Becoming Bilingual (Cal & Chrissy Krahn interview)

With almost 30 years of ministry experience, Cal and Chrissy Krahn have often been drawn to those outside of the church walls. As urban workers with Mission Canada, based in Montreal, Quebec, they care for those around them who are lonely, hurting, or in need of a friend. This can be through involvement at the local food bank, sharing a meal or a coffee with someone, connecting newcomers to Canada with helpful resources, or simply giving a granola bar to a person who’s hungry.

In the words of Loren Cunningham, founder of Youth With A Mission (YWAM), "When you take up residence among them, you have an opportunity to do things for transforming that community and those people not only spiritually, but it will change their lives economically, socially, and educationally, and all the things that follow. YOU can make a difference in the world.”
In a province where less than 1% of the population attend an evangelical service on a Sunday morning, and where many do not trust religion or have been hurt, Cal and Chrissy desire to embody "the Jesus way" by living their lives based on the example of Christ - full of generosity, hospitality, and love.

 Links:

Mission Canada Profile Page

https://paoc.org/canada/workers/cckrahn

Jesus Loves Montreal

My guests today are ‘Patmos People’, a term I coined to describe people that remind me of John the Revelator. From their embedded history in a city, they are uniquely poised to hear what the Spirit is saying to the Church in their location.

Just as Jesus expressed his love through John to the Seven Churches of Asia Minor, these Patmos People are living messages of Jesus’ love for Montreal.

Patti Miller is the lead pastor of Evangel Church, a historic Pentecostal church in the heart of downtown Montreal. Their church is presently developing a multi-story building around the corner that will provide main floor retail, upper church and community spaces and housing units available across the socio-economic spectrum.

Cal and Chrissy Krahn are involved in French language training for ministry and are Mission Canada urban workers.

Jenna Smith is the Innovation Youth Director for Christian Direction, an agency that works at the intersection of faith, community and urban development.

Links:

Patti Miller

https://evangel.qc.ca/home

Cal & Chrissy Krahn

https://paoc.org/canada/workers/cckrahn

Jenna Smith

https://www.direction.ca/

Univer-City Life (part 2)

This is part 2 of my conversation with John Engels, Kelly Johnson, Jazelle Johnson and David Ritz. We talk about the effects of deconstructing faith and how university campus leaders are engaging in meaningful conversations. Many students are experiencing an awakening of conscience and sorting through what to believe about right and wrong.

If you haven’t yet listened to part 1 of the interview you can find it here:

https://www.sidewalkskylinepodcast.com/sidewalkskylinepodcast/univer-city-life-part-1

Univer-City Life (part 1)

It is no secret that public education finds its roots in the Christian faith. Study the roots of any historic university and you will find that clergy and prominent Christian community builders believed that education held the keys to greater wisdom and understanding. Christian faith is built on curiosity and wonder about all of Creation and unveiling its mysteries.

But today if you walk onto the campuses of Canadian universities, you may need to look harder to find a place for Christian faith.

Building on a history of campus chaplaincy, Christian outreach, and discipleship groups we are seeing a resurgence of gospel witness and Christian community emerging as Heaven’s counterculture in the midst of an often-hostile environment.

In this episode I have a conversation with John Engels, Milly Li, Kelly Johnson, Jazelle Johnson and David Ritz.

Links:

Serve Campus Network

https://paoc.org/serve-campus

Serve Campus YouTube Channel

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCN7cP5T3DKgpd2zRWg5lR9Q?app=desktop

Serve Campus Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/servecampusnetwork/

Milly Li @University Campus Ministries

https://ucmsfu.ca/about/#leaders

Kelly Johnson

https://paoc.org/donate/kellyjohnson

Jazelle Johnson @Lifeline Ministries

https://www.lifelineministries.ca/

https://paoc.org/canada/workers/jazellejohnson

David Ritz - Montreal

https://www.paoc.org/donate/davidritz

David Burke - Lifeline @Ryerson University interview

https://www.sidewalkskylinepodcast.com/sidewalkskylinepodcast/post-secondary-lifeline

Sacred Space And Urban Development (Graham Singh part two)

With hundreds of beautiful, historic church buildings slated to close across Canada, Trinity Centres Foundation is on a quest to keep the footprints of faith in the urban core. Although congregations may have aged out and unable to create the next chapter for their property, TCF brings together the faith community with a mix of investors, community partners and developers to work on strategies that prevent buildings from being lost the community forever.

In part two of our conversation with Graham Singh, we continue the much needed conversation to help mainline churches and entrepreneurs work together in making our cities better.

Links:

Part one of Graham Singh interview:

https://www.sidewalkskylinepodcast.com/sidewalkskylinepodcast/graham-singh-and-the-story-of-st-jax

St Jax Church

https://www.stjaxchurch.org/en/home

Trinity Centres Foundation

https://trinitycentres.org/

Canadian Urban Institute

https://canurb.org/

Le Monastère Cabaret de Cirque

https://le-monastere.ca/en/home-en/ 

Church Planting Canada

https://www.churchplantingcanada.ca/welcome

Graham Singh And St Jax Church (part 1)

In today’s episode we discuss Graham’s journey to Montreal and St. Jax’s as a unique model of urban ministry.

Graham Singh is Founder and Executive Director of the Trinity Centres Foundation, a new Canadian charity established to transform 100 historic city centre church buildings into community hubs.  TCF’s team of 50+ advisors from the social innovation, property finance, urbanism and faith sectors are currently developing what may become one of Canada’s most significant social purpose real estate investment offerings.

 Over the past 12 years, Graham has led four historic building and community renewal projects in the United Kingdom and Canada, including in his current role as Rector of the Anglican Diocese of Montreal’ recent church plant, St Jax Montreal.

 Graham also acts as a consultant in the area of social impact investing, in the private wealth management sector. He is a graduate of the London School of Economics, Cambridge University (Ridley Hall / St Mellitus College), the University of Western Ontario and Asbury Theological Seminary.  He is currently enrolled in Oxford University’s Saïd Business School Impact Innovations Programme.

Brian Egert is the director of Mission Canada, and co-hosts the interview.

Links:

St Jax Church

https://www.stjaxchurch.org/en/home

 ~

Trinity Centres Foundation

https://trinitycentres.org/

 ~

Canadian Urban Institute

https://canurb.org/

 ~

Le Monastère Cabaret de Cirque

https://le-monastere.ca/en/home-en/ 

 ~

Church Planting Canada

https://www.churchplantingcanada.ca/welcome

The View From Mount Royal - Gary Connors interview

Montreal is the gateway to Quebec for much of English speaking Canada. One of its citizens Gary Connors talks with Kevin Rogers about ways that God is at work in Montreal, the cities of Quebec and Francophone Canada.

Gary Connors is the coordinator for Quebec and Francophone Canada, a missional priority of Mission Canada and FIT4M (French Intensive Training for Ministry), a national initiative.

Gary has pastored in Quebec for numerous years and has served as Assistant to the Superintendent of the Eastern Ontario and Quebec District and the District Superintendent for the District of Quebec.

Gary and his wife Gwen live in Hudson Quebec.

Links:

Mission Canada - Quebec and Francophone Canada

https://paoc.org/canada/workers/priorityquebecandfrancophonecanada

Fit4M - French Intensive Training For Ministry

https://fit4m.ca/

Institut Biblique du Quebec

https://ibq.ca/