Canadian Lutheran History

Ecumenism - Indigenous Rights - Canada timeline

2024 - 80th Anniversary CCC

coming soon

https://www.ncronline.org/news/year-after-francis-canada-trip-sisters-walk-long-road-reconciliation-

2021 - A Year after Pope Francis' Canada Trip

by Sandrine Rastello for the National Catholic Reporter, Photo CNS/Paul Haring)

...Making peace with the past

Sr. Priscilla Solomon knows healing follows its own pace. She and her sister, Eva, are Ojibway members of the Anishinabek Nation and belong to the congregation of St. Joseph of Sault Ste. Marie, which until 1966 operated a boarding school for orphans, later classified as a residential school, in Fort William, Ontario (now part of Thunder Bay). From that unique perspective, they kept working on issues of social justice for Indigenous people, even after the congregation became involved in settlement talks. But they witnessed how the process affected some non-Indigenous nuns and held them back from engaging in reconciliation, she said.

For Solomon, the accusations were a shock too. She had never worked at the school but she knew sisters there, and recalled witnessing happy moments with the children when she had visited. The congregation was deeply affected but couldn't discuss it, or offer comfort, because of legal restrictions, she recalled. Many sisters, who had never even lived in Thunder Bay, felt everyone was being painted with the same brush, and all schools declared guilty.

"It took a while for us to come to a point where we could acknowledge that we ourselves needed some really deep healing around that experience," Solomon said. "We were not ready, as a congregation, and individually for many of our sisters, to be involved in the truth and reconciliation process."

Following its 2018 chapter, leadership put together a dedicated team. It organized regional gatherings, with prayers and reflections, where attendees heard from a sister who had faced an accusation that was later dismissed, and from Solomon's sister, Eva. A retreat for all 90 Sisters, focused on reconciliation, followed a few months later. The congregation now seems more at peace with its past and with its future involvement, Solomon said.

Meanwhile, Solomon had her own reconciliation to go through: as a Christian, recognizing the desire to serve and the racism that have both existed in the church, and as an Indigenous person. She connected with spiritual practices that were once forbidden to Catholics, such as the sweat lodge, smudging or praying with the pipe.

"I saw the good in those and experienced healing from that," Solomon said. "So, I know personally that both of those paths were good paths, and I can bring those paths together."

Intergenerational Justice and Healing

2021 - Implementing UNDRIP

BACKGROUNDER: Self-determination & Free, Prior and Informed Consent: Understanding the

United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples,

February 1, 2021

“Indigenous peoples must be part of decision making when our rights and well-being are at stake. Working with us to determine what that looks like is the smart thing to do. It will lead to fewer acrimonious decisions, fewer court battles, more timely decisions, and better outcomes for us all.”

– Chief Wilton Littlechild, addressing United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, 2018

Executive Summary

The heart of the matter is the universal right of peoples to self-determination. Indigenous peoples, no less than any other peoples or Nations, have the collective right to make their own decisions through

their own institutions and systems of governance and law.

Respect for the right to self-determination is crucial to reconciliation. Self-determination is at the heart of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples including its provisions on free, prior and

informed consent. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada stated as its first Principle of Reconciliation that the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples “is the framework for reconciliation at all levels and across all sectors of society.” There is no inherent conflict between the human rights framework set out in the UN Declaration and Canadian constitutional law. To the contrary, the Declaration provides a way to achieve the constitutional imperative of reconciling Canadian law with the pre-existing sovereignty of Indigenous peoples.

The right of Indigenous peoples to make their own decisions includes the right to say “yes”, the right to say “no”, and the right to “yes with conditions” to proposals brought forward by others. The term “veto” implies an absolute power, regardless of the circumstances in any given case. Characterizing the right to say no as an absolute veto is confusing, potentially misleading, and often deliberately alarmist. Veto implies a decision that is arbitrary, unilateral, without legal foundation, and taken outside of any legitimate process. None of these things are true of decisions taken by Indigenous peoples in the legitimate exercise of their rights. Misrepresentations of the Declaration must be set aside so that Canada can get on with the necessary and long overdue work of ensuring that the rights of Indigenous peoples are recognized, respected, protected and fulfilled.

Churches of CCC & UNDRIP

Who We Are in the CCC & WCC

1947 Canadian Lutherans & WCC

1952 Canadian Lutherans & CCC (LCA)

When the Canadian Council of Churches was forming in Toronto in 1947, there were NO Lutheran church bodies legally organized in Canada who could become members of the CCC, Lutherans were members of continental church bodies legally constituted and headquartered in the United States.

Canadian Lutherans of the "Lutheran Church of America" were founders of the WCC in 1947..

Canadian Lutherans were among the founders of the WCC

1952 Canadian Lutherans & CCC (LCA)

In 1952 Canadian Lutherans in today's ELCIC joined the CCC as Associate Members under their formal legal name, "The Lutheran Church in America."

In 1962 these Canadian Lutherans became identified as the LCA-Canada Section.

