During the opening ceremony, I had the honour of welcoming the 235 participants. I recalled that the conference was first initiated by St. Elizabeth, Mississauga in 2006. As ethnic congregations, we face many similar challenges, including adapting to a new environment, ministering to the second generation and reaching out to our communities. With the support of the other three congregations, the first joint conference was held in 2007 at Appleby College in Oakville.

We were delighted to have Bishop Andrew Asbil as our featured speaker this year. He delivered three keynote talks over the weekend. In the first, “Spiritual Renewal – Building Up Disciples,” Bishop Asbil illustrated how sharing our faith stories with the next generation inspires us to continue proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ. Jesus often shared the faith over meals, including at the Last Supper, during breakfast by the Sea of Galilee and in the breaking of bread on the road to Emmaus.

Likewise, the history of our four Chinese parishes is filled with testimonies that should be passed on to new generations of believers. This includes the story of St. John, Willowdale, which began in 1973 as a fellowship at St. Paul, Bloor Street, before becoming an official congregation at the Church of the Redeemer, Bloor St. In 1984, the Rev. Canon Kenneth Fung and his team planted All Saints, first in Scarborough and later relocated to Markham. In 1991, the Rev. Canon Edmund Der and his team planted St. Christopher-on-the-Heights in Downsview. St. Christopher later established St. Christopher Centre at Leslie and Finch in 1994. The outreach centre became St. Christopher, North York in 2007. The mother church moved from Downsview to Richmond Hill in 2008, becoming St. Christopher, Richmond Hill. Meanwhile, in 1992, the Rev. James Chu planted St. Elizabeth in Etobicoke. Following a fire in 1999, the parish relocated to Mississauga in 2000.

After the first talk, we divided into 21 small groups in Cantonese, English and Mandarin. Each group consisted of members from three or four congregations within the same age group. As we discussed what we had heard and shared our own faith stories, the bishop’s message sank more deeply into our hearts. We also spent time praying for one another. It was a wonderful time of Christian fellowship, as we experienced God’s presence, joy and peace.

On Saturday afternoon, we offered seven workshops led by our pastoral staff on various topics, from youth ministry and small group ministry to spiritual renewal and contextual bible study.

Each workshop attracted between 20 and 50 participants, and many shared how much they appreciated the opportunity to learn and grow.

Bishop Asbil’s second talk, “Spiritual Renewal – Commitment to Ministry,” began by sharing stories from his family’s farming background. The rocks on the family farm reminded him of generations of family history and the values they had inherited. One lesson was the importance of living for others. Jesus taught his disciples the same lesson in the feeding of the five thousand. Rather than telling his disciples to look after themselves, Jesus challenged them to care for the hungry crowd. In a world that often tells us to put ourselves first, Jesus calls us to serve others.

Bishop Asbil illustrated this through the story of Monica from Redeemer, Bloor St., who began by preparing peanut butter sandwiches for people experiencing homelessness. Over time, the parish grew this ministry into serving more than 30,000 meals each year. Commitment to ministry requires time, sacrifice and perseverance. Yet it all begins with Jesus’ question to Peter: “Do you love me?” Jesus asks him three times, moving from friendship love (philia*) to unconditional love (agape).

In the evening, we enjoyed a 45-minute “Dialogue with Bishop” session. It provided an opportunity to ask questions ranging from theology to practical ministry. The conversation brought us closer to Bishop Asbil as he thoughtfully addressed the issues that concerned us. Afterwards,the Rev. Andrew Johnson and the Rev. Carol Shih from St. John, Willowdale led us in Evening Prayer to conclude the day.

On the second day of the conference, All Saints, Markham prepared the Eucharist, which Bishop Asbil presided over. During the children’s message, Bishop Asbil told a story about a puppy that was deeply loved by a farmer, even though all the other animals in the barn believed they were the most important. In the same way, every child is precious in God’s sight.

Bishop Asbil delivered his third talk, “Spiritual Renewal – Equipping Tomorrow’s Leaders.” He introduced three key words: “Listen, show and tell.” He recalled meeting a parishioner at a subway station whom he had been thinking about for some time. The parishioner shared that he had prayed for Bishop Asbil the previous night. This was an example of listening to God’s prompting. We all learned “show and tell” during our school years, but Bishop Asbil reminded us that we must also learn to listen to God.

