LGBTQI Persons and the Church

Prairie Presbyterian Church, Winnipeg, Manitoba

Approved by Session - April 2022

For the past several decades, The Presbyterian Church in Canada (PCC) has studied and discussed questions related to sexuality, particularly questions related to same-sex marriage and the roles of LGBTQI people in ministry. In 2021, the PCC made changes to its theology and practice regarding marriage and ordination. Before outlining these changes, it is important to emphasize a few things.

The Church is to be a place of welcome and love for all, but often churches have been places of hurt, alienation, and sometimes abuse or violence for those who do not identify as heterosexual. In 2017, the General Assembly of the PCC directed that a letter of repentance be written to the LGBTQI community. It is worth reading the entire letter, but we quote three points here:

1. “For the ways our congregations judge and exclude others based on restrictive gender definitions, we are sorry, and we repent. No one should ever be harmed for naming their sexual identity.”

2. “The church by its actions and inaction, speaking and silence, creates hurt, fear and distrust among LGBTQI persons who are part of the church. Deaf to the cries of hurt, fear, and distrust, the church dismisses the pain experienced by LGBTQI persons. For our unwillingness to recognize the hurt and fear our actions and attitudes have caused, we are sorry, and we repent.”

3. “The church too often puts more emphasis on a person’s sexual identity than on their identity in Christ. When the church ignores the gifts present within the body of Christ, it fails to appreciate all that God has for the church and fails to see God’s glory revealed in all people.”

As far back as 1994, the PCC clearly stated that someone’s sexual orientation cannot be a sin. Since then, the debate has centred around practice, particularly the question of same-sex marriage.

At Prairie, we affirm that all people are God’s children, regardless of ones gender identity or sexual orientation. We will continue to strive to be a congregation that is free from any hurt, offensive language, bullying, condemnation, or anything that creates a climate of hostility toward LGBTQI persons.

How Beliefs Work in the Presbyterian Church in Canada

We are a community centred around Jesus Christ, and there is a core set of beliefs that we hold to as a community of faith within a broad Reformed Tradition. This core of faith is encapsulated in the Apostles’ Creed, which is itself based on Scripture. To be a member of a Presbyterian Church, the only criteria is that one must assent to the Apostles’ Creed.

Besides this core, there is a broad spectrum of interpretations, opinions, theological nuances, and sometimes disagreements within our denomination, and also within the broader Christian tradition. The Christian Church has existed for thousands of years even with deep division around a host of varying understandings on a large number of topics.

Of course, there are streams of Reformed Theology and particular Presbyterian distinctives, but it must be emphasized that the best of our tradition seeks mutual understanding, and engages in respectful and loving dialogue.

This means that within our denomination, and indeed within our congregation, there will be varying viewpoints on a number of things, including whether same-sex marriage ought to be permitted and whether LGBTQI people can be ordained as ministers or elders.

We wish to stress that these viewpoints are not part of the core of beliefs as expressed in the Apostles’ Creed. Two people can wholeheartedly follow Jesus and hold completely different viewpoints on “non essentials.”

Current Beliefs and Practices Concerning Marriage and Ordination for LGBTQI Persons in the PCC

As of 2021, The Presbyterian Church in Canada holds two parallel definitions of marriage and recognizes that faithful, Holy Spirit filled, Christ centred, God honouring people can understand marriage as a covenant relationship between a man and a woman or as a covenant relationship between two adult persons. Additionally, ministers may choose for themselves whether or not to conduct same-sex marriages and a session may choose whether or not to permit same-sex marriages within their church buildings.

As of 2021, congregations and presbyteries may call and ordain as ministers and elect and ordain as ruling elders LGBTQI persons (married or single). Additionally, ministers and elders can choose whether or not to agree with or participate in ordinations, inductions, and installations.

