UCC Anniversary


June 8, 2008


Today is our birthday – yours and mine and every member and adherent of The United Church of Canada! We are 83 years old. While we are not nearly so old as our founding denominations still 83 is a good age. We expect growth and wisdom from anyone that age and indeed our history embraces both those attributes.

So, today I am offering a history lesson. The liturgy is not the original one but it includes a prayer and a hymn written specially for this event. Downstairs you will find several copies of a Historical Timeline which I downloaded from our national website (www.united-church.ca/history/overview/timeline). I’ve been having a lot of fun this week researching our history. I have learned some things as well.

Rather than giving you a rather dry timeline of our history I offer you `snapshots’ through the eyes of some of our moderators, ministers and laypeople. From a church historian and retired clergy John Shearman I begin with a description of that inaugural meeting.

From the memoirs of Alfred Alexander Radley

The initial gathering was held in the Mutual Street Arena, the largest building available in Toronto, on the 10th day of June, 1925. So many applications had been made for tickets for this occasion that no other place we possible.

Promptly at half-past ten the orchestra and choir rose to sing the processional hymn, “The Church’s one Foundation” as the doors in the rear of the building were thrown open and the 35o delegates led by

Dr. S. D. Chown and Dr. G. C. Pidgeon marched in and took their places in the seats reserved for them. The service opened with the time-honoured “Old Hundredth,” liturgical prayers, the singing of the great Methodist hymn “O for a Thousand Tongues to Sing”, and the reading of John 17.

After this the leaders of the uniting churches made a declaration of the special contribution that each denomination had made into the life and work of the United Church. Then Dr. Chown read the formula proclaiming the consummation of Church union and the establishment of the United Church of Canada. The declaratory act was duly signed by the heads of the uniting bodies and the whole body of delegates.

A brief but exquisitely beautiful address by Dr. S. P. Rose was followed by the Communion Service. One thinks with amazement of the skill which this part of the service had been organized so that, without the slightest confusion or delay and in the most orderly and reverent manner, some 12,000 people were served with the bread and wine...

One incident deserves to be written in letters of gold. When the time came for the election of the first moderator of The United Church of Canada, there was an almost universal expectation that Rev. S.D. Chown, the former General superintendant of the Methodist Church, would be chosen. As leader of the largest group entering The United Church, as one of the foremost advocates of Church Union, and as the senior in years of the heads of the uniting churches, it seemed altogether fitting that he should be honoured with this position. But before any action was taken, Dr. Chown rose to ask that no ballots be cast for his election. In a carefully prepared statement, he gave his reason for doing so and moved that a single ballot be cast for the election of Dr. George c. Pidgeon.

The council seemed bewildered by this unexpected action, until Dr. Pidgeon assumed the chair. Then, after making his acknowledgment of the dignity conferred upon him, he described Dr. Chown’s “fine act of self-renunciation – the finest act of its kind in the history of Canadian Christianity.” The Council burst into a whirlwind of applause that gave some expression to its pent-up feelings. +

It is hard to imagine a service as large as that one was; there were 12,000 people present. It was held in an arena because there was no other facility in Toronto large enough to contain the guests.

Our church publishing house has produced two wonderful books documenting our church: 65 Years of The United Church of Canada (1990) and for our 75th anniversary, Fire and Grace: Stories of History and Vision (1999). Bruce MacLeod, moderator of the UCC from 1972-1974, wrote the opening article.

He begins with a poem from John Masefield – one to which prairie folk can easily relate.
O Christ who holds the open gate,
O Christ who drives the furrow straight,
O Christ the plough, O Christ the laughter
of holy white birds flying after.

For two millennia people have come together in Jesus’ name and made themselves available to that Spirit and its world-warming power. In the united Church of Canada, we’ve done that now for 75 years.

I Love the inclusivity of the UC. On our tenth anniversary – in a statement reaffirmed in 1950 and included ever since in The Manual – we renewed our commitment to what we called “inclusive Christian fellowship”. Ever since those three distinct traditions combined and compromised in 1925 to from one church, we’ve been suspicious of any person or school of thought that claims to have only one way. On our best days we gather around Jesus’ table and listen for God’s voice in lives and views different from ours. We know not every church is like that. Some Christian communities began as split-offs from larger denominations that, they thought, didn’t give sufficient importance to some point of doctrine or practice that they then made central. People in those groups don’t look for too much diversity; they like everyone to think and act the alike...

