Trusting the Call – Matt Allen August Newsletter

Posted on August 6, 2016September 19, 2016

What does it take for you to go somewhere you have never ever been before? For some people they become filled with fear and never want to go, others they just need the money and they are already on the plane, and others still just need to hear the voice of God and they will be there no matter what the barrier.

I had the privilege of going down to French Guiana at the end of July to celebrate the 20th anniversary of having an Inter-Varsity group (GBU) in French Guiana. In 1996 there was a group of university students from Martinique who came to French Guiana to plant a GBU in the second largest city, Kourou, and there were a bunch of bumps along the way but they knew that they were called their so they faithfully followed. Since then GBU in French Guiana has expanded to the other university in Cayenne and onto 3 different High schools. All of this has happened by the initiative of volunteers and students because there are currently no staff workers there.

For me it was also my first time in French Guiana and it was a mixture of exciting and scary to go to a place where I did not really know anyone but I had heard so many good things about. For me, seeing the teaching that was there, the way in which they celebrated and my time interacting with students it was a strong confirmation that I am being told to go somewhere I haven’t really ever been before. I am stepping out in faith and I hoping and praying that my contributions can have the same impact as those first students had when they first got off the plane and started ministering on the University campus. But so far what I have seen is so encouraging.

Funding report

This past little while I have been back in Winnipeg and I have been able to fundraise the first 30% of my budget so in the next month I am aiming to get to 100% of my fundraising. I want to thank all of those people that have already supported me. If you or anyone you know would like to support the ministry of Inter-Varsity I would love to come and meet with you and tell you how that might be possible.

Matthew Allen

August 2016 Newsletter in PDF format

Liberian refugee family has arrived!

Posted on July 28, 2016September 2, 2016

With a violent civil war and years in a refugee camp behind them, Phillip, Esther, Arene and Catherine flew more than 10,000 kilometres from Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, to Brussels to Montreal to Fredericton this week. The long trip is only the start of their challenging journey.

FIRST CANADIAN PICNIC – The Rev’d Rick Robinson and his wife Nancy took the refugee family from Liberia swimming and for a picnic at Woolastook Park on July 31. Pictured with them are Arene, Catherine, Esther and Phillip. The young people also enjoyed dancing to music at the event which was celebrating Black heritage in New Brunswick.

A smiling welcoming committee waved balloons, welcome signs and Canadian flags at the airport. Parishioners came from the cathedral, Christ Church Parish Church, St. Margaret’s, St. Mary (York), All Saints in Marysville and Anglican parishes around Gagetown. Four exhausted people who hadn’t slept for two nights looked bewildered by all the attention.

“They were overwhelmed, probably feeling as if they had landed on another planet, but we made them feel as welcome, safe and comfortable as we could,” said committee member Doug Milander from the cathedral. “When we drove up to the door of the apartment building and I said, “this is your home,” Phillip began to sob.

“I don’t know what he had expected, but he could not believe what was happening. By the time he saw the spacious rooms, homey furnishings, and all the food, he cried harder. He thanked us and shook our hands many times.”

Phillip’s wife Esther deplaned in an airline wheelchair and walks very haltingly with a cane. The teenaged children look healthy and were curious. Everything is new for them: 24/7 electricity, potable running water, modern bathrooms and appliances.

Representatives of the Archdeaconry of Fredericton await Phillip, Esther, Arene and Catherine at Fredericton Airport on Wednesday.

“This is an incredible and emotional experience for everyone,” said Kelly Humber-Kelly from St. Margaret’s who completed much of the paperwork related to the refugee sponsorship. “Everyone on the committee thanks you for the prayers, funds, and donated items you have given to this project in the past several months.

“But it’s no longer a project. These are people with hopes and dreams, a family who needs our help and loving care to regain their independence and transition to a new life in Canada.”

Updates will be provided as events unfold for the family. Ongoing prayers are appreciated.

Ann Deveau

Catherine and Arene

Waiting for the family

Posted on July 23, 2016July 28, 2016

On July 26^th a family of four Liberians, who fled a civil war and who have been living in a refugee camp for six years, will board an airplane in Côte d’Ivoire, West Africa, and start winging their way toward Canada.

The family will find a clean, fully furnished, comfortable, bright, three-bedroom apartment waiting for them when they arrive in Fredericton July 27th. The cathedral and 10 Anglican parishes have been collecting funds, furniture and food for the family, comprised of Phillip Weah, Esther Gmah and teenaged children Arene and Catherine Gmah. A team from the cathedral, Christ Church Parish Church, St. Margaret’s, St. Mary’s York and All Saints (Marysville) has been working hard to move furniture and supplies, clean and set up the apartment. Congregations have been enormously generous in donating items. The refugee sponsorship committee expresses gratitude for the help and asks for ongoing prayer for the Liberian family.

