This is not a “one size fits all” program. Networks of lay and ordained volunteers work with individual communities to help them discern which prevention programs are best suited for their Indigenous contexts.

Funds for this work were first raised by the Amazing Grace Project.

Learn more about the Suicide Prevention Program:

• About the program
• The problem
• A spiritual battle
• About the program logo
• Get involved

Download this material as a brochure (PDF)

Contact the Suicide Prevention Program Coordinator, Cynthia Patterson, by email or phone: (418) 694-1997.

• Pray for people and communities affected by suicide, volunteers, and the program coordinator.
• Educate yourself and your parish about the rise in youth suicide.
• Learn about awareness and prevention resources in your area.
• Train as a volunteer for awareness programs or a crisis line.
• Raise money or designate funds to support the training of suicide awareness and prevention volunteers.
• Communicate with your Member of Parliament about the rise in youth suicide. Request his or her support for a national suicide prevention strategy and increased funding for northern mental health programs.

For more information, contact 

Cynthia Patterson
Suicide Prevention Program Coordinator, Council of the North
Anglican Church of Canada
(418) 694-1997
cpatterson@national.anglican.ca

To give to the program, contact

Paul Clur
Development Officer, Resources for Mission
Anglican Church of Canada
(416) 924-9199 ext. 293
pclur@national.anglican.ca

This program is rooted in the strength of the scriptures and guided by the principle of self-determination. We learn and teach about suicide prevention so we can become informed and be effective partners in developing and implementing community-based suicide prevention strategies.

Ours is not a “one size fits all” approach. We help communities discern which prevention programs are best for them. Networks of lay and ordained volunteers are already being trained and supported in accessible suicide prevention programs, based in Indigenous culture.

We do our work in partnership with tribal councils, governments, health and social service agencies, community groups, and faith groups. Our national partners include the Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention and the Centre for Suicide Prevention, which offers the River of Life online training program. In the future, we hope to forge partnerships with urban Indigenous ministries.

•  Suicide rates in First Nations communities are twice the Canadian average.
• First Nations youth have a suicide rate five to seven times higher than that of the national average.
• Suicide rates among Inuit youth are 11 times the Canadian average.
• Health professionals are referring to this situation as a “pandemic.”
• More than 10 people commit suicide each day in Canada.
• Youth suicide has tripled in Canada over the last 40 years. Indigenous youth are particularly at risk.
• Canada is one of the few G8 countries not to have a national suicide prevention strategy.

Suicide has become one of the great spiritual battles of our time.

We cannot overstate the urgency and importance of this issue for Indigenous Peoples. For those who are a part of their communities, especially those who are called to serve in the name of Jesus, this must be our priority. Our response will be the proof of our love and of our faithfulness to the way of Jesus. If we have no response, we can claim neither love nor faithfulness. May God give us all the grace to turn this around.”

     —National Indigenous Anglican Bishop Mark MacDonald

The synod passed resolution A137, which contained several actions relating to the Covenant. It received the final text of the Covenant and requested that “conversations, both within the Anglican Church of Canada and across the Communion, reflect the values of openness, transparency, generosity of spirit, and integrity, which have been requested repeatedly in the context of the discussion of controversial matters within the Communion.”

General Synod 2010 also requested further work. It asked that the Anglican Communion Working Group prepare materials for parishes and dioceses to study and consult on the Covenant. It also asked that the Covenant be referred to the Faith, Worship, and Ministry Committee and the Governance Working Group to provide “advice on the theological, ecclesiological, legal, and constitutional implications of a decision to adopt or not to adopt the Covenant.”

After this period of consultation and study, the Council of General Synod will bring a recommendation regarding adoption to General Synod 2013.

Results of this ongoing work will be posted on this page as they are produced.

Anglican Communion Working Group (June 9, 2011)

• Anglican Covenant study guide
• Supplementary resources

Governance Working Group (June 17, 2011)

• Full report on Anglican Covenant: “Legal and Constitutional Issues Presented to the Canadian Church by the Proposed Anglican Covenant”
• Executive Summary

Faith Worship and Ministry Committee (November 2012)

16th Edition, Published 2010

Download the complete Handbook (644Kb)

Table of Contents

• Mission Statement
• Glossary of Terms
• Declaration of Principles
• Constitution of the General Synod
• Rules of Order and Procedure

Canons of the General Synod of the Anglican Church of Canada

• Canon I Name of the Church
• Canon II Corporate Seal
• Canon III The Primate
• Canon IV Reception and Recognition of Clergy From Churches in Full Communion With the Anglican Church of Canada
• Canon V Archives
• Canon VI Financial Management
• Canon VII Missionary Society
• Canon VIII General Synod Pension and Benefit Plans
• Canon IX Lay Retirement Plan
• Canon X Reserved
• Canon XI Anglican Book Centre
• Canon XII Continuing Education Plan
• Canon XIII Deaconesses
• Canon XIV The Book of Common Prayer
• Canon XV The Ecclesiastical Province of Ontario
• Canon XVI The Ecclesiastical Province of British Columbia
• Canon XVII The Licensing of Clergy
• Canon XVIII Discipline
• Canon XIX Relinquishment or Abandonment of the Ministry
• Canon XX The Supreme Court of Appeal
  • Appendix A — Rules of the Supreme Court of Appeal
• Canon XXI On Marriage in the Church
• Canon XXII The National Indigenous Ministry