Canadian Lutherans were among the founders of the WCC

1969 Canadian Lutherans in CCC (ELCC)

1986 LCA & ELCC Canadian Lutherans Merge to form ELCIC

The Evangelical Lutheran Church OF Canada (ELCC) came into being by Act of Parliament on January 1, 1967 and it was the first legally constituted autonomous Lutheran church in Canada.

In 1969 the ELCC joined the CCC

In 1952 Canadian Lutherans in today's ELCIC joined the CCC under their formal legal name, the Lutheran Church in America. Th

The Evangelical Lutheran Church OF Canada (ELCC) came into being by Act of Parliament on January 1, 1967 and it was the first legally constituted autonomous Lutheran church in Canada.

In 1969 the ELCC joined the CCC

In 1952 Canadian Lutherans in today's ELCIC joined the CCC under their formal legal name, the Lutheran Church in America. There was at the time no Lutheran Church body that could join as a

When the Canadian Council of Churches was forming in Toronto in 1947, there were no Lutheran church bodies organized in Canada, Lutherans were members of continental church bodies headquartered in the United States..

Show Less

Canadian Lutherans were among the founders of the WCC

1986 LCA & ELCC Canadian Lutherans Merge to form ELCIC

In 1969 the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Canada under the leadership of

Canadian Lutherans in today's ELCIC began to join the CCC in 1952 and are known to the CCCV as members of the Luthean Church of America.
In 1986 these members of the Lutheran Church of America joined with the members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Canada (ELCC) to become the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada.

Canadian Lutherans were among the founders of the WCC

Ecumenism - Indigenous Rights - Canada timeline

2000s

Today

The World Council of Churches today is the broadest and most inclusive ecumenical body in the world, representing 25 denominations of Anglican; Evangelical; Free Church; Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox; Protestant; and Catholic traditions. Together we represent more than 85% of the Christians in Canada.

The Council undertakes and promotes theological study and reflection among Christian traditions. As well, the Council studies, speaks about and acts on conditions involving moral and spiritual principles including the war on terror and societal issues such as the future of health care. The Council communicates results of reflections to Canadian society and governments.

From CCC/Founding with

As Christian communities and Christian interfaith leaders in Canada, we have historic responsibilities for building and expanding dialogue and right relationships with Indigenous communities and partners. CIRG members identified the following key commitments and goals for this triennial priority. As interfaith leaders in our churches, we want to honour and live into these commitments, in consultation and partnership with Indigenous leaders.

The CCC member churches made this covenant commitment in their 2014 Expression of Reconciliation at the TRC: “to respect the right and freedom of Indigenous communities to practise traditional spirituality and teachings.”
TRC Call to Action No 60 – particularly its emphasis on the need to respect Indigenous spiritualities in their own right, and to educate Christian leaders about the history of our violence against traditional spiritualities and our responsibility to prevent spiritual violence.
The need to deepen our knowledge of Indigenous spiritualities in their variety, uniqueness, and complexity; to listen to and learn from Indigenous leaders, Elders, and Knowledge Keepers; to build relationships with Indigenous partners within and beyond the Christian churches; and – in and through this process – to ask where our Creator is leading us and what our next steps on this journey together might be.

CIRG members will pursue this work through consultations with Indigenous Christian leaders from the CCC member churches; through receiving teachings from traditional Indigenous Elders and Knowledge Keepers; and through participating in learning sessions on spiritual violence and diverse Indigenous spiritualities in Canada. When engaging in these listening, learning, and relationship-building opportunities, CIRG members will pay particular attention to how the sin of racism impacts our relationships with the First Nations, Métis, and Inuit peoples. We are also discerning possibilities for future connections and dialogue with traditional Indigenous Elders and Knowledge Keepers. One potential outcome of this work might be a reflective report, which will share our triennial journey and learnings with the Council’s member churches.

2015 RELEASE OF CANADA'S TRC FINAL REPORT

coming soon

2015

2015 WCC/CCC Interview with Chief Perry Bellegarde, National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations. Photo by the United Church of Canada

WCC-CCC Interview 1

2015

2015 WCC/CCC Interview with Commissioner Marie Wilson of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Photo by The United Church of Canada

WCC-CCC Interview 2

2015

2015 WCC/CCC Interview with Residential School Survivor Ray Jones of the United Church of Canada and Member of the KAIROS Indigenous Rights Circle. Photo by the United Church of Canada.

WCC-CCC Interview 3

2015

CCC - Edmonton TRC National Event

2014

CCC - Edmonton TRC National Event

2014

CCC - Edmonton TRC National Event

Ecumenism - Indigenous Rights - Canada timeline

1995

1990s:

In 1991 The Canadian Council of Churches adopted a new constitution, which gave it a governing board, and formalized a new structure of three commissions: Faith and Witness, Justice and Peace and Ecumenical Education and Communication.

At the 50th anniversary in 1994, The Rev. Douglas DuCharame, Associate Secretary for Justice and Peace, said “The changing face of Christianity in Canada has been reflected in changes in the Council, from dire financial cutbacks to shifts in influence of mainline Protestantism.”

