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 A new initiative, same title
David Macfarlane has resigned as director of national initiatives for the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada in order to become director of national initiatives for the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association Canada, effective January 1, 2009. He will continue to be based in Waterloo, Ontario.
Writing two deadline
January 15 is the second round deadline for The Word Guild's 2009 Canadian Christian Writing Awards contest, for books, articles, columns, reviews, poems, song lyrics, screenplays, and so forth published between October 1 and December 31, 2008. The deadline for work published between January 1 and September 30 was October 31; however, late submissions will still be accepted if a late fee is paid. The deadline for the Best New Canadian Christian Author contest -- open to writers who have never had a book published before -- is November 28.
You're only as old as you feel
Erica van Velsen, 21, of Waterloo, Ontario and Cara Rempel, 18, of Winnipeg, Manitoba are the youngest volunteers serving with Service Opportunities for Older People (SOOP), a short-term volunteer placement program that was originally created for seniors but is now open to people of all ages. They are serving in the Atlantic provinces this fall, helping to set up craft sales for Ten Thousand Villages. Ten Thousand Villages is a Mennonite Central Committee program that sells crafts in North America for fair prices, creating work for craftsmen in 130 artisan groups in more than 35 countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America. Its annual sales exceed $39 million.
Some Anglicans now have more in common
Leaders of the Common Cause Partnership will release a draft constitution for the emerging Anglican Church in North America on December 3. If approved, the new body will bring together conservative North American Anglicans who have left the Episcopal Church in the USA and the Anglican Church of Canada over issues such as homosexuality, the authority of Scripture and the uniqueness of Christ. The new Anglican province would be allied with Anglicans from around the world who formed the Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON) earlier this year. The Common Cause Partnership includes a couple dozen congregations in Canada, but about 100,000 Anglicans in the US, including four dioceses. -- AnglicanTV.org
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Even with women, they are unequal to the challenge
Of the 552 new clergy ordained in the Church of England in 2007, 262 are women. The church estimates that by 2012, a quarter of the full-time clergy will be women, but Christina Rees, chair of the group WATCH (Women and the Church), predicts that half of the clergy will be women by 2018. In addition, 595 candidates entered ordination training in 2007, but only 243 of them were under the age of 40. The number ordained in 2007 represents a 15 percent increase over the previous year, but the number is still falling short of the number needed by 150 to 200 per year. The Church of England has 12,732 parishes served by 7,616 full-time clergy.
Give someone a cow for Christmas
A new poll conducted by Ipsos Reid on behalf of World Vision reports that 74% of Canadians are likely to cut back on dining out this Christmas, 72% plan to reduce spending on Christmas gifts and entertainment, 70% will reduce clothing purchases, but 82% still plan to give as much or more to charity. In fact, 65% say the economic downturn has made them "more likely to want to help those who are less fortunate," and 95% describe the food situation for people in developing countries as "critical." Seventy-six percent say they would prefer to receive a "meaningful gift that would help someone else" rather than a traditional gift like "a pair of socks or a sweater."
It also matters how you play the game
Evangelical Fellowship of Canada president Bruce Clemenger has outlined his 'Hopes for Canada's 40th Parliament' in the current issue of Faith Today. The most critical issue, he says, is "civility": While it is important for the outcome of policy debates to be just, it is also important that the process be "fair and constructive." In particular, instead of shutting down debate, politicians should "encourage an environment in which the substantive issues of the day can be aired and debated with respect", in which "agreement is sought whenever possible" and in which the eventual losers in the policy debates as well as the winners can return to their communities and homes feeling good about their participation.
November 20/2008
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