The pamphlet, Celebrating the 100th Birthday of William F. Blissett (b. 11 October 1921), was presented to Mr. Blissett to mark his birthday in October. Mr. Blissett is a former English professor at the University of Toronto, a patron of the arts and of poets, a long-time member of St. Mary Magdalene, Toronto, and an aficionado of opera and the Blue Jays. The pamphlet features the poems and reminiscences of former students such as John Terpstra, Gordon Teskey, Tom Dilworth, Marius Kociejowski, and Jeffery Donaldson, younger colleagues, including John Reibetanz and Richard Greene, and old friends, including antiquarian book dealer Hugh Anson-Cartwright. Mr. Blissett’s friendship with British artist David Jones was the subject of The Long Conversation (Oxford, 1981), and one poem contributed to the pamphlet is by the former Archbishop of Canterbury, the Rt. Rev. Dr. Rowan Williams, who succeeded Mr. Blissett as president of the David Jones Society. Other contributors associated with his church are his former incumbent, the Rev. Canon David Harrison, and parishioners Paul Russell and Alison Goodwin.

The second publication, coming in November, is Mute Swan. This first collection of poetry by Irish-Canadian writer Lesley-Anne Evans of Kelowna, B.C., is an exploration of voice that has been misnamed, silenced, discounted or subverted. Within a context of historic and contemporary Christendom, yet blurring perceptions of both, the poet offers a story of spiritual awakening and triumphant “unmuting.” Through her willingness to look directly at our human experience of injustice, suffering, impermanence, longing and beauty, she writes a way toward spiritual freedom. Mute Swan is a love letter calling us home. The book has already received strong testimonials.

For more information about ordering these publications, as well as others still in print, visit the series website, www.stthomaspoetryseries.com. 

David A. Kent is the publisher of the St. Thomas Poetry Series.

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The singers were members of the Edmonton chapter of Cursillo, a group that organizes courses on Christian living. The singers were enacting what’s called a “mañanita.” In Spanish, it simply means “morning,” but the Cursillo tradition around it is to surprise an unsuspecting recipient with joyful singing as they start their day. Bishop-elect London would be familiar with the practice, having attended a Cursillo weekend in 2019.

“The singing, cards of encouragement and the bouquet of carnations made for a pleasant wake-up call for one of our most recent Cursillistas,” said Janie Seguin, the chair of Communication for the Edmonton chapter of Cursillo.

The Messenger

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This event typically is held at the beginning of the motorcycle season, but the last two years have caused some changes. In 2020, the Rev. Jonathan Springthorpe blessed the riders and their bikes via a video message that was posted on social media sites. This year, another video was shot and posted in May. Then came the word that everyone had been waiting for – New Brunswick was moving to Phase Green of the pandemic recovery! Lead organizer Paul Desjardins, church member and biker, went to work planning a summer version of the event.

The number of motorcycles is always highly dependent on the weather, making it difficult to determine how many breakfasts to prepare. And of course, bikers require a hearty breakfast, and the folks at Good Shepherd certainly produced one! About 60 bikes rumbled into the parking lot and about 100 people were fed. After breakfast, Mr. Springthorpe blessed the bikers and their bikes, and with a roar of engines, the parking lot emptied.

The New Brunswick Anglican

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Yet, what more fitting way to honour the memory of three militia men who served in the War of 1812 and rest in Trinity, Streetsville’s cemetery?

John Barnhart (1790-1863) volunteered as a private with the Embodied Militia of the 1st Regiment of Lennox Militia, which transported supplies along the St. Lawrence River between Montreal and Kingston. After the war, in 1821, he settled in Streetsville.

William Birdsall (1791-1877) served as a sergeant, stationed at York (Toronto). He was at the Battle of Queenston Heights.

James Davidson (1787-1864) was a private in the Embodied Militia of the 2nd Regiment of York Militia and was at St. David’s and the Battle of Lundy’s Lane in 1814. His rare gravestone depicts a soldier in uniform standing in front of a cannon.

The commemorative event was held on Sept. 26 in Trinity, Streetsville’s cemetery. Dressed in red officer’s garb, Greg Carraro, captain with the 2nd York Militia and vice-president of Heritage Mississauga, introduced the event, accompanied by the 2nd York 1812 re-enactment company, who marched in the cemetery and performed the above mentioned musket salute.

Trinity parishioner and former Mississauga mayor Hazel McCallion and city councillor George Carlson proclaimed the importance of honouring history. They unveiled a plaque alongside Trinity’s incumbent, the Rev. Rob Hurkmans, who donned historic clerical garb to read from the Book of Common Prayer, reminding us that the spirits of them that depart hence in the Lord live with Almighty God. 

