Do you hear what I hear? Do you see what I see?

A three-part journey exploring the Christmas story through different lenses

December 1st, 8th and 15th – 6:30 to 8:30pm via Zoom

Session 1: Hearing 2SLGBTQ+ Voices Wednesday, December 1^st

Guests: 

~Aidan Legault, M.Div. student, Emmanuel College, Toronto

~Rev. June Joplin, Associate Pastor, Metropolitan Community Church, Toronto

~Peter Haddow, North Bay, LLWL and Team Lead of CSRC Affirming Resource Team

~Poetry and music with Natalie Wilson and Ralph Johnston, St. Andrew’s United Church, North Bay.

Session 2: Hearing Black Voices Wednesday, December 8^th

Guests:  

~Rev. Alydia Smith, Identity and Mission Network Coordinator, UCC General Council

~Joy Kalu, Chair, Congregational Care Community, St. Peter’s United Church, Sudbury

Session 3: Sharing Our Reflections Wednesday, December 15^th

An opportunity to reflect in how our learnings are relevant and important to people of faith and their communities.

For further information, contact Gillian at manitouintentionallearning@gmail.com.

MILC Invites you to the Annual General Meeting followed by

Inside / Outside: New Ways of Being Church

Wednesday, November 10^th, 2021

Via Zoom 6:30 to 8:00pm

Guest Speakers

Faye Moffatt, Trinity United Church, Capreol – No-one to Preach: Sermon Share Might be for You

Rev. Cory Vermeer Cuthbert, Holy Trinity United Church, Elliot Lake  – Not Your Usual Yard Sale

Susie Henderson, Shining Waters Regional Council Staff Team – Restoring the Great Conversation: The Wild Church Movement

Hymns with Faye Moffatt

There will be time for discussion and sharing: How have you and your faith community been thinking outside the box and finding new ways to be church in response to the pandemic?

For further information, contact Gillian at  manitouintentionallearning@gmail.com

Moderated by Lisa Blais and Susan Lindquist

Saturday, October 23, 2021, 9:30 to 12:00

Via Zoom

On June 21, 2021, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (UNDRIP) received Royal Assent and immediately came into force. Honouring the rights of Indigenous Peoples, as mandated in the United Nations Declaration of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), continues to be of critical concern. The recent heartbreaking discovery of hundreds of unmarked graves on Residential School grounds and the struggle of the Wet’suwet’en peoples in British Columbia are current examples of how the UN Declaration has particular application.

In the Truth and Reconciliation Commission Report (2015), Calls to Action were issued to federal, provincial, territorial, and municipal governments, as well as all church parties to the Settlement Agreement such as The United Church of Canada, and other faith groups, to fully adopt and implement UNDRIP.

This workshop will support persons of faith in their understanding so that they can endorse it in action. The goals of the workshop are to DECODE what UNDRIP is; to DISCOVER why it is, or should be, important to people of faith, and to DETERMINE steps to implement it, in church and society.

Note: As some churches are open, some groups may wish to gather in person to participate in the Zoom sessions and form in person break out rooms. If you would like to do this, please:

1. Have all participants register individually;
2. Contact Gillian at manitouintentionallearning@gmail.com to discuss the technical requirements and other arrangements so that we can make sure that things run smoothly;
3. Ensure that you abide by the Covid-19 guidelines for the space in which you plan to meet.

October, the time when all good worship leaders start planning for Advent and Christmas!

This workshop will provide opportunities for reflection and discussion of some of the Advent and Christmas lectionary readings and of ways in which we might frame the Advent message in these challenging times. There will be opportunities for group wide and small group work.

Our workshop facilitator this year will be Reverend Doctor Ted Harrison, a Minister of Word, Sacrament, and Pastoral Care. He was ordained in the year 2000, when he began serving churches in northern Ontario. Ted has a passion for Christian worship, with a focus on accessible storytelling that draws on scripture, humour, storybooks, and music. Ted reads a lot—particularly in the areas of theology, world religions, philosophy, history, poetry… and comic books. Ted is married to Caroline, who is a hospital physiotherapist and a part-time sermon critic. Ted and Caroline have two daughters (Eve and Erin) and a dog named Ginny.

Please join us for this workshop via Zoom on Saturday, October 2^nd from 9:30 am to noon.

