels, Hardwick was able to show that Simon Peter was the steward,

and as such was the only person able to see all those at the table.

On the opposite side of the U were John as host, then Jesus as guest, and then, as the only person who could share a bowl with Jesus, was Judas.

Jesus would have had His back facing Judas, which demonstrates His vulnerability and acceptance of what Judas would do.

The congregation of about 100 completely filled the East Chapel at Living Spirit Centre.

The unique look at the familiar Last Supper story was both educational and moving.

The Saskatchewan Anglican

June 2019

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Prayer turns us to God and away from the world

By Mary Brown PRINCE ALBERT — They came from as far as Winnipeg in the east and as far west as Alberta to the third annual prayer conference, Joy of Praying, led by Bishop Stephen Andrews.

Bishop Andrews opened the conference by telling the participants that he and his wife Fawna spent some of their happiest years in Prince Albert.

As much as they like Toronto, their hearts remain in Saskatchewan.

They came to the diocese in 1994 where their two girls, Ellen and Clare, grew up.

He said his experience in ministry in Saskatchewan has been a valuable resource for him, while Bishop Michael Hawkins has been a great encouragement to him.

Andrews did not claim to be an expert on prayer, as he said he gets paid to pray and he hopes to get as much out of us as we get out of him.

We started our prayers by reading John 17, the intimate heartfelt prayer of Jesus to His father.

John has recorded this high priestly prayer in order for us to know Jesus (John 20:31): These have been written in order that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the son of God, and that through your faith in him you may have life.

Do you pray with your eyes open or closed? To pray is to turn away from the world towards God. We look to heaven, Jesus’ home, for wisdom and understanding.

As we pray, Jesus is also praying for us and His

Hundreds of people from Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba gathered in Prince Albert for a prayer conference, led by Bishop Stephen Andrews.

Photos by Mary Brown

Bishop Stephen Andrews church. You may notice that churches have very high ceilings and spires that draw the eyes to look up to heaven.

When we pray what can

we ask God? We can ask God to remind us of His goodness to us in the past, and to keep us from forgetfulness and ingratitude.

We can ask for a clearer understanding of who God is in the person of His Son. We can ask God to replace our fear with trust and courage.

We can ask God for wisdom and conviction.

In the Book of Common Prayer on page 653 there is a wonderful prayer called Veni, Creator Spiritus – Come, Holy Ghost, our souls inspire … . We spent a few minutes meditating on this prayer and discussing it.

If you have ever attended a service for the ordination to the priesthood, you will have heard it sung. I was so pleased when the bishop had us sing this prayer.

One obstacle to prayer is skepticism or doubt. The arrogant doubter has no real wish to believe, while in the case of Thomas, his doubt is honourable in search of the truth.

There are three aspects of prayer: Confidence – Jesus is confident God will answer prayer (John 16:23-24) Perseverance – ask and you will receive, but you need continuous asking

Submission – in prayer we tend to reflect trust in our judgment rather than trust in God’s judgment Remember Jesus’ prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane: Not my will but thine be done. Prayer keeps us in touch with God and is a lifeline in our Christian lives.

The conference ended with a Holy Communion service with stations for healing.

Bishop Hawkins presented Fawna and Stephen with gifts of books. As you can see in the picture, Bishop Andrews was very excited with his bird book.

Anglicans express emotions in wake of Easter bombings Anglican Journal TORONTO — The triumph of God’s love over death is one of the most powerful messages of Christianity and its holiest day. For St. Margaret’s Tamil Anglican Church in Toronto, that message took on particular resonance this Easter.

By the time St. Margaret’s gathered for its Easter Sunday service, parishioners had heard the terrible news from Sri Lanka, the native country of much of

the congregation. A series of coordinated suicide bombings targeting churches and hotels had occurred that would leave 253 people dead and more than 500 others injured.

The church bombings targeted three houses of worship during their Easter services: Shrine of St. Anthony Church in Colombo, St. Sebastian’s Church in Negombo and Zion Church in Batticaloa.

“We were very shocked,” people’s warden Jeyaruban Selvadurai

recalls of the Easter service at St. Margaret’s.

“We had a prayer, we had a moment of silence, and then we had a prayer for our people…. Then we tried to help them.”

Speaking with people in Sri Lanka who had been affected by the bombings, St. Margaret’s parishioners followed their prayers with a wave of donations, made through the diocese of Toronto, to provide relief for the victims.