Using Genesis 22:1-14, the account of Abraham offering Isaac, Bishop Asbil acknowledged that many preachers avoid this difficult passage. Yet the story reveals that, unlike the gods of many ancient Near Eastern religions, the Lord did not require child sacrifice. Rather, it demonstrates the intimate relationship between God, Abraham and Isaac. Abraham listens to God. Isaac listens to his father. Abraham demonstrates unwavering faith, while Isaac willingly carries the wood up the mountain. In the same way, Jesus carries His own cross to Golgotha. Throughout the journey, Abraham trusts God, quietly believing, “God will provide.” And indeed, the Lord provides a lamb. Throughout Scripture – from Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, Mary and Peter – we see the same pattern of listening, showing and telling.

Bishop Asbil also shared his own experience during a major capital campaign. He, then a curate, and a ministry partner met with a parishioner named Jim to invite him to make a significant gift. After presenting the diocesan vision, Bishop Asbil nervously suggested the possibility of a $100,000 donation. Jim immediately replied, “I’d be happy to do that.” Three months later, Bishop Asbil asked Jim how he had been able to make such a generous commitment. Jim answered, “When you believe in something so much, it is a joy to give.” Bishop Asbil reflected on the phrase, “Give until it feels good, not until it hurts.” Indeed, as Paul reminds us, “God loves a cheerful giver.”

Before the conference concluded, each parish gathered separately to reflect on what we had learned and what we hoped to bring back to our own congregations. We were inspired by Bishop Asbil’s messages in many ways, including strengthening our online ministry, embracing the principles of “listen, show, and tell,” reaching out to youth and young adults, offering workshops on sharing personal testimonies, encouraging parents to share their faith journeys with their children and inviting senior members to pass on their faith stories to the younger generation.

During the closing ceremony, our co-chairs, Violet Sae and Stephen Ho, presented Bishop Asbil with a token of appreciation. I thanked the Rev. Canon Simon Li for his clear and concise interpretation from English to Cantonese. We also greatly appreciated the organizing committee and all the volunteers for their hard work in making the conference possible. Finally, members of St. Christopher passed our new 3D conference logo to the host of the 2029 conference, All Saints, Markham.

We thank God for this opportunity for spiritual renewal, for the Christian fellowship shared among the four congregations, and for the opportunity to learn from one another. Let us bless the Lord!

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On the first day of the conference, the Rt. Rev. Lennon Chang, Bishop of Taiwan, warmly welcomed the participants and thanked them for their courageous presence, as Taiwan had just experienced an earthquake and its many aftershocks. Volunteers picked up guests from the airport and looked after all their needs. Their kindness and hospitality were widely appreciated.

The second day of the conference was held at St. John’s University in Tamsui, which is an hour and 20 minutes by bus from Taipei. St. John’s is one of the Anglican universities in Asia. It was founded in 1879 by Bishop Samuel Schereschewsky. Like many universities in Taiwan, St. John’s is challenged by declining student enrollment. The low birth rate and aging population in Taiwan called for a creative solution. The university received government approval and funding in 2023 to build a 200-bed long-term care facility on the campus; it is about to offer programs and courses related to senior care.

Many western missionaries were forced out of China when the Communist Party took power in 1949. The last group of missionaries and priests left in 1952. Many of them became the first wave of the Chinese Christian diaspora in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Southeast Asia. As a result, Chinese Anglican leaders saw the need for a conference or fellowship for clergy and missionaries to support each other. Thus began the first World Chinese Anglican Clergy Fellowship in 1953.

I gained a few insights from this gathering and would like to share them with you in this article. First, all the diaspora congregations face a similar situation. Chinese parishes in Australia, Malaysia, Singapore, the United States and Canada struggle with multi-lingual challenges. Chinese language is no longer the preferred language for our second-generation members; therefore, we need to provide worship services for them in their language of choice. In addition, it is challenging to find priests or lay pastors to lead these congregations and to do discipleship. Many incumbents need to run at least two or even three congregations each weekend in various languages; that translates into double or triple the effort when preparing bulletins, sermons and worship rosters. This extra work is taking a toll on many Chinese clergy. Some parish priests also provide cross-cultural ministry to local immigrants such as Indians, indigenous Malays and Indonesians. As a result, they are ministering to up to five congregations in five dialects. The Diocese of Sabah in East Malaysia recently organized a three-day children’s worship conference with more than 400 children under 12 years of age from across the diocese. The hosting parish, Christ Church, has more than 200 Sunday school students and five congregations. The incumbent, Archdeacon Moses Chin, served at St. Michael and All Angels in Sandakan, where my wife and her family worshipped in 1980s. It was wonderful to reconnect with him and his wife, Lorraine, in Taiwan after almost 40 years.

