A Perspective on Cultural Diversity in an Anglican Setting
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
A Perspective on Cultural Diversity in an Anglican Setting by Sonia Sandra Juanita Hinds A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Trinity College of the Toronto School of Theology in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Ministry awarded by Trinity College and the University of Toronto © Copyright by Sonia Sandra Juanita Hinds 2013 A Perspective on Cultural Diversity in an Anglican Setting Sonia Sandra Juanita Hinds Trinity College and the University of Toronto 2013 ABSTRACT This thesis discusses how an ethnically and racially diverse Anglican congregation practises worship in a multicultural setting. It uses three worshiping practices, (1) sharing meals, (2) singing during Sunday liturgy, and (3) exercising leadership, to discuss this phenomenon. The methodology adopted is a phenomenological approach using participant observation, a questionnaire, and two group interviews. An analysis of the interviews yields the participants’ own meanings that complicate and sometimes even challenge two widely held assumptions about the Church and immigration: (1) the concept of multiculturalism is settled; and (2) ethnic and racial diversity are accepted as the norm in the Anglican parish. As a comprehensive analysis of the experience of a single parish, this study contributes to the conversation on multiculturalism in the Anglican Church and to future research on worshipping practices in similar Anglican parishes in Toronto and beyond. The discussion and larger study have implications for the Anglican Church in Canada and its policies of multiculturalism at a time when it is re-examining the impact of ethnic, racial, and cultural diversity on its membership. Chapter 1 introduces the thesis. Chapter 2 explores the background and context of my engagement in ministry. I identify three areas, (1) the parish of Christ Church Scarborough Village, (2) the demographics of Toronto, and (3) Canadian multiculturalism, as important for the setting of the study. Chapter 3 outlines my theology of ministry and highlights the importance of hospitality as a core concept in my understanding of parish ministry. I also provide a review of the literature as I discuss some fundamental biblical, theological, and social science theories for the study. This chapter ends with theological, pastoral, and sociological assumptions operative in the study. Chapter 4 addresses the Action in Ministry and explains the qualitative research methodology employed in this work and lays out the process and procedure. Chapter 5 presents the collection of the data and analyses, providing a dialogue among the three worshipping practices and three cluster themes. Chapter 6 synthesizes the findings and offers evaluation and contributions of the study. Chapter 7 concludes with the contributions of the study. Also in this concluding chapter, I challenge the notion of a multicultural church and recommend the move from a multicultural church to a just multicultural church where welcoming differences is critical for the integration of racial, ethnic, and cultural groups in a congregation with a long tradition of Anglicanism. I also share personal reflections and suggest areas for further research before summarizing and concluding the study. i AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL STATEMENT As a result of marriage to a Canadian citizen, I emigrated from Barbados to Canada in 2001 and six months later began pastoral duties at Christ Church Scarborough Village. This migration to Canada was on a path in the Anglican Church that began a few months after my birth in the Diocese of Barbados, in the Caribbean Province of West Indies. On the journey, I was always treated as being on the “inside yet outside” of the Anglican Church. This was reflected in the manner in which I was initiated into the Christian Church by way of the Anglican Church. My christening was celebrated at the baptismal font of the Anglican cathedral parish of St. Michael and All Angels in the Diocese of Barbados on a weekday because of my mother’s marital status and the policies of the Anglican Church in the Diocese of Barbados. Yet, it was in this denomination that I was nurtured in the Sunday School, other youth ministries, and in many liturgical and leadership roles and where God spoke to me in so many ways. One such way occurred in my early 20’s where I was again to be rejected by the Anglican Church. I had a desire to be ordained as a priest in a denomination that had nurtured and formed me. However, when I found the courage to articulate this, I was told that the Sacrament of Ordination was reserved for males and the vote for women to be ordained was still being