In June 1953, at the age of eleven, I was confirmed and became a full member of the Anglican Church of Canada. After the service, our local minister handed me a little red book, containing questions for self-examination before communion. They were searching questions and I remember taking that little red book on a Saturday … Continue reading Parents and contagious faith
Anglican
We wrestle not against flesh and blood
My father was usually a kind and considerate man, very much in earnest about Christian life. However, he had an explosive temper, and each time he blew up it took several days for the rage to die down. While the rage was burning inside him, every time he came into the house he would tell … Continue reading We wrestle not against flesh and blood
Don’t strike out at the pulpit
The story is told of a Scottish reverend who went out one day to visit his parishioners. When he entered a local shop, the proprietress immediately thanked him for the wonderful sermon that he had preached a fortnight ago. Now the reverend was wary of attempts at flattery, so he questioned her about the topic … Continue reading Don’t strike out at the pulpit
Separate from the world
The text which follows is a very much abridged excerpt from J. C. Ryle's Practical Christianity, which was first published in 1867. John Charles Ryle (1816-1900) was a leader of the evangelical wing of the Church of England, and bishop of Liverpool from 1880 to 1900. The subject perhaps was never more important than it … Continue reading Separate from the world
Memories of Christmases past
December 24, 1955. At 11:15 PM my parents and I got into our old GMC half ton and drove into town and through it to the little white Anglican church on the north side. I was driving, even though I was only thirteen, almost fourteen. An RCMP constable attended this church, too, but he carefully … Continue reading Memories of Christmases past
Business and Church
I grew up on the edge of a small Saskatchewan town. There were four grocery stores and three churches. One store was owned by a cousin quite a few years older than myself, another by an old friend of my family, another was owned by a Catholic family and the fourth was the local Co-op. … Continue reading Business and Church
Thanksgiving
The book of Leviticus describes three major festivals for which every adult male was to be present in Jerusalem. The first was the Passover, observed the fourteenth day of the first month, roughly equivalent to April in the Julian calendar. This was a celebration of their deliverance from bondage in Egypt. Grain was seeded in … Continue reading Thanksgiving
Things I learned from the Anglican Church of Canada
I was a member of the Anglican Church of Canada throughout the years of my youth . Fifty years ago, I concluded that it might well have an abundance of outward and visible form, but was sadly lacking in the true inward and spiritual grace. Since that time, the Anglican Church of Canada has abandoned … Continue reading Things I learned from the Anglican Church of Canada
Early Church History
The first recorded separation of the Christian Church occurred in A.D. 251. Novatian, bishop at Carthage (near the location of the present day city of Tunis) in North Africa, insisted that members who had renounced Christ during the persecution of Diocletian could no longer be recognized as members of the Church of Christ. He was … Continue reading Early Church History
Leadhead and the Golden Rule
I first took note of Norman when the camp leaders took us all on a hike to Lebret. He was a quiet boy, walking with us, yet alone. He seemed like the rest of us, except that he could not hold his head up straight. It tilted towards his right shoulder, almost resting on the … Continue reading Leadhead and the Golden Rule
Flatlander Faith 