Special LGBTQI Listening Committee of the PCC

In 2017, the General Assembly appointed a special committee called the Rainbow Communion that was empowered to invite LGBTQI people and others to tell stories of harm done to them within and by the church, and to share their stories of God’s grace experienced by them in Christian ministry. They presented their extensive final report in 2021. All of their recommendations were adopted by the 2021 General Assembly. Some highlights:

• The Presbyterian Church in Canada affirms that all people whatever their sexual orientation or gender identity are equally beloved by God.

• Identifying as LGBTQI and/or being in a same-sex marriage is not grounds for discipline and censure in The Presbyterian Church in Canada.

• The Presbyterian Church in Canada will offer a public confession to all individuals and congregations harmed by the church through exclusion and marginalization, seeking forgiveness from God and from all those affected.

• Resources will be created in the coming years to equip an inclusive church and a fund will be established to support psychotherapy/counselling for those who have experienced harm done by homophobia, hypocrisy, transphobia and heterosexism in the denomination.

More Resources

Much more can be found on the Presbyterian Church in Canada Website

Rainbow Communion Full Report and Video Report

Letter of Repentance

More on Gender, Sexuality, and Inclusion

Social Justice in the PCC

The PCC is concerned about Social Justice. There are many resources, statements, and summaries of the position of the Church under a host of headings, such as Indigenous Justice, Climate Justice, Anti Racism, Ecological Justice, Peacemaking, and more.

Visit the PCC’s social action hub

Official Beliefs of the PCC

Curious about the Official Beliefs of the Presbyterian Church in Canada?

Visit the What We Believe Webpage

What This Means for Prairie Presbyterian Church

First, all are welcome in the life of the Church. We believe this is fundamental to Christian life for anyone of any gender identity or sexual orientation. It is also true for those who hold differing theological views on a variety of subjects, including sexuality.

Secondly, the Session of Prairie Presbyterian Church believes that part of being a loving Church is being open to the giftedness of each person as God has created them. Service, leadership, and eldership are open to those whom God calls and we believe that this is not restricted by someone’s gender identity or sexuality. We abide by the position of the Presbyterian Church in Canada and believe there is space for people to hold either definition of marriage. We are supportive of persons who choose to live out their faith with either understanding, either as strictly between a man and a woman, or defined as between two adult persons.

Third, we must remember that this is about people. Our aim at Prairie is always to help people focus on God and follow Jesus Christ. We do our best to care for one another and to love one another.

Return to In Person Worship

The session of Prairie met on March 7 to discuss in person worship and are excited to welcome people back into the sanctuary at 590 University Crescent beginning on Sunday March 13th at our usual time of 10am.

Online worship will continue to be available on our YouTube Channel and we invite you to make the decision to attend in person based on what is best for you and your family on any given week.

In order to help protect the most vulnerable in our community, we encourage you to continue to wear a mask during worship (masks are available at the back if you forget yours). We would also continue to ask that you stay home when sick.

Apply for Music Director Position

Prairie Presbyterian is looking for a Music Director (10 hours per week) who will be the key music leader for worship services alongside volunteers in the music team. The Music Director will recruit, provide training and schedule people for various roles in music leadership. The Music Director will work with the Minister to plan and implement music for worship services.

Download the Full Job Description

Accepting Applications Anytime

Submit your resume by email to Kirsten Schellenberg: kirstens@cmds.ca

In Person Services Suspended. Online Only Starting Jan 2nd.

Update - February 10th

The session met on Feb 7th and decided to continue with online-only worship services. They will be reviewing whether to resume in-person services on March 7th, and will make an announcement after that time.

January Update…

The session met this week and have decided to not hold in-person worship services starting this Sunday, January 2nd. We will continue to have a combination of live-streamed or pre-recorded services until at least Feb 6th (10am Sundays on YouTube).

We recognize that this is a very difficult time for so many right now. Please pray for health care workers, and for those who are struggling with sickness.

As a community, we also need to be mindful of those who are struggling with loneliness and with mental health. Make sure you reach out to a friend, or your elder or your minister if you are in need of someone to talk to or are in need of prayer.

