The Canadian Anglican Cursillo Secretariat (CACS) invites Cursillistas to attend the 2021 Triennial General Meeting on June 26, 2021 from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. EDT. (The meeting is on Zoom, but it is hosted by Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island.)  A meeting link will be sent prior to the meeting. Only those confirmed will be admitted to the meeting. To register send an e-mail to bkhobson52@gmail.com. Space in limited (by Zoom license). Register early to ensure a spot. anglicancursillo.com

200th Anniversary Celebration of the Ellacombe Chimes
11:30 a.m. to 12:15 pm (EDT)

Churches around the world are preparing to take part in special celebrations this summer to mark the 200th anniversary of a unique invention which allows just one person to ring all the bells in a tower. Trinity Church in Cornwall will be participating starting at 11:40am by the ringing the historic “Mountain Chime.” Hosted by St. Mary’s Church/Bitton Parish History Group, South Gloucestershire, England.

July 19 to 23
Summer Fruit for Souls

The Lay Readers Executive of the Diocese of Ontario will host virtually. The keynote speaker will be Dr. Sylvia Keesmaat and her topic will be “On Earth as it is in Heaven: the Coming of the Kingdom.” When we pray “Your kingdom come, on earth as it is in heaven,” what exactly are we hoping for? Beginning with our calling to live as a community of God’s image bearers on earth, Dr. Keesmat will explore how the future hope for God’s kingdom on earth nourishes and sustains our calling in the present.”

Diocesan Altar Guild Meeting delayed
As there is still much uncertainty due to the COVID-19 situation, the Annual General Meeting of the Diocesan Altar Guild will not be held this fall (once again). We look forward to our meeting scheduled for the fall of 2022 at St. John the Evangelist, Smiths Falls.

July 6 – 7
Anglican Lutheran National Worship Conference

The theme of this year’s conference, which will be held online, is “Disruption and Grace: Learning Edges in Liminal Times.”

Keynote speakers Archdeacon Rosalyn Kantlah^nta’ Elm, Chaplain to Her Majesty’s Royal Chapel of the Mohawks, Brantford, Ont.;

• Rev. Dr. James Farwell, professor of theology and liturgy, Virginia Theological Seminary;
• James K.A. Smith – author and cultural critic

Workshop leaders 

• Elisabeth Cherland, choral conductor
• Elspeth McEwan, member of the Cathedral Labyrinth Guild, Diocese of Ottawa
• The Rev. Rhondda MacKay, retired priest of the Diocese of Ottawa
• The Rev. Maylanne Maybee, principal of the United Theological College within the Montreal School of Theology, and member of the Joint Anglican-Lutheran Commission.
• Todd Townshend is Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Huron

Conference musician Joshua Zentner-Barrett, minister of Music at Kanata United Church

Special guests 

• The Rev. Susan Johnson, National Bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada
• The Most Rev. Linda Nicholls, Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada
• The Most Rev. Mark MacDonald, first National Indigenous Anglican Bishop for the Anglican Church of Canada 

More information and registration: https://www.ationalworshipconference.org/

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From the 1970s on, the Orléans area grew as a counterbalance to the west end.  Those coming to live in Orléans touted that it was closer to the countryside.  Those commuting back and forth to work downtown claimed they did not endure the sun being in their eyes when they drove to work in the morning and again when they returned home at the end of the day

At that time no one imagined that all cities and townships of Ottawa-Carleton would be amalgamated.  Orléans was beginning to develop from a village to a major suburban community on the boundary between the east end of the city of Gloucester and Cumberland Township.

As there was a substantial distance between Saint Mark’s, Cumberland and the nearest churches in Gloucester, attempts were made to develop another congregation.  The first one was known briefly as Queenswood Anglican Church in the late 1960s.  It was followed in the 1970s by Saint David’s and Saint Hilda’s, which a generation later amalgamated to form Saint Helen’s Church.  The house of worship we see here was built on the crest of a hill at 1234 Prestone Drive in 1993.  We see it as a parishioner, Brian Glenn, photographed it on 2 October 2008, before an addition incorporating a servery (“we’re not allowed to call it a kitchen”) was built eight years later.  Care was taken to have it conform with the architecture of the larger structure.   

Which raises a question.  How exactly do we describe the architecture here?  Some readers who feel this writer is too focussed on Gothic Revival (Hello Judy Marples!) may assume this is not Gothic Revival.  But if not, pray tell, what style is it?

