The main part of my job is overseeing The Side Door Youth Drop-In Centre. I mentor and support a fantastic team of volunteers who care for the youth. I provide leadership at our Friday night drop-ins and youth forum nights, which can range from movie nights to board games to themed parties. I meet regularly with the youth and their families outside of our scheduled events to provide pastoral care. We recently started a play group for moms, dads, caregivers and their children.

At The Side Door, we are working on a multimedia project that gives a voice to the youth to share what it is like to be youth in Toronto today. It is easy to talk about youth and read about youth culture, but we need to listen to youth. I work with an amazing group of youth who have a lot of rich insights and wisdom to share, and we are trying to capture these things through videography, photography, poetry, storytelling and art.

I have the amazing privilege of hearing the stories of youth and their families. I get to walk with them in times of uncertainty, darkness and pain. There are times in which I get to pray with them, speak God’s truth, and read scripture. I get to see the raw pain in youth as well as their courageous steps towards wholeness. I wouldn’t trade anything in the world for this privilege. That being said, this work is challenging and my heart breaks over and over as I hear their stories. I often sit and listen and feel like there are no words or actions to make things better. I have to sleep at night knowing that many of the youth who I have come to love deeply are in situations that no one should have to deal with, yet alone a youth. I take hope and encouragement that I serve a God who loves these youth and their families far more than I ever could.

I was born and raised in Ontario and am the eldest of eight children. I spent a lot of time dabbling in different areas, both in terms of education and work, bouncing back and forth from some form of medicine to philosophy and theology. Most of my jobs have been ministry-related. I remember, in one church, realizing that I am most fully who God made me to be as I serve within and from the church.

I grew up in a fairly broken home but church and living out the Christian life were always a central part of our lives. We attended a variety of denominations – primarily free evangelical churches – and were always heavily involved in each church. So in many ways, “being Christian” was just what we did. It wasn’t until my teenage years that I developed a relationship with Christ and the church that was separate from my family’s faith. We were attending an Anglican Church at the time and I fell in love with the liturgy and practices. In particular, I loved the daily offices and made a point to pray them as often as I could. I was confirmed in the Anglican Church, which was a very meaningful moment in my faith journey. I also went on a spiritual pilgrimage to Wales with the youth and young adults, which had an impact on my life.

When I was 17, I felt called to full-time ministry. I remember my response very well: “No thanks, God, I’m going to be a veterinarian.” I’ve since learned that God doesn’t take no for an answer! Fast-forward 10 years: I was studying at the University of Toronto to obtain a second bachelor’s degree in psychology, so I could go on to do further graduate work. I had tried on many other hats but nothing seemed to fit right. This time, everything was going well. However, in December of that year, God decided to shake things up a little bit. In the entire university, the only courses that I was able to enroll in were theology and Biblical studies. I smiled at God’s sense of humour and realized that he has always been preparing me for ministry. I applied to Wycliffe College and embraced ministry as a calling.

My specific interest in youth drop-in ministry to at-risk youth has been influenced by a number of things. One of them is the gang culture in Toronto. I hear of gang violence with youth or young adults and my heart aches because it doesn’t need to be that way. Gangs provide youth with a sense of belonging, meaning and family. I believe that the church and the Christian message ultimately does the same – and more! If the church can meet youth where they are and provide a place where they can be who they are and loved, it has the opportunity to literally save lives as well as speak God’s love into their lives.

What would I like to be doing in five years? I’m open to the Spirit’s leading, as I don’t have any specific plans. I imagine I will be involved in some form of ministry.

I love the Psalms for their honesty. One of my favourites is Psalm 25, in particular verse 21: “Let integrity and uprightness preserve me, for I wait for You.” This verse has often reminded me that regardless of what is going on in my life and in the world around me, I am called to live with integrity and to wait for the Lord.