December 2021 Updates

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In this email: Christmas Eve Congregational Survey - Take the survey Nativity Photos Quilts for Place of Hope Congregational Meeting - Dec 12 Music Director Update Advent Events - RSVP ASAP! Back to Full Time Another email with a number of announcements - please take your time to read through them! But, I wanted to just say before anything else that I am deeply grateful to the congregation and especially the elders at Prairie Presbyterian church for allowing me to take November off.  I don't want to take up space here, but I've written a brief reflection about coming back to full-time work with Prairie after three years of half-time and I share a bit about what I did in November. Yes I did work on my next novel, and no I didn't finish it.  Feel free to read the update for more. I feel really refreshed and am excited to enter into this next stage of ministry with Prairie Church! Peace, Matt Brough Christmas Eve Services This week, the session decided that we will hold 2 Christmas Eve Services at 5:30pm and 7:00pm. In order to attend in-person, you will need to register in advance.  The 5:30pm service will be live-streamed on our YouTube Channel, and of course, you can watch it later as well if you choose. Register for Christmas Eve Congregational Survey This short survey is intended to check in with people connected to Prairie - simply to gauge where you are at with respect to you participation. We are not trying to cover everything here - just providing you with a way to give some feedback so we can make some decisions about church activities over the next number of months. It should take just a few minutes. Thanks for taking the survey! Take the Survey Nativity Scene Photos We want photos of nativity scenes! Do you have one in your home? Or could you make one out of lego or paper or quickly carve one out of wood?  It doesn't need to be elegant - this is just a bit of fun. We will use these photos in the Advent Party or in an upcoming service. Just snap a picture and email it to matt@prairiechurch.ca Quilts for Place of Hope People at Prairie are always doing things to bless others and these quilts are a beautiful example. Six women worked on these amazing quilts that have been given to families connected to Place of Hope Indigenous Presbyterian Church. Thank you for this gift. What a blessing! Congregational Meeting - This Sunday To Consider the 2022 Budget Following the worship service this Sunday, Dec 12, we will have a congregational meeting to consider and vote on the budget for 2022. You can attend the meeting either in-person or by joining on Zoom. The Zoom link will be provided in the email that goes out on Sunday morning. The meeting should start around 11am. Download Proposed Budget for 2022 Needs at Winnipeg Inner City Missions WICM has a great need for  9’x13’ Casseroles  and for Cookies for their Christmas Hamper Program.  Deliveries will be accepted at 415 Logan Avenue until Wednesday December 15.  If anyone would like items picked up please phone Terry at (204)256-1934.   On an ongoing basis they have need for high protein casseroles or cooked chicken pieces to help with the nutrition needs of several of their tenants who are unable to afford to meet their needs with the limited funds that they have available to them.   WICM Staff would greatly appreciate any assistance provided   Music Director Search Update We were hopeful that we would be in a position to hire a music director for the congregation by December, but regrettably, we did not have any qualified candidates apply. In the new year, we will continue with an open search process to fill this position. The session wishes to acknowledge that we have a number of talented musicians/singers in our congregation and we are thankful for each time people have shared their gifts of music.  Much of the envisioned music director work consists in coordinating and collaborating with volunteers in music-making toward a vibrant worship life for the congregation. In the past, we have been used to having things like seasonal choirs (virtual choir last year), special music, and a wide variety of people participating. We look forward to resuming these kinds of activities once we fill this role. Rev. Matt will be meeting with a few of the elders over the coming weeks to make some decisions about how to best approach music as we continue to search for a music director. In the meantime, we are asking for your patience and prayers as we try to work out this transition. Advent/Christmas Events In-Person is so Divine: Why God-with-us and us-together matters more than ever 2 pub theology nights where we will talk about the reality of God living as a human being, the real meaning of Christmas, and what it means for us to live incarnationally.  Location: Smitty's Restaurant South - 2835 Pembina Highway We have their private room booked for this. Feel free to have supper (or all day breakfast, or just some appetizers). You must RSVP - Let Matt know that you will be there Open to Anyone - Wednesday, Dec 15 7:00pm RSVP Now Young Adult / Student Version - Monday, Dec 20 7:00pm RSVP Now   Sunday December 19 4:00pm - Zoom Advent Party for Everyone (even pets!) Wear a Christmas sweater, show your favourite ornament, make a holiday snack or beverage for yourself. A Zoom party with Advent/Christmas games. Ways to Serve: Read Scripture Prairie is looking for additional people to read scripture, either at an in-person service or by sending in a pre-recorded scripture reading to be aired with the live YouTube service. Sign up once or monthly, and let us hear God's word through your voice. To sign up or for questions, click here. There are other ways to serve in the Sunday Worship service as well. Click the button below. Sign Up to Serve With Prairie Elders Districts If you have yet to hear from one of our elders, let us know! Please inquire with Matt Brough by clicking this shortcut to get you connected into an Elders District. Ways to Give There are three main ways to make an offering to support the ministry of Prairie Presbyterian Church right now. We are so thankful for your continued support and generosity. 1) Give using the secure Online Form using a credit card. 2) Mail or drop a cheque. We are checking the mailbox several times per week. Send to  Prairie Presbyterian Church 590 University Cres. Winnipeg, MB R3T 2N8 3) Pre-Authorized Remittance (PAR) allows you to give a regular monthly amount directly from your bank account. While it takes a little bit to set up, this is the best way to give a regular amount (and the fees to the Church are very low!) Visit the giving page to get the forms to fill out.  YouTube Prairie on Instagram Facebook Prairie's Website Email Rev. Matt Brough Copyright © *|CURRENT_YEAR|* *|LIST:COMPANY|*, All rights reserved. *|IFNOT:ARCHIVE_PAGE|* *|LIST:DESCRIPTION|* Our mailing address is: *|HTML:LIST_ADDRESS_HTML|* *|END:IF|* Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list *|IF:REWARDS|* *|HTML:REWARDS|* *|END:IF|*

