OTTAWA – “How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity!” These words from Psalm 133 found joyful expression at St. Paul, Kanata this past May. In what has become an annual event, St. Mina, Pope Cyril and St. Karas Coptic church, St. Paul’s and the congregation of Catch the Fire, came together for a potluck luncheon. Members of all three Christian communities enjoyed traditional Egyptian fare and western cuisine in an atmosphere of friendship and cooperation.
The event is the culmination of efforts by each congregation to grow in love and partnership. St. Paul’s shares its building with the other congregations. Each exercises its own worship and ministry and has its own office space. In return, St. Paul’s receives help in covering its financial obligations. “These relationships are about so much more than a blessing of space and finances: they have brought about a flourishing of spiritual vitality and mutual care,” says the Rev. Canon Stephen Silverthorne of St. Paul’s.
The churches’ commitment to prayer, along with social gatherings like the potluck, has been a powerful sign of care for one another, he says. “With each passing month, parishioners have grown more committed in friendship and in appreciation for each other’s way of living out a Christian life.”
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