January 1, 2005 Toronto area bishop announces her retirement

Bishop Ann Tottenham, 64, who brought career experience in education to the Toronto episcopacy, will retire on Aug. 31, 2005. "This has not been an easy decision for me to make because, for the most part, I have enjoyed the...

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January 1, 2005 Blessings vote causes rift with Catholics

The diocese of Niagara's approval of same-sex blessings during its November synod has caused a rupture in its relationship with local Roman Catholics. The Roman Catholic diocese of Hamilton in southern Ontario has decided not...

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January 1, 2005 Up in smoke

St. John the Evangelist church in Thorold, Ont., near Niagara Falls, suffered severe damage to its offices and parish hall due to a fire on Nov. 20. The church, which opened in 1856, sustained mostly water and smoke damage....

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January 1, 2005 Calgary church closures will stand

A motion to rescind the decision by the diocese of Calgary's executive council to disestablish three of its parishes was defeated during a recent synod. But delegates supported motions that called on the diocese to ensure...

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January 1, 2005 Week for unity celebrates church growth

"Our Foundation is Jesus Christ" (1 Corinthians 3:1-23) is the theme for this year's Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, which is scheduled for Jan. 18 to 25 (though churches are encouraged to mark the event whenever it is...

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January 1, 2005 Diocese of Fredericton launches investigation after priest pleads guilty to solicitation of prostitution

The diocese of Fredericton's sexual offences committee will conduct its own investigation after Canon Ed Coleman, rector of the parish of Hampton, was convicted by a court in Sussex, N.B., of soliciting a young male for...

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January 1, 2005 Toronto defers vote on blessings

The diocese of Toronto voted by a narrow margin to defer a decision on the issue of same-sex blessings until a national theological commission rules whether it is a matter of doctrine, that is, essential to the Christian faith as...

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January 1, 2005 Group will frame church response to report

Chairs of General Synod (national church) standing committees and councils have struck a task force that will advise the primate and Council of General Synod about "an appropriate process" by which the Anglican Church of Canada...

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January 1, 2005 Police seize material from office of B.C. youth minister

Police in South Delta, B.C., have seized "sensitive material" from the office of an Anglican youth pastor from Tsawwassen, B.C., who is currently in jail in Baja Peninsula, Mexico, over allegations of child sexual abuse. Last...

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January 1, 2005 Church carefully weighs divestment issue

Mississauga, Ont. Archbishop Andrew Hutchison, primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, said Anglicans must attempt to "have a balance" when dealing with the issue of Israeli-Arab conflict in the Middle East, even as some...

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