Please note you only need to register once for the three sessions.
All sessions will be available to view later in the media section on the diocesan website.
On November 1 we celebrated All Saints Day and we were reminded that the ministry of all the baptized is central to our shared vocation as the church. Baptism is a rite that unites us as Christians through our commitment to the way of Jesus, and is a means of God's grace.
The World Council of Churches Faith and Order Paper No 111 names five elements of what takes place in baptism:
- Participation in Christ’s Death and Resurrection
- Conversion, Pardoning and Cleansing
- The Gift of the Spirit
- Incorporation into the Body of Christ
- The Sign of the Kingdom
Each of these is worthy of remembering, as well as ongoing reflection and meditation. In our baptismal liturgy in the Book of Alternative Serivces each candidate for baptism is asked six questions:
- Will you continue in the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in the prayers?
- Will you persevere in resisting evil and, whenever you fall into sin, repent and return to the Lord?
- Will you proclaim by word and example the good news of God in Christ?
- Will you seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving your neighbour as yourself?
- Will you strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being?
- Will you strive to safeguard the integrity of God’s creation and respect, sustain, and renew the life of the earth?
Each of these questions is answered with " I will, with God’s help."
Held over three Fridays, participants will join two panelists each week who will each reflect briefly on one of these questions to help us all remember our covenant, understand some of its depth, and reflect on its significance in this time and place.
SESSION 1
Travis O’Brian has been incumbent at St Barnabas in Victoria since 2007. He holds a Ph.D. in philosophy from the University of Leuven, Belgium. A father of four and avid fly-fisher, he was ordained in 2004. Travis has also recently held the position of director of Anglican Studies at the Vancouver School of Theology.
Ansley Tucker is the dean of Christ Church Cathedral in Victoria and currently serving as administrator of the diocese. She has served in ordained ministry for 40 years, and was privileged to participate in the Anglican Church of Canada’s leadership in the review and revision of our baptismal practice and discipline.
SESSION 2
John J. Thatamanil is associate professor of theology and world religions at Union Theological Seminary. When possible, he lives in Victoria and attends Christ Church Cathedral. John is the author of Circling the Elephant: A Comparative Theology of Religious Diversity and The Immanent Divine: God, Creation, and the Human Predicament.
Sulin Milne is the incumbent at St Peter in Comox and previously served as pioneer priest in the Church in Wales. She moved to Vancouver Island in September 2019, bringing with her three children and a dog.
SESSION 3
Juli Mallett serves as an associate priest at St Andrew in Sidney, and as convener of the Fellowship of St. Gregory of Nyssa, Salt Spring Island. She speaks and writes on the natural world as a source for theological imagination, the Internet as a site of community and sacramental spirituality. She is a member of the diocesan council and president of DAISSI, Salt Spring's LGBTQ2SIA+ society. Juli lives on Salt Spring with her partner, surrounded by a young forest filled with mushrooms and other wonderful things.
Jane Morley is a lawyer by profession, a mediator by inclination, and has become a leader and facilitator of organizational and social change. She is the strategic coordinator of Access to Justice BC, a network of justice system leaders, headed by the chief justice of BC, that seeks to improve access to justice in BC. She is a principal of Restorative Solutions, a group that offers a constructive and systemic approach to conflict within organizations and systems. She is a member of the parish council of the Parish of Pender and Saturna Islands and attend St Peter on Pender.