Bonds with Sri Lanka are strong at St. Mar-

garet’s Tamil Anglican Church, founded almost 30 years ago by refugees fleeing the country’s protracted civil war.

“We couldn’t live there,” says Selvadurai, originally from Jaffna in northern Sri Lanka.

“There was no peace.

That’s the reason we left the country, and then we came over here [to Canada].

“And thank God, we found a good country, because this country gave asylum for us….

We had children and everybody grew up here, in a Christian way. My children were baptized here.”

Selvadurai helped found the Tamil congregation at St. Margaret’s, which shares space with the English-speaking congregation of St. Margaret-inthe-Pines.

The majority of those who made up the congregation were members of the Church of South India, a province of the Anglican Communion.

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The Saskatchewan Anglican

June 2019

CrossWalk on Good Friday

A newly-created banner was carried at the Rosemont Ecumenical Group’s annual CrossWalk in Regina on Good Friday. More than 100 walkers took part. The procession began at St. James the Apostle Anglican Church and continued to St. Cecilia Roman Catholic Church, then Community of Christ, and concluded at Christ Lutheran Church. Short worship services were held in the first three churches, with a full service at Christ Lutheran.

Photo by Joanne Shurvin-Martin

A reconciling Lent

A courageous group of about 14 people gathered in Watrous/Manitou Beach to watch and discuss the CBC Documentary Series “8th Fire” on the Lenten theme of reconciliation. The sessions were hosted by Our Redeemer’s Lutheran and All Saints’ Anglican churches.

Photo by Rev. Marie-Louise Ternier

By Rev. Marie-Louise Ternier WATROUS (S’toon) — It’s not easy. It’s not easy to engage new learning, new understanding, especially when that learning dislodges deeply held misconceptions and judgments.

Despite that risk, a courageous group of 10 to 14 people gathered in Watrous/Manitou Beach during the Lenten season to watch and discuss the CBC Documentary Series 8th Fire hosted by Our Redeemer’s Lutheran

and All Saints’ Anglican churches.

The four sessions were part of the Lenten theme of reconciliation: reconciliation with God, with fellow-Christians, and with Indigenous people.

Featuring then journalist, now MLA and NDP Leader of the Opposition in Manitoba, Wab Kinew as host and narrator, the 8th Fire mini-series was produced in 2012.

As one reviewer describes, 'CBC’s miniseries 8th Fire is an edgy, provocative look at Indigenous/settler

relations in Canada.

Its subtitle, ‘Aboriginal Peoples, Canada and the Way Forward,’ establishes the show’s purpose: to better understand each other and work together to improve relations in the future” (Joanne Dawson, Jan. 19, 2012).

The four episodes provide a historical overview of the relationship between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people in Canada.

Balancing difficult truths with examples of positive change, each episode combined facts

about the treaties, the Indian Act, the residential schools, with inspiring contemporary role models, emerging economic and cultural improvements, and educational/cultural initiatives, all intent on turning the tide in the Indigenous community.

Watrous/Manitou Beach is geographically not close to any reserves; the nearest reserves are some 100 kilometres away.

Primarily farming country, with farm-related business and industry, the good hard-working people in this prairie community do not have much firsthand exposure to the Indigenous reality.

This social and cultural insulation can sometimes give rise to stereotypes and prejudices, some of which emerged in the group discussions.

In the final session, participants identified their learning in writing for this article: “It was a steep learning experience for a group that has had limited contact with Native culture.”

“Very informative and interesting. Good to learn how things are slowly improving.”

“We should learn more about the content of the treaties and live up to the promises made in them.”

“Things are almost always more complex

that we assume. Finding our way forward into a peaceful future will require compromises.”

“I’m embarrassed now at the prejudice and racism I hear in my peers.”

“So much I did not know before, such as the promises made in the treaties, the constraints on Indigenous people through the Indian Act, and the chronic under-funding of education.”

The churches’ initiative to host the CBC series was endorsed by the Manitou Beach Centennial Committee. Before Europeans arrived in Manitou Beach, Little Manitou Lake was a sacred site for Indigenous peoples because of its healing powers.

This significance has all but disappeared, with the only reminder of this past connection being the simple yet beautiful mural inside the Manitou Springs Resort Hotel at Manitou Beach.

The village council is marking this centennial year by entering into a partnership with the Touchwood Tribal Council to restore the Indigenous connection with the lake.

Several events are planned with Indigenous elements, one of which will feature the participation of Anglican Bishop Chris Harper.