Could we say it is a generic low slung suburban building that takes its cue from the shallow pitch of roofs on the tract housing we see in the distance?  The pitch of roof on the church is steeper, it is true, but the banks of white and black brick emphasize its horizontality.  The sloping outer walls of the entrance gable imply a modern version of buttress.  And yet, the main entrance has a pointed arch reminiscent of the chancel windows at Christ Church Cathedral and Saint Matthew’s, Ottawa.  Could we deem this a type of Gothic survival?  Within that entrance arch there are green spokes suggesting a sunrise, as if to echo the yellow circle around the cross in the main gable.  Can we term this New Age Gothic?  Post Modern Gothic?  What?

This we must take pains to assert, was a building designed by a professional architectural firm.  Indeed, the Diocesan Archives has in its collection a scale model made of pasteboard, the roof of which lifts off, in order that one may see the proposed interior layout at one glance.   

The Archives collects documents for parishes including parish registers, vestry reports, service registers, minutes of groups and committees, financial documents, property records (including cemeteries), insurance records, letters, pew bulletins, photographs, paintings, scrapbooks and parish newsletters. 

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Early in the story the companions walk and share the recent happenings in Jerusalem. Jesus, whom they do not recognize, teaches them using Scripture: “Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them the things about himself in all the scriptures.” (V. 27). Jesus is teaching them and engaging their minds and thoughts. When we read and pray with Scripture, and when we seek out teachers, writers and speakers who stimulate our minds, we can experience Jesus. As we pray and contemplate these things, we are led to a better understanding of who God is, how God works, and how we are changed by the Divine Presence. We are experiencing what one might call the “Jesus of the Head”.

Later, after Jesus disappears, and the Disciples said to each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?” (V. 32). Their hearts were burning; they had experienced the “Jesus of the Heart”. They have felt the love of Jesus. When we pray, we pray in love for God, and our response is to love others. It is easy to love others we like, but much more difficult to love others we dislike or disagree with. In prayer we realize that everyone is loved by God and is deserving of our love. In loving God, and others, we are experiencing the “Jesus of the Heart”.

During the story, Jesus and the Disciples stop for the night, and the companions sit down to eat. ^“When he was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed, and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him; and he vanished from their sight.” (V. 30-31). When he breaks bread with his hands, they experience the “Jesus of the Hands”. When we use our hands and the rest of our bodies to share what we have with others, we are following the way of Jesus. Prayer is not just understanding God in our minds and feeling it in our hearts, but it is also taking action in how we live our lives; how we reach out and help others; how we view the world. We are called to live a life of compassion. When we follow Jesus and do what God would have us do, we are living a life of prayer. 

As companions, we too can experience the Jesus of the Head, the Jesus of the Heart, and the Jesus of the Hands. 

It is not easy in these COVID times to travel together in prayer with companions. We are challenged to find new ways to be companions on the journey. In my case, when I, and others, realized this pandemic was not going to be over soon, we established a weekly 30-minute prayer time via Zoom. This has now become a regular part of my life. I have also joined people from across Canada in a monthly online hour of prayer organized by the Anglican Fellowship of Prayer. Participating in a twice weekly prayer time with the L’Arche Ottawa community provides me with an opportunity to be companions on the journey with those with developmental disabilities. None of these opportunities existed before the pandemic. These are examples of taking advantage of what is accessible to me. I encourage those of you who may be without the opportunity, ability, or technology, to do these sorts of things, to seek the help and company of the companions on your journey. Together you can find opportunities of travelling your road to Emmaus and experience Jesus as he travels with you from your Head to your Heart, and into your Hands.

In the words of Carey Landry’s song “No longer strangers to each other, no longer strangers in God’s house; we are fed, and we are nourished by the strength of those who care, by the strength of those who care”.

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The theme was interpreted by 15 diocesan children, including: Amy, Maggie, Ophelia, Lauryn, Liam, and Drew.

THANK YOU to all those who participated in our Celebration of Young Artists, in honour of PWRDF’s “All Mothers and Children Count” Initiative! We received 15 original art pieces from across our diocese—including colourful drawings, moving paintings, and even a beautiful woven blanket. Our young (and young-at-heart) artists were clearly inspired by the theme of mothers, children, and families, too. Although each artwork is unique, they all reflect that powerful bond shared between loved ones. In gratitude for their support of this Celebration of Young Artists, our participants will receive their very own PWRDF swag bags! We hope that these pieces will also inspire people throughout the whole diocese to support PWRDF’s “All Mothers and Children Count” Initiative. With this support, local partners in Mozambique, Tanzania, Rwanda, and Burundi can continue to provide essential health care to mothers and children–so they too can grow up to be young artists one day.

