Category Archives: Articles

IRCA 23 was hosted by Wartburg Seminary and held in a Best Western hotel in Dubuque. Rev. Dr. Mark Yackel-Juleen, Wartburg Director of the Centre forTheology and Land and professor of Small Town and Rural Ministries, was thechair of IRCA this quadrennial. There were 20 IRCA registrants, 3 from Canada (Catherine and Eric with hisContinue reading “Report on IRCA Quadrennial, April 13 – 19, 2023”

A Review of It’s Real Ministry: How Part-Time and Bi-Vocational Clergy are Challenging and Empowering the Church, by I. Ross Bartlett (Friesen Press, Altona MB, 2022). You might remember seeing an email about a survey of ministers who work in more than one job. That’s how I became involved in this study initiated by Rev.Continue reading “Book Review: It’s Real Ministry”

No one came for food on the last Thursday of February 2021, the first time the Star City Community Pantry opened for the designated one hour per week. The two volunteers did not consider feeling discouraged, they knew there were people in this small town of 460 people who would benefit. The table in theContinue reading “The Star City Community Pantry”

Facilitated by Rev. Dr. Peter Bartlett, Eastern Ontario Outaouais Regional Council, Regional Minister Supporting Visioning with Communities of Faith, Clusters, and Social Justice and Outreach Networks. January 19, 2023 A very balanced group of 34 participants from east to west attended this workshop. Thank you for attending and sharing your thoughts and feelings. Peter introducedContinue reading “Checking in with the Rural Church”

Report on Trauma WorkshopOctober 13, 2022UCRMN offered a fall workshop on Trauma, Grief and Recovery, called Ministry in the Midst, and offered by Rev. Michele Rowe of Maple Creek, Sask. Michele is Certified as a Community and Workplace Traumatologist and happens to hold a Social Work degree as well as being a minister to aContinue reading “Trauma, Grief and Recovery”

By Joyce SasseSubmitted by Catherine Christie Editors note: this is an Easter memory from Joyce Sasse, reproduced from her ebook, Gleanings from a Prairie Pastor (available for downloading from Centre for Rural Community Leadership and Ministry, www.circle-m.ca)(Apologies are never easy.  t takes time to unload the baggage. That’s what I learned when I was helping ourContinue reading “Saying What’s In Your Heart”

By Joyce SasseSubmitted by Catherine Christie Editors note: this is an Easter memory from Joyce Sasse, reproduced from her ebook, Gleanings from a Prairie Pastor (available for downloading from Centre for Rural Community Leadership and Ministry, www.circle-m.ca) One Easter Sunday I spoke about how Beethoven, at the darkest point in his life, wrote the magnificent musicContinue reading “Easter Postlude”

The Postcard Project was hatched in those days when getting together still seemed far off.  We were just beginning to plan for a Rural Routes Through the Holy gathering in June 2022.  Standing in those uncertain days our planning group spoke about the reality we knew – not everyone was online and, even if theyContinue reading “Postcard Project”

Submitted by Connie Sykes, from Frontier, SK The pandemic has pushed us into trying things that we probably wouldn’t have considered before.  Making more use of technology is one of those things that we hadn’t quite imagined could help us as a pastoral charge, until we found ourselves having to stay apart. Only a weekContinue reading “Video Greetings: At Christmas, or Anytime”

Submitted by Catherine Christie As reported in Feb. newsletter, on March 7 and 8 , the International Rural Churches Association (IRCA) held a global prayer event.  Canada hosted 2 of the hours.  UCRMN member Catherine Smith from New Brunswick, instigator of Rural Routes through the Holy (check out https://hemofthelight.com/ruralroutes/ ) was first, beginning on screen atContinue reading “Canada participates in 24-hour prayer”