This Library contains documents from all recent United Church governance meetings, including General Council and its Executive. It also includes “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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In The United Church of Canada, we see ourselves as a church rooted in justice and equality with a vision of Deep Spirituality, Bold Discipleship, and Daring Justice. Our roots flow from the social gospel tradition of bringing Christian responsibility to public influence. In many ways, we have been a model of equality. We were the first denomination to grant ordination to women and commissioning and ordination to people who are openly 2SLGBTQIA+. United Church ministry personnel come from different walks of life and many cultural backgrounds. And while our history includes the running of Indian Residential Schools, we have apologized, made reparation, and continue to work toward reconciliation.
We, the Iridesce Working Group, offer the following recommendations to the General Secretary for action in response to the Final Report of Iridesce: The Living Apology Project.
The United Church of Canada has had a long history of challenging itself to examine issues that have allowed it to explore how it might respect, support, encourage, and engage the gifts of all of its members in the life and work of the whole Church.
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.”
The Theology and Inter-Church Inter-Faith Committee was asked by the Executive of General Council in November 2013 to develop a theology of disability,[1] which could include concepts such as healing, cure, sin, and normalcy. From the beginning, we wrestled with the notion of developing a theology of disability because the category “disability” is not neatly defined or clear. With this principle in mind, we invited people living with disabilities, and allies, to tell their own stories. The italicized sections of this report represent a small selection of the 35 submissions received in writing, video performance, and artistic work which we received in answer to our invitation to tell the church a story over a cup of coffee about living with a disability, or being an ally with a person with a disability. We have been honoured to be entrusted with these stories, some painful and some joyful, that have enriched the development of this report.
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.
These words from A Song of Faith represent the most recent articulation of the ecclesiology of The United Church of Canada. Ecclesiology can be defined as theological reflection on the nature and mission of the church – “a statement about where Christians are in the world, who 41st General Council 2012 Ottawa, Ontario For Information they sit with, and what they affirm and challenge.”
That the 41st General Council 2012 direct the General Secretary, General Council to 1) request the federal Department of Health and the provincial and territorial ministries of health to increase funding to provide adequate mental health services for children, youth and adults; 2) request the provincial and territorial ministries of education and local school boards to include education on mental health issues and inclusiveness of students living with mental health issues as part of the curriculum; and
The Permanent committee, Programs for Mission and Ministry, in reviewing its work through the 2009-2012 triennium discerned a common thread that linked each aspect of its work. Given its mandate to ensure that work comes before the Executive in an integrated manner it undertook and offers this report as one means of fulfilling that direction. The report will continue to serve as a working document for the PCPMM. It also believes that it can assist the General Council and its Executive l in their deliberations on the identity of the church.