Referring first to the Eucharist he adds:

And it’s from that table we take decisions about what open gates Christ is beckoning us towards in our communities. Decisions, on a national level, about who is allowed to begin the rigorous and years-long path towards ministry in our church. Despite much pressure to elbow whole groups of people off that path in 1988 our Basis of union reminded us that it is Jesus, not the church, who chooses ministers, the church’s task is only to recognize those whom he has chosen. In the end we couldn’t risk being more exclusive than Jesus, and so remained an inclusive church.

In the same way, we sat down in the sixties to consider our attitude towards people of other faiths. In a landmark report on the Mission of the Church we concluded officially, out of reverence for that Christ Spirit which has clothed the world since time’s beginning (Colossians 1:16), that God is redemptively at work in all the religious life of humankind. We became the first church anywhere to have a staff person for Interfaith Relations – whose task is not to convert but to listen to people of other faiths and help us hear news God has for us that, apart from them, we might have missed.

I love this inclusivity before the inclusive love of God. +

From our Presbyterian roots we were commissioned especially: in the manifestation in the Spirit in vigilance for Christ’s Kirk and Covenant, in care for the spread of education and devotion to sacred learning. ^ Consequently we value highly education for all. Reading and reflecting on God’s Word is essential to our faith.

Based on this principle we have worked hard to produce educational materials for children, youth and adults. Many of you will remember the New Curriculum. Its publication in 1961 unleashed a bout of controversy. The headline of The Toronto Star claimed: “New teaching says Bible is a myth”.

Despite angry voices in the churches as well as the press the New Curriculum was a runaway publishing success and was widely accepted in our church. Peter White, the man at the centre, said, “What we were offering was being taught in all our theological schools so all our ministers were familiar with it”. Nevertheless, it was still a little too avant-garde for some in the pews. I, however, have been told by many people their 40’s to 60’s who attended Sunday school in those years that it was in the United Church that they learned about social justice and the acceptance of diversity. Bob Wallace says:

It was seen by many as an insidious plot to undermine the authority of Holy Writ. Oppositions members within were helped considerably by inflammatory public statements from leaders of other communions Though many saw it as a liberating movement that made faith possible, rather than destroying faith, the church retreated. The project soared for a short time then nose-dived into oblivion. Had the curriculum survived its critics, the United Church might never have had to face its 1988 crisis over ordination of homosexual persons. The `proof-texting’ that replaced a holistic approach to scripture would have been more widely recognized as an invalid exercise.

We continue to develop wonderful educational materials such as Living God’s Way...We keep abreast of times by utilizing videos and CD’s with lively contemporary music to which our children and youth can relate.

These social justice initiatives come from our roots in the Methodist and Congregational Churches. From the Methodist Church we were commissioned especially: in the manifestation of the Spirit in evangelical zeal and human redemption; the testimony of spiritual experience, and the ministry of sacred song.

And from the Congregationalists we were commissioned especially: in the manifestation of the Spirit in the liberty of prophesying, the love of spiritual freedom, and the enforcement of civic justice. ^

As noted above our appreciation for music is a gift from our Methodist ancestors. The hymn, O For a Thousand Tongues to Sing- the hymn we sang last Sunday was included in the first service. Charles Wesley, the brother of John Wesley (the founder of Methodism) wrote 9,000 hymns. Our present hymn book contains 14 written by Charles and 3 written by John. And the United Church has produced five hymn books in our first nine decades. Can you name them? They are: the blue Hymnary (1930), the red Hymn Book (1971), the green Songs for a Gospel people (1987), the burgundy Voices United (1994) and most recently its addition, More Voices (2007).

