The Canadian census and religion; what does it mean to be religious today?

 
Did you get the long form of the census? If you did, then you are among the 25 per cent of Canadians who had a chance to answer this question about religion: “What is this person’s religion? Indicate a specific denomination or religion, even if this person is not currently a practising member of that group.” 

The second part of that question is problematic for The Centre for Inquiry, one of Canada’s leading Humanist groups. It thinks that second part of the question skews the answer, with the result that there is an overestimation of how many people in Canada are actually religious. 

For the Centre, it's about accuracy. If you aren’t actually practising a religion — if you aren’t attending a place of worship, for example, or donating to help others because of your faith or following religious tenets in other practical ways — can you really say you are religious? The Centre says no, and it wants the question rephrased to: “Are you currently a practising member of whatever you selected?” 

Do you agree? What makes someone religious? 

Read more about this in my recent Free Press column.

"Faith groups don’t have an option to sit this one out." Religion scholar weighs in on the role of religion and AI

The Pope weighed in on AI in his first encyclical on May 24. But before that, Anthropic, the creator of Claude AI, invited 15 Christian scholars and theologians to its headquarters in California to talk about faith and AI. One of those who was invited was Meghan Sullivan, a Roman Catholic who teaches philosophy at the University of Notre Dame. I spoke with her a week ago about that meeting. 

The main idea she and the others emphasized at the meeting was the same thing the Pope talked about: human dignity has to be the bedrock of AI, as it should be for any new technology.

 

“Christian teaching about human dignity is paramount” when it comes to AI, she said. “That’s what makes life unique. And it is never more relevant than right now . . . faith groups don’t have an option to sit this one out."

 

Read more about her thoughts about that meeting, and about faith and AI, in my recent column in the Free Press.

Photo above: Meghan Sullivan.

Your opportunity to support the new religion in the news partnership between Broadview and the Winnipeg Free Press

After 9/11, Muslims across North America faced suspicion, hatred and, in some cases, verbal and physical harassment. This included Winnipeg, where vandals smeared animal feces and eggs on the walls of the Muslim Islamic Centre. Local Muslims avoided leaving their homes to go to worship, for fear of facing anger and hostility. 

In response, Rabbi Neal Rose, a leader in the city’s interfaith movement, helped organize rallies outside of the local mosque on Fridays so Muslims could feel safe and secure inside. The message, he said, was: “We will not let anyone harm those people.” 

At that time, Rose dreamed of a day when people of faith in Winnipeg might regularly find ways to stand together to promote interfaith relations and understanding and dispel hate. That dream, he said, was never realized. 

I recently had a chance to connect with Rose. I told him I think his dream was, in fact, realized — but not in the way he imagined. Maybe it was being accomplished as Winnipeggers came together to support the Religion in the News Project. 

In so doing, they have not only made it possible to learn about other faiths, but also to put a human face on their interfaith neighbours and make it hard for hate to win. 

And now, with the new partnership with Broadview Magazine, you can get a tax receipt for donating to the Project during the spring Crowdfunder—and keep Rabbi Rose’s dream going. 

Read more about it here. 

Or go directly to the donation page to make your gift during this spring Crowdfunder. Thanks!

Winnipeg Anglican church that serves food to 300 people a week needs help to get a new roof

When word got out that St. Thomas Anglican Church in Winnipeg’s Weston-area needed money for a new roof, the first donation came from a man who depends on it each week for food. 

“It was some pocket change,” said Cassandra Golondrina, the deacon who leads the church. “It was like the widow’s mite in the Bible, small but so very significant.” 

It’s going to take a lot of pocket change to repair the roof of the church, which was built in 1906. In total, $50,000 is needed. 

The roof is failing, and there is a risk of long-term structural harm if it isn’t repaired—which might force the church to close. And that would be bad news for the more than 300 people in the lower-income neighbourhood who get a home-cooked meal from the church every week. 

About 60,000 meals have been prepared and served by volunteers who work out of the parish hall since the meal program began in 2019. 

Read my story about this remarkable church of 15-20 regular attenders in the Free Press.

You can donate online here.

Photo above: Deacon Cassandra Golondrina stands in the food pantry beneath a hole in the ceiling due to a leaky roof. 

Seniors and students grow vegetables and friendships using hydroponics

Seniors and high school students in North Kildonan are growing vegetables and community through a unique indoor gardening project. 

It began three years ago when Donwood Manor, which is owned by eight Mennonite Brethren churches in Winnipeg, purchased six three-tier indoor hydroponic gardens. 

Through the hydroponic gardening, seniors grow food like lettuce, tomatoes, peppers and herbs year-round—and friendships students from a nearby high school. 

Read my story in the Winnipeg Free Press. 

Photo above: River East Collegiate students Jenna Martino, Dhyani Patel and Dyana Kehler and Donwood tenant Melba Doerksen with freshly harvested  produce from the hydroponic garden. Credit: Jennifer Kappy.

Community enrichment coordinator Minoli Maharage hands lettuce to Donwood tenant Adina Goertzen. 

Mennonite congregations in Canada, the U.S. reach across border to defy Trump's tariffs and talk of annexation or invasion

Mennonite churches in Manitoba and Ohio and Illinois are reaching across the border to build relations through a new program called Called Companion Congregations. 

It was created last year by Mennonite Church Manitoba when U.S. President Donald Trump imposed tariffs against Canada — along with making threats about annexing or invading the country. 

“People in our congregations started talking about not going to the U.S. anymore,” said conference minister Michael Pahl of church events outside the country. 

Through the program, he hopes to create a practical way for churches to show that “the body of Christ transcends borders.” 

To date, four churches are participating: River East and Hope Mennonite in Winnipeg and First Mennonite in Bluffton, Ohio and Mennonite Church of Normal, Illinois.  

Read the article here in the Free Press.

Photo above: Keith Poysti and Don Loewen of River East show stained glass art they made to send to Bluffton Mennonite Church. 

 

Why are evangelicals and Roman Catholics so critical of Bill C-9, the Combatting Hate Act?

 

Why are Canadian evangelicals and Roman Catholics so critical of the government’s decision to remove the “good faith defence” from Bill C-9, the Combatting Hate Act? What do they want to preach and teach that might get their clergy into trouble if the Bill is passed into law with that provision removed? I asked the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada and the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops that question in order to find out. 

Click here to read their answers in my Free Press column. 

Image above from the Renew Church website.