How diverse are the faiths represented in the chaplaincy?

In fact, we have people of no faith in our chaplaincy … humanist chaplains, Christians of all stripes, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, traditional Indigenous spirituality, and we are working on a training program for a Sikh chaplain and additional humanist chaplains.

How closely do they work together?

We have diverse teams and our motto is ‘Called to serve.’ The idea is that whatever the need is of the person in front of us, it could be expressed to any chaplain and that chaplain would be responsible for facilitating what that person requires. If they were asking for a particular religious service that was not the chaplains’ that they were speaking to, then either they ask a colleague on their team or they have relationships with those in the community to make sure that that spiritual need is provided for.

What are some of the challenges and rewards of working together in this way?

We’re really a model in the worldwide chaplaincies….This idea of chaplains of varying faiths and belief systems working so closely together is quite anomalous for other chaplaincies who are quite focused on the care of their own religious tradition. It’s really enriched all of us in ways that we couldn’t imagine. Starting just even from ecumenical relationships with other Christians. Our Protestant chapels … are an ecumenical group of all the Protestants, whether they be Pentecostal or Baptist or Anglican. It’s a joy and a challenge to work with people of diverse perspectives — finding common ground, finding a place of respect, being open to others’ joys and spirituality and how they express that…St. George’s Chapel in Petawawa is a really active chapel and a really great example of this ecumenical model.

…All of our chaplains are really guided, directed to stay firmly rooted in the tradition that they come from and represent. … So even as you are working closely with other people, you’re not there to lose yourself. You are there to continue to represent who you truly are in that group of people.

When did you feel called to ministry and to the military?

I grew up in Calgary…and in university I discerned a call to certainly greater theological studies. I wasn’t quite sure where it was going to take me, because I grew up Roman Catholic… but I wanted to study theology in a more in-depth way, and so I went straight over to Toronto School of Theology, University of St. Michael’s College after I finished my undergrad. I did a Master of Divinity where, again, as a Roman Catholic layperson, I wasn’t sure what the ministry opportunities were. I did placement work in prison and hospital settings.  I felt that institutional chaplaincy was something that I would be drawn to and would be very interested in, as opposed to just regular church work.

And then I saw a poster for Cadet Camp Chaplaincy [as it was called then], which is our cadet and junior rangers program….They were asking for theological students to go and spend summers on these training centres and … offer spiritual care…. I did that for two summers… the second of which was on a working military base where I talked to military chaplains… I really felt that this was a place where I felt called…. I was bilingual. I was adventurous, younger, and felt that having this take-the-church-to-the-people model, bringing the spiritual care to the people, which is kind of what chaplaincy is… was something that I felt really drawn to.

I was hired as a Roman Catholic lay pastoral associate. It’s almost a diaconal role. Pastoral associates had a kind of mandate from the bishop to provide care, help out at churches, bring communion, and do baptisms and weddings where they were required, but in doing that, I felt drawn to greater leadership and felt and saw myself in an ordained ministry position.

I had always dropped in and out of Anglican churches to experience the spirituality and the openness of the Anglican church. In 2008, I discerned that … I had to make the step towards being ordained in the Anglican Church of Canada and found great support from the Anglican Military Ordinariate of the time and Bishop Peter Coffin. Bishop John Chapman was the one who facilitated my training and my eventual reception into the ordination into the Anglican Church of Canada.

What does being the first woman to be appointed Chaplain General mean to you?

It’s always hard to answer because I spent 25 years in the chaplaincy…. You are conscious, as a woman, that you are in the minority. But there was always this growing number of women and a growing recognition that that’s part of our diversity that we really need to continue to foster. Our CAF is made up of men and women and diverse gender identities. Everybody needs somebody to be able to talk to. So, to be the first woman, in a way, you almost feel like it’s a bit late in coming…. But I’m really humbled. I’m really honoured just to be named Chaplain General…. Our motto is Called to Serve and I feel very much called to serve those who serve, and to do that in a way that represents a gender minority in our CAF as an example to all women, especially women of faith. We’ve often been in the minority in our faith communities as well, not recognized as spiritual leaders. So for me, it is a special recognition that women can be spiritual leaders and military leaders. And people have told me that it’s important for them to have that example, and so I honor that.

What proportion of chaplains are women?

About 10 to 15 % of our chaplaincy are women. We would love to have more. I would love to have more because to me that is still clearly not representative of Canadian society, and it is not representative of all of the richness of our faith traditions and their leadership either. And so that is continually [a goal], as we work on recruiting, maintaining a representative face of Canada. It’s really important to me, whether that be spiritual and faith tradition diversity, and certainly gender diversity as well.