David Kai, a minister and musician cites a timeless statement, which you may be surprised to know comes from the preface to the 1971 Hymnary:

Young people especially wish to sing hymns cast in the style of the twentieth century. Despite the difficulties involved, the church must be hospitable to all creative energies for it to live as Christ’s body in these times, and seek to adapt contemporary modes of poetic and musical expression for use in public worship.+

The title for our current hymn book, Voices United comes from a line in the old favourite Netherlands melody, We Praise You O God:
With voices united our praises we offer,
And gladly ours songs of thanksgiving we raise.
Ours sins now confessing, we pray for your blessing.
To you, our great Redeemer, forever be praise! (VU #218)

As one person working on its production Kai writes:

Even as Voices United establishes itself in the life of the church, it is inevitable that future generations of Christians will require new worship resources. ..Whatever the future holds, we know that our praise of God will continue – whether in forms ancient or modern, in hymns written nearby or halfway around the globe, in chorale, calypso and chant. For God will be with us to guide and to inspire, to challenge and to nurture, to comfort and to bless. To God the Word, the Singer and the Song, may the church forever raise its voice in songs of praise.

As we have seen the roots of the social gospel run deep in our church. John Webster Grant, a historian and United Church publicist, writes in his book, Past and Prologue : Union was...to embody the rising social gospel that understood the Kingdom of God not merely as the transformation of society through the conversion of individuals but as the inauguration of a new political and economic order. Above all, many unionists urged, the UCC should seek to be rid of the shackles of the past and free to seek new solutions for emerging problems.

Over the years we have, as Bruce McLeod said, ‘gathered around God’s table and listened for God’s voice in lives and views different from ours”. Even before church union happened there were voices calling for the ordination of women. Starting in 1926 Lydia Gruchy, a graduate of St. Andrew’s College (formerly Presbyterian Theological College) sought ordination in the newly formed United Church.

She served as a rural lay minister for 13 years and was finally ordained in 1936, when the General Council approved women’s ordination. She was ordained at St. Andrew’s United Church in Moose Jaw on November 4, 1936 having been called there to minister. While more women began to offer themselves as candidates it really wasn’t until the 1960’s that very many of them were called to pastorates.

The United Church has opened “gates” to many people who were once outside its doors.

Shearman writes:

At one time the United Church had proclaimed the gospel in Canada in at least 17 different languages. Now it revealed its increasing diversity in its choice of moderators. For some 40 years, all the moderators were White, male, ordained clergy. Then in 1968, the General Council elected Robert McClure, a missionary doctor, as the first lay moderator. In 1974 Wilbur Howard, a Black minister, became moderator. In 1980 Lois Wilson became the first woman minister to hold the same office. Since then, Sang Chul Lee, a Korean immigrant; Stan McKay, a native Indian; and two laywomen, Anne Squire and Marion Best, have also been elected to lead the church.

By the 1980’s long-excluded native peoples were raising their voices in protest, particularly in western Canada where large numbers had attended church residential schools funded by government -sponsored assimilation programs. Racism existed within our churches, theological schools, and in our educational materials. First Nations people from the North and the prairies longed to see their own people train and serve as ministers in their own communities. The Dr. Jessie Saulteaux Centre was incorporated in 1984 and accredited in 1991. It resides on parkland beside the Brokenhead River near Beausejour, Manitoba. Its program is ecumenical in structure.

By the 1980’s the negative effects of the residential schools were being publicly names. As one of the churches involved in carrying out the government sponsored educational programs, The United Church responded by holding forums where the stories of abuse could be voiced and heard. In 1994 The Healing Fund was established by General Council in. Originally it was to be a 5 year fund-raising and educational campaign to address the impacts of residential schools on Aboriginal people. It now continues as one facet of the United Church’s ingoing reconciliation work with Aboriginal people.

A few days ago the united Church of Canada sent a letter to Prime Minister Stephen Harper to ensure that the apology to residential school survivors and their families is an occasion that will be experienced as a defining moment in the healing of our nation. ..

