Together with 36 ecumenical leaders, I have signed a letter in support of the important work being done in our province to keep everyone safe.
23 December, 2020
Dear Dr. Henry & Minister Dix,
We are faith leaders from across British Columbia and from multiple denominations within the province. We wanted to publicly reach out to show our deep respect and appreciation for you, your staff and all those in leadership in this most challenging time. We fully support the work you have done throughout 2020 and appreciate your calm, considerate guidance and wisdom as you work to keep us all safe.
As faith leaders we have worked hard to keep our communities safe and connected in many imaginative ways. Some of us have remained online throughout this pandemic while others have followed clearly laid out protocols for in-person worship gatherings and events in the summer and early fall. Each of us, along with our leadership, has prayerfully made decisions that we felt best cared for our congregations. Throughout all of these decisions it has been incredibly helpful to have strong guidance from the provincial health officer, the BC CDC and the provincial government. None of us have served in ministry through a global pandemic before and we look to experts to help us through these times. Your work has been invaluable to us.
We have been deeply disappointed in the multiple times that the voices of a particular group of faith leaders have been spotlighted and amplified publicly criticizing your work and your mandates. As you are already aware, those voices do not speak for all of us. We want to publicly reiterate our gratitude and support for your work.
We are deeply grateful that you have, from the beginning, taken time to be in conversation with faith leaders and have spoken publicly many times in support of the work we are doing. We are looking forward to working with Dr. Robert Daum to continue those conversations.
Thank you for your hard work. We continue to hold each of you, your staff, our government, BC’s front line workers and all impacted by COVID-19 in our prayers.
In peace and gratitude,
Rev. Aneeta Saroop, Pastor – Spirit of Life Lutheran Church, Vancouver
Rev. Kristen Steele, Pastor – Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church, Langley
Rev. Dr. Gregory Mohr, Bishop – BC Synod, Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada
Rev. Vida Jaugelis, Interim Pastor – Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, District of North Vancouver
Rev. Kathy Martin, Assistant to the Bishop, BC Synod, ELCIC
Andrew Stephens-Rennie, Missioner – Valhalla Parish (comprising St. Stephen’s Anglican Church New Denver and St. David’sAnglican Church, Castlegar)
Rev. Kelly Duncan, Rector – Parish of St George, Fort Langley
Rev. David Taylor, Rector – St Dunstan’s Anglican Church, Aldergrove
Rev. Lyndon Sayers, Pastor – Lutheran Church of the Cross, Victoria
Rev Andrew Halladay, Vicar – St Andrew’s Anglican Church, Langley
Rev Brenda Nestegaard Paul, Pastor – Trinity Anglican + Lutheran Church, Port Alberni
Reverend Brian J. Heinrich, Vicar – Saints Aidan & Bartholomew Anglican Parish, Gibsons
Rev. Erik Bjorgan, Pastor – Deo Lutheran Church, Salmon Arm
Rev. Curtis Aguirre, Pastor – Our Redeemer Lutheran Church, Penticton
Rev. Terry Richardson, Pastor – Hope Lutheran Church, Nanaimo
Rev. Diana Edis, Pastor – St. Paul’s Lutheran, Prince Rupert
Rev. David Hunter, Pastor – Peace Lutheran Congregation, Vernon
Rev. Jennifer Wilson, Pastor – Trinity Lutheran Church, Delta
Rev. Matthew Senf, Interim Pastor – Oakridge Lutheran Church, Vancouver
Rev. Katrina Vigen, Pastor – Redeemer Lutheran Church, Vancouver
Rev. Patricia Giannelia, Pastor – Christ Lutheran Church, Kelowna
Rev. Carolina Glauster, Pastor – Mount Olivet Lutheran Church, North Vancouver
Rev. John Caswell Boyd, Pastor – St. George’s Anglican Parish, Kamloops
Rev. Eric Krushel, Pastor – Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Coquitlam
Rev. Christoph Reiners, Pastor – Our Saviour Lutheran Church, Richmond
Rev. Peter Hanson, Pastor – Mount Olive Lutheran Church, Surrey
Rev. Lyle McKenzie, Pastor – Lutheran Church of the Cross, Victoria
Rev. Thomas Keeley, Pastor – Dunbar Lutheran, Vancouver, and Benediction Lutheran, Delta
Rev. Fleming Blishen, Pastor – Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church, Prince George
Rev. Patrick Blaney, Regional Dean of North Vancouver and Rector of St. John’s Anglican Church, North Vancouver
Rev. Marlys Moen, Pastor – Mount Zion Lutheran Church, New Westminster
Rev. Jane Gingrich, Pastor – Hills of Peace Lutheran Church, Kamloops
Rev. Roland Ziprick, Pastor – St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, Maple Ridge
The Rev. Peggy Trendell-Jensen, Deacon – St. Clement’s Anglican Church, North Vancouver
Rev. Hardo Ermisch, Pastor – St. Marks Lutheran, Vancouver
Rev. Brian Krushel, Pastor – Faith Lutheran Church, Kelowna
Rev Robin Jacobson, Minister – Trinity United Church, Vernon
The Rev Canon Chris Harwood-Jones – All Saints Anglican Church, Vernon
Photo by Daniel Andrade on Unsplash
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Mary is portrayed in the hands of John Collier much like a girl of the 21st century would be seen as she comes back from school. In her hands is the book of Isaiah saying that “a virgin would conceive and bear a son.” Around here are also the traditional symbols for Mary: Lilies representing her purity, a black window representative of her virginity, and a dove waiting on a nearby house as the Holy Spirit waiting for her. As Henry Ossawa Tanner illustrated, John Collier also paints Mary’s face in astonishment at the spectacle before her. She also looks much younger, a fact most painters don’t seem to capture when replicating the Annunciation scene. The below video is from John Collier himself speaking of the painting, how it was made, and how it was received. 
A Sparrow's Cry 