The Path Behind and the Journey Ahead

Rev. Matt speaks about where we’ve been and what’s next for our community as we journey together. Or, read a summary below…

A Time of Wandering

This current time that we find ourselves in has been compared by some to wandering in the wilderness or as exile. Some have framed it as a forced sabbath, but unlike a true sabbath, we are not well-rested.

Times of wandering, exile, and Sabbath can be occasions for deep trust in God. They can also be times when God’s people are tempted to walk away or turn to objects of worship that might on the surface appear to give us what we think we want in life. Rather than being built up, our trust in God can erode.

Our faith may be challenged, we might get tired, but for those who persevere, when we look back, we may just discover that is it wasn’t an erosion of faith at at all. Rather is was, miraculously, a refining.

Aimless wandering is challenging. Abraham was called to “go to a land that I will show you,” but God wasn’t specific about exactly where to go. Moses had the promised land in mind, but what should have been a journey of a few months stretched into forty years. We have similar challenges today as we discern the path before us.

A Journey for Our Community of Faith

Prairie Presbyterian Church was formed seven years ago in April 2014 through the amalgamation of St. Andrew’s and Trinity Presbyterian Churches. Both of those congregations had already done their fair share of wandering. St. Andrew’s had sold their building and were attempting to start anew. Trinity was a Church plant that had moved from community centres, to movie theatres, and finally to this small building near the University of Manitoba.

As Prairie was formed we anticipated a new home. We looked ahead to building a new building on land set aside on McGillivray Blvd. We designated and gave significant financial resources for this project, but for a host of reasons progress was slow or just not possible. We could speculate what happened or what the reasons were for this lack of progress, but in the end this kind of speculation is not our core calling. Our call is to faithfulness in following Christ. And we believe that the congregation’s decision in September 2020 to not move any further with building plans and to relinquish the land on McGillivray was a faithful decision.