“Catholic (associate) membership has meant taking the predominantly French-speaking church in Quebec much more seriously,” he wrote, while Orthodox churches have brought “new and sometimes surprising gifts to ecumenical life and worship.”

CCC/Founding

1995

coming soon

1991 CANBERRA

Coming Soon

1990

TBA

1989

TBA

1989

San Antonio USA

Ecumenism - Indigenous Rights - Canada timeline

1985

coming soon

Archives Aboriginal Rights Coalition

1985

Stavanger

1983 Vancouver

coming soon

1980s

By the beginning of the ’80s, the notion of “mission” had changed.

Promotion of intercultural respect, interfaith dialogue and international justice were seen as vital expressions of mission. World mission was no longer seen as carrying the Gospel from one place that knows it to another which does not.

Instead, world mission was seen as the world church in its diversity, with global ecumenical partnership.

In 1985 the Council lobbied governments on the issues of acid rain, peace and disarmament and the Canadian Security Intelligence Act and participated in African relief programs.

At the 1989 meeting the name of the Commission on Faith and Order was changed to the Commission on Faith and Witness, broadening its mandate to include mission and interfaith relations.

CCC/Founding

1982

Lima

1982

Lima

1980

Melbourne

1979

Cambridge USA

1970s

In 1974, three years after his appointment to the Supreme Court of British Columbia, the federal government appointed Justice Berger royal commissioner of the Mackenzie Valley Pipeline Inquiry. The Berger Inquiry, as it became known, was tasked with investigating the social, environmental, and economic impacts of the planned $10 billion, 4,000-kilometre pipeline through the Mackenzie Valley, which at the time was the world’s biggest engineering project.

Justice Berger took the inquiry to 30 Dene and Inuvialuit villages along the Mackenzie River and across the Northwest Territories and Yukon to hear from and learn about these Indigenous peoples and their lands. Originally scheduled to take 12 months, the inquiry lasted two and a half years.

The inquiry coincided with the creation of the ecumenical Inter-Church Project on Northern Development, or Project North. A precursor to the Aboriginal Rights Coalition, which later became part of KAIROS, Project North was launched in 1975 because the churches realized their relationship with Indigenous peoples in Canada was in need of drastic change. Project North was also a response to Indigenous leaders who had been urging the churches to do more to enhance awareness and understanding of how resource development was threatening Indigenous life, rights, and culture. The churches were challenged to work toward a new and just relationship based on solidarity, and this included political action directed at governments and corporations on social, economic, environmental, and cultural issues affecting Indigenous peoples.

The proposed Mackenzie Valley Pipeline was only one of several resource megaprojects in northern Canada in the 1970s and this gave direction and a sense of urgency to the churches. In its 1976 submission before the Berger Inquiry in Ottawa, Project North called for a “moratorium on all Northern resource development projects, including the Mackenzie Valley pipeline.”

In 1977, the 240-page Mackenzie Valley Pipeline Inquiry report, which included testimony from 1,000 northerners, recommended a 10-year moratorium on pipeline construction while Indigenous land claims were settled.

Justice Berger was a consummate advocate who knew how to listen, and who created spaces so that Indigenous voices could be heard. In this way he continues to contribute in an invaluable way to a more just and equitable society.

1970s

1970s:

Meantime, a dramatic increase arose in ecumenical activity elsewhere, leading to the formation of ecumenical social justice coalitions. The Council worked with such coalitions as Project North, to help address the challenges of native land claims and Northern development, and with the Movement for Christian Feminism.

In 1974 The Canadian Council of Churches with the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops co-founded the Church Council on Justice and Corrections.

This was also the decade in which the Mennonites and the Society of Friends took the initiative to begin Project Ploughshares. It was founded and continues as an operating division of the Canadian Council of Churches. In 2004, Dr. Ernie Regehr, Executive Director of Project Ploughshares, was named to the Order of Canada. In August of 2016, the President of the Canadian Council of Churches, the Rev. Dr. Canon Alyson Barnett-Cowan, articulated the following foundational biblical principles of the Canadian Council of Churches working through Project Ploughshares. [PDF]

In 1977 a task force called together 50 persons representing Christians across Canada to consider how to do theology ecumenically in Canada. They decided that the Faith and Order Commission should facilitate and coordinate the discussion of theology and plan a biennial or annual conference.

In the 1970s, the Council reduced its commissions from four to three (World Concerns, Canadian Affairs and Faith and Order).

The Commission on Canadian Affairs was to identify issues requiring ecumenical leadership and to work directly on those issues with member churches, related organizations and secular groups. Among the issues: social services, French-English relations, continued abolition of the death penalty, civil liberties and labor.

In one small piece of its work, the Commission on World Concerns distributed material responding to widespread critical response to the World Council of Churches’ grants to liberation movements in Africa.