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Preamble

Because climate change caused by human-generated greenhouse gas emissions is an undeniable threat to our ecosystem and to life on this planet; and because we are bound, by our baptismal covenant, to “strive to safeguard the integrity of God’s creation, and respect, sustain, and renew the life of the earth”; and because we are committed to rebuilding right relationship with Canada’s indigenous peoples, the original stewards of this land, as part of our ongoing work of reconciliation; and because our theological commitments must be realized in all aspects of our corporate life, including our financial practices.

Motion

It will be moved by the Rev. Maggie Helwig and seconded by the Rev. Canon David Harrison that Synod acknowledges and applauds the efforts being made by the Investment Committee to withdraw from the most environmentally damaging of our investments, particularly those in tar sands oil; and Synod encourages the continuation of these efforts, in co-operation with our ecumenical partners and with national church structures.

Divestment is Un-Anglican         

By Peter Bennett

When this motion came to Synod, I was of two minds on how to vote, but ultimately decided the motion was flawed. That it passed makes me more uncomfortable, but there we are. What it doesn’t preclude is a change of tactics, which is cause for optimism. For me, there are three reasons why I think the motion is problematic.

1. Divestment as a strategy will have little impact on corporate behaviour, because one institutional investor (the church) will be replaced by another (a pension or hedge fund). As a financial advisor and member of the Responsible Investment Association, I know there are various ways to achieve your SRI (socially responsible investing) objectives. Positive or negative investment screening (of which divestment is a form) is one. Shareholder engagement is another: the SRI manager engages senior management in person or at shareholder meetings in an effort to influence corporate behaviour. My view is that shareholder engagement is a more effective long term strategy than divestment in changing corporate behaviour.

2. At the risk of entering the theological quagmire of competing views of scripture, the Jesus I know was very much engaged in the public square. He saw the money-changers and confronted them. He saw the hypocrisy of the synagogue leaders and engaged them in debate. He didn’t divest himself from the sinner – he engaged with them. Divestment is another word for disengagement, and in my view, it’s not biblical.

3. I view divestment as Un-Anglican. I recall a conversation with my father when ours was still a parent-child relationship. He was angry at “Red Ted” Scott, who at that point was chair of the Central Committee of the World Council of Churches. Dad was so upset with the WCC’s alleged support of guerilla forces fighting apartheid that he announced he was withholding his church collection in protest. I argued that his protest would mean nothing because nobody in the church would know why he was upset, and in all probability his collection would not be missed. If you’re upset, write a letter to the rector, get a motion before vestry, get yourself elected to Synod – in short, get engaged in the conversation! To his everlasting credit, he accepted my argument and recognized that “cheque book” protests were not very helpful. The Anglican Communion has numerous divisions of opinion. For some, the irresistible urge is to take your marbles home and not be in the playground anymore. For most of us, the overwhelming urge is to open or keep conversation going, to search for common ground, to find a way forward. I view divestment as a form of cheque book protest. It makes me feel good, but at the end of the day, have I had any impact on corporate behaviour?

I understand and agree with the premise that underlies the motion. However, as Archbishop Johnson said in his charge, Christians are called to be at the “edge of chaos.” Too far from the edge and we are frozen out. Too close to the chaos and we are consumed by it. Divestment freezes us out. Doing nothing consumes us in the chaos. For me the “via media” is engagement. Going forward, I hope we change tactics to achieve a common goal.

Peter Bennett is a member of the Church of the Redeemer, Bloor Street, and a member of Synod.

It is a tool for change

By the Rev. Maggie Helwig and the Rev. Canon David Harrison

We are, in fact, in agreement on many points. We too believe that Jesus was very much engaged in the public square and that we are called to active engagement in the pressing issues of our day. However, unlike Mr. Bennett, we believe that divestment is, in some circumstances, the best form of engagement.

Both divestment and shareholder activism have been employed as tools for change, and both have strengths and limitations. The church has already acknowledged that divestment may be reasonable: we have well-established exclusions on investments in alcohol, tobacco, and pornography, and we participated in the ultimately effective campaign of sanctions against apartheid in South Africa. We believe that this, too, is a situation in which divestment is an appropriate and effective instrument. Both the Church of England and the former chairman of Shell, Mark Moody-Stuart, have lamented the industry’s tepid response to shareholder engagement and have recommended divestment.