Aside from deployments abroad, the CAF often helps with wildfire and floods here at home. Those situations must also be challenging for chaplains.

We’re spiritual first responders when we walk alongside a lot of these other first responders who are going into those disasters when the sensible people are leaving. And it’s a very particular calling to stand alongside people who are doing this difficult work for Canada at home and abroad.

What else would you like readers to know about the work of CAF chaplains?

The chaplains are there in the small times of life, and post COVID, I think we’ve realized that people look for and need connection. …The world is unstable, and so people are looking for grounding and meaning and purpose. I’m really proud that the chaplaincy serves in the Canadian Armed Forces to be that source of hope and inspiration and meaning for people. And as we’re sharing this with [a readership in] the Anglican Church, it’s a place where I think many of our clergy would flourish [serving] either on a part -time or a full -time basis. It’s a very meaningful ministry.

It’s challenging… This is the church that has been sent into this difficult setting… in different parts of Canada and around the world. So, I invite the prayers of our readers because I think our chaplains need prayer and spiritual support and really welcome that. When our chaplains show up in Anglican churches, they’re probably looking for a little bit of nourishment themselves. And so, [I] invite everyone to welcome them and hear their stories, because it’s a very powerful witness to spirit of goodness and hope in the world.

The post Col. the Rev. Canon Lisa Pacarynuk leads as Chaplain General appeared first on Perspective.

Less than a generation after Canadians celebrated the centennial of Confederation, members of Christ Church Cathedral approached their 150th anniversary. They sought a meaningful way to commemorate the building of Christ’s Church, Bytown in 1832, the first Anglican church to be built in the future capital some 35 years before Confederation.

The answer soon became apparent. The west window dating from 1872 was beginning to show its age. Its large surface was filled with clear glass laid out in diamond-panes, with a thin band of gold and blue outlining the tracery. After 110 years of weathering, the lead holding glass panes in place and the larger wooden frame were greatly in need of renewing.

It was decided to commission a new west window. Its design would be a visual summary of the history of the parish within the region. A great fundraising campaign was carried out, and a design commissioned from Christopher Wallis of London, Ontario. Other startling proposals including stark modern abstract designs were also considered, but Wallis was entrusted with the commission based on memorial windows he designed for Trinity Church, Cornwall and Saint Bartholomew’s, Ottawa. We see him here assembling the cartoon for this composition, to form the basis for selecting and cutting stained glass for the new west window. This commission was a big deal, and Christopher Wallis did not disappoint.

As traditional stained-glass iconography goes, Christopher Wallis was attempting nothing less than a summary of the history of the parish and its place in the City of Ottawa within the larger setting of the Ottawa Valley and global Anglicanism. To take on such a commission must have made him feel like Michelangelo when he set out to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.  It would take Naomi Jackson Groves, niece of Group of Seven artist A.Y. Jackson, 60 pages to explain all of the details that Wallis incorporated in his composition. In a future issue of Perspective we will summarize some of the major details, but for now we must confine ourselves to just a few parts of the larger composition of Wallis’s masterpiece.

The larger composition shows a Celtic cross. The cross, of course, is emblematic of Christianity, symbolizing our Saviour’s sacrifice to redeem mankind. The Celtic cross recognizes the huge Anglo-Irish population that constituted much of the Anglican population of the larger Ottawa region in the nineteenth century. In the first census of Canada (1871) that asked people what they considered their ethnic origin (as opposed to their country of birth) to be, in the five counties around Ottawa 42,000 more people claimed to be of Irish origin than did in the cities of Montreal and Toronto combined. At the centre circle of the cross is Christ, the agnus dei, from whom the parish took its name. At the apex of the window Christ the King is shown sitting on a rainbow, while a satellite is shown orbiting the heavens.

The cross arms of the cross represent the Ottawa River, the major east/west route of transportation for both Indigenous inhabitants and early French explorers. The upright of the cross shows the Gatineau River flowing from the north, and the Rideau River flowing from the south, while the tall silhouettes of pine trees across the window signify the huge economic impact of the timber industry in the larger Ottawa Valley over the course of six generations.

If you would like to help the Archives preserve the records of the Diocese and its parishes, why not become a Friend of the Archives?  Your $20 membership brings you three issues of the lively, informative Newsletter, and you will receive a tax receipt for further donations above that amount.  