The Saskatchewan Anglican

The finished Empty Tomb rolls, as made by members of St. Augustine’s, Saltcoats.

June 2019

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Photos by Rory Willis

An edible Easter sermon

By Sharon Gibler SALTCOATS (Qu’A) — St. Augustine Anglican Church held its Easter Sunday service using a different twist on the Empty Tomb story.

Empty Tomb rolls were made as part of the homily.

Using simple ingredients in the parish hall kitchen, participants made

and baked the rolls, which had symbolic meaning.

When baked, the dough represented the stone tomb; the — now-vanished — marshmallow represented the body of Jesus; the sugar and cinnamon were the grave cloths.

Both young and old enjoyed this story and then eating the Empty Tomb rolls for lunch.

Empty Tomb Rolls Ingredients: store-bought Crescent Roll dough large marshmallows white sugar mixed with cinnamon, to taste melted butter

Members of St. Augustine’s, Saltcoats, busy preparing Empty Tomb rolls on Easter Sunday. Sandra Kerr (reaching for cupboard), Gloria Willis (centre) and Rick Willis.

Method: Pre-heat oven to 350oF Roll each marshmallow in melted butter, then in sugar/cinnamon mixture Place the sugar coated marshmallow on a Crescent Roll triangle, and roll up.

Be sure to pinch the sides well.

Roll the top of dough in butter and dip in sugar/cinnamon mixture.

Place in well-greased muffin tins and bake for 15 minutes.

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The Saskatchewan Anglican

June 2019

Cofirmation, baptism held in Borden By the Rev. Sheldon Carr BORDEN (S’toon) — A joyous celebration of renewal and initiation was held at St. John’s Borden on April 7 when Bishop Chris Harper, Bishop of Saskatoon, and his wife Tracy, made their first visit to the parish.

At the service, Ann Brand was confirmed into the Anglican Communion, just days before her 94th birthday, and Ann’s great-grandson, Huxley Cain Dubasof Gerow, was baptized into the Christian faith.

Huxley is the first son of

At a service of baptism and confirmation, held at St. John’s, Borden, on April 7, the Right Rev. Chris Harper, Bishop of Saskatoon, baptized Huxley Cain Dubasof Gerow. Huxley is the first son of Courtney Gerow — Ann Brand’s granddaughter — and Nathan Dubasof. His parents, and godparents, Melissa McIsaac and Kevin Monaslyski, look on. Huxley is also Elisa Gerow’s little brother.

Photo by Courtney Gerow

At a service of confirmation and baptism, held at St. John’s, Borden, the Right Rev. Chris Harper, Bishop of Saskatoon, confirmed Ann Brand into the Anglican Communion, just days before her 94th birthday.

Here Ann Brand is presented to the congregation by Bishop Chris after her confirmation.

Photo by Lorraine Olinyk, Battleford News Optimist

Courtney Gerow — Ann’s granddaughter — and Nathan Dubasof. Huxley is also Elisa Gerow’s little brother.

Godparents for Huxley were Melissa McIsaac and Kevin Monaslyski.

The Rev. Sheldon Carr assisted with the service and Tim Latimer assisted Rev. Carr; Linda Hosegood served as organist for the service.

A reception and a luncheon, following the service, were held in the parish hall that had been decorated by the women of St. John’s for the celebration.

The family of Huxley

and Ann Brand supplied the luncheon and the large decorated cake to honour the occasion.

Bishop Harper and Ann Brand together cut the cake, which was eaten and enjoyed by all.

At the reception, Bishop Chris was presented with a hand-crafted, wooden, pectoral cross on a chain, created by Tim Hrenkiw and Ann Brand, while Tracy Harper and the bishop each received large bouquets of flowers.

The people of St. John’s were delighted to meet their bishop on such a momentous and joyous occasion.

At the reception following the service of confirmation and baptism held at St. John’s, Borden on April 7, Bishop Chris Harper was presented with a hand-crafted, wooden, pectoral cross on a chain — contained in the box held by Ray Latimer — that Tim Hrenkiw created, while Ann Brand and Tracy Harper were each presented large bouquets of flowers. Photo by Lorraine Olinyk, Battleford News Optimist

Following the service of baptism and confirmation in St. John’s Borden, a reception and luncheon were held in the parish hall. Bishop Harper and Ann Brand cut a large decorated cake honouring the occasion.

Photo by Lorraine Olinyk, Battleford News Optimist