When they arive they will be nervously stepping into a whole new world. They will receive a warm welcome from members of the Greater Fredericton Area Anglican Parishes, a refugee sponsorship committee representing 10 parishes and the cathedral.

“We have been praying, preparing and raising funds for many months in anticipation of the family’s arrival, but we have been given only two and a half weeks notice of the specific date,” said Archdeacon Patricia Drummond who speaks for the committee.

“We have a LOT to do before that time, the most urgent being to find a convenient, three-bedroom apartment for a reasonable rent into which we can move the many furniture items and supplies we have accumulated,” she said. “We also need to stock the apartment with groceries. And there is considerable paperwork to do and meetings to set up related to banking, documentation, language assessments, health care, and so on.”

She added that it will be helpful for the African newcomers because it is not the dead of winter, but it will be hectic for the organizers because it is summer when some volunteers are away on holidays.

“In speaking over a scratchy telephone line with the father of the family, I discovered that the family is Christian. We would have happily accepted any faith, but this does make things easier in a number of ways.”

In speaking over a scratchy telephone line with the father of the family, I discovered that the family is Christian …

Liberia is on the west coast of Africa

The archdeacon sincerely thanked everyone for their donations and moral support. Prayers for the family will be very much appreciated.

“Some people have asked if they can still contribute financially, and the answer is yes because we must support this family for an entire year,” she noted. “People in the various parishes have been generous, but we do not yet have enough money to cover the whole year. Cheques can be made payable to Christ Church Parish Church, marking Refugee Fund on the memo line. Any contribution is welcome.”

The only remaining item needed on our 10-page list of furniture and supplies is a chair suitable to use at a computer desk. It does not have to be new but it does have to function.

“God has been very good to us as we prepare for the family, and we know He will watch over them on their long journey here,” Archdeacon Drummond concluded.

Ann Deveau

Plans being made for refugee family from Liberia

Posted on June 27, 2016July 11, 2016

The Archdeaconry of Fredericton refugee sponsorship committee has been waiting for months to bring a Syrian refugee family to Fredericton. A couple weeks ago we were advised that the backlog of applications is now so large (thousands!) that it would be well into 2017 before we could even think of being matched with a Syrian family.

It’s disappointing. However, there are literally millions of other refugees, some of whom have been waiting in crowded camps for years. We were told that, if we would agree to sponsor an African family instead, it could take only a few more weeks or months before they would step off the plane in Fredericton.

Liberia is on the west coast of Africa

The committee, made up of 10 parishes and the cathedral, prayed, discussed and decided to help a family of four from Liberia in West Africa now, instead of waiting until 2017 for a Syrian family. Our application is being reviewed by the federal government, and we are waiting for news.

We have a few details: the father is Phillip, age 47, who has worked as a farm hand; his wife is Esther, age 50, a trader, probably selling fruit, fish or charcoal in an outdoor market; her children are a son, Arene, age 19, and a daughter, Catherine, age 16.

The family profile does not indicate how long they have been living in the refugee camp, situated in the neighbouring country of Côte d’Ivoire. Knowing there have been two civil wars in Liberia, we suspect it might be years. The parents have been subjected to violence and torture.

We do not yet know their religion, but the file says they can speak English and French plus their native language called Grebo. Their educational levels are very low, especially given the ages of the children. Conditions in the camp are not good concerning health care, dental care, education, etc.

If our application succeeds, it will be a huge challenge for this family to adapt to life in Canada.

If our application succeeds, it will be a huge challenge for this family to adapt to life in Canada. Think of our weather (the average annual temperature in Liberia is 28C!), the different culture here, their lack of education, and limited work experience. It is possible that they may never have enjoyed 24/7 electricity, running water, and all the amenities we take for granted. Life here may be overwhelming for them.

That is why the committee continues to prepare to welcome and help them. Financial donations have reached about $22,000 — we need $30,000 to look after them for one year. Thanks to you, donations of furnishings are going extremely well. (See list of remaining items sought.)

The Missions Committee at the cathedral will keep you posted on the progress of the archdeaconry’s application. Please pray for this refugee family and for our efforts to bring them out of violence and misery to a safe home in peaceful Canada.