The post Cathedral Deanery — Wallis sketching Christ Church Cathedral West Window Cartoon appeared first on Perspective.

Janet Currie-Kelk, All Saints’ children and youth ministry leader, told Perspective that it was difficult to organize a traditional confirmation program that accommodated kids’ busy schedules of school and extra-curricular sports and activities. “It would be so much nicer to have a longer time frame for young people and have more flexibility,” she recalls wishing.

“The biggest thing about confirmation is that the young people feel supported by their community of faith, and [recognize] that this isn’t a graduation. This is a start of a new journey, in the sense that they’re taking their own responsibility for their own faith development.”

Currie-Kelk had been reading a lot about intergenerational ministry that suggests that keeping children and youth programming separate from the rest of the community “isn’t necessarily in the best interest of anyone’s faith development.” She and the clergy team asked, “How could we offer something to these young people that surrounds them in the community and provide them with the knowledge, the skills, and the experiences of living one’s faith?”

One of the ways of doing that is giving them a confirmation partner or mentor, which All Saints’ does.

And they found a program with the flexibility they were looking for — the passport idea — from an Episcopalian church in the U.S., which has been working with the concept for about 10 years and even offers customized adaptations for different denominations.

They consulted with parishioner Patricia Bays, who has had a long involvement in Christian education and is the author of This Anglican Church of Ours, who was impressed, and so they decided to adapt it for the local context in the diocese of Ottawa.

The passport concept allows a user to prepare for confirmation or simply engage in Christian education programming at any age at their own pace. And it takes confirmation beyond books into experiential learning with lots of room for questioning and reflecting.

There are three broad categories of learning — Foundation, Spiritual Practice and Community in Action. All Saints’ held its first foundational session in the fall — a group discussion of the question “Is doubt okay?”, which drew about 25 people and included parishioners who weren’t involved in confirmation but were just interested in the topic There are four more sessions:

• What do you believe?
• Scripture Mad Dash
• One Church, Many Expressions
• Circle of the Church Year

They intend to hold these core sessions each year, so anyone who wasn’t able to attend won’t have to wait too long for the next one.

The passport includes room for the participants and make notes and record their reflections.

The Spiritual Practice category includes three core requirements:

• Anglican traditions
• Holy Week – (participants must join for at least one day)
• Attending worship service at All Saints’ Westboro at least once a month.

Then participants can choose three of these:

• Prayer and practice
• Praying with Psalms
• Indigenous Spiritualities
• Bible Story-telling
• World Religions
• Labyrinth Spiritual Practice
• Forest Church
• Humanics Santuary and Sculpture Park
• Sacred space
• Lectio Divina
• Vespers
• Crafting circle

Community in Action — How can we love and serve our neighbour?

• Holy Troublemaking
• Suffering — Where is God?
• The Ministry of the Rest of Us
• All Saints’ Westboro Community Space Volunteer

Currie-Kelk says this is a draw for the youth. They talk about Jesus as the ultimate Holy Troublemaker or an activist for Black rights such as Viola Desmond. These issues “tend to also have a very large impact on their faith development. So, faith isn’t just Sunday morning, it’s living it. Whether that’s helping in a food bank, or going on a mission project, or volunteering within other community events.”

Once participants have completed all the requirements, they can be confirmed.

The program is just launching, but Currie-Kelk says that the response so far has been enthusiastic. “We printed 50 passports to start with and we gave them all away.”

All Saints’ is happy to share the templates and their experiences with other parishes that are interested. Incumbent Archdeacon Kathryn Otley has shared information about the program with other diocesan clergy.

Above— Pages from the passport with room for notes and personal reflections.

L— Janet Currie-Kelk is All Saints’ children and youth ministry leader.

The post All Saints’ Westboro tests out new passport-style resource for Christian education and confirmation appeared first on Perspective.

The legacy of slavery haunted Blacks in Canada, as their immigration here was proscribed in the early 20th century, and “science” harnessed to prove that hierarchical relationships were natural and right. This led to widespread segregating of Black citizens, whether in theatres or hotels into the 1940s. As late as the inter-war period, Blacks were concentrated in low wage corners of the economy: men as waiters, janitors, barbers and labourers, and women as domestic servants, laundresses and waitresses. The federal government permitted racial restriction in its hiring and promotion policies.

By 1940, most Blacks were born here. Elsewhere in Canada, Blacks were organizing, protesting limitations on employment and where they could socialize. The revelation of Nazi atrocities at the end of the Second World War produced a major shift in attitude. This led to new expressions of international opinion through the United Nations charters to create a more liberal intellectual climate. Researchers were discrediting the claims of “scientific” racism. The federal Bill of Rights in 1960 refuted personal limitations by reason of race, religion or sex.

