Dear Prime Minister: A Few Things You Should Know Before We Meet

Last week, the 45th Parliament opened, with a new prime minister at the helm of government, and fresh opportunities for faithful Canadians to bring justice priorities to the attention of a new Cabinet.

The Moderator, The Right. Rev. Dr. Carmen Lansdowne, and the General Secretary, Rev. Michael Blair, wrote Prime Minister Mark Carney to request an urgent meeting to outline The United Church of Canada’s justice priorities, and urge the government’s action. Promising regular contact from senior administration and congregants, the Moderator and General Secretary noted the United Church’s priorities for Canada’s 45th Parliament:

• 2S & LGBTQIA+ peoples’ rights
• Advancing racial equity
• Indigenous Peoples’ right to truth, justice and reparations
• Acting for climate justice
• Standing for global solidarity, peace, and respect for international law

“Our reach is far beyond our membership: we hold deep and reciprocal partnerships throughout Canada and around the world, play an integral role in national networks and coalitions, both faith-based and civil society, and have become a highly respected voice in those spaces,” the letter reads. “You and the government will regularly be contacted both by our senior administration and by individual congregants.”

Marking the one-year anniversary of the Gaza Ceasefire Pilgrimage, a collective effort to bring attention to the plausible genocide in Gaza, The United Church of Canada is one signatory of many on an ecumenical letter on behalf of KAIROS Canada to Prime Minister Carney. Together, the group of denominations and organizations, which unify more than 4 million people from communities across Canada, also requested a meeting with the Prime Minister.

The letter urges the prime minister to lead Canada to take a principled stand in respecting international law, work to end famine, respond to Israel’s plausible genocide in Gaza, and build conditions towards a just peace in Palestine and Israel.

Further, the Moderator wrote to the prime minister on behalf of the United Church Women (UCW) supporting a petition, Women's Voice for Gaza: A Palestinian Christian Call for Justice and Life, written by Palestinian Christian women about the deliberate starvation being used as a weapon of war in Gaza. The United Church of Canada also signed this petition; endorsements from individuals and organizations of all backgrounds who support the call for justice are encouraged.

These letters and full statements are in the downloads section at the end of this page.