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MINUTE FOR MISSION...
“Seeking to Heal the Wrongs of Old”
At the 31st General Council,
held in Sudbury in 1986, then Moderator the Right Rev. Robert Smith made an
apology to our Aboriginal brothers and sisters for the United Church’s
historical imposition of European culture on them. In 1998, the church apologized for harm done
by church-run Indian Residential Schools.
Since that time, many groups have worked on establishing right relations
with first Nations communities.
One such group is the Aboriginal Peace
and Friendship Project at the Tatamagouche Centre in Nova Scotia. The project is a partnership of Tatamagouche
Centre and Mennonite Central Committee in association with the Atlantic
Aboriginal Rights Coalition and the Task Group on Aboriginal Relationships and
concerns of Maritime Conference. Its
work is focused on peace, justice and mutuality in the Maritimes.
The project seeks to foster
constructive networks where understanding may bloom. It is hoped that the hurts of previous
generations will be eased as people enter into a spirit of dialogue and
reconciliation at the Tatamagouche Centre and through other partnership networks
in the Maritimes.
The Aboriginal Peace and Friendship Project advocates that
Aboriginal voices should be heard in the decision-making of our
governments. This work is made possible
through your gifts to the Mission and Service Fund. Please give generously so that we might work
together as Children of God.
“Loud and
clear: United Voices”
Imagine you are in a crowded stadium. There is noise all around: peanut vendors are
shouting sales pitches, announcements boom out of loudspeakers, fans talk,
cheer and boo.
What would you do if you had a message to share with the crowd and
didn’t have a microphone or loudspeaker?
Even if you yelled at the top of your lungs, only a few people might
hear you. On its own, your voice is too
small to be heard. But if you passed the word along and got a crowd of people
to join their voices with yours, your message might begin to be hears.\It is
the same way with our church. We all
want to make a world a better place. yet
be3cause there is so much noise around us, only those closest to us hear our
message. So we join a congregation that
shares many of our thoughts. But the
voice of one congregation has limited impact; we may be heard in our
neighbourhood or town, but not beyond that.
However, if we join voices with the 3,000 United Church congregations
across the country, our voice becomes much louder. We can be heard!
By speaking together as a United Church, we share with many the
message that God loves us and that there is hope. The work of your United Church is possible through
your gives to the Mission and Service Fund.
Together, we carry out the work of our United Church
Make difference!
Join the Partnership!
Support the work of the Mission and Service Fund today.
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