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Join us for Sunday morning worship at CUC at 10:00 AM with the He/SheBrews Café following in the Van Roon Community Hall
Dear Friends
Welcome to worship for Sunday, June 28, 2026.
Happy Canada Day.
Let me first say that I do not believe that Canada as we know it is in jeopardy. I am fully convinced that a large majority of people in Alberta and a large majority of people in Quebec think of themselves first and foremost as Canadians. I believe a majority of people in those provinces, as in every other province, value Canada as it is presently constituted and want to see the project of Canada, flawed though it may be, continue. These majorities will have an opportunity to make their voice known and all will be well. But squeaky wheels, eh?
So rather than write a letter for Canada Day that tries to make arguments no one is listening to, I will flip the script and simply make a declaration about my love for Canada. As it is. As I hope and believe it will remain.
Canada is unbelievably big and almost unspeakably beautiful. I have been as far east as St. John’s and as far west as Vancouver Island. Sadly I have only been as far north as Flin Flon but there is time. I have been blessed by the opportunity to set foot in 9 out of 10 provinces (sorry PEI). Canada is six time zones wide a number which is only exceeded by Russia’s 11. By comparison China only has one and mainland Africa has four. This is a big place.
And beautiful. It is stunning in its diversity of landscape. What other countries have three oceans, more lakes than the rest of the world combined, over 8,500 rivers, arctic tundra, fjords, islands, differing types of forests, spectacular mountains, Canadian Shield, green lush hills, and of course prairie, the greatest of them all!! No one can adequately describe the beauty of Canada so let me mention three moments in my life. On a hiking trip in Newfoundland I turned a corner and approached a bay in which sat an iceberg. For as long as I wanted I had the view to myself, me, a beach, and an iceberg. Steeping out of the sanctuary of North Hatley United Church in Quebec one sees the northern tip of long, deep, clear, cold Lake Massawippi. To the right, all along it’s western edge, the Green Mountains run undisturbed into New England. Just west of Birtle, Manitoba, a little above the scenic village of St. Lazare the Assiniboine Valley meets and joins the Qu’appelle Valley, an intersection from the dawn of time. I could go on but so can you.
I love Canada because all of it is in all of us. I was born in Winnipeg and live here still. I think I am a pretty good Winnipegger! But my mom was born in Montreal and my dad in Kitchener, Ontario. My daughter went to school in Ottawa and lives in Toronto. My son graduated from a university in Halifax. My sister has raised her family in Calgary. My roommate from seminary has spent his entire career in Newfoundland though he was from Hamilton. Another friend has lived in Winnipeg, Guelph, Toronto, Cape Breton, Hazelton BC and now here again. His wife grew up in Quebec. Of course she did. I could go on but so can you.
I love Canada because the world meets here. Maybe this isn’t as abundantly obvious unless you have had the privilege of travelling to other places but the diversity of people living in Canada is not something that exists everywhere and should not be taken for granted. That is true for culture and it is true for religion. Last December I was part of a panel discussion put on by the Multifaith Council of Manitoba. To my left was a Sikh student, to my right a Cree elder. The keynote speaker was a Methodist from South Africa. Last month I was a guest at a luncheon at Shaarey Zedek Synagogue where my table included Jewish, Yazidi, and one Baptist guest. Yes… Baptist!! This doesn’t happen everywhere. But thankfully it does in Canada.
I love Canada because it tries. Our history is as difficult and complex as that of any other country. But rather than avoiding the difficult conversations Canadians engage in them. Or at least that has been my experience throughout my career. I have had the opportunity to support a Korean colleague and the church that he was serving. I was part of an effort to re-imagine a former north end mission and transform it into an indigenous ministry. My wonderful congregation became Affirming of LGBTQ+ people in a celebration just two weeks ago. Above all we have attempted to reconcile ourselves to our part in the legacy of the Residential Schools System. It is a long journey that we are still on and if it takes seven generations so be it. Canada will still be here.
And I love Canada because it is where my faith has been formed, nurtured, challenged, affirmed, and lived out. God has blessed us in ways beyond counting. Why should we want to be anywhere else?
In gratitude, Happy Canada Day!!
Grace and peace,
Michael
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