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Sept25
By Michael Wilson Pastoral Letters September 25, 2026

Watch this week’s service on YouTube by clicking:

September 27 Worship Service Video

 

Join us for Sunday morning worship at CUC at 10:00 AM
with the He/SheBrews Café following in the Van Roon Community Hall

 

 

  • The National Day for Truth and Reconciliation is this coming Wednesday, September 30. You are welcome to wear an orange t-shirt to church on Sunday in observance. More importantly, let us continue to learn about Residential School History and work together on right relations and reconciliation.

 

  • A search for a new Children’s Ministry Leader is underway. The posting can be found on our website:  Children’s Ministry Leader Position  Unfortunately during this time we are unable to provide a church school program. Games and crafts are available for children at the back of the sanctuary and in the nursery. We are sorry for the inconvenience. Children are always welcome at Charleswood United Church.

 

  • The ABC’s of Christian Faith is a six-week course of the foundations of our faith for people interested in confirmation, adult baptism, or simply as a refresher. The ABC’s are held every other Wednesday at 7:00. The next session is on October 7 and will be on the Bible.

 

  • The Charleswood United Church – Shaarey Zedek Synagogue Exchange and Dialogue – Thank you to everyone who has responded to this invitation. We are delighted that our delegation of 25 people is full. If there are openings later we will announce it in church and by email.

 

 

Dear Friends

Welcome to worship for Sunday, September 27, 2026.

 

This coming Wednesday, September 30 is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation (also known as Orange Shirt Day). The creation of this observance was an answer to Call of Action 80 in the Final Report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. This day may be observed in a multitude of ways but its significance in our province is marked by its marking as a statutory holiday. We pause. And we remember. So we can act.

 

The National Day for Truth and Reconciliation has significance for members of the United Church of Canada as we were one of the churches who participated in the residential school system. The United Church of Canada operated 15 residential schools at the behest of the federal government. Three of those schools were in Manitoba at Brandon, Portage la Prairie, and Norway House.

 

The 94 Calls to Action which formed the heart of the TRC Report made specific reference to the ongoing responsibility of the participating churches in Call to Action 59 – “We call upon church parties to the Settlement Agreement to develop ongoing education strategies to ensure that their respective congregations learn about their church’s role in colonization, the history and legacy of residential schools, and why apologies to former residential school students, their families, and communities were necessary”.

 

If you are not familiar with the history of the United Church, or are relatively new to our congregation, then you may be unaware that this is an issue with which we have wrestled for a long time. A period of dialogue and study in the 1970’s and 80’s led to the first Apology to Indigenous People made at General Council in Sudbury in 1986. Two years later the UCC received a response from Indigenous members of our church and a willingness to journey together. This preceded the governments apology and the creation of the TRC by quite some time. A further apology was offered in 1998 which was specifically directed at survivors of the residential school system. If you have not read these historical documents they are most informative and interesting. A link to them both can be found here: 1986 and 1998 Apologies .

 

While education is valuable it is not enough to say that we have learned. The TRC Report says what I must believe we all hold to be true. “Together, Canadians must do more than just talk about reconciliation; we must learn how to practise reconciliation in our everyday lives – within ourselves and our families, and in our communities, governments, places of worship, schools, and workplaces.”

 

Which begs the question, what is it that we at Charleswood have done and are doing to further the ambition of reconciliation. During and immediately after the TRC we did a rather large amount of educational activity which I won’t list here. I will be the first to admit that that tapered off after the pandemic closed us down and some momentum in this area of our mission was lost. But actions speak louder than words and they continue in our life together.

 

The first is that pastoral care of indigenous people, many of whom are not members of the church, is a regular part of our ministry. It is not for me to name these occasions but we are a ministry open to relationship in numerous ways. The second area of our life together is in outreach and partnership. Our Mission and Social Action Committee considers right relations a high priority and often act on our behalf. Our partnership with Pimichikimak Community Ministry is our most significant mission priority and has found expression in numerous and meaningful ways. And finally, we do look for ways to continue the learning process in material and educational opportunities.

 

Could we do more? Absolutely! Are we at an end? Absolutely not! Sometimes I think the most important reminder of all on the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation is that this is a long process and that patience will serve us well. Some issues need immediate attention but the full realization of the Calls to Action is not simply a checklist. It is the transformation of a people and a nation. And that takes time.

 

As the TRC Final Report said, “For Canadians from all walks of life, reconciliation offers a new way of living together”.

 

May it be so.

 

Grace and peace,

Michael

 

 

 

 

  • For news and events, please have a look at Life & Work on our website: Life and Work

 

 

  • Did you know you can support this ministry by e-transfer, automatic withdrawal (PAR), and gifted securities, in addition to weekly or monthly cheques? For Offering Information please visit: https://charleswoodunited.org/support/   Thank you for your generous support.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Michael Wilson
Michael Wilson / About Author
Michael’s involvement in the wider church has included ministry with children and youth, membership on the National Division of World Outreach, supervision of campus ministry, and the Ten Days for Global Justice National Committee. He has been blessed by the opportunity to represent the United Church of Canada in the Bahamas, Cuba, and Africa on different occasions. Michael has taught at the University of Winnipeg – Faculty of Theology and is past President of the Conference of Manitoba and North Western Ontario.
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