Submitted by Trinity, Streetsville.

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Ian Physick is the area youth ministry coordinator for the York-Scarborough episcopal area. He also serves on the Bishop’s Youth Ministry Committee (BYMC).

My duties are varied, but essentially I work at helping to coordinate area youth ministry events and to connect, encourage and uplift fellow youth ministry leaders in the York-Scarborough area. I meet with individual leaders and try to see the best way we can support them within their respective youth ministry spheres. I also meet regularly with clergy – through clericus meetings, area council meetings, Synod and on an individual level – to see how to support the potential building up of youth ministry within a prospective church. On a more macro level, the aim is to bring attention to matters pertaining to youth ministry within the Diocese of Toronto and hopefully throughout the Anglican Church of Canada.

I am really excited about the upcoming Theological Day that we are working on for this winter. Thanks to the hard work of many who have come before me, such as Ali McIntosh, Cormac Culkeen and many more, we have been able to become more closely linked to our fine Anglican-based university institutions, Trinity College and Wycliffe College. Our previous Theological Days, both in-person and virtually, have been a resounding success as we have explored what it means to be a historical and sacramental church, and allowed leaders to ask often tough and challenging theological questions. I am also excited about some of the work that is being done in individual churches as they plan youth ministry within their respective parishes.

The best part of my job is seeing an event unfold and seeing teenagers and youth leaders engrossed in it. The BYMC is made up of a great team of people who always make the event-planning and the actual event a blast! Also, seeing a church’s youth ministry grow is quite rewarding and exciting.

Probably the most challenging part of my job is sometimes getting laity and others to see the importance and validity of doing and investing in sound ministry. However, I will say that over the last two to three years, I have witnessed a great shift of support in general for youth ministry and nurturing it within the wider Church.

I was born in Toronto and raised as a child in Mississauga prior to moving to North York in the latter part of 1988. I am the son of two loving parents, the Rev. Canon Gregory Physick and the late Susan Physick, and I have a twin sister, Devon, who resides on the East Coast with family. I work, and have worked, in various social service organizations throughout the GTA, primarily in group homes and day programs for vulnerable youth and young adults.

I was raised in the Church, with the belief in a loving, forgiving and compassionate God. My father was, and still is, one of the main influences on my spiritual walk. In the midst of some national calamity or controversy, my father would often say that God was “bigger than it all.” This was one of many sayings that served me well in my faith formation.  

I took several religion courses while studying at the University of Toronto and had the privilege to study under some wonderful professors who taught me to challenge, explore and examine my thoughts and beliefs. I especially have an appreciation for the Orthodox and Anglo-Catholic expressions of our great faith, and they have undoubtably influenced my outlook on spiritual matters. Several clergy were also very helpful to me over the years and encouraged my spiritual walk, namely the late Fr. Ron Scott, Fr. Bill Kibblewhite, Fr. Vernal Savage and Fr. Dean Mercer.

At my own church, I was becoming more involved in assisting with youth ministry activities, and I was also the Synod rep on a few occasions, so this aided in deepening my understanding of life in the Church and beyond. I also had the privilege of connecting with Christian Harvey, who helped me learn more about what youth ministry looked like within the Church at the time.

One day while working at a local youth center, I happened to run into Jillian Ruch, who I knew from her work in youth ministry circles. Jillian and I connected a few more times and eventually I was fortunate to work alongside her as a fellow York-Scarborough area ministry coordinator.

In five years, I see myself still working in social/human services in some capacity. While I’m not exactly sure where that road will lead, I have faith that new, exciting challenges will abound. The drive and desire to help and support people in pain is probably the biggest catalyst for me.

The scripture that often holds a special place in my heart is Philippians 4:13: “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” I think that working in the realm of youth ministry, and in life in general, one can at times feel discouraged, and this passage is almost a mantra for me as I remember from whom that power flows and that Christ’s infinite grace, love and mercy are always present. 

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Despite the growing numbers of those seeking asylum, the UNCHR also reported that “only 34,400 refugees were resettled to third countries in 2020. … This compares to 107,800 the year before and marks a dramatic 60 per cent decline – at a time when 1.4 million refugees are estimated to be in need of resettlement.”

While COVID-related border closures were partly responsible for that drop, some of it is also due to the tendency of nations, churches and individuals to focus on internal concerns during the pandemic. To an extent, this is quite natural. Yet we are called “not only to look to [our] own interests, but also those of others” (Philippians 2:4). And in Matthew 25, Jesus reminds us that those who welcome the stranger are welcoming Him.

For over three decades, this diocese has partnered with the Anglican-United Refugee Alliance (AURA) in refugee resettlement. AURA and the diocese are joint Sponsorship Agreement Holders (SAHs) with the federal government. AURA staff work tirelessly to match parishes with refugee cases and to prepare parishes and volunteers for the work involved in welcoming and supporting refugees through their first year in Canada. They work to connect parishes with local family members and community groups who can help with fundraising and other forms of support, as well as navigating the labyrinth of federal regulations and paperwork on our behalf. AURA staff also represent us in meetings with other SAHs and in PWRDF’s network of Anglican SAHs, who meet regularly for mutual support and strategizing.

During the pandemic, AURA and the diocese have taken on new initiatives to raise the profile of refugee resettlement, make Anglicans aware of the growing need and support parishes involved in this work. This past spring, Bishop Andrew Asbil announced the first Refugee Sunday on May 30. AURA and diocesan staff prepared videos, factsheets and worship resources to highlight the plight of refugees and our response as a diocese. In the summer, a new Diocesan Refugee Network was formed, the brainchild of Debra Solomon and Mary Asbil of St. James Cathedral’s refugee resettlement committee. This now-monthly Zoom meeting brings together members of refugee committees from parishes across the diocese to share concerns, best practices, resources and mutual support. AURA and diocesan staff are also on hand to help answer questions.

“We see this as an opportunity to support each other and learn together,” says Ms. Solomon. “We are planning a combination of check-in meetings and speakers on topics of interest to sponsorship groups across the diocese.” Some of the topics identified so far include helping refugees find housing and employment opportunities, understanding the refugee journey, and recruiting and retaining members of refugee sponsorship committees.

Alex Hauschildt, AURA’s operations director, will also be presenting a workshop at the diocesan Outreach & Advocacy Conference on Oct. 30. Having spent the past 10 years in various roles with AURA, he is well aware of the benefits of sponsorship not only to refugees but to the parishes and communities who welcome them. “Successful refugee sponsorship is a collective effort that builds relationships and develops understanding, ultimately strengthening our communities,” he says.

Parishes’ interest in refugee sponsorship peaked in 2015-16 with the Syrian crisis. The photo of Syrian toddler Alan Kurdi’s lifeless body washed up on a Turkish beach captured the hearts and minds of Canadians who sought a warmer welcome for Syrian refugees. More than 75 parishes were involved in refugee sponsorship in 2016, some of them for the first time.

This summer, our hearts were stirred by images of Afghanis desperate to leave their homeland in the wake of the Taliban takeover: 640 people crowded onto a U.S. military cargo plane, while others ran down airport runways desperately hoping to join them. Before the election was called, the Canadian government pledged to resettle 20,000 Afghanis. What that effort will look like is, at the time of writing, still not fully clear, but AURA staff expect to know details soon. Information will be shared at the Outreach Conference workshop, in the Diocesan Refugee Network and through other means of communication.

Something we might expect to see is a return to the Blended Visa Office-Referred (BVOR) program, in which the federal government contributes half the estimated costs to resettle a refugee and their family. Many of the Syrian refugees resettled in 2016 and the years following were BVOR cases. This is a good way for the diocese to increase its capacity to welcome refugees, since parishes have lower costs to bear and the number of BVOR cases referred to parishes doesn’t take away from the number of “named” cases (refugees sponsored by those who request them by name, often family members of those already arrived in Canada) we are allowed to request annually. BVOR cases also tend to move more quickly than named cases, which can take several years from application to arrival.

“Refugee sponsorship is not an emergency response,” says Mr. Hauschildt. “It takes time and patience. When you see disasters happening, the impulse is to do something right away. But refugee sponsorship doesn’t quite work that way.” Still, he says he hopes that the current Afghanistan crisis will help raise awareness of the need for refugee sponsorship and galvanize more parishes to respond when the government opens new programming.

St. James Cathedral’s refugee sponsorship group planned a walkathon in mid-October to raise funds for Afghani refugees, with Dean Stephen Vail and Bishop Andrew Asbil participating. Other parishes are also gearing up to raise funds. How might your parish be part of welcoming the stranger?

To join the mailing list for the Diocesan Refugee Network, contact Elin Goulden at egoulden@toronto.anglican.ca. To register for the Diocesan Outreach & Advocacy Conference on October 30, visit www.toronto.anglican.ca/outreachconference. To learn more about AURA and get involved, visit www.auraforrefugees.org.

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