Many churches have closets full of unused music and sound equipment taking up space and, in some cases, waiting to hit the landfill. Gear for Good Causes came from Gerry Teichrob’s brainwave to accept the challenge to change that. And…
Journey Home Community (JHC) provides refugee claimants in Canada with housing and settlement support. Founder John Dyck says: In the last 16 years, Journey Home Community has helped resettle more than 160 refugees from Afghanistan. These are people who have…
“What goes on in North America is just a tiny fraction of what goes on in the refugee world.” James Grunau knows what he is talking about. He has spent many years welcoming refugee claimants to Metro Vancouver, while also…
Almost 80 million asylum seekers, refugees and internally displaced people are seeking new homes in our world today, a reality requiring urgent conversation and action. A timely new book is now available to help us reimagine personal, national and international…
Many people are feeling isolated during the pandemic; imagine what it must be like for refugee claimant families who arrived during this time of imposed separation. Journey Home Community is offering a ‘discovery meeting’ February 25 to help people help…
Last Sunday (September 20) was a momentous day for three Vancouver churches. All closed their doors, but each will retain a presence, though in quite distinct ways. Bethlehem Lutheran Pastor Fred Rink led a decommissioning service for Bethlehem Lutheran Church,…
Last week I posted a powerful comment by Darrell Johnson: Praying Boldly: coronavirus 2020. I will repeat a portion of his conclusion, as it leads into the Easter weekend so well: So, where do we go? I can only speak…
Quite a number of Christians took an active part in the climate strike march last week. Anglicans, Lutherans, Catholics and United Church members were particularly active, along with Earthkeepers: Christians for Climate Justice. But even those who didn’t take part…
Every week I hear of new and creative ways in which churches and individual Christians are working for the good of the broader community. And I am sure that I don’t hear about most of them, even though I’m always…
James Grunau and Loren Balisky have created thriving communities locally (Journey Home and Kinbrace), which share housing – and lives – with refugee claimants. Last week they travelled to Ottawa to appear before the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration,…