1975 LAUNCH OF PROJECT NORTH

PROJECT NORTH (1975) LEADS TO THE ABORIGINAL RIGHTS COALITION TO THE KAIROS INDIGENOUS RIGHTS CIRCLE

Archives - Aboriginal Rights Coalition

Ecumenism - Indigenous Rights - Canada timeline

1975 NAIROBI

coming soon

1974

Accra

1972

Bangkok

1971 Lima

Coming Soon

1971 Louvain

Coming Soon

1969 Canadian Government White Paper

From the view of Warren Allmand who after serving as Solicitor General under Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau then became a member of the KAIROS Indigenous Rights Circle

Learn More about Hon. Warren Allmand

1968 Uppsala

Coming Soon

1967 - EXPO Christian Pavillion Montral

coming soon

1967

Nairobi

1966

Geneva

1967 - EXPO Christian Pavillion Montral

coming soon

Dene Nation Founding - Project North

Beginning of the Indian Brotherhood - NWT

For more read: at https://www.nwttimeline.ca/stories/the-rise-of-indigenous-political-organizations/ and search in the NWT Archives (https://www.ece.gov.nt.ca/en/nwt-archives)

From Dene Nation: History (https://denenation.com/about/history/).

On October 3, 1969 sixteen chiefs came together to form the Indian Brotherhood of the Northwest Territories. Its first president was Morris Lafferty of Fort Simpson with Mona Jacobs of Fort Smith, NT succeeding him. Her role as interim president of the organization was to work under the mandate of protecting the rights and interests of the Dene under treaty.

When the Indian Brotherhood was formed, the most pressing issue was the building of a proposed pipeline through the Mackenzie Valley to carry natural gas to southern Canadian and U.S. markets. The Dene agreed, at the time, to delay any decision by the federal government on the project by demanding that Dene rights be recognized through a negotiated settlement of land claims. The Dene questioned who had the right to make decisions concerning industrial development of the resources on Dene land, particularly when it comes to having major impact of land and environment.

Not Just Men in the Brotherhood Movement

Seen here, Nellie Cournoyea with James Wah-shee in 1973, ©NWT Archives/NCS-Native Press Photo/N-2018-010-01232

In 1970, after serving four months as president, Ms. Jacobs was replaced by Roy Daniels of Behchoko. In 1971, James Wah-shee also of Behchoko became the third president. 1972, without consultation with the band councils, the federal government planned a complete removal of DIAND from the north. As part of the plan, the federal department was negotiating with the Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT) for the transfer of program responsibility for the treaty Indians. By 1973, the Chiefs in Denendeh made a major breakthrough when DIAND established an office in Yellowknife, it meant recognition of band councils and treaty rights.

In 1968 Rae Band temporarily refused Treaty payment over land issue and Treaty.Ed Bird of the Thebacha Association of Fort Smith presented a brief regarding compensation to the Dene for loss of land and for the role of the Dene in future, to a meeting on the revision of the Indian Act in Yellowknife.

1971Ed Bird became the Vice President of the Indian Brotherhood of the Northwest Territories:📷The Status and Treaty Aboriginal groups formed the National Indian Brotherhood (NIB), while the Non-Status and Metis groups (the Metis also eventually formed the Metis Council) remained united and formed the Native Council of Canada (NCC), which now is known as the Congress of Aboriginal People.

Experiencing Colonialism and Insisting on FPIC

1969Territorial Administration begins pushing Local Government.Construction of the Townsite of Edzo began, as conceived by government bureaucrats. The government of Canada presents the “White Paper”, which proposes to change the relationship between the government and Indian people, essentially, a design to transfer responsibility for Indian Affairs to provincial government by creating municipalities, etc. This would abolish the constitutional responsibilities of the government to the Indians, and is contrary to British Common Law.
1970The Indian Brotherhood of the NWT was incorporated to protect the rights and interests of the Dene.
📷1971Chief Ed Bird of Fort Smith, Vice-President of the Indian Brotherhood (now Dene Nation), was shot and severely wounded by a constable of the RCMP. He later died in hospital in Edmonton from gunshot wounds. Government presence first established in Rae Lakes.Chiefs of the Dene, in Council at Fort Rae, charged the federal government with betraying its Treaties and unconstitutionally, illegally and immorally transferring the responsibilities of Treaty obligations to the Territorial Administration. Chief Jimmy Bruneau School in Edzo was opened under the control of the Dene through their own school board.

1972The Metis and Non-Status Native Association of the NWT is incorporated. (The name is later changed to Metis Association of the NWT and then to Metis Nation, NWT).The Dept. of Indian Affairs announced its intention to bring about a settlement of Treaties #8 and #11 which apply to Indian lands in Northern Canada. “Indians” in question, the Dene, were offered the opportunity to select their own reserves.
1973A caveat (a declaration of prior interest in the land) to 450,000 square miles of traditional land is filed in the Supreme Court of the NWT by the Dene, illustrating their Aboriginal title. The federal government agrees to negotiate Aboriginal Rights and provides funds for research.The Indian Brotherhood and the Metis Association of the NWT announce that they will seek a single Aboriginal Rights settlement on behalf of all descendants of the Dene.