More important that buildings and land, over the last seven years, Prairie has forged its own communal identity. This may not always be apparent or strong, but again, we believe we are being faithful to Christ’s call. Several years ago, we developed a beautiful statement about who we are:

In the grace of Jesus Christ,
we are a vibrant and friendly community,
passionate about
worshipping, learning, praying, and serving.

This still holds true and we wish to live more deeply into what this statement says about us as a community.

Even before the onset of a global pandemic, there was journeying for us to do together. With our proximity to the University of Manitoba, we began to realize that perhaps we were called to focus more on students, but we had much learning to do, and still were uncertain as a leadership team about how to best focus any efforts. We tried with with various forms of outreach, the organization of a young adult group, as well as many students being part of our music ministry.

Three years ago, the minister of Prairie, Matt Brough, accepted a contract to work as the coordinator of Cyclcial PCC, our denomination’s Church Planting initiative. This meant quite a change in our staff structure. As we worked through what that might look like for the future, and then also anticipated the retirement of our long-time music director, Evangeline Keeley, we adopted a new staffing model.

That staffing model was adopted in early 2020, with Jen Ostash-Gooch moving into a half-time “Worship and Community Leader” role. With the pandemic, that role has ended up looking very different than what was originally envisioned.

We pivoted again and started a small group ministry which we hope to continue as it has been such a blessing to those who have been a part of it. Our elders are also committed to continue working on pastoral care as a priority in the coming years.

All this change, along with the inability to gather for worship in-person for such a long time, has been very challenging on all of us.

Through it all, so many of you have had to navigate significant loss and change in your lives, some of you with little support. We pray that we may do even better as a Church community to support each other in the coming years.

What Is Needed as We Move Forward?

Whether we are coming to the end of wandering or whether there will be more seasons of change and uncertainty, we need direction. This is true of our congregation, and true in our everyday lives.

Will we allow this to be a refining time for us as we persevere? Will we continue to hope in the one who rose from the dead?

In all of this, the most important thing is what God is up to, how God is leading. If we need direction, it must come from the Spirit of Christ, and not simply for our own ideas or imaginings.

We are therefore going to embarque on yet another journey. One where we listen to God and to one another. It will involve preparation, patience, planning, and ultimately some decision making around the vision that God is leading us toward as a congregation, followed by concrete actions we will take together as a community of faith. Patience will most certainly be key, as it is in our individual lives as well.

We won’t simply jump to the end and try and make the decisions that we “think” are best. Instead, we want to be deliberate in discerning the will and activity of the Holy Spirit in our lives, in Christ’s congregation, and in the wider neighbourhood.

There will be two main parts to what we will be doing.

Part 1 - A series (beginning Sept 5) on Spiritual Practices. Led by Rev. Matt, this will focus on key building blocks for developing your relationship with God and for discerning the work of the Spirit in your life, your community, and for the congregation.

The idea behind doing this series now is to prepare ourselves spiritually for the second part of our journey together.

Part 2 - In 2022 (start-time is TBA), we will participate in a six to eight month process designed to discern God’s call for the future of Prairie Presbyterian Church and create a plan to move forward. We will be using an outside organization to assist us with this.

This may sound like a long process, but the session believes it is critical that we patiently discern the direction God wishes us to move in the future.

One last thing…

Trinity Presbyterian Church used to have a slogan that was sometimes used: “Helping people become and be followers of Christ”. St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church had one too: “Join us on a journey of faith.” And here we are seven years later, knowing we still need to follow the Spirit’s lead into what is next for us. We hope you will join in this next stage as we seek God’s will once again, and we pray you will be blessed along the way.

Staff Transitions Fall 2021

In May/June the session was reviewing Prairie’s staffing model. Since early 2020 we have had two pastoral staff positions, both around 50% time: The Minister of Word and Sacrament (Rev. Matt Brough), and the Worship and Community Leader (Jen Ostash-Gooch).

As part of the review, the session asked Matt and Jen to identify any gaps in their job descriptions and make recommendations about any adaptations for the future roles. In July/August, Jen’s hours were reduced at her request for her to focus more on her family. Since that time, both Jen and Matt have thought and prayed about their roles at Prairie.