FURNISHINGS LIST (remaining items needed as of June 22, 2016)

LIVING ROOM – modern TV (not the heavy, old, tube-type)
MISCELLANEOUS – chair for computer desk

Items can be dropped off at Cathedral Memorial Hall during business hours.

If you wish to help support the family, you can provide a cheque, payable to Christ Church Parish Church, noting Refugee Fund on the memo line. The treasurer at that church is maintaining an account on behalf of all the parishes taking part in the sponsorship.

Ann Deveau

Home Sweet Home

Posted on June 10, 2016June 13, 2016

Spin the globe. Halfway around the world sits a refugee family dreaming of a better, safer life.

Spin the globe again. People from 11 parishes in the archdeaconry of Fredericton are collecting furniture and housewares to fill that family’s apartment here.

At this point, neither knows anything specific about the other, nor do they know when they will finally meet and start working together on the transition to a new life in Canada.

HELPING HANDS – Wendy Smith (at right), a parishioner from St. Margaret’s Anglican, delivers household goods donated by the congregation for the Syrian refugee family who will be sponsored by the archdeaconry. St. Margaret’s is kindly covering all items in the bathroom and personal supplies categories of a long list of furniture and supplies. Ann Deveau (at left) from the cathedral will put the items into storage until the family arrives in Fredericton. The timing is unknown because the archdeaconry is on a waiting list to choose a family.

Having met its self-imposed national target of 25,000 Syrian refugees by the end of February, the federal government has slowed its processing of refugee applicants. This is frustrating for potential sponsors. Patience and prayer will be needed in the coming months until a match is made.

While waiting for the bureaucracy to grind its wheels, committee members are raising funds (as of May 1st, donations now stand at $20,030.83), researching apartment prices, finding Arabic interpreters, looking for a doctor and dentist, learning which foods will be needed in a Syrian pantry, getting cross-cultural training, and so on.

Parishioners have asked how they can help the family. Some donations have already arrived and are being stored in the basement of Cathedral Memorial Hall, such as area rugs, desk, bed, floor lamp, coffee table, toaster oven, coffee maker, bedding, sets of cutlery and dishes, coat hangers, and much more.

One parish offered to supply everything needed to outfit a bathroom as well as all the personal supplies.

As the exact composition of the family is unknown, some questions cannot be answered now. Will we need bunk beds? A crib? Dolls and art supplies for wee ones?

Curtains or blinds will be needed, but what size will the windows be in the apartment to be rented later? Some items will just have to wait!

However, here is a list of things most likely required. If you can donate any of these items (clean, in good condition and in working order, please), e-mail Doug Milander and Ann Deveau <amdrm at nbnet.nb.ca> or call (506) 455-3299.

Drop-off and/or pick-up dates can be arranged later this spring. Your support is greatly appreciated.

Don MacPherson helps move articles for short term storage

As of 10 June …

LIVING ROOM – modern TV (not the heavy, old, tube-type)

BEDROOMS – mattress and boxspring for a single bed, mattress and boxspring for a 54-inch bed, 3 waste baskets

DINING/KITCHEN – 4 kitchen chairs, hand mixer, muffin tin

MISCELLANEOUS – chair for computer desk, radio, alarm clock, wall clock, paper/pens/pencils, 3 umbrellas, combs and brushes

HOUSEHOLD SUPPLIES – broom and dustpan, sponge mop, bucket, laundry detergent, cleaning rags, cleanser, toilet paper, paper napkins, recycling bin, freezer bags, garbage bags

Ann Deveau

What’s new with Belize? – June 2016

Posted on June 9, 2016June 23, 2022

Visit the Cathedral Missions site

Belize occupies not only a chunk of land in Central America, but also a special spot in the hearts of dozens of people from the cathedral who took part in mission trips there in 2005, 2007, 2010 and 2013.

“Our work as a church is to reach out and serve our brothers and sisters in Christ,” says Beverly Morell who led the four mission teams. “Belize is a wonderful example of one important way we do just that!”

Although a cathedral team has not gone south recently — largely due to the falling Canadian dollar which made the trip much too expensive — connections between the cathedral and a tiny Anglican parish in Belize continue.

Education is so important for these young people as is a well-equipped school …

For example, approximately $2,000 is sent annually to help St. Hilda’s Anglican School. It’s an elementary school (pop. 200) in a poor area in western Belize where three of the teams volunteered. The funds pay for school supplies as well as badly needed repairs such as fixing broken toilets and gaping holes in classroom ceilings.