In 1962, Ontario consolidated its anti-discrimination legislation in a code, to be implemented by a Human Rights Commission with a mandate to promote equal opportunity as well as to administer existing laws accordingly. In 1962, new Canadian immigration regulations made individual skills the chief criterion for admission and ended race or national origin as reasons for exclusion. Further regulations in 1967 established a “points” system, whereby all who accumulated sufficient points were automatically admitted to Canada.

The effect was immediate in the Anglican Diocese of Ottawa. With artificial barriers removed, highly qualified applicants from Asia, Africa and the Caribbean flocked to Canada. West Indians so swelled Ottawa’s Anglican population that in 1985 Christ Church Cathedral was twinned with Saint George’s Cathedral in Georgetown, Guyana. A significant number of Anglicans among the new arrivals led to pressure for more Blacks to be ordained. Twenty years after Blair Dixon became a priest, (the year the cathedrals were twinned), The Rev. Frederick December (1912-2004), originally from Agricola, Guyana, came to serve in the Diocese of Ottawa.

The struggle over race relations in the United States from mid-century, including the assassination of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Junior in 1968, rivetted attention north of the border. Violence visited on peaceful non-violent Blacks demanding American civil rights was one side of the news reports, while Black achievements in sports, music and various mainstream fields of endeavour spoke of hard-won achievements.

The improving climate for Blacks in Canada contrasted with the apartheid policies of the government of South Africa, another country in the British Commonwealth.  The attention of Anglicans in the Diocese of Ottawa was drawn to the words of a Black cleric—and eventual Nobel laureate, Archbishop Desmond Tutu. In his polemics, he wrote against the racist regime:

No matter how long and how repressive this unjust and undemocratic rule turns out to be, the urge for freedom remains as a subversive element threatening the overthrow of rigid repression. The tyrant is on a road to nowhere even though he may survive for an unconscionably long time and even though he may turn his country into a huge prison riddled with informers.

These words of hope eventually brought South African apartheid to an end, and it did so by encompassing the goal of “Truth and Reconciliation”—a phrase that eventually moved Canadians to confront their sordid history with Indigenous inhabitants.

Another 20 years would pass by after the reception of the Rev. Fred December before a number of Blacks were ordained Anglican clergy in the Diocese of Ottawa. They included receiving the Rev. Manassé Maniragaba (2007), the Rev. Naomi Kabugi (2008), the Rev. George Kwari (2008), ordaining the Rev. Hilary Murray (2012), receiving the Rev. Nash Smith (2014), ordaining Deacon Elizabeth December (2015), receiving the Rev. E. Julian Campbell (2019), the Rev. Felix Longdon (2023), and the Rev. Dr. Sony Jabouin (2025).

Despite growing numbers of Black clergy, the Rev. Julian Campbell in 2022 wrote about the longstanding negative impact of colonialism. Although slavery was abolished in his native Bahamas in 1838, Campbell noted how Blacks affected a British accent, and they were not allowed to serve at royal functions until the late 1960s. Plantation owners became dominant, possessed land, and owned Black bodies. Blacks suffered from misogyny, homophobia, xenophobia and colouration long after. Under slavery, British people saw money flowing into their coffers without witnessing the price in blood paid by Blacks in the West Indies.

Forgiveness, concluded Campbell, doesn’t mean forgetting the past. Today, as anti-Black bigotry again is stoked in the United States, note William Faulkner’s warning: “The past isn’t dead.  It isn’t even past.”

Based on the writing of James W. St.G. Walker and The Rev. E. Julian Campbell

The post Black Anglicans in the Diocese of Ottawa, 1978-2026 appeared first on Perspective.

A dedicated group of parishioners at St. Thomas the Apostle is preparing for our annual February celebration of Black History Month. Following the national BHM 2026 theme of Resistance, our theme is Faith as Resistance.

Guest speakers at Sunday services, and enhanced fellowship time following our 10 am service featuring refreshments from various African and Caribbean countries, are planned. (see details in poster below)

As well, a Lenten book study will start during Black History Month, beginning Feb. 4, 2026 on Zoom on Wednesdays at 7 pm and run until March 18. A special in-person session is planned for Ash Wednesday, Feb. 18.  We will be reading and reflecting on Black Liturgies by Cole Arthur Riley. We are asking for a free will offering to cover the cost of these hard-cover books (suggested $30).