If we were the sole body to divest from tar sands oil, there might be more weight to the argument that the oil companies will not even notice. But in fact, there is a large divestment movement already underway, and it’s growing. By September 2014, over 800 organizations, with more than $50 billion in assets, had officially committed to divestment, including the Rockefeller Brothers Foundation, the World Council of Churches, the Church of Sweden, the University of Glasgow and Stanford University. Last spring, the Church of England announced its divestment from coal and oil sands (£12 million from a combined fund of £9 billion). French insurance company Axa has recently pledged to move €500 million out of coal investments and to triple its investment in green technologies and services. In the past few months, the United Church of Canada, the Diocese of Montreal and the Diocese of Ottawa have all voted to divest from fossil fuels. We are not isolated, and the cumulative effect is one which is very hard to ignore.

Mr. Bennett does not address some of our other points, most significantly whether investment in fossil fuels is actually fiscally responsible at this point. The recent slump in oil prices could be just the beginning of a much longer trend. “The impacts investors are seeing in their portfolio from the current oil-price shifts may be similar to what they can expect to see in the context of longer-term risks associated with the shift away from fossil fuels, particularly those associated with higher carbon emissions,” says Peter Chapman, executive director of the Shareholder Association for Research and Education. (Source: The Toronto Star, Nov. 2, 2015.)

Divestment cannot, of course, be our only form of engagement with this issue. In fact, it should be seen as a step which commits us to additional actions – to work actively to reduce our personal and institutional dependence on fossil fuels, to educate ourselves about the environmental costs of the fossil fuel economy, to advocate at all levels of government on issues such as carbon pricing and the reform of the National Energy Board, to support indigenous land defenders whose territories are threatened by fossil fuel development, and much more.

The Rev. Maggie Helwig is the incumbent of St. Stephen in the Fields, Toronto and the Rev. Canon David Harrison is the incumbent of St. Mary Magdalene, Toronto.

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I am all for generous giving. As I have written time and again, giving should be regular, reliable and real; our offering should be proportionate, sacrificial, consistent and joyful. The offertory can be a welcome opportunity to celebrate all this; but most of the time it isn’t.

More and more church members are turning to Pre-Authorized Giving (PAG) as a way of ensuring that their gift of money is made available to the church on a regular basis. The gift is planned and reliable. PAG is one example of how we can give of our first fruits in a way that does not draw attention to our benevolence. It is usually made on a monthly basis and is completely detached from the formal offertory process.

Most of us experience the preparation of the gifts in a similar fashion: sides-people ensure that the collection plate is passed from the front row to the back of the church, congregants deposit a monetary offering on the plate (or not) and pass the plate along, the collection is brought to the altar (sometimes with the communion wine and water), a blessing is made, and then the plate is whisked away to a side room for safe-keeping or immediate counting. The practice leaves me feeling empty.

The act of giving should be a joyful one where all our gifts are welcomed, acknowledged, offered and blessed. Somewhere along the line we have reduced the totality of our giftedness to money. And we reinforce this sentiment by imparting a blessing on it. However, Christian stewardship is more than money, and our gifts extend beyond what we put on the collection plate. Money is absolutely essential for supporting ministry: its generous gifting to the church demonstrates our faith in God and is a profound act of discipleship. But why does the act of giving money still have a place in the middle of a worship service?

There might still be a place for the offering of gifts during the Eucharistic celebration. What if we took the time to acknowledge the service of one ministry on a weekly basis or thanked our volunteers publicly for their talent, ingenuity and perseverance? What if, instead of passing a plate for people to place cash or cheques on, we encouraged people to offer their time and talent and intentions and prayers? Then all the gifts could be blessed and left at the altar as a symbolic act of thanksgiving. This way, everyone present could participate and they would come to realize that gift isn’t synonymous with cash.

God has given each one of us very special gifts. We can reinforce our giftedness and uniqueness each Sunday if we make space for celebrating all those gifts right in the worship service.

