Inside the uneasy theological symbiosis in the belly of The Presbyterian Church in Canada (PCC)
Christendom died a long time ago. But the church still operates as if it were alive.
I say that because – to a significant degree – most corners of the church focus primarily on the needs and desires of the existing flock. Sure, we devote significant resources to the pursuit of social and economic justice, just as the Lord commanded. But that only hits the second of the two Great Commandments. We love people, and in doing so, we believe we are demonstrating our love for God.
Trouble is, we miss the fact that we are to love God first.
“The most important commandment is this: ‘Listen, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord. And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.’ ” – Mark 12:29-30.
The Greek word we translate into “most” (NLT, ESV, NIV) can also be understood as “foremost” (NASB) or “first and most important” (Amplified.)
We demonstrate our love for God by following His commands, as enunciated clearly by the teachings of His Son, which He concluded by commanding his followers to “go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” – Matthew 28:19 (NIV)
One might conclude that the most important duty of the church is to make disciples. The most direct way of doing that is to witness the Gospel in words, telling others of the only way to hope and peace and the promise of eternal life. And not just a human-centric version of the Gospel but one that is traditional, historic, evangelical, rooted in orthodoxy and spoken and demonstrated in unconditional agape love.
In a post-Christendom world, the church which is not doing that is not only not doing its job, but odds are, the Holy Spirit will not be present. And it will die.
I know, harsh words. But doctrine is vitally important. And, given the above references to the commandments and the commission, it supersedes deeds.
So how are we doing?
It’s hardly a secret that mainline denominations such as The Presbyterian Church in Canada are not known for bold personal witness. Most of us shy away from evangelism. And the denomination to which I belong does little in the way of encouragement.
In the 2025 report of the PCC’s Life and Mission Agency (LMA), the word “evangelism” appears six times (and only with reference to its mandate) and the term “Christian faith formation/discipleship” appears only once (again, only with reference to its mandate) and the yet the word “justice” appears 135 times, “reconciliation” 40 times, “inclusion” 26 times, “anti-racism” 16 times.
In response to that, two Sessions submitted overtures to General Assembly this year asking the court to direct the LMA “to develop an immediate plan to make evangelism ‘in word’ ” its priority.
(Full disclosure: I am the minister of one of those congregations and those overtures were largely written by me.)
The LMA took the overtures seriously and produced a lengthy academic response. It included a detailed discussion on the origin of the words “evangelism” and “gospel” and how they are used in scripture. LMA explored the history of evangelism from a power perspective: “one of the challenges that face Christians in today’s world is to relate the message of ‘good news’ from a position of power and privilege while employing the sacred texts from an entirely different social context.” LMA noted that the Gospel writers all wrote from the margins of society, unlike today’s believers.
LMA advocates “relational evangelism . . a model of evangelism as face-to-face encounters, wherein people are encouraged to come closer to God by means of encouragement from a representative of the church who develops a relationship with the person and shares their own faith.” LMA cited biblical evidence that not everyone has this gift, but those who do, should be encouraged to develop it.
The author of the report made a very puzzling statement: “Despite Paul’s tendency to offer directives to his letter recipients, he never encourages them to proclaim the gospel or to seek to bring others into the community of God.” So what about 2 Corinthians 5:20 – “We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us.” And what about Paul’s direction in 2 Timothy 4:2 – “Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season.”
Another puzzler: the author states that what we understand as the Great Commissions in Matthew and Mark “do not support a view of universal evangelism by all who are baptized as followers of Jesus.”
The LMA is creating a new staff position this year “that will support initiatives of evangelism in the denomination to help equip and support the efforts of those called to evangelism in the form of proclamation.”
While the overtures were written from the heart, LMA’s response was more from the head.
The recommendations lacked teeth:
- “That ruling elders, teaching elders, and presbyteries work diligently to identify people with the gifts for relational evangelism.
- “That congregations and presbyteries make ample use of resources within and outside the denomination to equip people for evangelism in word and deed.
- “That teaching elders be encouraged to use study leave and allowances to learn about effective and relevant evangelism.”
So I was exceedingly pleased to see a commissioner submit an additional motion that actually called for specific action:
- “That the governing boards of the three theological colleges of The Presbyterian Church in Canada be requested to review curriculum for the M. Div. degree specifically with a view to consider including a mandatory course on apologetics, designed to enable graduating students to be better equipped for effective evangelism and report back to the next General Assembly.
The writer and mover of the motion was Candice Bahadoor, the minister of Heart Lake Community Presbyterian Church. If anyone knows the vital need to go and make disciples, it’s her. Heart Lake is in Brampton, Ontario, home of the largest Sikh population outside India. Indeed, Sikhism is Brampton’s largest religion, at 25 per cent of the population, followed by Christianity at 24.7 per cent, Hinduism at 18.1 per cent and Islam with 9.1 per cent, according to Statistics Canada.
Compare that to Canada as a whole, where 53 per cent of the population identified as Christian in the 2021 census, and Sikhs/Hindus make up a combined 4.4 per cent and followers of Islam totalled 4.9 percent.
Bahadoor sees a huge mission field in Brampton: “It’s an amazing opportunity to share the good news,” she told General Assembly. “It is the loving and just thing to do, yet many struggle to verbalize salvation by faith in Jesus Christ.”
Many churchgoers and even ministers struggle to put their faith in words, as 1 Peter 3:15 commands: “And if someone asks about your hope as a believer, always be ready to explain it.” And to do it with love and in one’s immediate cultural context.
She found herself to be ill equipped to talk about Jesus to people of other religions or no faith life. “This is so necessary in our culture today . . .We need the skills to be able to describe our faith on the spot, to be able to reach out to others to let them know about God’s only Son who provides eternal life and the sacrifices He made on the cross. I didn’t see these teachings being incorporated within the curriculum at all.”
Although relatively fresh from Knox College seminary, she had to research additional courses.
Should seminary not have equipped her for that? One would think so.
Representatives from all three of the PCC’s seminaries – who happened to be in the Assembly Hall for their reports – were invited to weigh in. While two of the three thanked the mover for the initiative, they pointed out that the seminaries don’t have unilateral authority to create courses because they work within a partnership of seminaries from various denominations. There are regulations and it’s complicated.
“This would create more work for the deans of academics and the boards,” said Robert Hayashi, who just completed a six-year term on the Knox College board of Governors.
The sticking point for many commissioners was the word itself – apologetics.
Some had no idea what it was about.
“For me, and I imagine some other people here at the assembly, are not familiar with that word ‘apologetics’. For me it conveys a defensive stance, rather than a communicative or listening,” said Cathy Stewart, a minister from Guelph.
Some were uneasy about damaging relations with other faith groups.
“There are other types of ways we can have these conversations that are helpful in terms of interfaith relations,” said Deb Stanbury, a minister from Hamilton.
Added Amanda Currie, a minister from Regina and a past moderator of GA: “The word that really concerns me is apologetics. And particularly the context around how this additional motion came in the context of having neighbours of a variety of faiths and being concerned about our job being to convert them to Christianity. I would want to emphasize about being able to learn about how to speak our faith in respectful ways in dialogue with our neighbours,”
Pluralism was in the air.
To some, the word itself is loaded. “The language of apologetics is fraught, often for many people it involves verbal sparring and within the world of practical theology and missiology it is not as common now to use that language. ‘Witness’ would be more common,” said Ross Lockhart, dean of St. Andrew’s Hall and a professor at Vancouver School of Theology.
Robert Revington, an elder commissioner and theologian who has written on the subject, provided this primer to the court: “When we talk about apologetics . . . it’s being able to answer the question, ‘why should I believe this is true?’ And if we as the church are here today it’s because we believe certain things are true, historical things, that in the first century there was really a man who came here and lived among us and rose from the dead and those are claims that can be defended or not defended.”
In response to suggestions from some commissioners, Bahadoor amended the motion to remove “mandatory course” and simply to ask that apologetics be incorporated into the curriculum.
“Are not apologetics already part of courses?” asked Ken MacCrae, a minister who is a Canadian Forces chaplain.
Principal Clerk Victor Kim, Life and Mission Agency General Secretary Ian Ross MacDonald and Moderator Lara Scholey put their heads together to discuss.
“Yes, we believe it’s been incorporated throughout the curriculum,” the moderator told the court one minute later.
The amendment failed. Shortly after, so did the original motion.
The bottom line is that hardly anyone believed this young minister on the front lines in a city far removed from Christendom who testified that her recent seminary experience did not equip her to defend and explain the faith. Most commissioners chose to believe those who resided far from the actual mission field.
Here’s my takeaways from this affair.
- Some commissioners did accept the mover’s testimony. It’s a start, and that’s encouraging.
- Overtures can be effective. This entire discussion stemmed from one minister’s lightbulb moment at last year’s GA, in which he took stock of the imbalance between evangelism in deed and Word. That minister wrote several drafts before presenting to it his Session and other ministers who shared his ethos.
- Everyone behind this – the Sessions which sent the overtures, the mover and seconder of the motion and most of those who spoke in favour – appear to be on the traditional/historic/evangelical/orthodoxy side. And everyone who spoke against or were reluctant to get behind it are either on the liberal/progressive wing or are part of an ecumenical consortium of seminaries at a public university.
- The glaring polarity in theology and practice within the PCC almost feels like two churches in one denomination. To me and most of the kin in my circles, the concept of apologetics is garden variety, as ubiquitous as the Gospel fundamentals and the conviction that Jesus is the way, the truth and the life and that no one enters the Kingdom of Heaven except through Him. I know the word “apologetics” is anathema to some because it’s equated with street preachers and doomsayers, which are unfortunate and inaccurate stereotypes. Apologetics is actually a recognized academic subdiscipline with plenty of scholarly texts.
- Given the above point, I am dismayed by the clear misunderstanding of the art and science of apologetics. It’s not the domain of the far-right. It’s actually Christianity 101 – it’s that basic. Which circles back to the first and foremost commandment and the Great Commission itself.
Some very reputable and established Canadian seminaries offer specific courses in apologetics. Tyndale, a private Christian university and seminary in Toronto has “THEO 0534 – Christian Apologetics,” which defends the faith and addresses classic issues such as “the existence of God, the problem of pain, the authority of the Bible, the supremacy of Christ, creation, evolution and other religions. Students are also introduced to the impact of postmodernism in our culture.”
Of note is “WYT2620H – Introduction to Christian Apologetics: The Art and Science of Christian Persuasion” offered by Wycliffe College, an evangelical Anglican seminary, which happens to be part of the Toronto School of Theology at University of Toronto, same as Knox College.
I’ve really only provided a superficial overview of this issue as it appeared before GA. For deeper reference, here is a link to the overtures, see No. 1 and 2. The actual GA discussions can be viewed at the GA webpage. See Sederunt 5 (start at 50:35) and Sederunt 8 (start at 2:47:53). Here is a list of some solid apologetics writing.
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GA also had a robust discussion on Medical Assistance in Dying (Physician Assisted Dying/Suicide.)
Surprisingly, the Church Doctrine Committee presented a passionate defense of the sanctity of life with recommendations to stand against MAiD in any form and affirm the sanctity of life until natural death and to take a stand against future expansion of the current law’s application.
Some notable statements from the committee’s report:
- “We reject every teaching and practice that makes medically administered death a routine instrument of health care and places ultimate sovereignty over life and death in human hands rather than in the hands of God.”
- “Christian hope does not promise the absence of suffering in this life. It affirms God’s presence, faithfulness, and the promise that life finds its completion in God.”
- “The church is concerned that the normalization of MAiD may weaken commitments to palliative care, chronic disease management, mental health services, suicide prevention, and attention to the social determinants of health. Faithfulness requires the church to speak against systems that respond to suffering by ending life rather than by strengthening care.”
- “The Presbyterian Church in Canada confesses Jesus Christ as Lord over life and death. Human life is a gift of God, marked by inherent dignity, held in trust, and completed in God.”
- “In life and in death, we belong to our faithful Saviour Jesus Christ. Nothing in life or in death can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
- “From this confession flows a clear opposition to MAiD as a response to suffering and a steadfast commitment to compassionate pastoral care for all who are affected.”
Many observers were expecting the committee to support MAiD. The doctrinal statement has been in the works since 2017, when GA approved a bold statement upholding the sanctity of life mirroring the 1994 statement on the issue. The 2017 statement was appropriately named “Physician Assisted Suicide” and intended as an interim response to an emerging issue as the term MAiD did not exist in 1994. It was commended to the church for study and response. Feedback was received and in 2019, the Church Doctrine Committee prepared a report with revisions to the 2017 statement. GA was canceled in 2020 so the following year, commissioners proposed adding “Medical Assistance in Dying” to the title. This signaled a shift in doctrine.
The movement to the left continued in 2022. In response to a significant number of requests, “Physician Assisted Suicide” was dropped from the name. In 2023, commissioners directed the committee to produce a new document which “reflects the wide secular acceptance of the practice.” In its interim report to 2024 GA, the committee stated: “The committee realizes that there is a need for pastoral care and non-judgmental guidance for both patients and their families. We also need to grapple with the role of suffering in end-of-life situations and the traditionally high-view Christians have regarding the sanctity of life.” Until 2026, it appeared that the committee was moving towards a MAiD-accommodating statement.
Pushback against the committee’s pro-life stance was expected at GA 2026, and it happened right from the get-go.
Commissioner Neil Ellis, a minister from Eastern Ontario, summed up the naysayers by calling it “wholly insufficient . . I find this response to be judgmental, condemning and will cause harm.”
Before any supporting commissioners could speak, a motion was made to refer the issue to the Life & Mission Agency. Commissioners spoke for and against. A show of hands was not conclusive, so the moderator called for a standing vote. The referral was carried and 15 commissioners dissented.
That was followed by a motion “that LMA develop a pastoral response with helpful liturgical resources to assist ministers walking alongside those considering MAiD and their families as well as those who have chosen MAiD.”
Notwithstanding the existence of a historic (1994) position, several commissioners lamented the lack of a contemporary statement.
Speaking to the motion to have LMA develop a pastoral guide: “I have sympathy for those facing MAiD, but if we pass this motion we will allow ourselves to be informed more by winds of culture than the Holy Spirit,” said Irwin Cunningham, a minister from the Victoria, B.C. area.
The motion to develop a pastoral guide was carried by a show of hands and one dissent.
A flurry of additional motions followed:
- That the doctrine committee produces a document for what it is to experience pain, suffering and death in the experience of being human as it relates to MAiD in the era of AI to assist the church to respond faithfully in pastoral situations. The moderator ruled it out of order as LMA will already be aware of that.
- To determine whether the church has a desire for a fresh doctrinal statement or to adhere to the last one in 1994. The mod’s ruling that it was out of order was challenged but upheld by a show of hands.
- That the doctrine committee develop a new statement that would provide new guidance to end of life care. Again, ruled out of order. The ruling was challenged but upheld by a standing vote this time – an indication of the deep division in the court.
- That the doctrine committee produces a clear statement which upholds the 1994 position, along with a pastoral response. The moderator told the court this will be the final additional motion on this issue, then she ruled it out of order.
The bottom line is that the PCC’s last official statement on MAiD/physician-assisted dying in 1994 was strongly pro-life. And it still stands. Doctrinally, we have a statement upholding the sanctity of life, yet the LMA has been asked to develop guidelines which would be in contravention of that.
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In his Pulitzer Prize winning third installment of the Rabbit tetralogy, John Updike noted the protagonist’s middle-aged angst and unsettledness in juxtaposition to his middle American wealth. “Rabbit is rich,” he concluded in the opening pages. I consider Updike the 20th century version of Charles Dickens. Whether it was Victorian England or Postwar America, both authors documented the spirit of the times.
So when Peter Bush, the convenor of the Special Committee Regarding a National Framework for the Use of Property, told the Assembly that “many congregations in the PCC are real estate rich,” it was a defining statement.
Like Rabbit, many PCC congregations are unsettled and have an uncertain future.
Against the continuing backdrop of declining membership and congregations, the PCC is growing richer financially. A congregation in, or in close proximity to, a large urban area may be dwindling in souls while occupying real estate worth several million dollars. Can these legacy gifts be used in new ways to support the mission of the church? If a congregation no longer has the operating revenue to carry on, can the real estate be leveraged with secular partners to support its mission, perhaps in a new way?
“In the words of Bob the Builder, ‘Let’s get to work’ ”, Bush quipped as he donned a yellow hard hat.
Arising from the report of the Narratives of Hope and Possibility Working Group, the committee was set forth by commissioners in 2025 to develop a “national framework for the denomination’s use of property” which includes a “discernment path” and being mindful of stewardship, communication with courts and agencies of the church, including the Trustee Board and the Assembly Council – all within governing legislation and polity.
Extraordinary use of property is not just a local decision. It has extraordinary potential for vital mission. “The selling of church property to developers who then turn real estate into high-end condos, that time is over,” Bush told the Assembly.
Amen.
The potential to reimagine and develop property to address homelessness and community needs – while providing continued life for a worship community – is nothing short of manna from Heaven. Such initiatives have already happened and others are in the works.
Commissioners approved 24 Guiding Principles. Among them is that congregations will drive the process, not the denomination. This grassroots approach allows the church on the frontlines – who know the needs best and are capable of discerning Divine guidance – to be supported by presbyteries, which can access guidance and resources from the denomination.
(I see an interesting juxtaposition here with the apologetics issue, in which a local minister’s clarion call for support was largely dismissed by denominational and seminar leaders and much of the court.)
Commissioners also approved implementation procedures to fund and support congregations as they undergo a three-phase site (re)development exploration process:first, a feasibility study, followed by requests for proposals, then the negotiation of “a partnership between the congregation/presbytery and a developer, including legal fees to ensure the needs of the congregation/presbytery are met and its interests are protected.” Funding of $1 million annually will be available as “grants to congregations, ministries, and/or presbyteries to support work in assessing potential for property (re)developments” with the expectation that typical investment will be no more than $150,000 per project. Staffing in the New and Renewing Ministry Fund will grow from 1.1 full-time equivalent to a maximum of 3.5 FTE positions.
Congregations are being encouraged to “consult with indigenous peoples and consider giving land back” in cases of dissolution and amalgamation.
While mission involving the use of real estate will naturally skew towards care for the needy, my hope is that it will also incorporate evangelism of Word (designed to lead the soul to salvation). Time will tell whether missions will also, somehow, include that second, primary component.
This framework is a bold step out of Christendom thinking and practice.
On a personal note, the congregation to which I am called acquired a 100-acre farm during amalgamation a few years ago. It was recently sold, providing the congregation with a sizable seven-figure legacy, held in trust. Session named the trust after the elder and his wife who in 1953 donated the land and farmhouse to their congregation. Thomas and Mary Prescott had a heart for retired farmers, so the house was converted to a retirement home for farm workers. The home was retired in the mid 1960s, when standards changed and rest homes and long-term care became the norm. Income from the trust is just starting to flow. Once established, my hope is that Session, as legal trustees, will have the vision and fortitude to commit as much of the income as possible to mission in Word as well as deeds.
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I attended part of GA 2026 in person as one of two co-chaplains of the GA prayer room. This was the second year that Renewal Fellowship has partnered with the General Assembly Office to organize and staff the room. My suggested overarching prayer and mission for the Prayer Room was this: “God’s will be done.” God’s will in the minds of progressives and liberals will likely differ from that of those on the other side of the room. And so will our prayers. But if we can just agree to seek God’s will, who can argue?
As noted, GA sometimes felt like two different nations in the belly of a single state. That’s a clear reference not only to Esau and Jacob in Rebekah, but also Anglophones and Francophones in Canada, the five nations which make up the United Kingdom, and the United States prior to and during the Civil War. All of these things were either God’s will or allowed by Him. Uneasy tension is the story of our lives. Politically and philosophically, we are more polarized than ever. God is allowing this to happen.
Outside observers to GA might assume, given the official program and presentations from denominational leaders and agencies, that the PCC is uniformly progressive or liberal in its theological outlook, not just inclusive but affirming of non-binary, non-heteronomative views. They’d be correct in one way, because the PCC is officially affirming. But official does not mean we all accept it. There remains a very healthy subset within the PCC which maintains orthodoxy. Most are quietly going about their business. A few are more declarative. Some actually desire to return to doctrinal orthodoxy, although with an inclusive mindset, fully cognizant of the harm done by shunning and excluding those who don’t share the same theology and practice.
Paul tells us to cast out non-believers; don’t even dine with them. Practised literally, no conservative would remain in the PCC. I’ve attended every GA since 2013, sometimes as a commissioner but mostly as an observer. I’ve dined with people who are far apart from me, theologically. As the executive director of Renewal Fellowship, I am yesterday’s man to many. I still wrestle with the memory of an elder in a same gender marriage who cornered me at a GA a few years ago and asked me, “Do you think I should divorce my wife?” She was right in my face and I didn’t have an immediate answer. In retrospect, I should have replied, “That’s not my call or a human decision; that’s up to the Holy Spirit.”
Christ taught us to feed the hungry, care for the sick and tend to the lonely and brokenhearted. He also dedicated much time to teaching the Father’s curricula. Much of it was focused on correction of false teaching and interpretation. He was passionate about the need for doctrinal accuracy. The Lord was visibly angry with those who refused to put their selfish ways to one side and submit to the Father’s will.
Correct doctrine is essential. Theology is vital. This is what the Lord preached and it gives me encouragement to remain in the PCC as a witness. It’s why we pinned a bold new statement to the top of the RF home page:
Welcome to Renewal!
Our bold and audacious vision is for The Presbyterian Church in Canada and its congregations to be restored to Biblical orthodoxy and be revived by The Holy Spirit.
We stand against doctrinal drift.
We encourage and support kindred souls.
We are open to conversations with all others.
We speak the truth in love.
And we’re not going away. Clearly there is a need and a demand. Just this week, RF received two substantial financial gifts – one from a congregation and the other from an individual. Both are committed to the PCC and its renewal back to orthodoxy. That puts wind in our sails.
Back to GA. Despite the occasional cold shoulder or refusal to meet my glance, for the most part the two nations are collegial. It reminds me of the LMA’s push for “relational evangelism” in which we witness our faith in the context of a friendship, partnership or some sort of tangible connection. It’s like Paul planting the seeds, Apollos watering them and then allowing the Holy Spirit to do the rest.
This is why I attend GA in person versus livestream even when I am not a commissioner. Besides, being there in the flesh is like watching a sports event in the stadium or arena: you get a sense of the vibe, the energy. At home, you see and hear more of the details because there are fewer distractions. In an ideal world, you’d attend in person but then watch the livestream later to pick up what you miss.
So while Christendom thinking and practices continue in many places, there are encouraging signs that the paradigm is shifting.
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The above report on General Assembly 2026 touches on only a few issues and is not intended to be a comprehensive guide to the statements made by commissioners and others or the decisions made by the court. Notable omissions were the interim report of the change Leadership team – whose final report is expected in 2027 and may usher profound structural change in the PCC – as well as the report of the Intercultural Office, which has completed year two of a five-year commission to address cultural tensions in the PCC and engineer a more inclusive path forward.
Main Graphic: Commissioners vote at the 151st General Assembly of GA. Photo Credit: Andy Cornell