 — The PWRDF Ottawa Working Group

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From the early days of the pandemic, Onochie like other workers in the hospital, had to adjust to a new routine and safety protocols. Every day of work, every worker must complete a COVID screening test to ensure they are safe and healthy to work. For many people this has meant they must come to work much earlier than the start time of their shift to ensure they have enough time to do the screening. There are many people who begin their shifts at the same time, and they must all come in through very specific doors. Onochie had to get used to wearing protective gear (PPE)  all day, which can be uncomfortable. However, those procedures help her feel safe. The hospital does a very good job at enforcing steps to follow to ensure the safety of staff and patients, she says. “I could be even safer going to the hospital than going to the mall,” she says she reassures herself.

As a pharmacist at the Ottawa General Hospital, Onochie helps care for patients in the cancer centre. During the first wave of the pandemic, many patients, especially the elderly were afraid to come into the hospital to have their cancer treated or to have minor sickness treated, presuming that the hospitals might be a likely place where one could contract the virus. They stayed home with the belief that they could overcome whatever they were facing. Some of the people who waited too long became very sick and needed to be admitted to hospital. This made it really hard for the doctors, nurses and pharmacists to treat them, according to Onochie, who was relieved that people began to feel more comfortable coming to the hospital for treatments as researchers learned more about the virus and how people could protect themselves and others.

Onochie is the  mother of two children; her son is in high school and her daughter started university in September. The pandemic has had negative effects on both of them. Onochie’s son plays competitive baseball, and it is very important to him. Unfortunately, all the games were halted and not playing ball has been very difficult for him.

 Social interaction is vital in the development of youth. Restrictions and systems such as sending students to school one day and learning online the next has proven to be a challenge… The schools have separated students into cohorts, so friends may be separated from friends in another cohort.

It’s also been a challenging year for Onochie’s daughter, who was excited about living in residence and having the full experience of her first year of university. Her excitement crashed down when she had to do all her classes online in isolation from home.

Onochie understands the challenges her children are experiencing but is thankful that they continue to be safe and healthy. Due to the increased time spent at home, they have more opportunity to share how they feel with each other. She adores their family time, and the pandemic has given their family more time to spend together.

Onochie feels that her church, Epiphany  in Ottawa, has done an amazing job providing  support to its members and keeping them all connected. When the church was no longer allowed to hold indoor services, the Rev. Alana McCord and the choir leader every Sunday came together to do a live service for the faith community.  She says that Rev. Alana also kept everyone informed and connected  by email. This spring, the Epiphany parish had a change in clergy, saying goodbye to Rev. Alana and welcoming the Rev. Arran Thorpe. “I have been able to attend a couple services with Rev. Arran.  I think he’s doing a fantastic job, especially under these circumstances,” said Onochie. “I can’t wait to get to know him more when the pandemic comes to an end!”  

That’s the moment we’ve all been waiting for. Until then, Onochie, like many people, continues to deal with the impact of the pandemic and to look for the good things it brings along the way.

Jennifer Omoike is a YIP intern with Crosstalk.

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Many readers will have received a phone call thanking them for their donations to the Today for Tomorrow (T4T) campaign, which raises funds to support the Community Ministries  and outreach ministries of the Diocese. Elizabeth Reicker called 200 people in May. Crosstalk asked her a few questions about why she volunteers.

How did you get started with this volunteer work?  I volunteered of course. I was a member of the Diocesan Stewardship Subcommittee until 2020 and am a strong T4T supporter, so I offered to help in any way.

Why do you call? Thanking people, who are much more than just donors, is important and a best practice. I have been on Cornerstone Housing for Women’s  thank-a-thon team for three years so have experience.

Last fall, at Jane Scanlon’s request, I phoned almost 300 donors who had given to T4T in 2019 and enjoyed chatting with people about their lives and answering their questions. So, when Jane offered me another list of people to thank, I said yes. I do not know how the list was generated or anything about the amount of the gift, just that everyone is generous.