Rev. James Scott, General Council Officer for Residential Schools says that the church sees the apology as having immense importance in the national healing process and in fulfilling the hopes and intentions of the overall Indian Residential School Agreement. In offering our own apologies, the United Church has come to understand both the real and symbolic importance of apology inn the healing journey of those who were harmed by the schools. Apologizing has also been the first step in our church’s journey of recovery and healing from the attitudes that led to the schools in the first place. (United Church media)

On yet another front, in the early 1980’s a handful of gay men and lesbians were raising their voices in an attempt to be heard by the church. Two Saskatchewan clergy initiated a gathering which soon had formed nationally as Affirm. Within the next few years a national study, Membership, Ministry and Human Sexuality was circulated nationally and studied in congregations. When the 32nd General Council met in Victoria in August of 1988 thousands of petitions representing supportive and dissenting opinions were on the table. At the end of ten days of excruciatingly long hours the General council decided that:

All persons regardless of their sexual orientation were eligible to become members of the church on profession of faith in Jesus Christ, and that all members could offer themselves as candidates for the order of ministry.

Media persons were as common as flies at a picnic and rushed to their phones to avert their papers. The headlines were often inaccurate and combative. As we know this was a dramatic decision affecting the lives of gay, lesbian and bisexual persons and of those who are heterosexual. While much attention has been given to those who disagreed with the decision – some of whom chose to withhold their financial contributions to the church as `punishment’ little acknowledgement has been given of the large numbers of g/l/b/t/ people and their families who silently withdrew from the church over the years as they felt unwelcome in the homophobic atmosphere that prevailed.

As one of the two Spokespersons from Affirm appointed by General council at that historic meeting I will never forget the struggle, the tears and the joy of finally being accepted to the table of the united Church. I am one of those who subsequently chose to finally accept my calling to ministry. It was (and sometimes still is) a rocky road, but a road which has made the United Church more accepting and more faithful to our roots.

We live in a global village. Every day our media expose us to the concerns and issues of people around the globe. No longer can we have a blind eye to the justice issues of our global neighbours. Over the past few years the United Church has produced several documents on ecumenism: Bearing Faithful Witness and Mending the World. Lois Wilson has been passionate about these concerns. She writes:

Bearing Faithful Witness calls for a more informed dialogue between Jewish and Christian communities. It is a significant step forward. Among other things, it invites congregations to study scripture to ascertain whether anti-Semitism has been rampant in our teaching. It captures again our capacity to risk theologically, when others seem unwilling to do so. It responds to the changing religious landscape in Canada.

Interfaith concerns will land us in difficult theological waters. One doesn’t have to travel to India to meet Hindus and Muslims. We mingle with them in the grocery line up. Our children study in the same classroom. I am proud that the UCC is responding to the changed picture. But there is risk involved. Interfaith encounters do not simply involve making common cause with other faith communities on social concerns. We need to ensure that dialogue is truly “religious” in the sense of probing each faith community’s theological convictions – including our own.

For most of us, the thorniest questions will deal with the nature of Jesus Christ, and the witness of scripture in this regard. To risk interfaith encounter is to risk our most precious theological insights. +

Speaking almost a decade ago one historian says that, For some time prophetic voices have been saying that the UCC will enter the 21st century smaller, poorer, but more vibrant. Some historians hail the general marginalization of the churches as the end of ecclesiastical power that has grown unchecked since the time of the Roman emperor Constantine in the 4th century.

It remains to be seen whether al or only part of these prophesies will come true. In the past, the church generally has thrived when its faith has been most severely tested. These again are such times.

Yes, we have been through challenging times. But I am proud of our United Church. We have taken our faith and our covenants seriously. We haves stepped up to the plate regarding many social issues when other denominations have stayed on the benches. We have received criticism for our stands but much admiration too. Let us continue to trust in God to lead us forward and have hope for our future as a leading church in Canada. Amen. _____________________________________________________________________________________

+ Fire & Grace: Stories of History and Vision, edited by Jim Taylor, United Church Publishing House, 1999

*Voices and Visions: 65 years of The United Church of Canada, United Church Publishing House, 1990

^The Inaugural Service of the United Church of Canada, June 10, 1925, The Hallowing of Church Union. United Church Publishing House.

Preached by Erin Shoemaker
Knox-Metropolitan United Church
Regina, Saskatchewan