Earth Day posters in Belize

The money for school supplies, including books, printer ink cartridges, paper and coloured pencils, is appreciated by the teachers. For example, it meant that the children had plentiful materials to work with when creating the Earth Day posters pictured here.

Another aspect of the relationship is assistance for higher education. In Belize free education stops at Grade 8. Many families live below the poverty line and cannot afford to send their children to high school. Former missioners and other donors have helped put several St. Hilda’s graduates through high school: Ashley Jones, Amieka Myers, Anfernee Vasquez, Jamal Whitty and Tianney Lamb.

Also thanks to donors from the cathedral family, three students from St. Hilda’s are currently attending high school: Aaliyah Augustine, Paul Jones and Anique Hernandez. Paul explains why the financial support and encouragement mean so much to him: “I come from a poor family, but I want to show other children like me that it doesn’t matter where you came from, you can still achieve the goal you set your mind on.”

Earth Day 2016 at St. Hilda’s

Originally, it cost $700 CDN per year per student, but the decline of our dollar means that it now costs $1,000 CDN annually per student. Although the existing students will be supported until graduation, unfortunately a high school scholarship cannot be offered to a St. Hilda’s graduate in 2016.

A couple years ago other donors at the cathedral kindly pooled resources to send two of the high school graduates to college. Although Anfernee Vasquez dropped out after a year, Amieka Myers intends to graduate with an associate in education certificate in 2017.

“Education is so important for these young people as is a well-equipped school,” says Brad McKnight, treasurer of the cathedral’s Missions Committee. “Our committee is considering a fund-raiser in late fall or early winter to make sure the financial support remains solid well into the future. Stay tuned for news about specific plans and for opportunities to volunteer.”

By Ann Deveau

Read the June 2016 letter from Principal Jane Martinez

Divine Renovation

Posted on June 4, 2016October 30, 2016

Divine Renovation: From a Maintenance to a Missional Parish
By James Mallon
Novalis Publishing/2014/286 pages

Fr. James Mallon is pastor and priest at the Roman Catholic Saint Benedict Parish in Halifax, Nova Scotia. He speaks frequently on the topic of church renewal and has hosted internationally acclaimed DVD series on Catholicism and Dogmatic Theology. St. Benedict is an amalgamation of three former parishes and under Fr. Mallon’s care has achieved remarkable success in becoming a Christian community focussed on mission outside of its doors as opposed to an inward- looking maintenance ministry. In this book, the author offers practical guidance and a step by step blueprint on that process.

Its time to start making disciples. The future of the Church depends on it.

The Church today is faced often with the overwhelming task of maintaining property. While our buildings are an enormous gift from our past, they can also become one of our greatest burdens if we are not successful at becoming the missional church we are called to be. Jesus does not call us to be caretakers but, rather to serve him by serving the world and making disciples. “Its time to start making disciples,” says Fr. Mallon. “The future of the Church depends on it.”

Chapter two focusses on a grounding of the theory to be presented from Roman Catholic specific papal encyclicals and denominational specific documents. That goal completed, Divine Renovation progresses towards an insightful read for the Christian of any denomination. It is particularly applicable for any denomination that recognizes sacramental dimensions of the faith. “The sacraments are our greatest pastoral opportunity” and, perhaps one of the reasons I find it easy to recommend this book is that I agree wholeheartedly with most, if not all, of the author’s fundamental beginning points as well as the conclusions. Changing the “culture” of the Christian Community is necessarily at the heart of a transformation from maintenance to mission. It is that change of culture that consumes the majority of this text.

The practical road map leading to the transformation of church culture is divided into several sections. These might be alternatively titled: “Fr. Mallon’s marks of a healthy church.”

Giving Priority to the Weekend
Hospitality
Uplifting Music
Homilies
Meaningful Community
Clear Expectations
Strength-based Ministry

Inspiring, practical, challenging and a bracing call are among the terms others have used to describe an insightful book. A good read for anyone who cares about how to do Church in our current context. Fr. Mallon addresses the clergy of the Anglican Diocese of Fredericton during the clergy conference in August of 2016.

Geoffrey Hall

Called to Mission – Matt Allen

Posted on May 18, 2016June 9, 2016

Matt Allen has been a regular member of our congregation this past year and is preparing to serve God in a mission abroad with Inter-Varsity Christian Fellowship. He is self-financing his salary for this mission and the Missions Committee would like to share his request for support.