What do you find most challenging about phoning?  Nothing but finding time to phone.  I do try to say thank you in the first sentence, so I have not been hung up on.  Many messages were left also, and I am pleased that some people called me in return to say more about their church and T4T experience.

What did you enjoy most? It is always a pleasure to phone and reconnect with people whom I may have met or know from other diocesan events. These days when so many of us are isolated, having a chat with a new person is a pleasure.  I have made some “new friends” across the diocese and hope to meet some of them in person.

What are your other volunteer activities? Not much these days. I miss Cornerstone, where I have visited residents at 515 for 20 years and being on the Booth Street reception desk. As part of St Martin’s Pastoral Care team, I do write or call people.  I do plan to return to visit residents of the Salvation Army’s long-term care residence Grace Manor soon.  I hope the Literacy Table at Parkdale United’s In From the Cold program will return in the fall, but until then everyone must continue trying to stay safe.

To learn more about Today 4 Tomorrow (T4T) please visit www.today4tomorrow.ca, or to make an online donation to T4T through Canada Helps visit www.ottawa.anglican.ca. The ministries T4T is supporting this year are featured in this paper on pages 10-11. Thank you!

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There have been some interruptions and accommodations during the pandemic, but five years after it took shape, the CFCL is living up to its name and mission offering “contemplative practices to nurture body, mind and spirit and to  increase the natural ability in everyone to live and work more creatively, compassionately and joyfully. ”People come to explore six programs: drawing, painting and mixed media; contemplative photography; creative writing; Feldenkrais, meditation and yoga. 

The Centre (CFCL) is now a permanent program and integral part of St. Paul’s Anglican Church, but it didn’t start out that way. It wasn’t part of Evans’ plans when she moved to Almonte after retiring from her work in Ottawa as executive director of Multifaith Housing Initiative (and previously as a chaplain at Ottawa West End Community Chaplaincy). When she began attending St. Paul’s, the Rev. Pat Martin, knew of her experience with affordable housing and asked if she would facilitate conversations about possible projects for St. Paul’s. There was some interest in providing housing for artists who could not afford to move into seniors’ residences. 

In the course of her conversations with local artists, however, Evans asked them a question close to her own heart: Did they see their work in art as a spiritual practice? Almost everyone she asked said yes, which inspired her to start a small group exploring contemplative photography, a personal passion of hers. Photographer Alan Mirabelli also agreed to be a mentor for the group. Evans also organized a photography retreat. “I decided to try this concept to see if it would get traction and then out of that, maybe the church would see some approach to providing housing or community space.” She also gathered artists and others from the community into an advisory group. As the photography group got established, Evans met Jessie Carson, a local writer and a yoga teacher, who agreed to facilitate a creative writing group and a yoga group. 

St. Paul’s also said yes to the idea of a pilot project using the church hall as space.

“I nurtured each of the groups to be self-sustaining. I did not want a job,” said Evans. She modelled the idea on AA meetings—“there’s a process. People know what’s going to happen, and if somebody’s away it doesn’t matter.” That was important, she adds, because many of the participants were retired people who might travel at any time of the year. Gradually, the other programs were added. The groups operate collaboratively. “Some are more skilled than others and they are very happy to share what they know and do.”

Funding model

The Centre is funded by annual membership fees of $100. If paid instructors are brought in for a workshop,  participants pay a fee for the workshop. The yoga and Feldenkrais classes have paid teachers, so participants pay $10 per session. “It’s nickels and dimes, really,” says Evans, but it has worked with 30 to 40 members.

The yoga group has 12 to 15, the Feldenkrais has fewer. Evans set aside 20% of the income for the church to cover costs, such as heat and lights.  She also saved a smaller percentage to subsidize people who might not be able to afford the yoga class, for example. The groups hold on to a portion for supplies and to subsidize workshops. 

Two years ago, St. Paul’s decided to bring the Centre under its umbrella as a permanent program and to integrate the finances. The Centre has brought money to the church, but Evans says St. Paul’s has always said that she should not feel pressured for it to be a fundraiser. “I have really appreciated that,” Evans said. 

Pandemic impact

Evans says she has not advertised or promoted the CFCL as she normally would have during the pandemic, but the groups that can have continued to meet online and to support one another. “The groups that are meeting now have developed connection. Some have been part of it from the beginning. We have been through some difficult times. Alan Mirabelli had cancer and died, and the photographers group walked with him through that whole time, and he with them. There are people having operations, spouses who are not well, because we are seniors.” They have supported one another artistically and personally.

