Who we are
History of Faith & the Common Good

People of faith in Canada have a long history of engaging society as a whole in the search for the common good. The Faith & the Common Good initiative sees itself as growing out of this context and experience. In this initiative, we draw upon the rich history of Christian churches combining faith reflection and social analysis as a foundation for action. At the same time - recognising the multi-cultural and multi-faith society that Canada has become - we embrace new opportunities by bringing together riches from all the world's faith traditions in the search and struggle for the common good.

Christian Social Engagement in Canada

Over most of its history as a nation, the dominant culture in Canada has been strongly influenced by Christianity. While other faiths certainly have had a presence and impact, until recently it was the Christian churches that played a particularly prominent role in Canadian society. From the very beginning of Canada's history, this role was marked by a large measure of social engagement.

In the early days, this engagement frequently took the form of creating institutions to provide healthcare and education as well as to offer services to immigrants, refugees, orphans, the unemployed, and other marginalised sectors of society. While these institutions at times had failings, they did address very real needs. In many ways, they provided the "social safety net" of their day.

By the 1930's, people of faith were beginning to engage society and governments in a new way. The social gospel movement on the prairies, the Antigonish cooperative movement in the Maritimes, and similar initiatives worked to empower people to challenge the economic and social structures that perpetuated poverty and inequality.

Over the years, many Christian churches deepened their social engagement - as well as the theological and ethical rationale for their actions. During the 1960's and 70's, churches became increasingly involved in addressing questions of "development" and the divisions between North and South. At the same time, they became more involved in questions related to human rights, community economic development, economic justice, peace, corporate responsibility, aboriginal rights, justice system reform, and refugees and immigration.

During the 1970's and 1980's, ecumenical coalitions were formed to deal with these issues in a more systematic way. Increasingly, churches pooled their resources and expertise to address social and economic issues with a more unified voice. At the same time, the churches' engagement with the South brought them into contact with new models of social analysis, theological reflection, and grassroots education that greatly enhanced their work for justice. Meanwhile, their work with people of other faiths shifted from the old paradigm of "conversion" to one of authentic dialogue. In addressing social concerns, this in turn eventually led to real working partnerships with peoples of other faiths (evidenced by organisations like the Inter-Faith Social Assistance Reform Coalition in Ontario).

The Churches and Social Engagement Today

As Christian churches have become more skilled at advocacy and education, government officials have come to respect the quality of their analysis and proposals. Today, Christian churches continue to be active in issues related to social and economic justice, peace, and - increasingly - ecological concerns. Recently, most of the Christian ecumenical coalitions have combined to form a new entity called Kairos: Canadian Ecumenical Justice Initiatives (www.kairoscanada.org) - which is arguably one of the largest "think-tanks" in the country (albeit Kairos itself does not define itself in those terms). It is hoped that this new unified coalition will enable even more effective, efficient, and integrated work on these issues.

At the same time, though, it should be noted that churches have lost much of their traditional power as society grows both more secular and more multicultural. In many respects, this can be seen as a positive trend - churches are less and less identified with the power structures of our day. At the same time, though, changes in both society and the churches themselves have in some respects weakened the churches' ability to influence social, economic, political, and ecological policies. Even though governments - and even corporations - often respect the quality of analysis coming from the churches, they also question just how representative and important their opinions are: "Who do you really speak for?"

Certainly, this points to the need for a more broadly-based movement of people of faith - one that includes the experience of the Christian churches but which goes beyond it to include other perspectives. While no doubt Kairos and similar Christian-based organisations (both ecumenical and denominational) will continue to play a vital role, other faiths have much to contribute in their own right. As we enter together into a dialogical process, we can create something that is much greater than the mere sum of its parts.

Before moving on to consider how this can take place, however, it is worthwhile to consider two church-based initiatives that are important antecedents to Faith & the Common Good.

The Canadian Ecumenical Jubilee Initiative

Over three years from 1998 to 2001, the Canadian Ecumenical Jubilee Initiative built a strong national grassroots network working on issues of economic, ecological, and social justice. Seeking a "New Beginning" (with three sub-themes: Release from Bondage, Redistribution of Wealth, and Renewal of the Earth), the churches' ecumenical coalitions and denominational structures worked together on campaigns for debt cancellation, fair trade, aboriginal land rights, and the abatement of climate change. The initiative's largest campaign - a debt cancellation petition - gathered approximately 650,000 signatures, the largest in Canadian history.