“I am coming on staff with Inter-Varsity Christian Fellowship. Over the past year I have been working with Inter-Varsity in Fredericton. But now I am feeling like God is calling me to an International placement with Inter-Varsity. I am looking at a placement in either Martinique or France to work with the local student groups and see how they can grow and make a larger impact on their campuses and in their countries. Right now both of those locations have less than five staff working there.

So I want to partner with them and see how we can grow. Right now I am fundraising for my salary and my budget costs. I am looking to fund-raise $40,000. Would you be willing to support me either financially or through prayer. If you would like to join my newsletter email me at <mallen at ivcf.ca> and if you would like to financially support me you can at ivcf.ca/donate/mallen” – Matt Allen

View this post on the Missions Committee site

Brad McKnight

Run for the Word 2016

Posted on May 18, 2016June 4, 2016

Locations: Florenceville-Bristol, NB; Fredericton, NB
Date: Saturday, June 4, 2016
Time: 9:30 AM – On-site registration; 10:00 AM – Opening ceremony

Run for the Word (R4W) is a fundraising event held in New Brunswick since 2013. This annual event aims to connect the Canadian Bible Society (CBS) friends and supporters together to raise funds for the Bible work in Canada and around the world. Participants join by committing to run or walk from 1km to 5km and to raise funds for the various Bible translation, distribution and engagement programs of the Canadian Bible Society.

Visit the Run for the Word website

to register, read stories,support a runner and for more resources

Making the Bible available for Canadians

This year, Run for the Word is raising funds for Bible translation, distribution and engagement programs in Canada. CBS partners with over 100 churches and organizations to distribute God’s Word to those who need it. Through partnership with various ministries in Canada, CBS is able to bring God’s Word to

Men and women in prison
Children and youth in summer camps
New refugees/migrants
Canadian soldiers
First Nations communities
The Visually-impaired
And more!

Every year, CBS receives hundreds of requests from organizations who have identified the Scripture needs of people they minister to. CBS partners are able to determine what Bible version or format (e.g. print, audio, Braille) would be best for those who receive them. They are responsible for making sure that the Bibles produced by CBS end up in the hands of people who hunger and thirst for God’s Word.

Through the generosity of supporters, CBS is able to produce these Scriptures year after year. As a result, people are able to read the Bible in their heart language and lives are transformed.

Living the Third Mark of Mission

Posted on April 16, 2016May 11, 2016

A community without volunteers wouldn’t be much of a community.

That’s the opinion of Doug Wright who has been a volunteer on a cathedral team at the Fredericton Community Kitchen for about 10 years.

“I think people have to go further than just sitting in the pews,” he said as he chopped broccoli for a salad one recent evening at the soup kitchen.

Working nearby, Wayne Phillips agreed. “It’s good to give back to the community,” he said. “Too often, the church is about money and politics, not about helping people.”

“I think people have to go further than just sitting in the pews …”

Wayne is a 17-year veteran at the kitchen, but newcomers feel the same way.

Rebecca Butler and Kurt Goddard joined a cathedral team this year. “I see it as another form of mission,” Rebecca said, thinking of the third Mark of Mission which is to respond to human need by loving service.

She and Sarah Petite wiped down tables in preparation for dozens of supper guests who would soon line up for turkey rice casserole, beets, vegetable soup, juice, coffee and sweet treats donated by a local “big box” store.

The cathedral’s Outreach Committee co-ordinates four teams who help the chef at supper time on Saturdays year-round. (The kitchen serves supper and lunch daily as well as breakfast on weekdays.) Duties include preparing and serving food, doing dishes, and cleaning up after the evening meal.

Each team has more than a dozen members, and four-to-six are expected to cover the two-hour shift which runs from 4 to 6 p.m. Ideally, it should mean one’s turn comes up every other month, but it varies in reality.

The guests stream in from the homeless shelters, rooming houses or shabby little apartments. A few are living on the street or are transients passing through due to unemployment, addictions, mental illness, poverty in general. Sometimes there are children.

“The people who come here are so grateful for what they receive and what we do.”

“It’s not a tough job,” said longtime volunteer Wayne Burley as he rinsed and stacked plates. “The people who come here are so grateful for what they receive and what we do.”

Jason Parsons stepped up a couple years ago. “I’m busy with my work and my three children, but it’s is a small commitment of time. It really gives all of us a chance to be the hands and feet of God in our city,” he said.

In recent years, the cathedral has not been able to provide enough volunteers to fill four teams. Currently, teams have non-cathedral members serving as volunteers which does add a nice social aspect to the work. If anyone is interested in finding out more, please contact Doug Milander from the Outreach Committee.

Fredericton Community Kitchen

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