I have mentioned the work done by Cardus, a Christian think tank based in Ontario, quite often over the past few years. They are moving ahead on several fronts. They conduct original research in six areas: education, family, health, law,…
Last week, for the fourth time since first being elected in 2008, Mayor Gregor Robertson convened a meeting with faith leaders at Vancouver City Hall, to seek their assistance in addressing homelessness and affordable housing. Nearly two dozen senior clergy…
A diverse and motivated group of 15 pastors and leaders gathered last week for a two-hour lunch meeting to prayerfully consider the rapidly changing neighbourhood straddling the Burnaby/Coquitlam boundary with Lougheed Mall at its hub. The focus of this meeting was…
A new Angus Reid Institute poll shows that Canadians are divided about the proper role of religion in the public square. Faith and Religion in Public Life is the latest installment of a year-long partnership with Faith in Canada 150, which…
My long-time colleague (and frequent contributor to Church for Vancouver over the years) Lloyd Mackey wrote a comment in response to Peter Biggs’ A snapshot of faith in Surrey last week. I thought it would make a good article on…
The two churches you can see from the intersection of 41st and Cambie are boarded up and will both soon be gone, each to be replaced by mixed-use six-storey buildings. Another, just a few blocks down Cambie, has begun a…
Well, you can’t complain that Vancouver City Councillors are a lazy bunch. While I was finishing off my weekly update, they were still hard at work. It was after 9 pm when they voted 7-1 in favour of rezoning the…
Just over a month ago, the Jacob’s Well community was not sure whether it would be able to carry on, having been evicted from its long-time home at 239 Main Street, just north of Hastings Street. The team decided to close its doors…
Church-goers know the many benefits of participating in a congregation. Outsiders might not be convinced – and sometimes even feel that churches (mosques, synagogues, temples) are parasitic and should be paying taxes. Now there is a good way to assess the…
Is Vancouver a happy city? Charles Montgomery is surely the person to ask, and he will no doubt touch on the issue during his Soul and the City presentation June 22. The Vancouver-based author wrote Happy City to wide-spread acclaim from environmentalists…