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The inspired marriage of Job’s words and Handel’s glorious music make this one of my favourite Easter anthems. The words also form one of the comforting sentences that open our burial rite. The American Book of Common Prayer makes the final line even clearer: “I myself shall see, and my eyes behold him who is my friend and not a stranger.”

Job uttered these words, not with the hauntingly beautiful larghetto soprano line playing in the back of his mind, but in the anguish of personal pain and loss. Everything he has loved and worked for is gone. His health is destroyed. His friends show up to comfort him – and what a trial they are.  Instead of consolation, they berate him, offering unflattering judgment and offensive bromides – at length! His wife tells him to curse God and die. (At least she is concise!)

Job is having none of that, and out of his deepest distress cries out, whether in profound faith or utter desperation: “I know that my Redeemer lives!” He has no reason to believe this. There is no proof. Everything points to his abandonment. And yet he says: “I myself shall see, and my eyes behold him who is my friend and not a stranger.”

In the end, God appears to Job, not quite in the way he had expected, but God comes, and Job lives.

The hope and the faith of Job are not very adequately resolved in the Book of Job. There is a convenient but unconvincing restoration of all his losses in the last few verses that makes it feel too much like a “happy ever after” tale.

But the dialogue between Creator and Creature is not ended in Job. The conversation continues in scripture until it comes to a climax half a millennium later in a darkened garden. A bereft woman grieves the tortured death of the one person whom she has not only cherished but come to see as her protector, her redeemer. Then compounding her anguish, the tomb has been vandalized and his body has been taken away.

In her misery, she cries out to the man she sees but fails to recognize: “Where have you taken him?” she demands. “Mary!” he replies. And the divine-human dialogue is taken up again.

Job’s “I know that my Redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day
upon the Earth,” has become a reality for Mary Magdalene. Her whole life has changed, and so has that of all creation. The darkened garden of the tomb is revealed as the renewed Garden of Eden. It really was the Gardener she saw! The first day of God’s new creation dawns here.

So Handel actually got it right: Job’s plea of faith finds its fulfillment only in the second part of the aria. He links St. Paul’s song to Job’s prayer: “For now is Christ risen from the dead, the first fruits of them that sleep.” The chorus responds, “Since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive” (I Corinthians 15:20-22).

And Mary of Magdala can give voice to those ancient words, with an assurance that Job so longed for: “I myself shall see, and my eyes behold him who is my friend and not a stranger.”  They are our Easter anthems, too.

Dying you destroyed our death,
Rising you restored our life.
Lord Jesus, come in glory. 

May Easter be a time a great blessing and renewed life for you in Jesus Christ.

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Mr. Fitch, an academic, pastor and church planter from the Chicago area, was the plenary speaker at this year’s conference, which took place Jan. 28-30 at St. Paul, Bloor Street. Jointly sponsored by the Diocese of Toronto and the Wycliffe College Institute of Evangelism, the conference attracted about 120 participants from various Christian denominations.

During the first two days of the conference, Mr. Fitch identified three circles of Christian community: the Eucharistic table, where Jesus is the host; the dining room table, where the Christian disciple is the host; and tables in the public square, where Christians interact with the neighbourhood.

“Proclaiming the Gospel doesn’t stay in the closed circle. It’s in our neighbourhoods and our homes,” he said. “There’s a table everywhere. The question isn’t whether Jesus is there, but whether he will be recognized.”

The notion of sharing the Gospel through hospitality emerged with several other speakers over the course of the conference. Attendees heard the stories of a variety of missional ministries, including a drop-in in East York where youth can be known and heard, and a new congregation in Vancouver that invites people of any age, race or lifestyle to gather around the altar.

At Church of the Transfiguration, Toronto, gathering around a table has become an essential element of The Water’s Edge, a new Sunday evening worshipping community. After a dressed-down liturgy, held without processions or vestments, the community gathers for a meal in the church basement.

