Author: Emanuel Cusanelli
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The Impact and Recovery from Adverse Ministry Experiences on Clergy and Spouses
In this video, Dr. Margaret Clarke will discuss preliminary findings from the new study she and Dr. Marcus Tanner conducted investigating clergy and spouses’ ability to bounce back from stressful experiences. She will share about six aspects that were reported as being helpful in the recovery from these events.
2025 National Ministry Mental Health Summit
Join Christians from across Canada at the 2025 NATIONAL MINISTRY MENTAL HEALTH SUMMIT where we will be gathering to equip those in our community impacted by mental illness, allowing them to experience belonging. You will leave: equipped, encouraged, inspired. Your community has the unique opportunity to be a place of purpose, belonging and hope for your community.
If you attend the Shalem Mental Health Ministry Summit, you’ll hear from world renowned experts, including Dr. Joel Thiessen, the Director of the Flourishing Congregations Institute. Joel will be presenting on normalizing (and stigmatizing) mental health and illness in congregations on Wednesday May 21st, 2025.
Lessons from Christian witness in Vancouver
Dr. Ross Lockhart shares highlights from his recent research project studying 14 Christian communities in Vancouver, British Columbia where the major of the city’s population now identifies as having “no religion.” Lockhart provides a summary of his findings with suggestions on areas for pastoral leaders to focus on in order to connect with their secular neighbour.
Not Dead Yet: Is the Decline of the Canadian Church a Myth?
There is increasing handwringing about the decline of the Canadian Church, but an analysis of our reconciled Canadian Revenue Agency (CRA) dataset suggests the story is less bleak and more complex. This blog charts a decade of pre-Covid changes in net churches and charitable giving in eleven major Christian traditions. We find stories of decline, stability, and growth; and discover evidence that losses in congregations may not lead to equivalent losses in denominational engagement.
Churches Discipling Children: What Is and Is Not Working
This is a recording from the third of four webinars in our Flourishing Forward webinar series. This webinar contains information about an in-depth research project looking at the faith transmission and spiritual formation of children. In this webinar, Arch shares findings on how and why one congregation approaches faith transmission and spiritual formation with its children in the ways they do, what appears to be working or not and why, plus implications for congregational leaders.
Faith and the Future: Navigating the Church’s Reluctance Toward Emerging Technologies
As disruptive technology continues to shape the world, the Christian church faces critical decisions in engaging with advancements like Artificial Intelligence and digitalization. A recent study by Futuring Hub at Acadia Divinity College reveals surprising hesitations among Canadian church leaders toward four key technology trends, including hybrid worship and AI. These initial findings invite Christian leaders to thoughtfully discern technology’s role in ministry, recognizing both the potential for good and the ethical implications.
New Congregations in Canada
This video, hosted by Dr. James Watson, offers an overview of the creativity of God in calling new congregations into being within Canada. Models, expressions of worship, and cultural implications for our multicultural society are described. Implications for all churches within Canada are explored from a pastoral and missional perspective.
Christian Identity vs. Christian Doctrine
Many Canadians identify as Christians, but what do they actually believe? Canadian Christians’ beliefs don’t necessarily match what their churches teach. That’s one of the key findings in a major new study by think tank Cardus, Still Christian(?): What Canadian Christians Actually Believe. Ray Pennings, Executive Vice President of Cardus, highlights some of the key inconsistencies between Christians’ personal beliefs and historical doctrines, which have significant implications for discipleship, evangelism, and reaching the next generation.