considered by the Caribbean Province. However, this did not deter me and again I continued to be an active member where I attended Codrington College. During the twelve years while I waited, I completed two other courses of studies—Masters in Sacred Theology and a Certificate in Social Work at University of West Indies. In 1994 and 1996 I was ordained to the deaconate and to the priesthood respectively. As a Black woman from the Caribbean, I had a strong sense that God had placed me in the Diocese of Toronto for a special mission in the Anglican Church. Though the ethnic and racial composition of the Anglican Church in Barbados was different from the multicultural milieu of Toronto, the history of the Diocese of Barbados is closely intertwined with the colonial missionary enterprise of England. Thus ethnicity, race, and gender have always intersected in my life as an Anglican. By the time I arrived in Canada, Anglican women in Canada had already enjoyed twenty years of ordination and one had been consecrated as a bishop. Yet, when I learned that I was categorized as a visible minority because I was neither ‘White nor Aboriginal,’ I sensed strongly that the ministry with the congregation of Christ Church was a significant point on my faith journey. For it was in this multicultural context that my questions about immigration, ethnicity, race, multiculturalism, and God’s grace converged. A new journey was being prompted and new ways of experiencing God in the Anglican Church were being opened. The study has been another step on an exciting journey. ii DEDICATION My mother, Audrey Elaine Hinds 1935-2911 This thesis is dedicated to my mother, the late Audrey Elaine Hinds, a woman of grace, faith in God, and deep love for her children. It was in her arms two months after birth that I was taken to the font of the Anglican cathedral of St. Michael and All Angels in the Diocese of Barbados and where my relationship with the Anglican Church began. My mother instilled in me many positive values such as discipline, the importance of doing one’s best, determination, and hard work to achieve success. Her death while I was completing this thesis was made lighter because of the way her spirit inspired me. My dad, Lionel Hinds, who taught me to value education for “where it can take you.” 1923–2002 My sister, Heather Elaine Hinds, who taught me the Christian lesson of how to die before one dies. 1963–2005 The Rev. Dr. Romney Moseley His spirit lives on in the work that he began 1948–1992 iii A Tribute to Professor Wenh-In Ng I have found my voice I thought that it was hidden, no . lost That it was some deep, other place, in a galaxy. cyberspace That that grand man, the Church, had taken her away and replaced her with “Thou art just a woman” and “Thou must obey” I thought that he had divorced me from reality My true self My inner voice. But now I rise up In-stead My voice has been re-focused Re-sharpened Re-imagined Re-invented For in comes Wenh-in To re- store my confidence in claiming voice, To remind me of the lost and forgotten Of the possibility of a New Voice In my head, in my heart This New Voice off ers hope for re-search So the re-searcher is re-searched, Re-sought Re-stored Books and authors are re-authored And my story is no long his story But has become her story For so long, my story seemed like a fairy tale Was lost, hidden Is now found at last Was silenced But is now shaken to speak For now “Go tell “ is the command, Is the call of The New voice I hear iv There may be other crises in confidence in days to come But now It is celestial opportunities of The New Voice For now The New Voice Is the real Sony, no phony: Created anew Re-creating Re-authoring Re-searching Re-stor(y)-ing. Thank you, Professor Wenh-In © Sonia Hinds 2011-09-20 and 2013-02-14 v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS On this exciting journey, many angels sent by God visited to make my burden easier to bear. I offer thanks to God for guidance and inspiration that came from all who assisted with their prayers and support. Those persons included three outstanding professors of the Toronto School of Theology who supervised me in the process: Professor Abrahim Khan stepped on the journey in the early stages and provided encouragement and support in his professional and compassionate way. Professor Thomas Reynolds, who had recently arrived from Chicago, kindly offered his hand to assist me. I appreciated that he often pointed me in the right direction in his focused and gentle manner. Professor Greer Anne Wenh-In Ng, who entered at a critical stage of my journey, became the midwife for the delivery of the thesis. She unfailingly encouraged me during those times when I felt that it was too an arduous journey that needed more steps than I was able to take.