“After worship we all head downstairs, where the kitchen becomes an important part of the community,” said the Rev. David Giffen, incumbent, in his workshop.

Members of the congregation prepare a meal each week, and everyone helps to set up tables and chairs, serve the food and clean up. The meal is seen as a vital part of the gathering that begins upstairs in the sanctuary.

“We weren’t talking about a meal after the service, but a meal as church,” said Nathan Wall, pastor of discipleship at Transfiguration and a member of the planning team for The Water’s Edge.

The team has found that the activities of cooking, setting up and cleaning together help to create deeper connections than they first expected.

“It gives people a space, a time and an activity in which they can rub shoulders with one another, and ease into the kinds of conversations that we don’t often allow ourselves time for,” said Mr. Wall.

In Parkdale, the idea of hospitality is tied to the very existence of The Dale Ministries, a community organization and church that operates with no building or fixed address.

“We became a church without our own walls,” said Erinn Oxford, director of the ministry.

The Dale, formerly called Parkdale Community Church, relies on businesses and organizations scattered throughout the neighbourhood to host its programs. Epiphany and St. Mark, Parkdale, a coffee shop, a Presbyterian church, a Salvation Army thrift store and other local centres all welcome The Dale into their spaces throughout the week.

“By spilling into the streets, we more fully inhabit our neighbourhood. We have built strong partnerships with a variety of organizations,” said Ms. Oxford. “We have the opportunity to be shown hospitality at the same time as giving it, and to me that’s beautiful.”

The conference culminated in a Team Day on Saturday, when Clayton Rowe and Hugh Brewster of World Vision Canadian Programs helped participants develop tools to connect with their neighbourhoods.

To hear recordings from this year’s conference, visit www.vitalchurchplanting.com.

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“Thanks be to God for the generosity of Anglicans across the Diocese,” says Archbishop Colin Johnson. “FaithWorks is a tangible example of Christ’s mission being served in the world, and many people need to be thanked for their commitment – donors, volunteers and clergy.”

FaithWorks is the annual appeal of the Diocese of Toronto. The money raised supports families in crisis, children, youth and women in need, immigrants, the homeless, the imprisoned, those suffering from HIV/AIDS, and people living in the developing world.

“This demonstrates the breadth of our donor base,” notes Ms. Shelagh McPherson, chair of the FaithWorks Allocations Committee. “A great deal of effort has been made to promote FaithWorks in our parishes, in the corporate sector, among service groups and with individual donors. Our Christmas direct mail appeal alone raised over $50,000.”

Parishes gave a total of $825,000 in 2015, and about 85 per cent of the churches in the Diocese took part in the campaign. A significant bequest was secured through the parish appeal. Over 85 parishes experienced a result greater in 2015 compared to the previous year.

“Throughout the Diocese, the number of parishes making FaithWorks an important focus of their stewardship and outreach is encouraging,” says Susan McCulloch, FaithWorks’ campaign manager. “We’ve seen some significant growth, especially in the York-Simcoe and York-Scarborough episcopal areas. The parishes in York Central Deanery and St. James Deanery (located in Toronto) have developed into important pacesetters in the overall campaign.”

Corporations – especially the major banks – continue to be a vital source of funds for the campaign. In 2015, FaithWorks Corporate raised $309,000. Since its inception in 2004, the corporate appeal has contributed more than $4 million to FaithWorks. “It is wonderful to witness the generosity of Anglicans and the corporate sector during challenging times” says Bishop Philip Poole, the area bishop of York-Credit Valley and chair of the FaithWorks Corporate appeal.

Looking ahead to the 2016 campaign, the FaithWorks Allocations Committee is holding firm with a goal of $1,550,000. The goal is attainable, says Ms. McCulloch. “2016 will be a special year for us – our 20th anniversary. We hope we can mark it with another impressive result.” FaithWorks is planning launch events in episcopal areas across the Diocese in the months ahead and hopes to recognize many of the parishes that have contributed to its success.

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About 700 people filled the downtown cathedral for the two-hour service, which had a strong emphasis on social justice and included several lighthearted and poignant moments.