This year, we are excited to present a concert at St. Thomas on Sunday, Feb. 8, at 3 pm featuring the London Trio Plus Gospel Singers. Tickets are $20 for adults and $10 for students and children. Tickets can be obtained by emailing the church office at stthomasparishottawa@gmail.com

To get a taste of the talent of the London Trio Plus, visit their Youtube channel at: https://www.youtube.com/c/londontrioplus

St. Thomas the Apostle is located at 2345 Alta Vista Dr. in Ottawa. — The Rev. Maria Nightingale

St. John the Evangelist Ottawa plans a special service on Feb. 15

In his weekly parish newsletter, the Rev. Canon Gary van der Meer reflected on the importance of Black History Month:

St John’s joins the wider community in keeping Black History Month in February of each year. You may be wondering why this is important. I learned about its importance from a theological student who did an internship with me in the church where I served before coming to St John’s. Randy Williams, who is originally from Bermuda, pointed out how often we use the word “We” when we are trying to be inclusive. But our “We” does not actually include everybody.

Our schools taught history in a way that left out so much. We thought we were learning everything that was important, but by omission, we didn’t learn about slavery. We learned about ancient Greece and Rome but never the ancient civilizations of Africa. This is also true about Indigenous Peoples in Canada and how we were not taught about Residential Schools and their real damage to Indigenous families, their language and culture. St John’s Indigenous Engagement Coordinator, Kimberly Johnson, has helped us to understand that before there is reconciliation there must be truth — and that we are capable of hearing it, growing in understanding, and being transformed by our God’s passion for love and justice.

Black History Month is about this same process of recognition. It was our blind spot in many churches before the brutal murder of George Floyd by a police officer in Minneapolis in May 2020. This was the time of the pandemic and my church congregation of the time, St Anne’s in Toronto, was having worship services on Zoom with conversation sermons. The Black members of our congregation explained to us that they do not feel seen. We learned from their stories of being stopped by police in their cars for no reason, being followed around retail stores, passed over for employment opportunities and housing rental. We learned about the presumptuous use of the word “We” that did not include them. The passion and emotion from people we had known for a long time moved us deeply. We began to study. I read White Fragility by Robin Diangelo. I have come to appreciate that there are many good books about racism, but this was the one that started the opening of my eyes.

Here at St John’s, I hope you appreciate the ways our congregation has been blessed over the past two years with newcomers from Africa. You can see from the regular photographs in this newsletter (and the pictures above) that they are very involved in our community. We recognize the hardship and challenges of coming to a new place and starting over. This month, we are celebrating the richness of languages, cultures, music and food as we continue to grow in friendship. While each Sunday will bring its own blessings, we especially invite you to attend on Sunday, February 15. There will be African music during the service with dancing and lunch following. — The Rev. Canon Gary van der Meer

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At our gathering, we heard about new and ongoing projects that many of you are engaged in and we all shared the challenges of competing priorities, diminishing resources and not knowing how to get started.  We also talked about how the All My Relations Episcopal Panel could support parishes/congregations wherever you’re at with learning opportunities, guest speakers, workshops and by sharing stories; an AMR newsletter was suggested as well as a more visible and accessible AMR webpage on the Diocesan website.

In response to the excellent presentation at Synod about the ceramic feathers gifted to parishes at the conclusion of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, and in light of our discussions at the Circle Gathering about honouring and integrating them into parish life, the AMR Panel is considering how we might support this across the diocese in 2026.

Everyone who attended expressed a desire for another virtual Circle Gathering in the new year and then an in-person meeting once winter is over. So, stay tuned!!

We hope all of you will join us as we continue to live out the commitment of our Diocese and the Anglican Church of Canada to this vital and deeply meaningful work, and we invite you to be in touch with us if you have questions or simply want to check in for a conversation about something.

Contact us at: amr.workinggroup@gmail.com

The post All My Relations Circle shares ideas and inspirations appeared first on Perspective.

There was a particularly warm welcome as a homecoming for the archbishop who had served as a priest of the diocese, dean of the Cathedral for 25 years and as the 10^th bishop of Ottawa for the past five years until he was elected Primate in June of 2025.

After congratulating the Cathedral girls’ choir on their 25th anniversary, Archbishop Parker began by noting that the first place he travelled after being elected was to Calgary to attend the Sacred Circle, the national gathering of Indigenous Anglicans in Canada, in August 2025. The Indigenous Church is resurging, celebrating and being celebrated, he said. “Our Indigenous church is growing confident as Indigenous Anglicans with ancient roots and traditions on this land.”