Creative outreach

The Centre is also helping to build the relationship between the church and the community. 

Some people who are members of the CFCL are not comfortable with churches or religion. Evans says there have even been tensions around the word contemplative. “What we want is for people to be very comfortable with who they are and what they believe or don’t believe and to feel they have got a safe space to come from that place.  I think we’ve been able to maintain that balance. I would call it an ethical space—  where people can be creative, share with one another what they are doing and what it means to them.”

Evans says the Centre has also helped St. Paul’s to see that church at its core is the worshipping community, “but we have friends of St. Paul’s who feel some connection, who at times will even volunteer if we are doing something like a harvest supper,” said Evans.  “And my thought has been, ‘We are an aging congregation. We are a shrinking congregation. We need to increase our capacity.’ And this is one way of doing that with no agenda about getting them into church [although] that has happened occasionally.”

The overlap between the two communities is “the understanding that at the heart, human beings are creative, made in the image of God whether they would use that language or not,” says Evans. “But the creativity that comes, comes in a way that  has a certain mystery to it.”

Photos and commentary courtesy of Centre for Creative

On  Turning Seventy

 Is there life still,
some holy aliveness
yet to be born
within the midst of misplaced keys
and names hidden beyond the horizon
of fickle memory? 

Are there things to do still,
not some list of bucket pleasures
but fertile seeds
sprouting in our troubled hearts
while we gulp aspirins
and duly exercise to stay fit? 

Do we have dreams
worthwhile for tomorrow,
seeking light of day
even as we toss fitfully
frustrated with the clock
that  blinks one lost minute after another?

Yes, let us be artists still
giddily in love with all creation,
souls ready to paint with light,
for this will keep us wise,
dancing with one another
in sacred step, until our good night.

— Sue Evans

— Rosemary McGinnis

A wise mentor told me once that” the picture of a flower is just a flower” unless you’ve captured something that speaks to you (tells a story) and/or evokes an emotion. “Look and see, really see”.

I zoomed in to the centre of this beautiful Iris and laughed. It was sticking it’s tongue out at me. I snapped the picture and return to the photo quite often (it has attitude). I smile.

I decided to snap this photo from the underside of the red Poppy. The moisture there created droplets like tears reminding me of Remembrance Day. (Emotions of gratitude and sorrow).   

 — Nancy Deschenes

I have always been attracted to the fine art of watercolour and thought to myself that one day, I would explore this medium. That day finally came when a friend offered me a watercolour kit for my 70th birthday. Although watercolour is very challenging, whenever I put my hand to the brush and paper I am amazed at the way I get lost in my creativity; hours go by, stress is melting and problems simply dissipate.  While my art is very much influenced by the beauty that surrounds me and by the myriad of memories etched by my travel adventures, I sense that it is also a reflection of my personality and flair.

Being very new to watercolour and graphic arts in general, I confess that practicing it has been a humbling experience.  But, I took comfort when I read somewhere: “Never despair if things are not quite right the first time; regular practice will improve your technique”. Through practicing I have discovered that I love exploring my creativity, improving my drawing skills, deepening my knowledge of the watercolour techniques and intricacies.  I also take pleasure at imagining how others would “read” the products of my newly found passion. Finally, I feel very blessed to be in company with such  inspiring and talented people who share that passion for the art. 

— Carmelle Gaudet

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Participating faith groups allow GSS to access their utility records in order to produce a report charting energy consumption, and next year, GSS also plans to provide a peer comparison chart that “will rank the churches that are participating in the program based on their energy usage intensity along with some other factors,” Hannah Morgan, the benchmarking program lead, explained. “And it will tell you if you are in the red zone, green zone, if you need improvement.”

She hastened to clarify that the benchmarking reports are not energy audits, “which is where you would see exactly what areas need improvement in the building. This is more just how the building is operating in general,” she said, offering an example of a local Anglican church that saw its usage skyrocket by 20% between 2017 and 2018. “They might not have been aware of that or realized how much it had gone up, so by having this report, … [they can look at] what was different between 2017 and 2018? Was it just because they started doing more in the church, was it open more? Or did an HVAC system malfunction? You see where the abnormalities are and try to figure out what happened. Or on the other side, if you reduced usage, you can look at what you did. It gives you that starting point,” she said.

