Page 2 - Presbyterian Connection, Spring 2024

2 SPRING 2024
PRESBYTERIAN
Connection
MESSAGE FROM THE MODERATOR
presbyterian.ca
Moderator Fall Visits
By the Rev. Mary Fontaine, Moderator of 2023 General Assembly
Many generous, hospitable and gracious Presbyterians in Mon- treal, Que., London, Ont., and the town of St. Marys, Ont., went out of their way to prepare for and accommodate the moderator’s visits. They demonstrated respect for Indigenous culture by arrang- ing for Sharing Circles and by making sure an Indigenous drum was available for worship. Some requested Hummingbird Minis- tries videos and presentations to learn more. This demonstrates a spirit of peacemaking with Indig- enous people.
Presbyters have also introduced me to Indigenous elders and cul- tural keepers in their respective regions. Don Barnaby (Mi’kmaq), Shauit (Innu, Que.), Kevin Deer Ka’nahsohon (Kanienkehaka, Mo- hawk), Arnold Boyer (Mohawk) and Tom Dearhouse (Mohawk/ Ojibway) are among those willing to be interviewed for a Humming- bird Ministries film project. These connections are very helpful and very much appreciated.
Montreal: Sept. 26 – Oct. 1
The Rev. Susan Brasier from The Church of St. Andrew and St. Paul in Montreal (A&P), Jill Foster and the Rev. Dr. Lucille Marr planned and organized the events and tours. The Rev. Susan arranged
the Orange Shir t Day ceremony on September 30 and the worship service at A&P. As well, she hosted two restaurant dinners and put to- gether a heartwarming homemade dinner, complete with homemade bread. But the hospitality team from A&P—including Gwen and Michael, Keith Randall, Maureen White,andmanyothers—tookme on tours and events.
Jill, whose ministry is heal- ing and reconciliation, was my constant travelling companion, giving us the oppor tunity to share stories and much laugh- ter. She organized the visit to the Montreal Friendship Center event, where I was introduced to Tom Dearhouse, an Indigenous leader. She also arranged the visit to the Communauté Chré- tienne Siloé, a French-speaking Cameroonian Church, where we enjoyed a warm welcome, an excellent dinner and much joy, expressed through their vibrant choir who danced for the Lord as they sang. The congregation is very happy to have acquired the old church building to wor- ship in, but they definitely need more funds to complete the ren- ovations. I was presented with a beautiful bouquet of flowers.
The Rev. Lucille Marr, along with ecumenical students and Rolanda Murphy-McPhee, an Anishinaabe woman, welcomed Jill and me to the Presbyterian College. The chapel was set up for a Circle and,
The Rev. Mary Fontaine and the Rev. Susan Brasier at the Church of St. Andrew and St. Paul in Montreal, Que.
as promised, an Indigenous hand drum was available for my use in worship. I gave the sermon and shared about Hummingbird Min- istries. I treasure the Rev. Lucille’s gift, a copy of First Nations Ver- sion: An Indigenous Translation of the New Testament. (I was pleased to receive a letter from the Rev. Dr. Roland DeVries sending regrets for his absence during my visit to the Presbyterian College.)
Jill Foster and I toured McGill University and the Indigenous students’ study and housing cen- tre. The students, seated around a large table, reading and writ-
ing, reminded me of my student days at the University of Alberta Native Studies Centre. There’s something hopeful and uplifting about this learning environment. The students welcomed us and we had an informative visit with the director of the centre. They are grateful for the space, but more housing and study space is needed.
The Rev. Susan and her crew put much energy and effort into the September 30th Orange Shirt Day at A&P; it was indeed a special peace-building cer- emony. Two powerful Indigenous speakers/singers Shauit and Don Barnaby took part in the service. It was a sea of orange with almost everyone wearing an Every Child Matters T-shirt. All were invited to participate in a candle-lighting ceremony of 215 candles. Elder Don Barnaby honoured me with the gift of a beaded Every Child Matters necklace.
After worship at A&P on Oct. 1, we shared lunch before a group of A&P members saw me off at the airport. (Later I was honoured to receive a letter from the Rev. Dr. Glenn Chestnut, the senior pas- tor of A&P, who apologized for his absence during my visit and men- tioned his congregant’s apprecia- tion for the sermon I preached on Oct. 1.)
Special thanks to A&P elders Gwen and her husband, Michael, who arranged for my visit to Ema-
nuel-Beth Shalom Temple, where Elder Kevin Deer Ka’nahsohon was a guest speaker. I had an op- portunity to visit with elder Kevin, and I look forward to an interview with him.
Thanks to Keith, A&P elder, for a tour of downtown Montreal, in- cluding insights into the historical relationship between the Pres- byterians and Catholics, and for special tours to the Kahnawake Cultural Centre and the Mohawk Council of Kahnawake office. The Cultural Centre was special, given my interest in peacemaking and the Iroquois Confederacy, also known as the Treaty of the Great White Pine, circa 1190. Urged by the Great Peacemaker, Dekanawi- da, five Haudenosaunee nations signed a peace treaty symbolized by the Great White Pine, beneath which they buried their weapons of war. This tree is the only pine with five needles all connected. To protect the treaty, an eagle sat at the top to ward off any danger. The treaty has been described as one of the greatest examples of diplomacy, and its concepts adopted as the basis for the American constitution. The pre- senter at the cultural centre de- scribed the peacemaking process and how the Wampum Belt was used to mark agreements among and by their nations.
At the Mohawk Council office, we learned that the Grand Chief is Continued on page 4
Mary with elders at Chalmers Presbyterian Church.