Meeting between the Minister of Indian Affairs, Jean Chretien, and the Executive of the Indian Brotherhood of the NWT, to bring to bear the reality that the Indian Brotherhood represents the Chiefs and Band Councils on a Territorial level. Prior to this meeting, Indian Affairs treated the Brotherhood as a society of interest and refused to allocate funds for legitimate programs. The position of the government of Canada on Aboriginal Rights must change to come into line with the decision of six of the seven justices affirming Aboriginal Rights in the Nishga Land Case.
1975Mr. Justice Thomas Berger opens the Mackenzie Valley Pipeline Inquiry to examine the terms and conditions concerning construction of a pipeline in the Mackenzie Valley.

📷 Justice Thomas Berger

1975 The Dene Declaration is unanimously passed by a Joint General Assembly in Fort Simpson. Dene drummers from Fort Rae traveled down the Mackenzie River, which is called Deh Cho in the Dene language, in three canoes, to all the Dene communities, holding drum dances and visiting in the homes.

Project North, a coalition of the five major Christian churches in Canada, is formed to support the struggle of Northern Canadian Native people.“As Long As This Land Shall Last”, by Rene Fumoleau, is published; “This Land Is Not For Sale” is published by Hugh and Karmel McCullum.
James Wah-Shee, President of the Indian Brotherhood of the NWT, addressed the General Synod of the Anglican Church of Canada in Quebec City. The Synod passed a resolution in support of the Indian Brotherhood.

The Caveat decision of Justice Morrow was appealed by the Federal Government. The Supreme Court of Alberta, the court of appeal for cases heard by the Supreme Court of the NWT, reversed the decision of Mr. Justice Morrow, which ruled in favor of the Dene claim to the land.Hospital closed at Fort Rae and a cottage hospital opened at Edzo against the wishes of the people.
1976Freeze on the development of Rae was lifted. Government had tried without success to have the people moved from Rae to Edzo.The Dene launched a quiet campaign to enlist the petroleum industry to help convince Ottawa of the need to begin negotiating a settlement with the Dene immediately. Thirty-five delegates of the Dene Nation presented The Agreement in Principle Between The Dene Nation and Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada to Warren Allmand, then Minister of Indian Affairs, in Ottawa.
Cabinet authorizes Dome Petroleum to begin open water drilling on the Beaufort Sea. Sixty-eight permits, covering 12 million acres, are granted.

The Indian Brotherhood at its General Assembly in Fort Simpson, passes a resolution to admit Non-Status Dene into membership. A confidential letter from Commissioner Hodgson of the NWT stated that government employees have no business helping Northern Natives deal with the problem of the proposed Mackenzie Valley pipeline, or any other resource development.

A Counter-Conference on Northern Development was held in Edmonton, to protest the proposed Mackenzie Valley Pipeline. One thousand people participated in this alternative conference to the government-and-industry-sponsored Northern Development conference.

Dene Nation representatives and the Dene from Fort Resolution met with the Minister of Indian and Northern Affairs, Warren Allmand, and officials of Shell Oil over Shell Oil’s application for a land use permit to conduct exploration for minerals in the Little Buffalo River area. The Little Buffalo River area is approximately twenty miles from Fort Resolution and provides one of the main areas for meat to the Dene of that community. Dene Nation President Georges Erasmus made it clear that violence would be considered, if necessary, to stop Shell Oil. Dene women from Fort Resolution promised to set up their tents around any caterpillars Shell Oil might move into their area. Shell Oil didn’t enter the area. The Dene demanded that Shell Oil not destroy the country there with cut lines and exploration activities. Dene demands were respected by the government for the 1976/1977 winter season. The Supreme Court of Canada ruled on the appeal by the Dene Chiefs in their application to file Caveat on the Dene traditional territory. The ruling was based on the Land Titles Act (a federal government statute, the federal government also being the defendant in the Case) which states that a caveat cannot be filed on “public land for which no title has been issued.” The Supreme Court rejected the Dene Nation’s appeal to restore the original judgement of Mr. Justice William Morrow, which ruled in favor of the Dene Chiefs, but restricted filing of the Caveat until after all appeals to the case were decided. The Supreme Court failed to relate its judgments in this case to aboriginal rights, or to recognize the inter-national history between the Dene and Canada.

The NWT Council asked NWT Commissioner Hodgson to resign from the Board of Directors of Panarctic Oils Ltd.

1977The appointment of Justice Thomas Berger to head the inquiry into the proposed Mackenzie Valley pipeline.In a successful attempt to take over control of the financial and daily administration of their sawmill, away from the Territorial Administration, and to set up meaningful community control, the Dene of Fort Resolution cut water sewer and fuel services to the houses of Territorial civil servants in Fort Resolution. Within a few days, the Commissioner of the NWT gave in and the Fort Resolution Dene won their case.NWT Indian Brotherhood opened a Southern Support office in Ottawa.

Georges Erasmus, Dene Nation President, made a presentation to the Environmental Committee to the President of the United States of America, which was holding hearings on the Canadian pipeline route through the Yukon. The presentation stated that Aboriginal rights have to be recognized and a minimum of ten years to implement an agreement is needed before major development begins. The Supreme Court of Canada denies the Dene the right to file a “caveat” over Dene land but does not challenge the existence of their Aboriginal Rights as defined by Mr. Justice Morrow in 1973.

Warren Allmand, Minister of Indian Affairs, agreed to the Dene position for settlement based on the Metro Model passed at the Fort Fitzgerald Assembly in June 1977 stating:”It’s fully in the tradition of Canada.”

The Berger Report on the Mackenzie Valley Pipeline Inquiry is published. It recommends postponing the pipeline for 10 years.The National Energy Board rejects the Mackenzie Valley pipeline route and recommends building the Alaska Highway natural gas pipeline through the Yukon and B.C. It is approved by the Canadian government in August.Dogrib Dene in Rae, Lac La Martre and Rae Lakes refuse treaty annuity unless the government recognizes that the Dene did not “cede and surrender” their land through Treaty #11.

Large rally picketed the Esso building in Montreal to protest the Mackenzie Valley Pipeline. Picketers walked in silence at the request of the Dene.

Meeting with Hugh Faulkner, Minister of Indian Affairs with representatives of the Dene Nation. The meeting was to try and re-establish a negotiating process. Faulkner demanded that the Dene negotiate with the bureaucrats of the Office of Native Claims (ONC). This process proved ineffective and was abandoned by the Dene two years earlier. The Dene refused. Faulkner threatened a moratorium on loans to cover negotiation costs if the Dene continue to “boycott”, in Faulkner’s words, “the process of negotiating through the O.N.C.”

Georges Erasmus, President of the Dene Nation, stated the Dene Nation’s position the National Energy Board in Ottawa in a nine hour sitting before the Board.

Office of the Indian Brotherhood of the NWT in Yellowknife was broken into and confidential documents were stolen.

1977 UN NGO COnference on DiscRimination Against Indigenous

1977 UN NGO Conference on Discrimination Against Indigenous Peoples

Edith Ballyntine Chairwoman oversees the 1st UN Conference that opens Pathway to UNDRIP

1977 UN NGO Conference on Discriminiation Against Indigenous Peoples

Edith Ballyntine Chairwoman oversees the 1st UN Conference that opens Pathway to UNDRIP

First Nations Media Blitz of Europe and Canad to tell the story in their own words

1978 Herb A. Norwegian and Robert (Bob) Overvold began a six week tour of Germany and Denmark on speaking engagements to raise support for the Dene Nation. This tour resulted in an agreement to support from, and coalition with, anti-nuclear groups.

Dene Nation research staff’s work and political pressure from the Dene resulted in blocking the Department of National Defense’s bid to use 2,4,5-t defoliant on the channel maker sites on the Mackenzie River. The use was blocked for one year till the government could evaluate the potential harm this chemical will have on the environment. 2,4,5-t is the defoliant the American Armed Forces used in their war against Vietnam. It’s use is banned in the U.S.A. Some estimates, based on scientific tests, estimate plant growth, in areas where 2,4,5-t is used, to be retarded for up to 25 years.

A federal government land claims proposal, entitled “Dene and Metis Claims in the Mackenzie Valley”, is rejected by both the Dene and Metis. Federal funding for negotiations is suspended for both groups until a single claim is produced. Dene Leadership meeting in Lac La Martre to strategies on approaches to unity among all the descendants of the Dene, specifically to bring the members of the Metis Association and the Dene Nation together under one organization. 450 Dene attended.

Over 300 attended at their expense, having to charter planes or travel by boat to arrive. The name “National Indian Brotherhood of the NWT” is formally changed to “Dene Nation” at the Dene National Assembly and the constitution is amended to open full membership “to all those who have formally declared themselves under the Dene registry”.

Contrary to the Indian Act, the Aklavik Dene Band opens full membership to all descendants of the Dene.

The Dene successfully oppose a Canadian Coast Guard plan to use defoliants along the Deh Cho River.

The Dene at Rae, Rae Lakes, Lac La Martre, Fort Good Hope, Colville Lake and Fort Franklin refuse the annual Treaty annuity offered by the Department of Indian Affairs in protest of the clause which claims their people ceded the land to the Crown. The last meeting between the negotiators for the Dene Nation and the Office of Native Claims (ONC).The paternalistic and ambiguous attitudes of the ONC representatives made it clear to the Dene that there was no point in continuing so-called negotiations with bureaucrats.

Workshop in Victoria organized by Project North to study Aboriginal rights as defined by the Dene, Yukon Natives and Inuit. Speaking engagements to raise support for the rights of the Dene were held in Kelowna, Vancouver, Victoria, Kamloops; with radio television and newspapers interviews throughout.

The Trudeau government announced that the Constitution would be returned to Canada and that a made-in-Canada Constitution would be developed, including a Charter of Rights and Freedoms. (In 1982 provisions on Aboriginal rights were proclaimed, and were developed without the involvement of the First Nations)

.1979The Metis Association announces that the Dene Nation will be responsible for negotiating Aboriginal Rights for both the Dene and the Metis.

The film “Dene Nation” produced by the Dene and directed by Rene Fumoleau is released.“We Remember”, by Raymond Yakeleya, the first film directed by a Dene is released. It wins the “Best Documentary” award at the American Indian Film Festival in 1980.

James Ross publishes “Dinjii Zhun Dene Games”, a booklet introducing seven traditional Dene games.

Mr. Justice Patrick Mahoney rules that the Baker Lake area is subject to the Aboriginal Rights of the Inuit living there, thereby establishing Aboriginal Rights in the Canadian legal system for the first time.Fort Good Hope replaces its Band and Settlement Councils with a unified Dene Council.

Aklavik takes similar action in 1980, and more communities follow.

First Nations citizens arrive in London, England in an attempt to halt the repatriation of the Canadian Constitution.

Experiencing Colonialism and Insisting on FPIC

📷 Justice Thomas Berger

The NWT Council asked NWT Commissioner Hodgson to resign from the Board of Directors of Panarctic Oils Ltd.

Large rally picketed the Esso building in Montreal to protest the Mackenzie Valley Pipeline. Picketers walked in silence at the request of the Dene.

Georges Erasmus, President of the Dene Nation, stated the Dene Nation’s position the National Energy Board in Ottawa in a nine hour sitting before the Board.

Office of the Indian Brotherhood of the NWT in Yellowknife was broken into and confidential documents were stolen.

Ecumenism - Indigenous Rights - Canada timeline

1965

coming soon

1960s

1960s:The Canadian Council of Churches was at work on projects for the Canadian Centenary. The general secretary joined a committee to plan the Christian Pavilion at Expo 67.Criticisms arose, from The United Church of Canada among others, suggesting the Council was not only too compartmentalized but was duplicating the work of the churches. By the mid-60s, the Council was busy examining its purpose, reorganizing itself and writing a new Constitution.Within a few years, instead of coordinating or reflecting the departmental activities of the churches, the Council started to consider its work the nature and nurture of ecumenical encounter and action.CCC/Founding

1963

Montreal

1963

Mexico

1962

Belfast

1961 - New Delhi

Coming Soon

1958

Tokyo

1958

Ghana

1958

By 1958 General Secretary W. J. Gallagher was able to report “phenomenal” growth and development in the Council’s first 14 years. In the preceding two years alone, some 30 inter-church conferences and training sessions had taken place.

In 1958, however, the Council’s Department of Evangelism reported that two years of concerted efforts on the part of member churches had failed to produce a breakthrough in reaching the unchurched. ” . . .The most serious obstacle is the half-awakened, indifferently trained and lethargic members of our congregations and parishes. . . The need today, as always, is for convinced and well-instructed Christians who know how to make their witness wherever they are set in daily life and work.”

CCC/Founding

1957

In 1957 the Council through its Faith and Order Commission participated in a conference in Ohio on The Nature of Unity We Seek. The meeting was organized by the U.S. Conference of the World Council of Churches, the National Council of Churches in the United States and The Canadian Council of Churches. Several study groups met beforehand in Vancouver, Saskatoon and Toronto. 42 Canadians attended, including youth and consultants.

The Council’s Department of Christian education published a booklet titled “one Lord” summing up the doctrines and history of the 10 member churches.

The Department of Social Relations endorsed the appeal of the Chinese Canadian Association to remove the second-class citizenship status affecting Canadian citizens of Asian ancestry. The department also worked on issues such as the rise in gambling, low-cost and low-rental housing, the simplification of funerals, penal reform and mental hospital chaplaincy..

From CCC/founding

Ecumenism - Indigenous Rights - Canada timeline

1945

coming soon

1944

Today a dynamic, tightly focused body with 25 member denominations, the Canadian Council of Churches began in 1944 with tremendous enthusiasm as 10 Christian churches sought to work together to fulfill their call to mission, service, religious education, and evangelism. Together their professed adherents represented more than 45 per cent of the Canadian population. At that time two of three Canadians were in a church on any Sunday–60 per cent of Protestants and 80 per cent of Roman Catholics. The Council was a particularly Canadian vision. There had been proposals to join with the National Council of Churches in the United States in a North American council, but Canadian churches felt there were reasons for a distinctly Canadian organization.

Canadian Lutherans of today's ELCIC were members of the pre-existing North American Council headquartered in the United States. They were ineligible to join the CCC at the founding in 1944. Canadian Lutherans who were part of the Lutheran Church of America (LCA) joined the CCC by Associate Status in 1952. The ELCC (from the ALC) came into being by an Act of Parliament in 1967 and joined as a Member Church in 1969. Today's ELCIC exists as a merger of the ELCC and the Canada section of the LCA.

The Council was born during the Second World War when people worldwide longed to find ways of cooperating. This period saw the drafting of the charter of the United Nations and the founding of the World Council of Churches, in the planning stages from 1938 until its inaugural assembly in 1948. Canadian churches had already been cooperating through bodies related to social service, religious education, evangelism and overseas mission.