Worship and Community Leader Transition

On August 23rd, Jen informed the session that she would be stepping down as Worship and Community Leader. You can watch the video here of her letting the congregation know about her decision. We are thankful for her grace and honesty and encourage her in her continued calling and devotion to her family at this time.

We have identified that the Worship and Community Leader position was really two main jobs in the areas of: (1) Music and Worship Leadership and Coordination and (2) Discipleship/Community/Fellowship.

Jen will officially complete her work for Prairie at the end of September, continuing in her limited hours (about .25% time). Her focus in September is around the coordination of our small group ministry. Her last Sunday leading and coordinating in worship was on August 29th.

Minister of Word and Sacrament Transition

Rev. Matt Brough has for the last three years worked half-time for Prairie and half-time as Coordinator of Cyclical PCC, the Church Planting Support Initiative of the Presbyterian Church in Canada. He has decided not to renew his contract with the National Church and will return as full-time minister at Prairie once the contract expires at the end of October 2021.

As a reset, and to refocus on full time ministry with Prairie, he will be away for the month of November. Matt looks forward to entering a new season with renewed energy!

Search for New Music/Worship Director

We are immediately beginning a search for someone to fill the music/worship coordinating role. A small team is being put together for this and their first step is to look at the job descriptions of out former music director role and the worship and community leader role and provide a new job description to session. This job description will be shared and used in their search to fill this role.

New Committee for Discipleship/Fellowship

We will be forming a small committee to oversee and support some of the areas that were under the worship and community leader’s position, as well as other congregational activity, including:

• The Small Group Ministry, emphasizing support and accountability for leaders.

• Children’s Ministry: Sunday school / Nursery

• Other Events (e.g. retreat, coffee time, one-off events such as dinners, Special services, workshops, etc.)

Long Term Planning

The Session is preparing for a season of discernment and planning for the future of the congregation, including a process that will take 6-8 months in 2022. This process will involve the whole church. Prior to this process, we are entering a time of preparation as we focus on spiritual practices in the fall of 2021.

You can read more about the Path Behind and the Journey Ahead here.

In-Person Services Resume - Sept 5th

In-Person Services resume on Sept 5th. We are excited to welcome you back, and at the same time we acknowledge that not everyone will wish to return to in-person services at this time. We are continuing our livestream option as well.

We are not having any pre-registration, so if you plan on attending you simply need to show up a few minutes before 10am.

IMPORTANT -> Read the Guidelines for Attending in Person Worship BEFORE attending - Updated Sept 10, 2021

Erin, W, Prairie’s clerk of session, provides details about in-person services.

Practicing and Preparing - A Series on Spiritual Practices - Fall 2021

How do you move forward in times of uncertainty? What can you grab onto that provides some stability? Where can you find direction, not just for yourself, but in your community, and Church?

In this time of wandering, the most important thing is what God is up to, how God is leading. If we need direction, it must come from the Spirit of Christ, and not simply for our own ideas or imaginings.

Led by Rev. Matt Brough, this series is about putting the Triune God at the centre of it all, providing key building blocks for developing your relationship with God, and for discerning the work of the Spirit in your life, your community, and for the congregation.