Church planting seemed to be the unofficial theme of the conference. Sydney, Australia has 23 Chinese Anglican congregations and most of them are Mandarin- speakers from China. Bishop Stephen Soe from West Malaysia planted nine congregations under his leadership. The most impressive church planting work was done by Archbishop Ng Moon Hing, the retired Archbishop of the Province of Southeast Asia. He planted 50 congregations before he became the bishop of West Malaysia. Then, after he was consecrated bishop, he helped the parishes to plant another 50 congregations in his diocese. He said the most frequently asked question he receives is, where did he find so many church leaders to maintain the new church plants? People tell him, “Our congregation is not large enough to plant a new church. We do not have enough manpower. We need more leaders.” Archbishop Ng said, “The most important thing in church planting is the vision. We cast the vision. Then God will provide.” He said that when the mother church planted a mission, the congregation doubled. A few years later, they planted another mission, and the congregation quadrupled in size. He reached out to Indigenous people all over Asia through interpreters, and many accepted Jesus. In 2015, Nepal experienced a 7.8 magnitude earthquake, resulting in close to 9,000 casualties. The Provincial Relief Team started delivering food and other essentials to local villages where they had set up a mission many years earlier. On one such trip, they discovered that one of the villages was half-empty because most of the villagers had gone to a wedding celebration. While they were pondering what to do with all the supplies in their helicopter, three different groups of people arrived in that village, having walked three or four days to get there. The three patriarchs from the villages told the relief team that they had been praying to their gods for food after the massive earthquake. They saw a man in white robes like Jesus in their prayers and were told to take the journey to that site and they would find food. After meeting the relief team, they praised God for His providence. After their second meeting with the relief team, they all believed in Jesus. A few months later, Nepalese priests travelled to each of their villages and baptized more than 3,000 people. Archbishop Ng also confirmed over 700 adults in that area. The experience was overwhelming!

I had the opportunity to present a snapshot of Chinese Anglican ministry in Canada. Currently, Canada has a total of 14 Cantonese and four Mandarin congregations, if we include those who left the Anglican Church of Canada due to the 2002 motion on the blessing of same-sex marriage in the Diocese of New Westminster.  These Chinese Anglican congregations are in Vancouver, Burnaby, Richmond, Edmonton, Toronto, Richmond Hill, Markham, Mississauga and Oakville.

We often talk about downsizing churches, more amalgamation or cluster ministry in Canada, yet the Canadian population continues to grow and now it surpasses 40 million. The conference helped me realize that the question is not about us having too many churches, but rather we need more missional leaders who share the vision and mission to reach out to our communities.

Bishop Chang of Taiwan reorganized the Anglican seminary, Trinity School for Christian Ministry, in 2020 to reflect a new endeavour in the changing world to response to God’s call. The first cohort graduated last year. Bishop Chang’s goal is to equip all seminarians to plant churches. This affirms the missional theology that it is not the Church who has a mission, but it is the missional God who uses the Church to do His mission. We are called to do God’s mission and bring the good news of Jesus Christ to all.

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The club started with eight youth and has steadily grown to 25 students. Every Thursday at 4:30 p.m., Pastor Michele leads a discussion time with the teens about mental health issues or Christian teachings. In the meantime, a new couple who joined the church last spring brought over 10 new people to play ping pong weekly. As a result, St. Christopher’s now has ping pong sessions on Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, and Sunday. Dozens of people are playing ping pong weekly at St. Christopher’s!

Besides being a great outreach opportunity, we wondered how we could channel this enthusiasm for an even greater good. We decided to use the momentum to both strengthen our church’s team spirit and to raise money for a great cause – FaithWorks. As there are 18 organizations under the FaithWorks umbrella, we made it our goal to try to have an 18-hour ping pong relay marathon. Once the idea was shared with the leaders, everyone got excited about making it happen and an organizing committee set two goals: raise $6,000 for FaithWorks and have 60 people participate in the relay.

All the players endeavoured to find sponsors, and in our church announcements we urged parishioners, “If you are not playing, please sponsor someone to play.” The response was extremely positive.

We started each of the two marathon relay days (March 22 and 24) with a prayer to remember the ministries of all 18 FaithWorks’ organizations. There was tremendous energy in the room. Then the games began. Some came to play for an hour, others for six hours. By the end of the first day, we had raised $2,950 with 53 players. By the 12th hour of the second day, we were edging close to our target of $6,000. By the end of the 18^th hour, we had surpassed our target and reached $8,812. Donations continued to flow and at the end, we raised $9,002 for FaithWorks. Over 60 players contributed to the project!

Parishioners not only had a great time playing but also had opportunities for fellowship with new and potential church members from the community. One person has started to join our Thursday YEAH (outreach) club. We thank God for all these blessings. As Paul says in Romans 8:28, “We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.”

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