I found out yesterday via Broadview magazine that the Tatamagouche Centre of the United Church will be deciding its future at the end of February. This lovely conference and retreat centre has existed for the past 70 years of the shore of the Northumberland Strait in Nova Scotia.
When I was minister of St. Andrew's United Church in Halifax I led a weekend event on prayer at Tatamagouche for members of the congregation and I took part in a worship event with leaders from the Iona Christian community.
According to the Broadview piece the future may entail rematriating the land -- giving it to a local Indigenous partner. While this would be a meaningful decision this will be hard for those who have benefitted from Tatamagouche through the decades.
This is part of the trend in the United Church of reducing programming or closing similar centres across the country. While at St. James UC in Stroud, Ontario, during the early days of my ministry I led groups at Cedar Glen Centre, another beautiful location near Alliston which was sold to the YMCA in 2000. As the United Church has diminished in size financial resources to sustain these places have dried up and there isn't the same interest from congregations for these opportunities. Of course, hundreds of churches have closed as well.
I found that stepping away from the everyday congregational settings, whether with youth, or families, or adults, opened participants to conversations that were different. We had the time, the spaciousness together to consider who we were as Christ's community without some of the encumbrances of "churchianity." As a pastor I got to know people in a way that Sunday mornings and meetings didn't allow.
God be with the Tatamagouche Centre decision-makers during the weeks and months ahead. We hope that what lies ahead is the Creator's future for this sacred place.
No comments:
Post a Comment