Several aspects made this initiative particularly effective. First, it was strongly linked to a faith perspective - including a solid theological rationale for action: three theology books were published as part of the initiative and over 15,000 copies of the Jubilee vision statement were sold. This proved to be a powerful motivating force for those involved. Governments, too, were impressed to hear people speaking from their faith convictions. Paul Martin, as he attended church in different parts of the country, constantly met people concerned with the debt issue. He realised that the churches were speaking for a real constituency, and because of this, he took the Jubilee Initiative very seriously.

Secondly, the Initiative produced compelling education and action resources (which themselves integrated the faith perspective). Thousands of Jubilee posters were displayed in churches across the country. As well, a website served as a key networking tool - attracting over 25,000 visitors over the course of the project. Through this channel, campaign information, background articles, news, and educational resources were provided to people across the country - and indeed to many in other parts of the world.

Finally, the Initiative was effective because it reached out well beyond those who traditionally attend Christian churches. Many people with a less-institutional faith commitment were attracted to its work and participated actively in it. As well, at the local level, many events and networks included an inter-faith dimension.

The Moderator's Consultation on Faith & the Economy

Another recent initiative with innovative characteristics is the United Church of Canada's Moderator's Consultation on Faith and the Economy that ran from 1998 to 2000. With the support of the Atkinson Foundation, then-United Church moderator Bill Phipps was able to reach out to people across the country - both within his church and beyond it - to engage them in the search for the common good. Over the course of the project, a wide variety of research papers were written and discussed (both on-line and in local groups), posters and videos were produced, and "Town Hall" meetings were organised across the country. The initiative's website served as a common resource centre and virtual meeting place for this national process.

Two key public events of the Consultation - a National Forum on Society & the Economy on Parliament Hill and a multi-faith consultation P(r)aying for the Common Good - serve as highlights and models for the work of the Faith & the Common Good initiative. The National Forum brought together 250 leading faith and NGO leaders with politicians for a five hour live television discussion of the moral economy in Canada and globally. The multi-faith consultation at Victoria University (University of Toronto) had close to 100 representatives from ten faith groups in the Greater Toronto Area. They worked hard to consider how their different faith traditions influenced their participation in the Canadian state and desire for the common good.

The combined support of the Atkinson Foundation and the United Church of Canada behind Bill Phipps' public leadership brought a new voice to public debate about the ultimate values driving our social and economic lives together. With the completion of Phipps' term as Moderator, he has continued in his public role through this Faith & the Common Good initiative and as an international President of the World Conference on Religion and Peace.

Into the Future: A New Initiative for our Times

Building particularly on the experience of the Moderator's Consultation - but also drawing on learnings from both the ecumenical church coalitions and the Canadian Ecumenical Jubilee Initiative - Faith & the Common Good now hopes to expand and diversify the vision and practice of working for the common good from a faith perspective. In so doing, we hope that we can embody and celebrate the diverse fabric of a twenty-first century Canada.

With the tragic events of September 11th, 2001 and subsequent wars In Afghanistan and Iraq, the voice of different faith leaders speaking together for a human security strategy to achieve lasting peace has become even more prominent. With over 1000 members in its network, the Faith & the Common Good initiative and its inter-faith associate, the Canadian chapter of the World Conference on Religion and Peace, constitute the largest national inter-faith network from which to rally such a voice of concern. The gathering of 10,000 people in Calgary's central square on September 14th, 2001 for a inter-faith service, led by Bill Phipps is one example of the potential of a strong inter-faith voice of concern in Canada.

Past thematic work has included:

• The Future of Health Care in Canada;
• The World Summit on Sustainable Development;
• Paying for the Common Good;
• Globalisation and International Trade: The G8 in Calgary; and
• Poverty and Homelessness.

Current Work: Renewing the Sacred Balance

Through dialogue, research, network building, education, and advocacy, we are building a process to bring the diversity of Canadian perspectives into a voice of common concern for social, economic, and ecological well-being for all.

Our current major area of focus is Renewing the Sacred Balance which began by supporting the David Suzuki Nature Challenge and then the Government of Canada's One Tonne Challenge. We are currently working on this focus through our work on both The Green Rule and Greening Sacred Spaces.

 

47 Queen's Park Cres. E. • Toronto, Ontario • M5S 2C3 • Canada • Tel: 416-978-5306 • Fax: 416-978-7821 • E-mail: info @ faith-commongood.net