He added: “In what could be described as kind of a cosmic irony, the Anglican Church of Canada, as distinct from the Indigenous Anglican Church that dwells within it,… over the last century or so, has gone from being in a central place of privilege in Canada to being on the margins.”

January 1 is the day when Christian churches celebrate the naming of Jesus. “What does it mean for us to lift up the name of Jesus from our place in the margins of Canadian society?” Parker asked. “What are we to make of the words from the ancient Christian hymn we heard read from Philippians? ‘In the name of Jesus, every knee should bend in heaven and on earth, and under the earth, and every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.’ It sounds like a call to Christian nationalism, which our church has recently and firmly denounced as a distortion of the gospel of Jesus and a threat to Canadian democracy. It sounds a lot like the place, the mindset, that the Anglican Church had when it first came to this land. Imperial, somewhat arrogant, privileged, and profoundly damaging to the spiritual traditions of the first people,” he said.

Instead, Parker explained, for the people, clergy, and bishops of the Anglican Church of Canada, “lifting up the name of Jesus means three things: communion with each other, communion with all humanity, and communion with the Creator of creation.

He elaborated: “Lifting up the name of Jesus means building up our parishes and congregations as well-run places of belonging, friendship, of lifelong relationships, intergenerational, diverse communities of worship, pastoral care, and service, communities that include all who seek relief from isolation and meaninglessness and loneliness, places of genuine concern and meaning…. Lifting up the name of Jesus also means selfless and courageous and steadfast acts of compassion, justice, advocacy, mercy, and peacemaking. It means building up our ministries and missions that serve the most vulnerable people, the oppressed, the victimized, wherever they are in this world. And critically, it means standing alongside every group or government, or person of goodwill who also seek to bring compassion, justice, mercy and peace to others. For us, the name of Jesus means deep communion with all human beings and with the earth itself.”

For Anglicans in Canada, Parker said, it also “means being a people of hope. Christ was born. Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again. We are a people who wait and live and serve in hope because we believe Christ Jesus is before, within, and after all time, all space, all things in heaven and earth. God is not finished yet.”

The archbishop offered this advice for living in that hope. “Be fully alive. Use your good gifts and resources fully and wisely. Build up, adjust, shape your parishes and congregations to be meaningful places of deep communion with one another. Courageously and selflessly join with other people of goodwill to serve those who live precariously. Be in deep communion with all humanity and lay claim to the hope that dwells within us and around us at all times.”

View the entire service

Following the service, everyone was invited to a festive reception in the Cathedral’s Great Hall:

The post Primate offers hopeful message in New Year’s Day sermon appeared first on Perspective.

But a little positive press can add momentum to the work and raise the profile of the parish and the church. So, Perspective is sharing some good news that both All Saints Greely and All Saints’ Westboro have both been in the media spotlights for very good reasons recently.

All Saints Greely

CTV sent reporter Katelyn Wilson to All Saints Greely on a Tuesday evening in September to report on a community effort that weaves milk bags into mats that people who are living on the streets can use to sleep or sit on. The project also has an environmental benefit of diverting the plastic bags so that they don’t go directly to landfill.

Wilson interviewed Grace Jones, a parishioner and church warden who got the project at All Saints started in 2022. Most of the volunteers are people from the community who meet in the church hall every Tuesday, and in CTV’s news clip they are busily working and weaving. They demonstrated how the donated milk bags are cut, tied and then woven into mats. and Jones said the reporter tried her hand at the weaving.

Jones told Perspective later that she heard the segment aired not only on the evening television news broadcast but also the next morning on CFRA radio, and also aired in London and North Bay. “I have had a number of emails with one this morning from north of Windsor wanting to compare notes. I must say I am a little overwhelmed, but it is all good.  I didn’t imagine such an outpouring of support,” she said.

But how did the milk bag mats first come to CTV’s attention? It happened through All Saints’ partnership with the environmental group Earthub, which collects the milk bags to keep the plastic out of the landfill and was seeking an end user for the bags when Jones got involved in 2022.

“Brittanny [Belanger], the founder of Earthub, came to visit weaving one Tuesday evening,” Jones explained. “She took some pictures and videos as she was trying to increase the number of milk bags coming in.  On the night of Sept 4, she reposted a 21 second sped up video of the process and messaged me the next morning that it had had 50,000 views so far.  Last week, CTV reached out to her because of the emails they were receiving as to where they could donate milk bags and wanted to do an interview during the day.” She believed the whole story needed to be told and so worked with [CTV] to arrange for them to come on a Tuesday evening.”

