Three urban experts will focus on Vancouver during ‘Tools for Neighbourhood and City’ at Tenth Church November 6.
If you are care about Metro Vancouver, or urban issues, or how your church should relate to the city surrounding you – come to Tenth Church next Thursday afternoon (November 6) to participate in Tools for Neighbourhood and City Transformation.
Three experienced city-reaching leaders – Ray Bakke, Glenn Smith and Richard Long – will lead the event. All have all tackled the theory of urban engagement, but they have also worked in and prayed for particular cities over several decades.
Ray Bakke
Ray Bakke has led the way as urban churches engage with their environment.
Way back in 1987, Ray Bakke wrote The Urban Christian: “There are millions of opportunities for the gospel. With half of the world’s five billion people in cities, there is almost no end to the exciting challenges that await us.”
With seven billion people now in the world, the urbanization process is even more pronounced – and dozens of authors are following Bakke’s lead in writing books addressing how Christians should relate to the city. (Bakke himself released A Theology as Big as the City in 2009.)
Not only does Bakke continue to have an international influence – the Ray Bakke Centre for Urban Transformation opened up in Hong Kong a couple of years ago, for example – but he has a particular soft spot for Vancouver.
Bakke will consider ‘Vancouver as a Laboratory for Biblical Urban Vision.’
Glenn Smith
Glenn Smith leads Christian Direction in Montreal.
Glenn Smith has been executive director of Christian Direction in Montreal since September 1983. The ministry hopes to see God transform urban communities through the concerted actions of committed Christians in the cities of the Francophone world.
Not much, he discovered, and he has spent the last 30 years trying to remedy that situation.
I learned that understanding the social imaginaries of the context is critical to pursuing the mission of God. But I live in a place, which is contextually specific. Place is space with historical meanings, different identities and varied societal preoccupations. . . . In actual fact, as we listen to the scriptures and listen to our contexts, we have plenty of hope that God is accomplishing his purposes in the massive movements of people to city/regions in Canada and across the globe.
Smith will address: ‘Exegeting Your Neighbourhoods Together: Stories that Bear Fruit.’
Richard Long is director of Love Ottawa.
Richard Long has 20 years of experience in city-wide movements. Currently director of Love Ottawa, he previously worked in Toronto and Hamilton. (He initially went to Ottawa as associate director at the National House of Prayer, where he ministered for five years.) He also leads Together Canada, which encourages city-wide teams across Canada.
Love Ottawa aims to work with the Church of Ottawa to bring transformation to the city’s 100 neighbourhoods:
Long will discuss his work: ‘Love Ottawa: A City-Wide Gospel Movement.’
See below for a raft of other events and activities during the upcoming week:
Oct 2014
The Illusion – October 27, 2014 - November 1, 2014 at All DayKeepers of the Faith Concert – October 27, 2014 at 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm
The Rainmaker – October 27, 2014 - November 1, 2014 at 8:00 pm - 10:00 pm
Company of Disciples: Euthanasia - Saving Lives or Prolonging End of Life? – October 28, 2014 at 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm
Chaplains Connect: Collateral Blessings – October 29, 2014 at 5:30 pm - 8:30 pm
Icons: Windows to Heaven – October 29, 2014 at 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm
Liu Peng: Relgion and the Rule of Law in China Today – October 30, 2014 at 1:00 pm - 2:30 pm
Community Workshop: An Introduction to Mental Health – October 30, 2014 at 1:30 pm - 2:30 pm
Sharing Our Stories: Music and Story – Featuring Angelika Dawson and Carman McKay (Sto:lo) – October 30, 2014 at 7:00 pm - 8:45 pm
Barnyard Bash!: A Fall Festival – October 31, 2014 at 5:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Barnyard Bash!: A Fall Festival – October 31, 2014 at 5:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Barnyard Bash!: A Fall Festival – October 31, 2014 at 5:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Halloween Carnival – October 31, 2014 at 5:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Halloween Festival – October 31, 2014 at 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm
FunFest 2014 – October 31, 2014 at 6:30 pm - 9:00 pm
Hallelujah Night – October 31, 2014 at 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm
Sung Latin Mass on the Eve of All Saints (All Hallows Eve) – October 31, 2014 at 7:30 pm - 9:00 pm
Nov 2014
Ethos: Iain Provan: Seriously Dangerous Religion - Conference & Sermon – November 1, 2014 - November 2, 2014 at All DayAging, Dementia and the Church – November 1, 2014 at 9:00 am - 3:00 pm
Understanding Teens: Issues and Resources – November 1, 2014 at 9:00 am - 3:00 pm
Tseil-Waututh 101: Stories from the land we live on – November 1, 2014 at 9:30 am - 12:30 pm
All Saints' Day High Mass and Open House (Heart of the City) – November 1, 2014 at 10:30 am - 4:00 pm
Paul Cumin: What Does it Mean to be a Human? – November 1, 2014 at 7:00 pm - 9:30 pm
Why Does the Earliest Evidence of Humans on Earth Show They were So Advanced? – November 1, 2014 at 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm
Hymn Festival: Sing Praise to the Lord – November 1, 2014 at 7:30 pm - 9:30 pm
Phoenix Chamber Choir: Lift – November 1, 2014 at 7:30 pm - 9:30 pm
Canadian Mennonite Health Assembly 2014 – November 2, 2014 - November 4, 2014 at All Day
Phoenix Chamber Choir: Lift – November 2, 2014 at 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm
The Gallery Singers: The Western Wind – November 2, 2014 at 3:00 pm - 5:00 pm
City-wide Worship and Prayer: United in Prayer United in Mission – November 2, 2014 at 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Questioning Triumphant Abundance: The Future of Environmentalism & Civil Society, with Peter Robinson: CEO of the David Suzuki Foundation – November 2, 2014 at 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm
Seven Pesuasive Keys for Understanding the Truth of Creation – November 2, 2014 at 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm