The Rev. Susan Lukey, the Rev. Hoeun Lee, and the Rev. Marie-Claude Manga preside at multilingual worship service
Nestled among the towering arches and stained-glass windows of Metropolitan United Church (Toronto), and walls hung with original Norval Morriseau paintings, several hundred people participated in a celebratory hello to the 100th year of The United Church of Canada. Hundreds more people joined the livestream on The United Church of Canada’s YouTube channel.
The multilingual service of the 99th anniversary was hosted by the Rev. Jason Meyers, Coordinating Minister at Metropolitan United, and led by the Rev. Susan Lukey, the Rev. Hoeun Lee, and the Rev. Marie-Claude Manga.
“We are grateful for the technology that allows us to gather from across the country and around the world,” said the Rev. Lukey in her opening remarks. “It is good that we are able to be here to celebrate God’s presence, and to set our intentions for this historic year ahead.”
The Rev. Lukey also acknowledged the loss by fire of the historic St. Anne’s Anglican Church in Toronto that very morning.
Guests included The Venerable Alan Perry, General Secretary of General Synod for the Anglican Church of Canada; The Reverend Victor Kim, Principal Clerk at The Presbyterian Church in Canada; The Rev. Canon Chris Kinyanjui, General Secretary of the National Council of Churches of Kenya; and former Moderators and general secretaries.
Joni Shawana, Anishanawbe of Wikwemikong Unceded Territory, and Sandra Campbell, Wahta Mohawk First Nation, offered welcoming and gathering songs. Samantha Pepin delivered a moving gospel reading from the Mohawk Bible. Pepin is the granddaughter of the Bible’s translator, Elder Harvey Satewas Gabriel, and a sixth-generation descendant of Chief Sosé Joseph Onasakenrat (Joseph Swan), who translated the gospels in the 1880s.
The Moderator, the Rev. Dr. Carmen Lansdowne, offered a message that spoke to the diverse expressions of the deep faith of this uniting church. She carried on the theme of the service: both acknowledging and removing stones or harms, and cultivating the soil for seeds of love to flourish.
In a sermon that included holding up one of her amazing Fluevog shoes (see 1:08:26 in the video), a nod to the youth of Pacific Mountain Regional Council’s AGM, the Moderator included the first three Articles of Doctrine from the 1925 Basis of Union and quotes from a 1912 sermon by the Rev. Samuel Chown, one of the founders and champions of church union. Her sermon affirmed that in past, present, and future—in the times to confess and lament, and in the times to celebrate —“God is always saying to us, ‘Look, I am doing a new thing. Can you not perceive it?’” (Isaiah 43:19).
General Secretary the Rev. Michael Blair and the Rev. Lukey presided over communion for all in attendance.
Music leadership was diverse and varied, including the Metropolitan Silver Band, Metropolitan Choir and Guests, Then Let Us Sing! Committee members, and the church’s historic carillon.
After the service, the Rev. Blair and the Rev. Dr. Lansdowne cut a huge birthday cake outside; cupcakes and punch were served on the lawn. Although the weather was overcast, those in attendance left the celebration with sunny hearts and the hymn “Go to the World” joyfully ringing in their ears.
Many staff and volunteers of both Metropolitan United Church and the General Council Office helped to bring this commemorative worship service to fruition.
You can download the Service Book—and the inaugural sermon from 1925—from this website, and we will be posting a transcript of the Moderator’s sermon in the coming days.
The service is also available on our YouTube channel.
The 100th anniversary is June 10, 2025. Stay up to date on plans and celebrations by signing up for the Centennial Newsletter and checking the Centennial webpage. If your community of faith is planning a special 100th event, please share it with us!