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Presenting Our Affiliates: Scarboro Missions Interfaith Department

October 25th, 2016

Scarboro Missions  is a society of Canadian Catholics, priests and laity, motivated by the Spirit, who dedicate themselves to the person, teaching and mission of Jesus Christ as expressed in his words:  "I have come that they may have life and have it to the full." (John 10:10).  Based near the campus of St Augustine's Seminary on the eastern edge of Toronto, Scarboro Missions has been a convener and catalyst of interfaith cooperation in Canada for decades.

The Interfaith Department has connected and resourced a wide network of grassroots organizations and congregations that are engaged in interfaith initiatives in local communities. Motivated by a quest to understand the diversity of religious experience in Canada and around the world, Paul McKenna and the Interfaith Department have developed curricula, curated extensive on-line resources, hosted meetings and consultations, and created a widely distributed artistic rendering of the Golden Rule as it is expressed in the lived experience of religious communities around the globe.

Paul pointed out in conversation with FC 150 that in his experience, in contrast to thinking of Canada as an increasingly secular society, "Canada is increasingly part of a global interfaith culture in many ways." Religious communities are not simply on the margins, but interwoven in to Canada's tapestry, locally and nationally.  For this reason, learning the art of interfaith dialogue is a powerful civic and spiritual practice that can yield a rich dividend. "At the heart of interfaith partnerships," he commented, "lies respect for the other, and deep, compassionate listening, and a genuine concern to discover how to deal with what is different by drawing on one's own spiritual resources and learning from others."

As part of Faith in Canada 150's Alliance Network, Paul is one of many leaders nationwide who are resourcing Canada's religious communities to contribute riches from their faith traditions to promote the common good in 2017 and beyond.


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