The United Church of Canada had its 91st birthday this last week. On June 10, 1925, the United Church of Canada came into being when 10,000 representatives of the Methodist, Congregational, and Presbyterian churches of Canada met in the Mutual Street Arena in Toronto for the inaugural meeting of a new denomination. As far as I can tell, it is the only Canadian church formed by an act of parliament -- the United Church of Canada Act, passed July 19, 1924, to come into effect June 10, 1925. Other churches have been incorporated, usually for the purpose of owning property without vesting it in individuals, but they already existed as churches connected to international denominations. (I should acknowledge my bias here -- the United Church is my church.) That's not the only different feature of this Canadian creation. If you travel the world, you will find Anglican or Baptist, Lutheran or Presbyterian, Catholic or Moravian places of worship wherever you go. You will not find a United Church of Canada anywhere outside Canada. It is as uniquely Canadian as maple syrup. Granted, there are other united and/or uniting churches. Australia has its own Uniting Church, for example. India amalgamated several denominations after the country’s independence. But these unions were not the product of Canadian missionaries promoting their particular brand of Christianity; the new institutions borrowed from, and learned from, the Canadian model, but were not colonies or outposts of a Canadian mother church.
The silent partner
According to the official wording of the United Church of Canada Act, the church came into being as a merger of three denominations -- the Methodist, Presbyterian, and Congregation Churches. Except that it wasn’t. 
The United Church's webpage mow acknowledges the presence of a fourth group, the Association of Local Union Churches. In the book Fire and Grace, historian John Shearman called them the driving force of union. As the western provinces were settled, small towns grew up. The people wanted to attend church. But the west didn’t’ have enough people to maintain historic denominational divisions. A town of 200 can't afford separate buildings -- and ministers -- for several denominations, each clinging to its own allegiances and practices. So most of the western churches got, as their minister, whatever the eastern denominations could send them. Worshipping together took precedence over theological and liturgical differences. By 1924, there were over 3,000 of these local union churches. These Union Churches essentially told their eastern parent denominations to get your act together. Or they’d form their own denomination. The new United Church had about 8,000 congregations across Canada; 3,000 of those, almost 40 per cent of the new denomination, were local union churches. A summary of beliefs The eastern denominations had fussed and fiddled for years with the possibility of merging. They accepted, in principle, Jesus’ instruction "that all may be one." But they defended their traditional turf. The Presbyterians, their system of governance. The Methodists, their passion for social justice. The Congregationalists, their insistence on local autonomy. Several mergers had already taken place. Four Methodist bodies had merged in 1883; four Presbyterian branches in 1875. So church union was not a new idea. Representatives of the three traditional denominations had met, sporadically, since 1902. Under western pressure, the three parent denominations tried to find common theological grounds on which to erect their new edifice. And they came up, eventually, with the 20 Articles of Faith. These were not a statement of faith of the United Church. They were, as their own preamble states, an attempt “to set forth the substance of the Christian faith as commonly held among us…” Those 20 Articles, incorporated into the parliamentary act and thus into the church’s constitution, have been treated for years as the church’s definitive statement of faith. It took over 80 years for the church to declare that it has not just one, but four, acceptable expressions of its beliefs. The legacies of the founding bodies can still be seen in the United Church, 91 years later. From the Methodists, the church’s often controversial stands on justice issues. From the Presbyterians, its often unwieldy system of governance. From the Congregational church, a sometimes embarrassing independence. And from those trouble-making Union churches? A commitment to doing whatever works, whether or not it fits official policies and doctrines. ******************************************************** Copyright © 2016 by Jim Taylor. Non-profit use in congregations and study groups encouraged; links from other blogs welcomed; all other rights reserved. To send comments, to subscribe, or to unsubscribe, write jimt@quixotic.ca ********************************************************
YOUR TURN
Usually, in these columns, I try to deal with subjects of fairly universal concern. Last week, I diverged from that policy, with a rant about the inefficiency of Highway 97 as it passes through Kelowna. 
John Shaffer A wrote, “No need to apologize for talking about things in Canada. But you did mention Seattle. Having just moved from north of Seattle to south of Seattle, I have learned to pay attention to traffic. When I didn't, 
a 90 minute drive became a 3 hour drive. Even with all the modern focus on traffic, it keeps getting worse and worse.”
Cliff Boldt noted, “The U.S. interstate highway system was the brain child of President Eisenhower who admired the German autobahn system for moving troops around. Hence the system. Also good for interstate commerce, to say nothing of helping us Canadians get south to the sun faster. “In theory, traffic signs and lights and limits are intended to keep traffic moving in a coherent fashion. In theory. Some European urban areas are now banning all traffic signs, and the flow seems to improve. Hmmmm. And fewer accidents.”
June Blau, writing from Regina, endorsed my frustration with Kelowna’s highway access: “Having spent a week in Kelowna recently, I can only add a vehement 'agreed' to your rant. Shopping, even for pleasure, is a huge chore and not at all enjoyable in that city. Dining, after a frustrating trip, is even less pleasurable, and you know you have to repeat the agony in reverse to return to your lodging. Somehow 'eating in' gets more attractive!”
Jayne Whyte offered an alternative viewpoint: “I understand your frustration with traffic lights. A while ago, someone suggested that I begin noticing how often the light is GREEN. The wise one pointed out that we notice red lights because we are interrupted, but don't give thanks when the path stays open. I now notice green lights and use the metaphor to acknowledge other times when my life flows too.” ******************************************** TECHNICAL STUFF This column comes to you using the electronic facilities of Woodlakebooks.com.        If you want to comment on something, send a message directly to me, at jimt@quixotic.ca. Or just hit the “Reply” button.        To subscribe or unsubscribe, send me an e-mail message at the address above. Or subscribe electronically by sending a blank e-mail (no message) to sharpedges-subscribe@quixotic.ca. Similarly, you can un-subscribe at sharpedgesunsubscribe@quixotic.ca.        You can access several years of archived columns at http://edges.Canadahomepage.net.        I write a second column each Wednesday, called Soft Edges, which deals somewhat more gently with issues of life and faith. To sign up for Soft Edges, write to me directly, at the address above, or send a blank e-mail to softedgessubscribe@quixotic.ca PROMOTION STUFF…
 Ralph Milton has a new project, called Sing Hallelujah – the world’s first video hymnal. It consists of 100 popular hymns, both new and old, on five DVDs that can be played using a standard DVD player and TV screen, for use in congregations who lack skilled musicians to play piano or organ. More details at www.singhallelujah.com Ralph’s HymnSight webpage is still up,  http://www.hymnsight.ca, with a vast gallery of photos you can use to enhance the appearance of the visual images you project for liturgical use (prayers, responses, hymn verses, etc.)  Wayne Irwin's “Churchweb Canada,” an inexpensive service for any congregation wanting to develop a web presence, with free consultation. <http://www.churchwebcanada.ca>  Isabel Gibson’s thoughtful and well-written blog, www.traditionaliconoclast.com  Alva Wood’s satiric stories about incompetent bureaucrats and prejudiced attitudes in a small town – not particularly religious, but fun; alvawood@gmail.com to get onto her mailing list.  Tom Watson writes a weekly blog called “The View from Grandpa Tom’s Balcony” – ruminations on various subjects, and feedback from Tom’s readers. Write him at tomwatso@gmail.com or twatson@sentex.net
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