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Launching a Virtual Ministry in Guelph
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WINTER 2021
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By the Rev. John Borthwick,
St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church in Guelph, Ont.
As a response to the post-pandemic reality of church, St. Andrew’s Pres- byterian Church in Guelph, Ont., launched “The Abbey,” a virtual min- istry that is a safe space to nurture spiritual things and to care for those who tend to all things spiritual.
After completing a course about hybrid ministry in a post-pandemic world at Luther Seminary with Ryan
Panzer, author of Grace and Giga- bytes, the Rev. John Borthwick, minister at St. Andrew’s, learned that while the pandemic revealed people are looking for spiritual things, they aren’t necessarily interested in at- tending the traditional church. In the course, Ryan looked at how, since the spring of 2020, daily online en- gagement through vehicles like Netf- lix, YouTube and Facebook have risen dramatically while the studies from the Barna Group indicate that those who have no religious affiliation have
sought out spaces where they could ask questions and explore their spir- ituality. At the same time, Google trends show a sustained increase in searches related to religion and spir- ituality, searches which previously had been stagnant or declining. Ryan urged the church to “find a way to show up in those spaces.”
St. Andrew’s also considered the insights of Casper ter Kuile, author of The Power of Ritual, who said: “The distribution systems [of church] are becoming obsolete ... but not the practices or the wisdom itself ... and the spiritual longing is as strong as ever.” This was affirmed by the contributors to Being the Church in a Post-Pandemic World: Game Chang- ers for the Post-Pandemic Church, who wrote: “The post-pandemic church must be a digital church. Whether this is a both/and approach or only online, we must be a digital church. We must offer online minis- try, not just online worship.”
They put these insights together with the knowledge that the pan- demic has also taken a toll on clergy and church leaders, many who feel
RECOGNITIONS
isolated as they struggle to minister in the contexts that they find them- selves. St. Andrew’s wanted to pro- vide a space where they could share their experiences and find support and encouragement for the future.
“The Abbey” is St. Andrew’s re- sponse to this longing. They have created a virtual space that they hope will be similar to a monastery: a place for learning, rest and healing, practicing spirituality and nourish- ing one’s body and soul. It is open to strangers and travellers as well as church leaders and members. St. An- drew’s envisions using online tools to nurture spiritual disciplines like prayer, worship and dialogue; pro- vide care to church leaders through webinars and facilitated discussions; and celebrate those who tend to all things spiritual by randomly offering participants gifts of “bread, beer or books.”
With the endorsement of the Pres- bytery of Waterloo Wellington, “The Abbey” secured a grant for congre- gational renewal from Presbyterians Sharing to begin this work. In Octo- ber 2021, they held their inaugural
workshop series, looking at hybrid ministry with Ryan Panzer. Partici- pants representing a variety of de- nominations from across Canada learned more about hybrid ministry, shared best practices and learned practical tools to use in their ministry settings.
Soon, “The Abbey” will host two upcoming events on how people’s empathy is under strain. The first will help faith leaders recognize how their calling impacts their well-being and offer strategies for thriving amid the stress and strain of caring for others, while the second will cover similar material but for a wider audience.
In the spring of 2022, John will host a monthly “No Reading Re- quired” Book Club called, “Pearls Be- fore Nine.” Over the span of an hour, “pearls” of various books from self- help to business to theology will be shared, all before nine in the morn- ing! He reads the books, so you don’t have to.
For more information, or to reg- ister for these events, visit The Abbey at facebook.com/TheAbbey.ca or brotherborthwick@gmail.com.
P.E.I. Presbytery Celebrates 200th Anniversary
By John Barrett, Clerk of Session, Zion Presbyterian Church in Charlottetown, P.E.I.
On Tuesday, Sept. 14, Zion Presbyte- rian Church in Charlottetown played host to the 200th Anniversary meet- ing of the Presbytery of Prince Ed- ward Island. Special guests included the Rev. Dr. Daniel Scott, Moderator of the 146th General Assembly; Her Honour Antoinette Perry, Lieuten- ant Governor of P.E.I.; Charlottetown Mayor, Phillip Brown; and a host of visitors and elders from various P.E.I. congregations.
Led by presbytery moderator, the Rev. Douglas Rollwage, the worship service, which precedes all meet- ings of the P.E.I. presbytery, included hymns and prayers from the time during which the presbytery was
formed in 1821. The sanctuary choir, under the direction of Zion’s mu- sic director Faye Barrett, performed “Lord of Mercy, Lord of Grace” as an introit, and later in the service as an anthem commissioned for the 200th anniversary of a congregation in nearby Maine entitled, “Here in the House of the Lord.”
The Rev. Dr. Scott delivered a sermon entitled, “Driving Forward withYourEyesontheRearviewMir- ror,” emphasizing the need to look forward while not forgetting our past, yet not dwelling on the past. The Rev. Dr. Scott also assisted the Rev. Rollwage in the sacrament of Communion, which, again, is a standard component of each Sep- tember meeting of presbytery. Later in the meeting, the Rev. Dr. Dong- hwi David Son was inducted as the
Back (left–right): John Barrett, Clerk of Zion Session; Nancy Harvey, Clerk of the P.E.I. Presbytery; Robert Moffat, Aide de Camp. Front (left–right): The Rev. Douglas Rollwage, Presbytery Moderator and Moderator of the 142nd General Assembly; Her Hon- our Antoinette Perry, Lieutenant Governor of P.E.I.; the Rev. Dr. Daniel Scott, Moderator of the 146th General Assembly; the Rev. Dr. John Cameron, Moderator of the 116th General Assembly. PHOTO CREDIT: CATHY MACDONALD.
presbytery’s new moderator for the 2021–22 year.
Presbytery was pleased to have in attendance the Rev. Dr. John Cam- eron, Moderator of the 116th General Assembly. Dr. Cameron, along with the Rev. Dr. James Farris and the Rev. Dr. Gordon Matheson (all members of the Appendix to the Roll), were
recognized for their untiring commit- ment to the P.E.I. presbytery and the denomination.
For the first time in almost 18 months, presbyters were treated to a time of fellowship and refreshment provided by Zion Church. Those in at- tendance cer tainly experienced a won- derful celebration of God’s love and
work in this province and left enthused and motivated as they headed to their home congregations.
For those wishing to view the worship component of this historic service, visit the Zion Presbyterian Church YouTube channel, which can be accessed through our website at zionpres.org