Around Town: Pope Francis part of TED Talks, Journey Home, Easter Carnival ...

Pope Francis addressed the annual TED Conference (held in Vancouver) this week.

Vancouver is hosting the annual five-day (April 24 – 28) TED Conference (which organizers say is “at the heart of TED”), and so we also hosted Pope Francis earlier this week. Speaking on themes of hope, inclusion and tenderness, his TED Talk was an unexpected addition to the gathering.

His presentation, which was videotaped at the Vatican, was seen by the 1,800 participants at the Vancouver Convention Centre on Tuesday (April 25); thousands more watched in theatres around the world.

Here are a couple of brief portions from the pope’s 18-minute talk:

First and foremost, I would love it if this meeting could help to remind us that we all need each other. None of us is an island, an autonomous and independent “I,” separated from the other, and we can only build the future by standing together, including everyone. We don’t think about it often, but everything is connected, and we need to restore our connections to a healthy state. Even the harsh judgment I hold in my heart against my brother or my sister, the open wound that was never cured, the offense that was never forgiven, the rancor that is only going to hurt me, are all instances of a fight that I carry within me, a flare deep in my heart that needs to be extinguished before it goes up in flames, leaving only ashes behind. . . .

The future of humankind isn’t exclusively in the hands of politicians, of great leaders, of big companies.Yes, they do hold an enormous responsibility. But the future is, most of all, in the hands of those people who recognize the other as a “you” and themselves as part of an “us.” We all need each other. And so, please, think of me as well with tenderness, so that I can fulfill the task I have been given for the good of the other, of each and every one, of all of you, of all of us. Thank you.

Go here for the full video and transcript of Pope Francis’s talk.

There are, of course, a host of other high-profile speakers taking part in the TED Conference, including Serena Williams, Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, Elon Musk and Anne Lamott.

Journey Home’s welcome house

Journey Home has launched in new refugee welcome house in East Vancouver.

Journey Home Community celebrated the launch of a new welcome house for refugees not far from the intersection of Boundary Road and Grandview Highway in east Vancouver last Sunday (April 23). The three storey house has two bedrooms on the ground floor, two more on the main floor and a top floor loft for the live-in hosts.

Even before opening this Vancouver house, Journey Home was very active:

We currently help about 12 to 16 new families per year with transitional housing (apartment suites in Burnaby and New Westminster) and have supported over 40 additional families with resettlement assistance and in their move to more permanent housing. We also have numerous volunteer teams who come alongside families and provide the relational support so necessary at this point in their journey.

Go here and here for earlier stories about Journey Home’s work.

In a related story, Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson announced $118,000 for five refugee groups, including the faith-based Kinbrace Refugee Housing & Support, as the numbers of asylum seekers spikes.

Chris Friesen, director of settlement services for the Immigrant Services Society of BC (ISSofBC), said on CBC Radio’s On the Coast April 26:

The biggest impact, of course, and challenge, is looking for temporary and longer term housing. . . . A refugee claimant, when they first arrive here in BC will not have access to income support for up to two months. . . . Asylum seekers are the most vulnerable refugee population that we have. They don’t have the support; they’re not able to access the range of services that are funded by the federal government . . .

Go here for the full interview, and here for a write-up about the funding on the ISSofBC site.

Easter Carnival

Vancouver Urban Ministries and 11 churches sponsored an Easter Carnival at Strathcona Church.

A number of churches banded together under the leadership of Vancouver Urban Ministries (VUM) to host an Easter Carnival at Strathcona Church on Easter Friday. The evening event featured a wide range of activities, including games, food, music and prizes.

David Innes, executive director of VUM, described what he saw as the highlights:

1. Eleven churches from a variety of traditions joining together with VUM with one purpose . . . to share the good news that Jesus the Saviour is risen! [The churches were Christ Church of China, Coastal Church, Collingwood Baptist Church, Fraser Lands Church, Life Church, Lord’s Peace Church, Mountainview Christian Fellowship, New Beginnings Baptist Church, Strathcona Vineyard Church, Tenth Church and Vancouver Chinese Pentecostal Church.]

2. The awesome creativity of those who shared the Easter story in five parts in individual booths.

3. The sense of joy in community as people engaged with the message with smiles and enjoyment.

4. The fact that at least two families engaged enough to attend church on the following Sunday for the first time . . . praise God!

Briefly noted

TWU volleyball star Ryan Sclater is in the running for top Canadian male university athlete.

TWU’s Ryan Sclater is in the running for top Canadian male university athlete. Photo: Scott Stewart /TWU Athletics.

Ryan Sclater: top university athlete?

We won’t know until May 2 whether Trinity Western Spartans volleyball star Ryan Sclater will be chosen as Canada’s top male university athlete of the year, but we do know that he is one of four finalists for the U Sports award. The National Post said in an April 20 article: “The 23-year-old from Port Coquitlam, BC is a devout Christian, loving husband, dedicated scholar and fantastic volleyball player – in that order.”

Residential school story over-simplified?

“BC Chief Robert Joseph regrets Canadians are becoming ‘too positional’ about residential schools.” So reads the first line in Douglas Todd’s helpful Vancouver Sun article about the hardening of positions over the issue. Joseph, who heads Reconciliation Canada, says we should be willing to listen to people like Senator Lynn Beyak, who argues that some good things came from residential schools – even if we don’t agree with them.

Admiring David Ley

South China Morning Post writer Ian young wrote a very positive article about retiring urban geography professor David Ley, April 21. One key observation: “His benchmark work, the peer-reviewed 2010 book Millionaire Migrants, lays out the case that Vancouver’s unaffordability woes are products of policy, international capital and wealth migration, and Goliath-like pro-development forces pushing the notion that answers lie in market-driven supply.” Ley attends St. John’s Vancouver and has also been active with Regent College over the years.

Matt Humphrey published

A new book edited by activist Ched Myers tackles issues relating to ‘Reinhabiting Bioregional Faith and Practice.’ Watershed Discipleship includes writings by several authors, including Matt Humphrey, director of theological education for A Rocha Canada. He “calls evangelicals away from a posture of abstraction to one of action for inhabited bioregions.”

Apr 2017

Violet Behzadian: Song of My Salvation – April 28, 2017 - April 30, 2017 at All Day
Brian Thiessen CD Release Concert – April 28, 2017 at 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm
Graham & Aaron Ord – April 28, 2017 at 7:30 pm - 9:30 pm
Next Gen Vision Night – April 28, 2017 at 7:30 pm - 9:00 pm
Mirror Year End Dance Show – April 28, 2017 - April 29, 2017 at 8:00 pm - 9:30 pm
Stone's Throw Productions: The Shape of a Girl – April 28, 2017 - April 29, 2017 at 8:00 pm - 10:00 pm
Marriage Mentoring: Building Healthy Marriages Through Friendship and Community with Randy Hamm – April 29, 2017 at 9:00 am - 4:00 pm
Habitat Restoration for Families – April 29, 2017 at 9:30 am - 12:00 pm
People's Climate March: Jobs. Justice. Climate – April 29, 2017 at 10:00 am - 3:00 pm
Mental Health Recovery in Relationships – April 29, 2017 at 10:30 am - 12:30 pm
Over 18: A Documentary About Porn – April 29, 2017 at 7:30 pm - 9:30 pm
Sundays at 3: David Poon – April 30, 2017 at 3:00 pm - 4:30 pm
Refuge: Music to Celebrate Vancouver's Refugee Heritage – April 30, 2017 at 4:00 pm - 5:00 pm
Together: City Church Worship & Prayer Gathering – April 30, 2017 at 6:30 pm - 10:00 pm

May 2017

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