This Library contains documents from all recent United Church governance meetings, including General Council and its Executive. It will also soon include “Our Beliefs Explained” official policy documents dating back several decades. If you can't find something you think should be included, contact gcbusiness@united-church.ca.
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At its November, 2013, meeting, the General Council Executive directed the Theology and Inter-Church Inter-Faith Committee “to research and devise a position paper regarding adoption and create a United Church of Canada statement on adoption.”
That the 42nd General Council adopt that on behalf of The United Church of Canada, the Moderator and the General Secretary promote the adoption of a national Child Well-being Index. This can be achieved by writing to the Prime Minister, the leaders of the opposition parties, federally and provincially, each Premier, the whole church and the national media demanding immediate action for children and encourage members of United Church congregations to do the same.
That the 42nd General Council (2015): Direct the Executive of the General Council to promote existing resources for congregations and other ministries to understand alternatives to the “first past the post” electoral system in Canada.
The 42nd General Council (2015) direct the General Secretary, General Council to: a) contact the Prime Minister, the party leaders and appropriate ministers calling on them to eliminate solitary confinement; b) contact the Prime Minister, the party leaders and appropriate ministers calling on them to: • Provide better training of staff regarding mental health issues of offenders; • Schedule mental health assessments and development of treatment strategies; • Ensure transfer of inmates prone to injuring themselves to treatment centres; • Ensure that there is adequate oversight of prison conditions. • Work more closely with the John Howard Society, the Elizabeth Fry Society, and the Canadian Mental Health Association in developing better strategies for treatment and training. • Work more closely with the interfaith chaplaincies.
The current phase of the theological dialogue between the Anglican Church of Canada and the United Church of Canada resumed in January 2012 with a shared mandate to discern “whether God is calling us into a new stage in our common life.”The 2010 General Synod of the Anglican Church specifically asked the dialogue to focus its work on “an examination of the doctrinal identities of the two churches and the implications of this for the lives of the churches, including understandings of sacraments and orders of ministry.” Meeting once annually, the members of the dialogue have rediscovered the degree to which our two churches share a common faith, context, history, geography, and commitment to carrying out God’s mission in the world. We have spent considerable time examining the theological positions and practices related to orders of ministry, sacraments, and creeds.
The original motion was amended to first receive the report, then approve the recommendations.
That the 41st General Council 2012 direct the Executive of the General Council to develop strategies to enable all members and adherents of The United Church of Canada to take action in collaboration with all levels of government, the business community and the community of non-profit organizations and partners to address child poverty in Canada.
produce appropriate study material (such as for Lent or Advent or through Mandate magazine) that addresses the issue of poverty, homelessness and economic disparity in this country Keywords: poverty, homelessness, social security
That the 41st General Council 2012 call upon the Government of Canada to reverse their decision to make age 67 the minimum age for application for Old Age Security (OAS) and Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS) benefits and direct the General Secretary, General Council to communicate this stance. Old Age Security, OAS, Guaranteed Income Supplement, GIS, minimum age for application for Old Age Security
1) recognise the emergence of new social movements, which specifically challenge the neo liberal Empire; 2) direct the Executive of the General Council to mobilise the people of The United Church of Canada (at every level) to embody prophetic and liberating values; and 3) direct the General Secretary, General Council to call upon The United Church of Canada’s ecumenical and other partners to mobilise in a similar fashion.