“It is just providing a little bit of comfort, one bag at a time,” Jones told the reporter.

Each mat comes with a tag that says, “Made with caring hands by All Saints Anglican Church Greely and friends.” The mats are distributed through outreach organizations, who report that people gratefully received the mats, and that they are well-used. Shawna from Shawna’s Outreach told Jones that she met a man who was carrying a mat and asked how he liked it. “He said it was the reason he’s still alive. He told me he has carried to Montreal and back and can’t imagine being without it. He pointed out how the colours of the companies were worn off and that it was still strong and together. Thought you should know,” she said.

So far, the All Saints group has made about 400 sitting mats and about 420 sleeping mats. Jones says the group will keep on making the mats as long as there is a need for them.

All Saints’ Westboro

All Saints’ Westboro was also featured in a CTV news segment and on the local CBC radio show All in a Day and on Rogers TV.

Whispers was a popular neighbourhood pub for many years, but it closed down in 2022. Its walls were covered with an eclectic mix of memorabilia — antiques, sports equipment, musical instruments and much more — and the developer who bought the building wanted to clear it out.

Judy Lincoln, executive director of the Westboro Business Improvement Association (BIA) suggested donating the items to All Saints’ Westboro, which has operated the Westboro Food Bank for more than 40 years, to auction off and use the proceeds to support the food bank.

In the spring, All Saints’ volunteers moved items out of the pub, cleaning and preparing them for the auction on Sept. 20.

That week, All Saints’ associate incumbent the Rev. Chung Yan Lam told Perspective that they had raised $3,700 in a combination between the online auction, online shop, and also the community meal on the day of the event. “People were very generous with their offers for the items, and we still have many historical items taken from Whispers Pub that could still find a good home. We will continue to sell them on Facebook Marketplace to hopefully keep things out of the landfill,” she said. “At the community meal, we also prepared 40 portions of food that were delivered to our neighbours at Cornerstone’s Princeton location.”

Lam added that the partnership between All Saints’ Westboro Anglican Church, Westboro Region Food Bank, and the Westboro BIA has been wonderful, especially in providing support to the neighbours who are experiencing food insecurity. “The Westboro BIA has organized two separate fundraisers this past year that allowed the food bank to hold a total of four free community meals. At each of the meals, we cooked more than 200 portions of food. We look forward to other partners who are interested in sponsoring and partnering to prepare community meals for our neighbours. It’s not just about feeding the hungry,’ she said. “We hope that All Saints’ Westboro can provide a friendly face and a community where everyone is welcome.”

Peace Pole installed at All Saints’ Westboro

On Sept. 21, the congregations from All Saints’ Westboro and First United, which share their building, gathered outside the church in between their two Sunday worship services along with members of the Rotary Club of West Ottawa for a ceremony to bless a Peace Pole.

Peace Poles are a global initiative that began in Japan after World War II and have the words “May Peace Prevail on Earth” written in multiple languages on all four sides. The Rotary Club of West Ottawa sponsored and funded the pole installed near the church’s healing garden and its outdoor labyrinth after consulting with the parishes and the Indigenous community.

The post Parish outreach work making news appeared first on Perspective.

Archbishop Shane Parker begins new ministry leading the Anglican Church of Canada

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Leigh Anne Williams

On his way

Archbishop Shane Parker graciously took time a few weeks after his installation as Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada to reflect on his time ...

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Leigh Anne Williams

Timeline for electing the 11th bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Ottawa

Synod Secretaries, the Rev.Canon Stephen Silverthorne (Clerical Secretary) and Margaret Porter (Lay Secretary) provided this information about the process and timeline for the Episcopal Election, which is set ...

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Perspective

Belong Ottawa launches Ride for Refuge fall fundraiser

At its three locations in downtown Ottawa — Centre 454, St. Luke’s Table and The Well—Belong Ottawa serves more than 600 meals a day and ...

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Leigh Anne Williams

How a coffee conversation led to a transitional housing project in Gatineau

There must be a better way to help people who are homeless and living in tents in winter as part of an encampment. That was ...

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David Humphreys

Bishop Shane Parker elected as Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada

Bishop Shane Parker of the Anglican Diocese of Ottawa has been elected as the 15th Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada at the General ...

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Leigh Anne Williams

A letter to the clergy and people of our diocese

June 27, 2025   Dear Clergy and People of our Diocese, Our journeys in faith often bring us to a place where we are faced ...

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Archbishop Shane Parker

The Rev. Dr. Sony Jabouin received as an Anglican priest

On May 26, the Rev. Dr. Sony Jabouin was received as a priest in the Anglican Communion in a public celebration of the Eucharist at ...

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Clergy news — September 2025

Bishop Michael Bird has been appointed as diocesan administrator, effective Sept. 21, 2025 until a new bishop is installed following the February 28 election. Bishop ...

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Perspective

The Rev. Canon Roger Steinke receives The Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteers

The Rev. Canon Roger Steinke, a retired priest and now honorary assistant in the Parish of the Valley, has been awarded The Sovereign’s Medal for ...

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The Rev. Matthew Brown

Anglican Diocese of Ottawa newspaper renamed as Perspective

It is a time of change. In addition to all the news about Archbishop Shane Parker’s election as primate in this issue, Crosstalk, the print ...

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Leigh Anne Williams

At Centre 105, breakfast is always served with a smile

There was no shortage of either food or people attending the fundraising breakfast in support of Centre 105 which was held on June 5 in ...

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Carol Goddard

September can bring extra stress for kids and teens

The Ottawa Pastoral Counselling Centre is one of the five Anglican Community Ministries, but due to the confidential nature of counselling, their important work often ...

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Leigh Anne Williams

Ceramic feathers can serve as a seed for a germinal ritual of reconciliation

Did your parish receive a white ceramic feather in 2019? How has the feather shaped your community’s engagement with Indigenous justice over the last few ...

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The Rev. Canon Dr. Sarah Kathleen Johnson

Composer Andrew Balfour brings diverse people and musical traditions together

Singers from many different choirs across the city gathered at Christ Church Cathedral Ottawa on June 14 for a workshop with renowned composer and director ...

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Leigh Anne Williams

St. Barnabas hosts star U.K. conductor and choir

The Church of St. Barnabas Apostle and Martyr was filled with glorious choral music on July 27 as the parish hosted the Chapel Choir of ...

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Leigh Anne Williams

Walking for world peace at St. Paul’s, Shawville

Last summer, St. Paul’s Anglican Church in Shawville, Quebec unveiled its new labyrinth path painted on the floor of its hall. On May 3, the ...

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Jean McNab

St. Paul’s, Kanata shares its home, growing in Christian love and unity

“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’s, Kanata ...

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The Rev. Canon Stephen Silverthorne

Celebrating 240 years of Anglican ministry along the St. Lawrence

Trinity Anglican Church, in the Area Parish of the Saint Lawrence, held a year long celebration of Anglican ministry along the St. Lawrence River in ...

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Carol Goddard

St. Clare’s celebrates 10 years

On May 4, St. Clare’s Anglican Church in the Parish of North Dundas celebrated a decade of service. “In my short time here,… I have ...

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Carol Goddard

Reading for reconciliation

In recognition of the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, members of the Journeying as Allies book discussion group have compiled a list of thought-provoking ...

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Perspective

Exhibit on atomic bomb inspires commitment to calls for peace

In late May, St. John the Evangelist in Ottawa hosted a powerful and moving exhibit of posters detailing the shocking destruction and harm caused in ...

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Leigh Anne Williams

Creating church in the forest

There is something sacred, imperfect and beautiful when you take church into the forest. To walk along a path with a group of people, who ...

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The Ven. Monique Stone

Join the 10th Annual Walk for the Centre on October 5!

Many children in Ottawa go to bed hungry and live in homes that experience food insecurity on a daily basis, but we can do something ...

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Elizabeth Kent

Youth internship alumnus starts ecumenical student group at the University of Ottawa

Last year, James Adair, started a campus chapter of the Student Christian Movement (SCM) at the University of Ottawa. Although he knew of some existing ...

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Leigh Anne Williams

G7 Jubilee People’s Forum inspires faith and action

As my flight landed in Calgary, it was hard not to be struck by the monumental scale of the mountains on the horizon and the ...

Written by

James Adair

St. Stephen’s, Ottawa — Deanery of Central Ottawa

When we look at this photograph, we assume that we are looking at a new church under construction in an Ottawa suburb. That is to ...

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Glenn J Lockwood

Remembering former Crosstalk editor Art Babych

Retired Crosstalk editor Art Babych passed away on July 13, 2025 at the age of 83. Born in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Babych began his career ...

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Leigh Anne Williams

The post September 2025 Issue appeared first on Perspective.