Education

Recently, I spoke on the phone to one of my neighbors who was terminally ill. She was excited to hear my voice though from afar due to COVID-19 pandemic. Social distancing is a necessity as we have to abide by preventative measures.  But support for those in need, in person, is our social safety net - especially in the African culture. Support, care and encouragement from others is a critical piece in life.  At the end of the conversation, I could hear from her feeble voice, “Yes,” to Christ’s lordship. She was introduced to Christ.

I never intended to work as a psychotherapist.  When I first went off to ‘pursue’ a career I chose being a school teacher.   I even taught Grade 6 for two years. Then as life would have it, I decided to take a risk and covered a maternity leave teaching GED (high school equivalency) to moms in the Jane/Finch area of Toronto.  I fell in love with the vulnerable women that I was working with.

As employees of the CRC we’re working from home as much as possible to do our part in preventing the spread of COVID-19.  So we’re sharing some of our favourite podcasts with each other and with you! Here’s our wide ranging list of fantastic content.  We hope that whether these podcasts are biblical or scientific you’ll enjoy some of our (personal) favourites.  

As reformed believers the staff at the Office of Social Justice and Centre for Public Dialogue understand that we live and work to the glory of God.  This past year has continued to demand much of our hearts, minds, bodies, and souls as we seek to live in light of that. So as we place the labour of 2019 in God’s hands and turn the page towards 2020 we’ve taken a moment to reflect on our lives, learning and work in 2019 and appreciate how we’ve learned and grown over the past year.  Enjoy!  

Don’t miss part one where Prof. Kevin den Dulk explains the origins of the returning citizens project.  

It’s the beginning of a new school year. I work at a higher education institution, so this time of year means interactions aplenty with parents of new college students, as well as new students themselves.

Two resources, Let’s Talk About Privilege and Homegrown Faith and Justice, offer studies to help young people grow in their journey of faith formation. Both resources provide strong Biblical teaching, in-depth questions, and activities for practical application. In our desperately hurt and broken world, recognizing privilege and responding with faith and justice marks us as followers of Christ. These resources help families and faith leaders guide children and young people on that path.

You don’t need big buildings, budgets, or clever programs to impact your city.

You do, however, need a new scorecard and upgraded approach to ministry.

A New Scorecard and an Upgraded Approach

For generations, churches have measured attendance and budgets as indicators of success. Why? Because we have a strong bias toward self-preservation. Let’s be honest, the purpose of our congregation is often centered on the members.

And that brings us to Lent. These public schools offer an opportunity, a door, to reach out past our comfort zone and meet our neighbor.

After noticing that some of the books we grew up reading were less than inclusive and made for attitudes about our neighbors that had to be unlearned, we started wondering...how do parents and educators find books that both explicitly and implicitly support a cornerstone of our theology--that all people are made in the image of God? We've asked a number of justice-minded parents and educators for their thoughts. Today we hear from Laura Veenema, a literacy tutor and mom in Chicago.