According to Morgan, some of the benefits of benchmarking are:

• Supporting stewardship. By reducing energy consumption and your energy budget you are encouraging members of your faith group to become stewards of their building and community

•Addressing climate change and targeting carbon consumption.

Buildings account for 42% of a typical faith community’s carbon footprint. Reducing your building’s carbon footprint can make a significant difference and aligns with provincial and federal targets to help reduce climate change and greenhouse gas emissions.

• Saving energy and money. Benchmarking alone and becoming aware of how your building is doing, usually helps reduce energy use on average of about 2.4% per year. It doesn’t seem like a lot but just being more aware can change behavior and habits.

• Guiding investments and operations. Parishes that might be planning to do a retrofit or a renovation or some sort of upgrade can use this information to figure out next steps.

Energy use audits are usually the next step that GSS recommends, and it offers a free 60-page Do-It-Yourself audit to help faith groups identify what improvements are needed in their buildings. GSS is also collaborating with Carleton University to have engineering students do site visits and offer advice to faith groups. GSS also offers fee-for-service audits that usually range from $200 to  $2000.

There is no cost to faith groups for the energy benchmarking reports. GSS Ottawa is a program of the interfaith organization Faith and the Common Good. The Ontario Trillium Foundation has provided a grant for 2019 to 2022 to help support education and awareness of energy usage and environmental sustainability, Morgan explains. “Our target for the Ottawa area is 50 faith communities.” When she spoke to Crosstalk in late April, she said 34 faith communities had signed up and others were expressing interest. GSS could produce benchmarking reports for more than 50 groups, Morgan said, but in order to receive the annual reports in 2021 and 2022, GSS needed the groups to sign up and get started before the end of August.

Local parish experiences

St. Thomas the Apostle in Ottawa received its first benchmarking report from GSS in March. Derwyn Sangster, chair of St. Thomas’s Stewardship Committee, said he is anxious to see the peer comparison chart, which won’t be available until next year when GSS has more participating groups to include in its ranking. “If we compare poorly to others, for example, it gives us a potential sense of urgency for energy-saving renovations,” he said. “Over time, it would clearly allow us to monitor the energy impact of any renovations we do.” In the meanwhile, however, he said, GSS had provided some preliminary information and comparisons to help interpret the results in St. Thomas’s first report. He noted that St. Thomas had already done an energy audit with GSS about eight years ago and some renovations had been done. “This report will provide some background information that can be taken into account as we look at renovations planning for the parish,” he said.

All Saints Westboro is also participating in the program and received its first report in the fall, said Warden Gaetan Hache. All Saints also did an energy audit some years ago and has done a lot of the type of renovations that are often recommended. “I’m not sure exactly where we’re going to go with this because we have done a lot of the big stuff,” Hache said. 

“There’s not much you can do with a building that’s 100 years old, but it is nice to compare ourselves with others and certainly, now that we have a baseline, we’ll be able to see [the results] if we start making other changes.” 

Hache mentioned that during the pandemic, All Saints had added insulation to the floor of the chapel, the oldest part of the church, where people’s feet used to freeze in the winter. “That will be a little reduction, whether it will show up on the numbers or not,” Hache said. ”From now on, when we do things like that, we should be able to see some kind of improvement to the numbers.”

How to sign up

Register your faith community with the Faith and the Common Good online national network. Create an account, put  in your community’s building address and contact information.  

Log into that account and fill out the online building information/energy benchmarking form. It asks for more specific details specifically about the building — age, square footage, type of renovations done in the last 10 years. 

Fill out the consent forms from the utility companies  (Hydro Ottawa, Enbridge, Hydro One) and email them to GSS. GSS will send the forms to the utility companies to get the data. (Unfortunately, this is only in Ontario, but if there are Quebec parishes that are interested, GSS Ottawa will assist and can also connect parishes with Green Churches Network, which is based in Quebec and is a partner organization/

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In 2019, I came to Trinity looking for a volunteer opportunity during my summer off from journalism studies at Carleton. Later, when a communications position opened up, Arran, as he is affectionately known by everyone, encouraged me to apply and advocated for me. It’s been an experience that has changed my perception of what a church can mean to a community. As Arran moves to a new parish, many people are expressing their thanks and appreciation. I have been fortunate enough to help a few of them share these stories.

