Canada

Water is one of the most common metaphors for God in the Bible and is used to convey a range of experiences: being nourished by life-giving rain; being swept along by a powerful river joining in the flow of justice, or still water reviving our souls. Just as a body of water can buoy us, refresh us, and sustain us, it can also become fearsome in a storm and overwhelm us.

In the days leading up to September 30, 2021, that marked Canada’s first ever National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, many Canadians stood in line as self-employed Indigenous women worked around the clock trying to meet the demands of people of all ethnicities waiting for orange shirts to be made in a size and design of their choosing. Yet, I find myself wondering how all this will play out long-term.

September 30th 2021 marks the first National Day of Truth and Reconciliation in Canada.  It coincides with Orange Shirt Day, a grassroots commemoration marked by the wearing of Orange Shirts for children forced to leave their families and attend residential schools.  In honour of this day here are five ways that you can engage in working for reconciliation.  

September 30th 2021 marks the first National Day of Truth and Reconciliation in Canada.  It coincides with Orange Shirt Day, a grassroots commemoration marked by the wearing of Orange Shirts for children forced to leave their families and attend residential schools.  

Illuminate the shadows, and comfort those cast down. Illuminate the shadows, be our refuge in the time of storm.  O God our help in time of trouble. - The Porters Gate 

The church meets to imagine what our lives can be like if the gospel were true.  - Walter Brueggemann

This September, we will see a back to school season different from any before. For many students, after enduring online learning for over a year, they will return to classrooms, to playgrounds, and to spending time with new teachers and friends. 

I hear a voice and He calls me redeemed
When others say I'll never be enough
And greater is the One living inside of me
Than he who is living in the world

- Greater Mercy Me

Climate Witness Project is blessed to have a great group of regional organizers throughout North America, working to mobilize churches to take creation care seriously. We asked each of them to recommend a favorite book or resource that deals with climate change issues. Here’s what they said: