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Thread of 1000 Stories

Curating Canada’s largest collection of stories of faith in everyday life.

#151: Robert McAlister

by James Craig on August 10th, 2017

Robert Edward McAlister played a foundational role in the early growth of the Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada (PAOC), the nation’s largest Pentecostal denomination. His labours as an evangelist, pastor, organizer, teacher, writer and missions promoter helped the PAOC grow from twenty-seven churches in 1919 to over one thousand today.

#150: A Home of Charity

by Shaye Falle on 2017-08-10

Shaye Falle has been influenced by the posture of generosity with which her grandfather has lived his life, and seeks to live the same way. Read more ›

#149: Thank You Joy Smith

by Sophia Bisch on 2017-08-08

Sophia Bisch shares her gratitude to Joy Smith, whose son’s courage proved to Joy Smith that ordinary Canadians, like herself, can stand up to human trafficking. Smith has committed herself to the fight against human trafficking. Read more ›

#148: Joy at Buddha Beauty

by Mary Dumka on 2017-08-04

August 6 is Canada’s National Day of Prayer and Mindfulness, an initiative of Indigenous Elders and Knowledge Keepers across the country. On the day, Albertan Mary Dumka reflects on how learning simply Buddhist mindfulness practices have helped her in the moment and in the world. Read more ›

#147: George Parkin Grant

by William Christian on 2017-08-04

George Parkin Grant once said that “faith is the experience that the intellect is enlightened by love.” After a life-changing moment one December morning, Grant was determined to understand the meaning of the truth he felt in that moment. Read more ›

#146: Inspired by God and Hockey

by Owen Grootenboer on 2017-08-03

Grade 8 student Owen Grootenboer shares how Jerome Iginla's faith, career, and generosity offer inspiration. Read more ›

#145: A Giving Hand Like Grandpa’s

by Amanda Kleinikkink on 2017-08-02

In her Golden Thread submission, Amanda Kleinikkink shares the story of her grandfather, whose faith overflowed into the way he lived his life. Read more ›

#144: A Love Louder Than Noise

by Marlena Loughheed on 2017-08-01

"In the midst of a good life in Canada’s noisiest city, that gentle voice continued its lifelong pursuit of my heart. This pursuit became increasingly personal and powerful. As I made more intentional time to listen, suddenly that voice became louder than all the other noise in my life." Read more ›

#143: Robert Thompson’s House of Faith

by Lloyd Mackey on 2017-07-28

Robert Norman Thompson was part of a cross-partisan group of Canadian leaders that made a 1960s era “House of minorities” almost accidentally effective in its pursuit of far-reaching social and economic legislation. Indeed, many people, around the time of Canada’s 1967 Centennial referred to Thompson as “Mr. Canada”. Read more ›

#142: Stories Yet To Tell

by Keith Dow on 2017-07-26

"There is a story of faith in Canada that we see and hear, and a story of faith in Canada that words cannot express. Mystery and revelation trace their way through every account given of the divine. Opacity and transparency similarly dance through each of our own life-stories: the words, and the bodies, upon which we are written." Read more ›

#141: O When the Saint Came Marching In

by Neil MacCarthy on 2017-07-25

It’s been 15 years this week since a saint came marching on to Canadian soil. On July 23, 2002, then Pope John Paul II arrived in Toronto for World Youth Day celebrations. We pray that many more saints are following in his footsteps, inspiring others through their example and witness. Read more ›

#140: Albert B. Simpson

by Darrel Reid on 2017-07-21

When A. B. Simpson died, a Christian Herald writer wrote: “His epitaph is written in the hearts of countless multitudes at home and abroad … no one in this age had done more effectual, self-denying service for Christ and His Gospel than [Simpson].” Of the denomination Simpson founded, the Globe observed that “the Christian and Missionary Alliance stands as a monument of his devotion to God’s purpose for him … Eternity alone will show the full results of his earthly ministry.” Read more ›

#139: Brush Strokes of Worship

by Marcia Lee Laycock on 2017-07-20

"Emily Carr’s work depicts that struggle, that striving to faith, that longing to comprehend that which is unknown yet deeply sensed. The first quote visitors to the Vancouver Art Gallery saw as they entered the exhibit was 'Art is Worship.'" Read more ›

#138: Beginning Again

by Nicole Weir on 2017-07-18

"I grew up attending church and singing in the church choir. But, I wouldn’t consider myself or my family to be religious. As a child, I never really understood why I needed to go to church. I didn’t understand the importance that faith or religion can play in a person's life. I truly believe that my story of faith begins in 2012 because that year the dynamic of our family changed." Read more ›

#137: The Language of Faith

by Peter Stockland on 2017-07-13

For the past year, Peter Stockland has had the dream-work opportunity of gathering stories like that of Sikh artist Juss Rani Kaur, from Canadians across the country as part of the Thread of 1000 Stories project. Read more ›

#136: Faith in Humanity

by Merrilee Fraser on 2017-07-12

We are often asked why we like to go to Cuba when the food is so bad, and our response is “we go to Cuba for the people, not the food.”  Read about Merrilee and Dan Fraser and the deep love they have for their friends in Cuba. Read more ›

#135: Come and See Me

by Peter Stockland on 2017-06-28

Blindness brought Father Jack Kennedy to the priesthood 52 years ago. Not blind faith. Not metaphorical inability to see. Literal legal blindness.   Read more ›

#134: A Great-Grandmother's Amazing Grace

by Elaine Ingalls Hogg on 2017-06-27

There’s a woman Elaine Ingalls Hogg met when she was a child who had a tremendous influence on her faith. Was she rich or famous? No, not at all!    Read more ›

#133: Brian Stiller

by Lloyd Mackey on 2017-06-23

In the last half of the 20th century, the son of a Canadian prairie Pentecostal pastor emerged as a leader within what was then a burgeoning evangelical Christian movement, bringing to it a constructive influence in the national corridors of governance, academe and activism. Read more ›

#132: The Active Heart of Faith

by Darryn Oldford on 2017-06-21

In his Golden Thread Submission, Darryn Oldford shares about how his faith has grown in a huge part through his parents' influence – their commitment to putting love at the center of their lives. Read more ›