Faith in Canada 150

#131: My Journey with John Paul II

by Jenny Sullivan on June 6th, 2017

In her submission to the Golden Thread Contest, Jenny Sullivan speaks of how faith radically changed through a personal encounter with a person whom she has never met.

#130: Grace Irwin

by Rose Seiler Scott on 2017-06-06

Grace Irwin was a Canadian teacher, acclaimed author and speaker who served as an admirable role model and influential Christian leader to students, readers and all who knew her. Read more ›

#129: Universal Lessons From the Holocaust

by Sheila Hurtig Robertson on 2017-05-31

Learn about the Ottawa Holocaust Survivors’ Testimonies Project, which features interviews of ten local survivors. The survivors’ experiences include ghettos in Hungary, Nazi slave labour camps in Germany and death camps in Poland, hiding in non-Jewish homes in Holland and France and in a dugout in Ukraine, and surviving as refugees in Romania and Shanghai. Each story is unique and offers a glimpse into what it must have been like to live through the traumatic events of the Holocaust. Read more ›

#128: Appropriate for You

by Peter Stockland on 2017-05-29

Senior Editor Peter Stockland shares about the Mitchell Prize for Faith and Writing and the Golden Thread Contest – and how they matter as ways to "bring together stories that vividly recount the role of religious faith in Canada’s past and present, and nourish active spiritual life for the future." Read more ›

#127: The Ecumenical Pioneer

by Alan Hustak on 2017-05-26

Irénée Beaubien was a Jesuit who started the Canadian Centre for Ecumenism and pioneered the ecumenical movement in Canada long before the Roman Catholic Church promoted the idea of interfaith dialogue. Read more ›

#126: Old Wool and New Threads

by Gerry Turcotte on 2017-05-25

"If there are such things as life-defining moments then that was surely one of them. I will never again take my good fortune for granted, and I will always remember that all gifts matter, be they large or small." Read more ›

#125: Past, Present, Future Faith

by Heather Lane on 2017-05-23

Heather Lane of Thornhill, Ontario has submitted her story of faith to the Golden Thread Contest. Read what this five-letter word means to her. Read more ›

#124: J. I. Packer

by Neil Bramble on 2017-05-12

The life story of James Innell Packer is the story of a shy, introverted young boy of humble beginnings who became a dominant voice guiding the development of British and North American evangelical Christianity after WWII. Read more ›

#123: The Positive Difference of Islam

by Imraan H. Assim on 2017-05-10

In the past 20 years, Muslims have had to deal with varieties of attention, stigmas, and stereotypes. As a response, they’ve had to develop mature ways to carve out and articulate their Canadian identity while maintaining their faith. Imran Ally, a faith leader who is deeply involved in his community in Toronto, lives out what it means to be a Canadian Muslim. Read more ›

#122: Leonard Denithorne Crimp

by Neil Bramble on 2017-05-05

Leonard Crimp was a visible leader, always present. Able to cast vision and to inspire others, he took the long view; he led by example. Through the H. J. Heinz Company his influence was felt across Canada and in several other countries; in The Gideons it was felt around the world. Read more ›

#121: Republic of Stars

by Louise ZoBell on 2017-05-03

Little did we know that vacations in the beautiful Dominican Republic beginning in 2006 would lead to the establishment of a humanitarian foundation, the Dominican Starfish Foundation. Read more ›

#120: Mind the Gap

by Pamela Kenney on 2017-05-02

In January 2015, the unemployment rate in Alberta was hovering around 4.6 per cent. Today, it is almost double that at 8.8 per cent. The Canadian Poverty Institute at Ambrose University is searching for solutions to end poverty. Read more ›

#119: Preston Manning

by Lloyd Mackey on 2017-04-28

Preston Manning came by his interest naturally, in what he calls “navigating the faith-political interface.” His father, Ernest C. Manning was premier of Alberta for over two decades in the mid-twentieth century. During that time, he was the voice of Canada’s National Bible Hour (CNBH) – which attracted 600,000 listeners weekly, nationwide. Read more ›

#118: Edwin C. Phillips

by Lloyd Mackey on 2017-04-19

During Edwin Phillips' formative years, he was increasingly attracted to the business world – and a life of faith. And his location within the Hollywood orb led to crowd bit parts – with payment in free popcorn – in such biblical epic films as King of Kings and Ben Hur. Read more ›

#117: Because I Matter

by Janie Akamoto on 2017-04-11

Hidden away in the deepest recesses of our memories, each of us can identify at least one moment in time when we felt like someone must be watching over us. Janie Akamoto shares the moment she first encountered such protection – through a quiet voice and a country road. Read more ›

#116: Neighbours Creating Neighbourhoods

by Jennifer Neutel on 2017-04-10

Howard Lawrence of Edmonton is exploring what happens when we activate the invitation to love those within our neighbourhoods. He says the idea has sprung forth that “maybe God is calling us to love our actual neighbours.” Read more ›

#115: Northrop Frye

by Joseph Adamson on 2017-04-07

“Now religion and art are the two most important phenomena in the world …. They constitute, in fact, the only reality of existence.” Northrop Frye, one of the country’s most eminent thinkers, devoted his life to a study of literature and culture that was deeply rooted in the Bible. Read more ›

#114: Getting Relations Right

by Jennifer Neutel on 2017-04-05

Formed in the fall of 2015, the Right Relations Circle developed out of an energy in Calgary's Hillhurst United Church congregation for reconciliation and gathering. Spirituality, learning, awareness and co-participation are among the group’s tenets. Read more ›

#113: The Deep Roots of St. Andrew's Oakville

by Terry Murphy on 2017-04-03

St. Andrew’s Roman Catholic Parish in Oakville, Ontario celebrated its 175th anniversary two years ago through a fundraising campaign to help the Diocese of Cornerbrook and Labrador, whose priests spend much of their time traveling to far-flung missions to minister to the faithful. This was a fitting means of celebrating their anniversary since St. Andrew’s story began nearly 200 years ago as a mission parish, almost four decades before Oakville became a municipality and five decades before Confederation. Read more ›

#112: Bernice Gerard

by Lloyd Mackey on 2017-03-31

Bernice Gerard was a pastor, university chaplain, social activist, politician, media host … and feminist. Dr. Linda Ambrose points out that influential Vancouver pastor and politician Bernice Gerard was a convinced feminist. Read more ›

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