—Paige Kahkonen

When I first met Arran in 2013, he was interviewing to be the Incumbent for Trinity Anglican Church. …

Two years later, I became Rector’s Warden and began to work more closely with him. He was the leader who empowered people, he never told you what to do. 

Growing up as a young child and going to church with my father who was a Warden like myself, I always knew and thought of a priest as an old, traditional, and powerful man. 

I realized over the years that when kids go to church, they don’t question their belief. It is not until you get older that you start to question your faith. It made me realize that I needed someone like Arran, a young priest who offered some skepticism of it all, yet held a belief that was almost unshakeable. 

He helped me to break down the definition of priesthood and to look at it quite differently as a calling. He helped me renew my faith, in a very special way

— Heather Maclachlan
Churchwarden

In 2016, I fled my home country of Burundi, leaving behind my pregnant wife, son and unborn child as I tried to start a life for us in Canada. 

I was looking for somewhere to go to church, and someone referred me to Trinity Anglican Church. This is where I first met Arran. He took me in as if I was his child. I had been living at a shelter, and Arran mobilized the community and found me a place to stay. He gave me an office and connected me with people to help me pursue the studies I had left behind in my home country. He helped me set up my WhatsApp account, and let me use the church’s wifi so I could communicate with my family. He gave me winter boots. Looking back, I couldn’t have made it and lived in Canada if I hadn’t met Arran.  

It was because of Arran I was able to bring my family into Canada in 2020 and was able to hold my son for the first time in four years. It was because of Arran that I met my second son, for the first time ever. 

Arran and the church helped mobilize everything to make me happy. Even now, they help me pay for my house while I finish my studies. 

Everything I have here in Canada, my family, my studies, my house, it’s because of him. If I try to describe Arran, I don’t think he is a pastor, or a priest. I think Arran is a messenger from God because through him, I can see God’s love.

— Guido Niyokwizigira
Burundian Refugee

In 2018, when I was working in the daycare at Trinity, I was trying to help bring my nephew and his family who lived in Iraq to Canada and was expecting the process to take four or five years. My supervisor suggested I talk to Arran. That conversation changed everything…. 

I explained my situation. Immediately, he began to help me —whether it was reminding me to fill out certain paperwork in an email late at night or messaging me early in the morning telling me the address of an office I needed to go to with my documents. Arran was with me every step of the way. 

We were approved a week after we applied. From then, it took only one year and three months until my family arrived in Canada. 

There were so many things I didn’t expect. I didn’t expect Arran to be there for me at any time in the day… to help me with the entire process … to fill out my paperwork personally. I know it wasn’t just me, there’s a wall in the church with the names of all the families that the church has been able to help sponsor. Now that wall is almost covered.

Arran gave me a gift, and I know one day if I can, I will help someone else the way Arran helped me. It didn’t matter that we were of a different religion, or that we spoke a different language, or even the difference in our complexion. Arran taught me that no matter who is in front of you, if you can help, help.

— Alwand Majeed
Daycare Worker at Trinity Church

It was 2014, and the hashtag #boringmajor was trending on Ottawa Twitter. It had become so popular in the city, that eventually someone had even sent me a custom shirt, letters bold across the front. 

I was scheduled to meet Arran outside of Trinity Anglican Church to unveil their first mural, and Arran had asked me to wear my #boringmayor shirt. When I got there, I could see that he was wearing a t-shirt that said #boringpriest.  He had made the matching shirt, in what I suspect was an attempt to make me feel better about myself, which was really thoughtful of him. 

I’ve never been a parishioner of his, but I could tell the love that people had for him. 

— Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson

I honestly don’t think I did that much. I just said yes to people. 

I remember someone once said, ‘the church is one generation away from extinction’, and in order for us to continue, we need to grow. I think moving forward, there’s lots of ways the church can change to become more accepting. I think we have room to be more accepting of the LGBTQ2+ community, to the BIPOC [Black, Indigenous, people of colour] community, to young people, and make space for them. 

That’s really hard to do, and I think I could’ve done better. You can always do better, I guess that’s just how I feel. 

I hope that as I leave, the church continues to be mindful of those who live on the margins… to be community-focused,… to practice love, and love of your neighbor. The neighbor, not necessarily meaning the one who is next door to the church but people who are far away as well. 

Thinking back about my eight years here, I am so thankful, and it’s been a pleasure and a privilege to be the priest and pastor at Trinity. It’s a small church with a big heart. 

— The Rev. Arran Thorpe

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