The United Church of Canada is a national Protestant church that ministers throughout Canada. It was created on June 10, 1925 in Toronto, Ontario, with the merging of the Methodist Church, Congregational Union of Canada, and 70 percent of the Presbyterian Church of Canada in addition to a few General Council of Union Churches in western Canada. The reason for this union grew out of the need to coordinate resources to minister in the Canadian northwest and overseas missions. Another important reason for unification was the evangelization of Indigenous communities, as the churches wanted to better coordinate their efforts in ministering to these groups.
The United Church is divided into three units of organization. The most basic unit of organization is the pastoral charge, which consists of one or more “communities of faith.” Pastoral charges are organized into Regional Councils who administer specific regions of Canada. These councils report to the General Council, which is the United Church’s highest legislative court and is elected every three years. Prior to 2018, the United Church was organized differently. Pastoral charges reported to presbyteries, which were organized into conferences. These conferences then reported to the General Council.
During the Residential School System, the United of Church of Canada administered several residential schools in throughout Canada and supported the goals of assimilation and Christianization. Prior to 1925, these schools were operated by the United Church’s predecessors, and after the union, most schools transferred to the United Church’s control. In 1969, the Government of Canada assumed control of all residential schools. The last residential school closed in 1996.
During the 1990s, the public became more aware of the impacts of residential schools. This led to an increase in litigation against the Government of Canada, which culminated in the creation of the Indian Residential School Settlement Agreement (IRSSA) in 2006. IRSSA outlined the process by which residential school litigation was carried out in addition to creating the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC). The United Church of Canada has worked with the TRC to provide documents on its involvement in the Residential School System, as well as working on the TRC's Calls to Action.
1875-2015
2010-06-16 - 2010-06-19
2010-06-16 - 2010-06-19
2010-06-16 - 2010-06-19