Sep 5 - Stopping Busy

Theme and Practice: Sabbath and Rest 1

Texts: Exodus 20:8-11; Deuteronomy 5:12-15; Leviticus 23:3; Mark 2:23-28

Rev. Matt Brough’s Message + Resources and Practical Helps

Sep 12 - Rest for the Weariest

Theme and Practice: Sabbath and Rest 2

Text: Leviticus 25:1-24

Rev. Matt Brough’s Message on Jubilee

Sep 19 - With God Without Agenda

Theme and Practice: Quieting yourself and Centering Prayer 1

Text: Luke 10:25-29

Rev. Matt Brough’s Message + Resources and Practical Helps

Sept 26 - By Yourself But Not Alone

Theme and Practice: Quieting yourself and Centering Prayer 2

Texts: Luke 5:15-16; Luke 6:12-13

Rev. Matt Brough’s Message - By Yourself But Not Alone

Oct 3 - Remembering With Grace

Theme and Practice: Thanksgiving and Forgiveness 1

Text: Luke 22:14-21

Rev. Matt Brough’s Message - Remembering With Grace

Oct 10 - Remembering and Letting Go

Theme and Practice: Thanksgiving and Forgiveness 2

Text: Luke 6:37-42

Rev. Matt Brough’s Message - Remembering and Letting Go

Oct 17 - In and For the Neighbourhood

Theme and Practice: Paying Attention to Location and Relationships 1

Text: Jeremiah 29:1,4-13

Rev. Matt Brough’s Message - In and For The Neighbouhood

Oct 24 - Missional Spirituality

Theme and Practice: Paying Attention to Location and Relationships 2

Text: Acts 16:11-15

Rev. Matt Brough’s Message - Missional Spirituality

Oct 31 - Sustaining the Spiritual Life

Theme and Practice: Integration, Walking, the Examen, and More

Text: Mark 8:22-26

Rev. Matt Brough’s Message + Resources and Practical Helps

Plans for Fall Sunday School 2021

The following was written by Bonnie Zimmer, an elder at Prairie and outgoing Children’s Ministry coordinator.

We are especially thankful for Bonnie’s work in this important volunteer role over the last number of years. In September, Bonnie is stepping back from the coordinator role.

See below for the current plan, how the coordinator role will be divided up, and how you can be involved!

As many of you will know, Prairie has continued Sunday school throughout the pandemic through the use of puppet shows and mini lessons in the form of “Things to think about”, all available on the Prairie You Tube channel.

As well, since Easter Week, children have had special packages delivered to their doorsteps. These packages contain a variety of craft materials and activity sheets supplied by Sheila Anderson, and  books for the youngest children supplied by Janet Simpson.

We have not been able to meet in person since March of 2020 but we are hoping that will change as we move into the fall!

We anticipate that September will be a “transition” month, and will have a revamped form of Sunday school for at least that month, to be reassessed at the end of September. Here is how it would work: 

• The activity bags would still be created and delivered at the beginning of each month, complete with the stories for the weeks in that month.

• If children are not physically in church on a given Sunday, they can do the story and activities at home, as they have been doing in recent months.

• When they are able to be in church, we will encourage them to bring their activity bag with them, but extras will be available for anyone who is not able to do this, or forgets to bring them.  

• This system will greatly reduce pressure on teachers to provide activities as they will be already organized.

• Teachers, then, will be performing more of a “supervising “ role as they will have little to no preparation to do in advance, other than familiarizing themselves with the story. 

• We anticipate having two classes, one for children from Kindergarten  to Gr. 4 or 5 and another for grades 6 and 7.  

• We anticipate that the nursery will be available for use by preschoolers and their parents.

Assuming that classes will go ahead as usual in the fall, we would like you to consider whether you would be able to help with one of the following areas: 

1. supervising/teaching classes

2. scheduling teachers/supervisors

3. seeing that criminal record checks for volunteers are up to date

4. ensuring that basic supplies are in the supply cupboard

5. being a storyteller

6. coordinating/overseeing  the above roles

You will notice that the above roles have traditionally fallen under the heading of “coordinator”.  We feel that by having roles divided up as above, it will be a great help to the coordinator.

We are grateful that a couple of major areas are already being covered –Janet  Simpson has agreed to continue to conduct the Orientation session that we are required to hold each fall.  Thanks, Janet! As well,  a huge thank you is due to Sheila Anderson for looking after activity sheets and crafts!

Please give these needs some prayerful consideration and let us know where you think you might be able to help out.

Our children are experiencing a great deal of stress at present, and it is our hope that by helping them build a strong foundation of faith, it will help them through not only the current times, but through the inevitable difficulties they will face as they navigate life’s future challenges.