Faith In Canada 150

  • Canada: Intimations of Liberty

    Canada: Intimations of Liberty

    John von Heyking

    May 6, 2017

    Hearing the seductive, loon-like call of so-called postnationalists who claim Canada is without identity, political philosopher John Von Heyking insists the Fathers of Confederation would have seen the “ironic pose of non-identity as infertile soil for heartfelt protection of rights.” 

    In October 2015, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told the New York Times Magazine: “There is no core identity, no mainstream in Canada… There are shared values — openness, respect, compassion, willingness to work hard, to be there for each other, to search fo...

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  • City of Sparks

    City of Sparks

    Hannah Marazzi, Tim Day

    April 10, 2017

    Convivium's Hannah Marazzi sits down with Tim Day of City Movement to discuss listening postures, the digital age, and Canada's transforming faith landscape. 

    I first encountered Tim Day in the back of the Jacob Javits Centre in New York City. Three football fields in length and constructed largely of glass and steel beams, the Javits Centre was being prepared to welcome...

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  • Telling Our Better Stories

    Telling Our Better Stories

    Doug Sikkema

    March 20, 2017

    Convivium's Doug Sikkema examines the role that story telling plays in his life as a Canadian and a man of faith. And as project lead for The Ross and Davis Mitchell Prize for Faith and Writing, he's looking for Canadian writers and poets to submit unpublished short stories or suites of poetry by June 30. There's $25,000 in prize money to be won. 

    It’s the year of Canada’s 150th anniversary—our sesquicentennial if you like awful words—and there’s been lots of talk about our Canadianness. Just what is it that makes Canadians Canadians? What are our shared values a...

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  • Writing With The Light On

    Writing With The Light On

    Hannah Marazzi

    March 13, 2017

    Sarah Bessey, lay theologian, writer, and blogger is a Canadian whose voice has emerged to lead a generation. Convivium’s Hannah Marazzi interviewed Bessey by correspondence about the changing nature of theology in the public sphere, the importance of literature to a life of faith, and the imagery of the author’s beloved Canadian landscape that finds its way into all of her writing.

    Sarah Bessey, lay theologian, writer, and blogger is a Canadian whose voice has emerged to lead a generation. Convivium’s Hannah Marazzi interviewed Bessey by correspondence about the changing nature of theology in the public sphere, the importance of l...

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  • George Vanier: The Best of Us

    George Vanier: The Best of Us

    Raymond J. de Souza

    March 10, 2017

    Editor in Chief Father Raymond J de Souza writes a profound tribute to one of Canada's greatest citizens, General Georges Philias Vanier, Canada’s 19th Governor General.

    The fiftieth anniversary of the death of General Georges Philias Vanier, Canada’s 19th Governor General, fell earlier this week. Having lived the great Canadian life, he died in Canada’s centennial year. He has lessons to teach us in this year of...

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  • Seeing Local. Looking Deep.

    Seeing Local. Looking Deep.

    Gideon Strauss

    March 10, 2017

    Outremont's Gideon Strauss digs deep to better understand the Montreal he is encountering today. Follow along with his photo essay! 

    For the past two months, I’ve been researching and writing a series for Convivium on what many would see at first glance as a strictly local problem.

    I’ve met with, talked to, and tried to understand the complex, interwoven responses of my n...

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  • When Mr. Churchill Changed Us

    When Mr. Churchill Changed Us

    Raymond J. de Souza

    January 5, 2017

    Father Raymond J. de Souza reflects on the legacy of Winston Churchill and reminds Canadians of his powerful address delivered on our nation's 75th anniversary. 

    My Cardus colleague Ray Pennings gave us an account this week of New Year’s Eve in Ottawa, with the governor general presiding over the re-igniting of the centennial flame on Parliament Hill, exulting that there was no better place to welcome Canada’s sesqu...

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  • Sacred Fire

    Sacred Fire

    Ray Pennings

    January 4, 2017

    Ray Pennings reflects on the sacred in a ceremony and looks forward to how Canada can best flourish over the next 150 years.

    The arrival of 2017 – the year of Canada’s sesquicentennial celebration – was marked by the lighting of a special fire in Ottawa. A newly constructed cauldron has been built at city hall to mark the occasion. Following its lighting on New Year’s Eve, a huma...

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  • In the Midst

    In the Midst

    Orisha Schroeder

    January 1, 1970

    As a part of our Cross Canada Convivium series, we've been featuring photographers from across Canada. Check out this shot from Orisha Schroeder.

    In the quiet of day, in the midst of still water, sacred space emerges. As the surface of the water, smooth like glass parts, we are reminded of Genesis 1:2, which recounts "the Spirit of God was hov...

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