At the first meeting of the Council, the general secretary was asked to invite Orthodox Churches to join. The Ukrainian Orthodox Church had accepted by the time of the second meeting in 1945. By 1977 the Council embraced 12 member churches, three of them Orthodox. The 25 member denominations today represent Anglican, Evangelical, Free Church, Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox, Protestant and Catholic traditions. Staff is drawn from all traditions. In the ecumenical spirit, unity does not mean uniformity. It means learning from one another.

On November 11, 1942 an informal meeting of officers of the Canadian churches met in the office of The Rev. Dr. W. J. Gallagher, 3 Willcocks St., Toronto, to consider some aspects of the cooperative work of the Canadian churches and their relation to a North American Council of Churches, which was being proposed. They agreed it was time to organize The Canadian Council of Churches and put their request to the executive of the World Council of Churches Canadian Committee. Five members of that group, five more of the Christian Social Council of Canada and five more from the Religious Education Council plus five representatives of the missionary interests of the Canadian Churches were invited to meet to organize The Canadian Council of Churches.

A service of Ecumenical Worship took place at Yorkminster Baptist Church (now called: Yorkminster Park Baptist Church), located at 1585 Yonge St., Toronto (2 blocks north of St. Clair Ave.) – September 26, 1944 at 8:00 p.m., followed by three days of meetings. The first president of The Canadian Council of Churches was The Most Rev. Derwyn T. Owen, Archbishop of Toronto and Primate of All Canada, The Church of England in Canada.

1940s:

The Council was asked to consider the treatment accorded to Japanese Canadians and decided to send “the strongest deputation possible” to the Prime Minister to argue against the government’s move to induce Canadian citizens of “Japanese race” to return or emigrate to Japan. Some other issues of the day: chaplaincy to prisoners of war, a $10,000 grant for the restoration of the Canadian Vimy Memorial Church, venereal disease, marriage laws and a mobilization of the world resources of the church for righteous peace.

1938

Madras

1938

Utrecht

1937

Edinburgh

1937

Oxford

2014 Expression of Reconciliation at the TRC National Event

Read the full Expression of Reconciliation at the link below

Ecumenism - Indigenous Rights - Canada timeline

2024 - 80th Anniversary CCC

2021 - A Year after Pope Francis' Canada Trip

2021 - Implementing UNDRIP

Who We Are in the CCC & WCC

1947 Canadian Lutherans & WCC

1952 Canadian Lutherans & CCC (LCA)

1952 Canadian Lutherans & CCC (LCA)

1952 Canadian Lutherans & CCC (LCA)

1952 Canadian Lutherans & CCC (LCA)

1952 Canadian Lutherans & CCC (LCA)

1969 Canadian Lutherans in CCC (ELCC)

1986 LCA & ELCC Canadian Lutherans Merge to form ELCIC

1986 LCA & ELCC Canadian Lutherans Merge to form ELCIC

1986 LCA & ELCC Canadian Lutherans Merge to form ELCIC

1986 LCA & ELCC Canadian Lutherans Merge to form ELCIC

1986 LCA & ELCC Canadian Lutherans Merge to form ELCIC

Ecumenism - Indigenous Rights - Canada timeline

2000s

2015 RELEASE OF CANADA'S TRC FINAL REPORT

2015

2015

2015

2015

2014

2014

Ecumenism - Indigenous Rights - Canada timeline

2005

2005

2001

Ecumenism - Indigenous Rights - Canada timeline

1995

1990s:

1995

1991 CANBERRA

1990

1989

1989

Ecumenism - Indigenous Rights - Canada timeline

1985

1985

1983 Vancouver

1980s

1982

1982

1980

1979

1970s

1970s

1970s:

1975 LAUNCH OF PROJECT NORTH

Ecumenism - Indigenous Rights - Canada timeline

1975 NAIROBI

1974

1972

1971 Lima

1971 Louvain

1969 Canadian Government White Paper

1968 Uppsala

1967 - EXPO Christian Pavillion Montral

1967

1966

1967 - EXPO Christian Pavillion Montral

Dene Nation Founding - Project North

Beginning of the Indian Brotherhood - NWT

Not Just Men in the Brotherhood Movement

Seen here, Nellie Cournoyea with James Wah-shee in 1973, ©NWT Archives/NCS-Native Press Photo/N-2018-010-01232

Experiencing Colonialism and Insisting on FPIC

📷 Justice Thomas Berger

1977 UN NGO COnference on DiscRimination Against Indigenous

1977 UN NGO Conference on Discrimination Against Indigenous Peoples

1977 UN NGO Conference on Discriminiation Against Indigenous Peoples

First Nations Media Blitz of Europe and Canad to tell the story in their own words

Experiencing Colonialism and Insisting on FPIC

📷 Justice Thomas Berger

Project North - Liberal White Paper - and the Founding of the Dene Nation on Video

Ecumenism - Indigenous Rights - Canada timeline

1965