Over the decades of the second half of the twentieth century, the exponents of a more liberal form of Christianity across many churches, including our Anglican Communion, reviewed the meaning of Mission in the life of the church, especially in the light of the experience of the missionary activity of the previous hundred years. Much of that work had been inspired by what is usually known as The Great Commission, found at the end of Matthew's gospel.
And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age." (Matthew 28:18-20)
But in the carrying out of the great commission, often cultural and imperial values had been confused with gospel values, and as this was reviewed a new understanding of mission emerged, based not on particular Biblical texts, but on a theology of the church as the body of Christ being sent into the word to further God's mission of creation and incarnation. The church was the presence of the risen Christ in the world. If there was one Biblical text which focused this new understanding it was the instructions given by the risen Christ in John's Gospel.
Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you." When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. (John 20:21-22)
In Christ Church Cathedral this new way of understanding mission has informed what we have undertaken in our programmes.
Baptismal Ministry
It is in Baptism that a person becomes liturgically a member of the Body of Christ. Our Baptism confers on us a personal and individual responsibility to be part of the Mission of the risen Christ. This primarily is to be carried out in the context of our daily lives. We are to be the presence of Christ in our home, in our work, in our leisure and in our community. A major focus of our Sunday liturgy is to bring us back from a week of mission, to recall and retell in the drama of the liturgy the foundational story of our faith, and, having fed us with the bread of life, to send us back into the mission field of our daily responsibilities.
Ministry to the world around us
As well as this individual responsibility, there is also a corporate responsibility by the church as community, to the world around us. In our inner city life as Cathedral, this brings us into touch with the commercial and business life around us, with the academic world of the universities and with the people who in Montreal, more than in many North American cities, live in the downtown core. It also provides a task of concern for the poor and homeless who are drawn to the core of the great cities of the world.
This local mission is expressed in many ways. The Cathedral being open seven days a week is an important point of contact, along with the daily liturgy and the music programme. Out of this come many occasions for counselling and support in all parts of the social spectrum of our local world. The music programme in particular provides contact with students, children and their families and others who are drawn by the excellence of our music and the opportunities for musical education.
Nine times a year, on the last Sunday of the month, a lunch is held to which all are invited. Members of the congregation, and other volunteers sit down at tables with those who come and help to serve the meal. This respects the dignity and humanity of all who take part.
Partnership
In undertaking Christ's mission we can often work more efficiently and effectively, by creating partnerships with others involved in the same task either from religious or secular starting points. Over the years the Cathedral, through its Social Service Society has, with others, founded and maintained contact with many projects working with people in need, among them women, the intellectually handicapped, persons without employment.
In recent years the use of the undercroft (rooms belonging to the Cathedral beneath the Ste Catherine Street end of the building, between the nave and the shopping mall below) has been developed in a series of partnerships. As well as the Cathedral's own music and Sunday School and Nursery Programme, the undercroft now provides a home for emerge, an experimental Anglican ministry for young people, a Saturday meeting of the Kimbangist Church, for some meetings and counselling sessions of the Montreal-Southwest Community Ministries (working with present and former prisoners), for general counselling and art therapy workshops and most recently for Onen'tó: kon, a counseling service for native people and their dependants in relation to chemical dependency.
Further afield
While our mission begins around us, it extends across our global village. Partnership is also a key concept in our global responsibility. We support the work of the Primate's World Relief and Development Fund, and the Partners in Mission programme of our National Church. A number of Cathedral members have worked as Volunteers in Mission. We are part of the Diocesan partnership projects with the Diocese of Athabasca in Canada, the Diocese of Masasi in Tanzania and the Diocese of the Sechelles in the Indian Ocean. As well we have our own Cathedral partnerships with the Diocese of Caledonia in Northern British Columbia, and the newly formed relationship with the Cathedral of the Holy Trinity in Havana, Cuba.