“I am moved beyond words to accept this wonderful call,” said Dean Asbil, speaking to the congregation near the end of the service.

The service started in dramatic fashion, as native drumming filled the air and Sandra Campbell, a pastoral worker at the Toronto Urban Native Ministry, performed a smudging ceremony at the front of the church. Among those who were ritually cleansed by the healing smoke was Toronto Mayor John Tory, seated in the first pew.

The first and second readings (Isaiah 55: 1-11 and Ephesians 4. 7, 11-16) reflected the themes of social justice and inclusion that were woven throughout the service. The passage from Ephesians was read in in Mandarin.

In a delightful surprise, Dean Asbil’s father, Bishop Walter Asbil, a former bishop of the Diocese of Niagara, gave the sermon. “What I’d like to tell you about Andrew is, he’s able to bring together people who have widely diverse views,” he said.

In a sermon that was by turns insightful and humorous, Bishop Asbil spoke about his son with deep affection and respect. He described his son as a gifted leader who is not troubled by the headwinds buffeting the church.

“I know these are not easy days for the church,” Bishop Asbil said. “There’s an anxiety. But let me tell you what Andrew thinks. He believes God does not call us from the past – rather, God calls us from the future. That is how Andrew sees the church – facing the future square on, with the Holy Spirit of God to help us step out in freedom.”

He asked Dean Asbil and his wife, Mary, to join him on the chancel steps, and, after some words of encouragement, embraced them. It was a moving moment that drew sustained applause from the congregation.

After the sermon, Dean Asbil was formally inducted as rector of the cathedral by Archbishop Colin Johnson, the Bishop of Toronto and Metropolitan (senior bishop) of the Ecclesiastical Province of Ontario. At the same time, he became priest-in-charge of St. Bartholomew, Regent Park.

Dean Asbil was given the ceremonial keys to the cathedral by the churchwardens, Angela Carroll and Larry Enfield, and then was formally installed as the new Dean of Toronto.

At the end of the installation ceremony, Archbishop Johnson, the diocesan registrar, Canon Paul Baston and the diocesan chancellor, Canon Clare Burns, led Dean Asbil to the dean’s “stall” or chair at the front corner of the chancel. As he sat down, he received a long ovation.

Near the end of the service, Dean Asbil came down from his chair and, standing where his father had stood, spoke about what it meant to be the dean of Canada’s most populous diocese and rector of its mother church.

“I’m glad to take this seat – it’s pretty fancy,” he said, looking over at his chair and drawing laughter from the congregation. But he quickly changed to a more serious tone and the congregation listened with rapt attention.

“But don’t let appearances fool you,” he continued. “I know what taking this seat means. To be seated in this cathedral is to be shaped by the traditions and blessings of what it means to be an Anglican – the good, the bad and the ugly. It also means to be inspired by the Holy Spirit to take us into uncharted waters and to try new things, because the mission field is changing always.

“To be seated in this cathedral means to have the courage to step outside these four walls and to step into a deeper relationship with our neighbours – with residents and merchants, with civic leaders, with our ecumenical partners to pray together and break down walls that divide so that no one stands alone, that we stand with the poor and disenfranchised so that we might become better – that we might become good.

“To be seated in this cathedral means to offer radical hospitality so that the next person through those front doors feels the deep welcome of Jesus – the sojourner, the migrant, the refugee or just the tired soul who needs a break from the pace of our reality, so that we might just find stillness and silence with the one who made us.”

He said the cathedral is built on sacred First Nations land and Anglicans must walk in peace and reconciliation with indigenous people. “We had a hand in a deep pain; we must have a hand in deep healing.”

He thanked a number of people, including the former dean, the Very Rev. Douglas Stoute, and the cathedral’s congregation, “who put down deep roots and shot for the skies.” He thanked his former parish (the Church of the Redeemer, Bloor Street), his father, his wife and children.

He waited for a moment, letting all his words sink in. Then he added, “Now, that’s enough of that. We have work to do. Let’s get on with it.”

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