For more information and to register, please contact Gillian Schell manitouintentionallearning@gmail.com

The Manitou Intentional Learning Community (MILC) invites you to Pandemic Resiliency: Coping emotionally, spiritually and mentally through the challenges of the Pandemic on Wednesday, September 22^nd from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. via Zoom.

This workshop, presented by Susan Browning, will explore ways in which the Pandemic has impacted our mental and spiritual health, share practical coping strategies, and look to the future exploring hope and faith in the resilient spirit God has given us.

Susan, a Registered Psychotherapist, a Registered Marriage and Family Therapist and a clinical supervisor for interns, is also an ordained minister in the United Church of Canada currently serving two congregations in the London area.

For more information and to register and receive the Zoom link, please email manitouintentionallearning@gmail.com or contact Gillian Schell 705 671 0185.

Susan Browning is a Registered Psychotherapist and a Registered Marriage and Family Therapist and a clinical supervisor for interns.  She currently has a private practice in London.  Prior to beginning private practice Sue spent ten years with community counselling agencies.  In addition to seeing clients, she provided wellness workshops for many London based organizations including King’s College, and Western University. Sue was also the regional trainer for critical incidents of all Family Service organizations in southern Ontario.  Sue is also an ordained minister with the United Church of Canada.  In that capacity she has served on many national and local committees. She currently serves two congregations on the edge of London; Littlewood United and St. Andrew’s Westminster.

A hymn by Shirley Erena Murray begins, “For everyone born, there’s a place at the table.” Most churches claim to be welcoming. Some churches are officially affirming. However, we are reminded that “often, people who are trans, non-binary, gender queer, queer, Two-Spirit, intersex, and many more identities are made invisible in worship. We become part of a generic welcome to everyone, or are cast as being welcome ‘regardless’ or ‘despite’ our diversity, not because of it. This is especially true for many racialized and Indigenous LGBTQIA+ people, as well as LGBTQIA+ and Two Spirit people with disabilities.” (Enfleshed: Worship Service and Communion Liturgy for Affirming PIE Day -United Church of Canada)

With this in mind, Trinity United Church, Capreol, invites you to join their hymn sing on Thursday, June 3. It will feature songs with, for, about, and by people from the LGBTQ+ community celebrating the rich diversities of our genders, orientations, identities and expressions. We will share words of inspiration and challenge and sing from Voices United, More Voices, Songs for the Holy Other, and other sources as we seek to foster authentic welcome, community, justice and joy.

For more information, contact Faye Moffatt 1fmoffatt@sympatico.ca or

Gillian Schell manitouintentionallearning@gmail.com

You are invited to join us for our second digital World Labyrinth Day celebration in Sudbury, ON.  Although the Sudbury Labyrinth is open this year, due to gathering restrictions we will again celebrate online.

At 1:00pm on World Labyrinth Day, Saturday, May 1^st2021,we will join others around the world in a wave of peace as we “walk as one at 1:00”.

Here’s how to participate:

1. If you like, watch last year’s video here, on how to make your own finger labyrinth.
2. Join us at 12:45pm on Saturday, May 1 live on the St. Peter’s United Church Sudbury YouTube channel to follow along at home as we show a video of the Sudbury Labyrinth being walked and talk about symbols of renewal. This event is presented by St. Peter’s United Church and the Manitou Intentional Learning Community (MILC)

As God-made, incarnate beings, we all live in bodies.

And because we all live in bodies, we all have a body image.

Body image is how we see our bodies when we look in the mirror, or conceive of our bodies in our minds.

It is what we  believe about our own appearance; how we feel about our bodies, including our height, shape, and weight; how we physically experience our bodies.

Beginning at a very young age, and continuing throughout our lives, many of us internalize messages that lead to either positive or negative body image.

Developing a positive, joyful body image—grounded in gratitude for the body as gift– is an important part of mental and spiritual well-being.

MILC and Soul Strong are excited to be joining forces to facilitate a two-part, interactive Zoom forum entitled Body Image: Seeing Ourselves Through God’s Eyes.

Inspired by the extraordinary stories of speakers Wendy Coates and Rita O’Link, participants will share and explore their own joys and struggles on the journey to body acceptance.

Tuesday, April 20th and 27th @ 6:30pm

Registration is now closed.