Appendices

• Appendix A Guidelines for the Conduct of a Primatial Election

Provisions Governing the General Synod and Its Committees

• Appendix B Standing Committees — Terms of Reference
  Guidelines for Sub-Units of Standing Committees
• Appendix C Anglican Journal — Terms of Reference
• Appendix D Council of the North
• Appendix E Anglican Council of Indigenous Peoples
• Appendix F Policy on Open Meetings in The Anglican Church of Canada
  Policy on Closed Meetings in The Anglican Church of Canada
  Guidelines for Telephone and Electronic Meetings
• Appendix G Nominating and Election Procedures

Regulations

• Appendix H Financial Management Committee for Its Sub-Committees
• Appendix I Reserved
• Appendix J Terms of Reference for Committees of the Council of the General Synod
• Appendix K Reserved

Information

• Appendix L Legislation Awaiting Second Reading in 2013
• Appendix M Confidentiality
• Appendix N The Anglican Communion
• Appendix O The Anglican Foundation of Canada
• Appendix P Primate’s World Relief and Development Fund
• Appendix Q Judgment of the Supreme Court of Appeal
• Appendix R Reserved

Legislative and Historical Material

• Appendix S Legislation Respecting the General Synod
• Appendix T Historical Notes (1890-2010)
• Appendix U Sessions and Officers of the General Synod

As part of a litany or series of intercessions in a public liturgy, the following words may be helpful as a guide:

…As we pray for peace on earth let us remember all who have been called to place themselves in harm’s way for the sake of peace, security and justice, at home and abroad. Especially do we pray God’s protection for the members of the Armed Forces of this Country who serve in distant lands (including Name of region at this time). May their efforts and sacrifice bring peace and hope to others.We also remember their families at home:forthose that count the days, and for those who mourn. And we pray that the day may be hastened when war shall be no more.

Other prayers below have been adapted from various sources:

“Lord God of hosts, stretch forth your almighty arm to strengthen and protect all those who strive for peace, and especially those who serve in the Armed Forces of our country in places like N. at this time.Keep them safe from all evil, both in the day of battle, and in times of rest and training.Endue them with courage and loyalty, and grant that in all things, they may serve You, the Prince of Peace. Strengthen their families at home, and reunite them again in your Love. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.”

“Almighty God, we thank you for the liberties this country enjoys, and for those who have worked and suffered and fought to secure them:

• for freedom from war and want;
• for freedom of thought, conscience, and speech;
• for freedom of worship.

Give us grace to defend these liberties and use them responsibly in your service; and grant that through the efforts of those who serve in the Canadian Forces throughout the world, and especially in N., these freedoms may become the secure possession of all nations. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.”

(Developed from FDR’s Four Freedoms
speech in 1942)

“Everlasting God, we thank you for those who continue to give themselves in defence of freedom, mercy and good faith among the nations, and especially Canadian Forces personnel in N.; for those who in life and death have quickened our lives, opened our eyes to the truth, inspired our hearts by their witness, strengthened our wills by their example, and through whose sacrifice we live. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen”

(Adapted from the former UCC service book)

“Almighty God, whose son is known as the Prince of Peace, we pray in earnest for all who serve in the Canadian Forces, especially in N. at this time.As they pursue their mission with courage, compassion, discipline, and honour, keep them safe under your protection, and inspire their chaplains of all faiths to give witness to the spirit and presence of the Prince of Peace. Watch over those who serve abroad and keep their families at home safe in your care. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.”

• Index
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The member is transitioning from a war zone to a peace zone; from an unsafe environment to a safe environment; from an alone context on the intimate level to a coupled context; from a group mentality to once again an individual mentality. It is all about adjustment and re-integration.

For the family it is allowing a ‘stranger’ back into the fold. An older child may have to give up a role naturally belonging to the deployed parent. It is the same for the spouse. There is considerable literature on this and it would help a parish to know about this re-integration process.

It is important to note that issues for the member, and thus for the family dynamic, may not surface or become significant for several months, or even more than a year after the return of the deployed military member.

How the parish can help in the post-deployment stage:

Learn about typical dynamics of family re-integration after deployment, and as far as possible help the family to anticipate what to expect, thus being better prepared for the homecoming.

Watch for signs of distress and anxiety in both the returned member and family.

Welcome the member back into the community deliberately and intentionally in ways appropriate to the individual and family. Do not ask too many questions about the deployment itself, especially the worst-case scenarios. Coffee time should allow for some sharing of stories but not such that the member is prevented from reconnecting or is re-traumatized by the recalling of tragic events. Perhaps it would help the member to formally share their experience once at a coffee time but guided by covering the ups as well as the downs of the experience. Once there is this type of sharing, the member needs to be given opportunity to re-connect with parish life and projects: to return to life in the here and now.

Include the family when the member shares in this way so that the full story of the deployment is communicated. Be sensitive to the need for the sharing to be appropriate for the persons present. It would be good for a member of the parish to speak about how the member and the family were upheld in prayer, and what a privilege it was for the parish to do so. It would be appropriate to express how the parish family looks forward to the whole family’s presence and participation in the faith community.

Sensitively give thanks for the family reunion, but remember that the military member may have returned with a profound grief and confusion about his or her tour of duty. Sometimes a defined psychological injury will only be diagnosed many months after return to Canada. In such cases the parish must be very sensitive to respect the appropriate rights of the family to reveal as much or as little of the nature of such an injury to others. Nonetheless, in all circumstances, the parish that is informed and prayerful will be seen to be the caring and compassionate extended family. For in reality the parish is exactly that – the extended spiritual family of the returned member who is re-united at home with spouse, children, parents, and friends.

• Index
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