General Council is the national decision-making body of the United Church of Canada and meets every three years, with business and learning meetings online in between.
It hasn’t met in person since 2018, owing to the COVID pandemic. So it’s exciting that finally, August 7-11 General Council will convene in person in Calgary, and online for the public via the United Church’s YouTube channel.
Around 500 people will be involved, including Commissioners (voting members), Youth Forum, global and ecumenical partners, visitors, volunteers, and staff. You are welcome to join public sessions online!
We thank the Commissioners elected in 2024 by our Regional Council for all their important work on behalf of the entire church. Living Skies Regional Council Commissioners are:
Ministry Personnel: Aurora Espenant, Sarah Giles, SunDo Hyun, Kathleen James-Cavan, David Mugadzi, Darrell Reine, Janelle Shaw, Piotr Strzelecki and Yvonne Terry.
Lay: Joshua Bell, Nyakier Guandong, Sheila Ivanochko, Mark Pitman, Bill Pollock, and Diane Thurlow.
All public information is posted here, on the GC45 website.
Key moments
Here are some key moments, in addition to discussion and decision-making that are a key part of General Council:
Aug. 8, 9:00 AM MDT: The 2S and LGTBQIA+ Apology from Knox United Church. Full information on accessing the Apology is here, and the recording will be available on the United Church’s YouTube channel soon after.
Aug. 9, time TBC: selection and announcement of the new Moderator (elected head of the United Church).
Aug. 10, 6:30 a.m.: Alvin Dixon Memorial Walk/Run
Aug. 11: Decisions, and then the installation of the new Moderator at around 7:00PM MDT (Calgary)
Please note that not all discussion about proposals will be public. Much of this is done in smaller groups, as there are many proposals to discuss. Proposals are primarily about setting priorities and policies for the national church and are voted on by Commissioners (elected representatives) only.
