March 30, 2020
Pastor Dan will be offering a weekly coffee hour starting this Monday, March 30 at 1 p.m. We will spend time catching up, sharing updates and hearing stories. It won’t be the exact same as being together in the hall each Sunday, but it at least helps us to stay in touch. There will also be an opportunity to ask any questions from the sermon.
Please use the information below:
March 25, 2020
2020 General Assembly Cancelled
The Assembly Council met on Monday, March 23, 2020, and made the difficult decision to cancel the 2020 General Assembly. First and foremost, this decision was taken to ensure the safety of commissioners and staff during the COVID-19 pandemic. The implications for all business that would normally come to the General Assembly has been referred to the Executive of the Assembly Council, who will report further, following their meeting on March 31, 2020.
The Clerks of Assembly will consult with all Standing Committees, agencies and colleges about essential decisions that need to be made and present a plan to the Executive. Additional information will be coming out over the coming days and weeks, and announced on the presbyterian.ca website.
Our current Moderator, the Rev. Amanda Currie, has indicated her willingness to remain in office until the next Assembly. The nominees for this year’s Assembly have been advised that a new election will take place next year. The current nominees will be eligible to be re-nominated.
The General Assembly is not just a place where important issues regarding the ministry, governance and mission of our church are decided; it is also a gathering of our broader church family. We will miss that important time to come together. In the meantime, we are already discovering new ways to connect faithfully with one another, to encourage one another and to be vehicles of God’s grace to a hurting world. May the Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with each of you. Amen.
—The Rev. Stephen Kendall, Principal Clerk
Pastoral Message from the Moderator of the PCC
Pastoral-letter-from-the-moderator-after-GA-cancellation
March 16, 2020
Please find below a message from Isaac Ives
I am sending this message as our church administrator is recovering at home from a fall on the ice. As we get news there will be more emails and we hope to be using the St Giles website to provide more information going forward.
“The Session of St Giles has decided to suspend public worship services for March 22, 29 and April 5 in response to advice from public health authorities. Although precautions have been taken, the long incubation period of this particular virus (COVID-19) where those afflicted may be asymptomatic yet infectious and the fact that many of our congregation would be in a vulnerable group made the decision necessary. While we accept that Session may have been somewhat hasty in taking this decision, we would rather err on the side of caution.
However we will not be completely inactive during this period, Pastor Chook Reid will be recording sermons which will be made available on this website. If you are able, you are invited to listen to them.
Finally, although we will not be holding services in the near future, we would ask that those who support St Giles consider setting aside their regular donations for when we can worship together again as expenses will continue to be incurred during this period.
On behalf of Session, I would like to wish you continued health and well being.
Isaac Ives