Take a Sunday drive
and tour Kanata's churches
By Kathryn Young-Davies
Take a Sunday drive
and tour Kanata's churches
By Kathryn Young-Davies
Have you ever wondered how the stained-glass windows on those churches you drive by look from the inside? Curious to
know what programs there are for children and youth? Ever pondered what goes on inside a church from Monday to
Saturday?
This was your chance to find out!
Eleven churches opened their doors on Sun. Sept. 30, for the first-ever Kanata Church Open House Tour from 1 to 5 p.m.
Each church set up its own activities, but generally you could tour the church, hear some fabulous music, check out
the Church School rooms (some with children's activities going on), chat with church members about the programs
they run, find out what other groups use the church buildings, munch on doughnuts and meet the ministers
(they don't bite -- honest!)
The tour was the culmination of the month-long "Let's Go to Church" campaign sponsored by the Kanata Ministerial
Association, which represents the 22 Christian congregations in this community. The ecumenical awareness campaign aimed
to encourage people to consider going to church. It doesn't matter which one -- just pick a church and
go.
"Humans have a spiritual dimension, a spiritual life, which is too often ignored," says Rev. David Sherwin, of
Glen Cairn United Church. "All of the Christian churches here in Kanata are places where anyone can explore that
side of life, and grow as a human being. Developing a personal relationship with God through Jesus is what churches
are all about."
You were invited to visit all the churches or just some of them. You didn't have to
follow any particular order, but the Kanata Churches list is a good guide.
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When you ask friends and family how they are doing, does anyone ever say, "Wonderful. I'm so relaxed. I have lots of time to do all the things I want. I'm completely stress-free!"? The more likely answer is "Busy. Too busy." Couple all our busy-ness with the rapid pace of change that's a fact of life in Kanata and you have many stressed out people. Sometimes it's easy to lose sight of why we're doing all this. Survival depends on taking time to focus on the most important parts of our lives: our families, our health and our spiritual well-being. Churches have been part of what's now Kanata for nearly | 200 years, ministering not only to their own members, but to others in our community and around the world. And we're still here, ready to help. The Kanata Ministerial Association - representing all the churches in Kanata -- has launched the Let's Go to Church campaign to remind people that churches are here for you in times of need, to help celebrate the important milestones in our lives and to help people grow in their faith. We invite you to read below how two Kanata residents have grown in their faith. So, pick a church - any church that you think might fit your needs - and go! |
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Let's Go To Church month is an initiative of the Kanata Ministerial Association. Rev. David Sherwin is the Pastoral Co-ordinator of the Let's Go to Church campaign. Kathryn Young is the Lay Co-ordinator. |