When it comes to salvation, the "nothings" of the world may save us, author says

 

Donald Trump was so offended by seeing homeless encampments as he rode to play golf on the weekend that he demanded that homeless residents of Washington DC leave the country’s capital or face eviction. 

Trump’s demand mirrors what a Winnipeg city councillor said last month when he called for the removal of encampments on what he called “image routes” in the city—main thoroughfares used by people from the suburbs to go downtown. 

The reason he gave for the proposal was safety, and also for esthetics — they make Winnipeg look bad. The question left hanging seemed clear: Who wants to see encampments on the side of the road on their way to work, shopping or to see a movie? 

When it comes to encampments, David Driedger, lead minister at First Mennonite Church in Winnipeg’s West End, doesn’t think we should look away. For him, those tents and tarps and shopping carts should be seen because they might be showing us a way to salvation. That’s the argument he makes in his new book Nothing Will Save Us: A Theology of Immeasurable Life (Pandora Press).

Read my column about Driedger's book in the Free Press.

Driven by faith, frustrated by funding: Faith-based care-home operators say miracles are in short supply when trying to feed residents with 2009-level resources

 

The feeding of the 5,000 with only five loaves and two fishes—that’s the idea that comes to mind for Gary Ledoux, CEO of Bethania Mennonite Personal Care Home when he thinks about how he is going to feed good and healthy meals to residents in 2025 based on a 2009 food budget from the Manitoba government. 

For Laurie Cerqueti, CEO of the Simkin Centre, a Jewish personal care home, the story of how the Pharoah commanded the Hebrew slaves in Egypt to make the same amount of bricks with less straw is the one that sticks with her—and she has to buy more expensive kosher food. 

Both appreciate that the provincial government is under enormous pressure when it comes to health care dollars, but say something needs to be done to ensure seniors in Manitoba—the people who their religious traditions say must be respected and cared for—don’t suffer when it comes to mealtimes. 

Read my story in the Free Press.

Gary Ledoux (right), director of Bethania Personal Care Home, and Delroy Clarke, director of food and environmental services, in the kitchen where staff are preparing lunch for care home residents.

 

 

“I want to see it thrive, to be an enlivened Church": New primate of the Anglican Church of Canada reflects on his new mission

If the Anglican Church of Canada is going to survive and thrive, it will need to make deep changes — and Shane Parker, the denomination’s new primate, is ready to guide that change. 

In accepting the position, Parker, 67, was given a mandate by the General Synod to implement change in the church, which has an estimated 500,000 members in 1,700 parishes. 

“I want to see it thrive, to be an enlivened Church,” he said. “I want it to be a church that lifts the spirits of everyone.”

Read my interview with the new primate in Canadian Affairs.

In choosing Pope Leo XIV, Roman Catholic cardinals showed they want to follow path set by Pope Francis--just slower

 

The goal of a Vatican conclave is to choose a new pope. That’s what happened in May when Robert Prevost was chosen to become Pope Leo XIV. 

But a conclave is also a referendum on the previous pope and his legacy — whether to follow in the same direction or change course. 

When the 133 cardinals gathered in the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican on May 7, the question they were answering when selecting a new pope was whether to follow the vision of Pope Francis for a more open, inclusive and welcoming church or to repudiate it in favour of an emphasis on tradition and doctrine. 

They chose the way of Pope Francis, but just slower.

That’s the view of Christopher White, a former Vatican correspondent for the National Catholic Reporter and author of the new book Pope Leo XIV: Inside the Conclave and the Dawn of a New Papacy (Loyola Press). 

Read more about that process and the new book in my Free Press column.

Canadian Imams, church leaders sign joint letter calling for humanitarian aid, ceasefire in Gaza

The Canadian Council of Imams and national church leaders have signed a joint letter to Prime Minister Mark Carney about the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

The letter, dated July 9, was initiated by the council, a non-profit that brings together imams and Islamic religious leaders from across Canada. 

In addition to the signatures of the council’s president and executive director, the letter is signed by leaders of the United Church of Canada, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada, the Anglican Church of Canada, and the Presbyterian Church in Canada. It was also signed by Mennonite Central Committee Canada, the aid and development arm of Canadian Anabaptist and Mennonite churches.

Read the story in Canadian Affairs.

Photo above: Mennonite Central Committee partner Al-Najd Developmental Forum distributes food parcels to internally displaced residents in Gaza City in the north of Gaza last year.

Christians and Jews in Canada partner to combat antisemitism

 

Antisemitism in Canada has reached record-setting levels. That’s the conclusion of the latest report from B’nai Brith Canada, a Jewish service and advocacy organization. 

In its Annual Audit of Antisemitic Incidents, the organization says there were a total of 6,219 antisemitic incidents in 2024 — the highest number since the inception of the Audit in 1982. That’s a 7.4 per cent increase in incidents from 2023, when B’nai Brith recorded a then-record number of 5,791 incidents across Canada. Altogether, there has been a 124.6 per cent increase from 2022 to 2024. 

In response, a group of Jewish and Christian leaders from across Canada have decided to partner together in what they call the Simeon Initiative, a new national movement to build relationships between members of the two communities to combat antisemitism.

Read my story about the Initiative in Canadian Affairs.

"A vision of what downtown Winnipeg could be." Holy Trinity Anglican Church inspires vision for greening of Graham Ave.

Cathy Campbell was tired of seeing parking lots when she looked out the window from her office in Holy Trinity Anglican Church. 

Six years ago, when she was rector of the church, located at 256 Smith St., Campbell thought a park, garden or trees would give her a much better view. “I could almost see it in my mind.” 

Today, Campbell’s vision is becoming reality, now that the City of Winnipeg has temporarily blocked off parts of nearby Graham Avenue to create a pedestrian corridor—a greening that is partly due to the inspiration and foresight of Campbell and others at Holy Trinity. 

Read my story about how Holy Trinity put its theology of creation care into action to help with the greening of Graham Avenue in the Free Press.

Photo above: Cathy Campbell and Andrew Rampton.