Governance Structure of the United Church of Canada

The United Church of Canada uses a four-court model of governance, consisting of pastoral charges; presbyteries; conferences and the General Council. The denomination is divided into 13 regional Conferences, which are further subdivided into 88 presbyteries, 2 districts and one synod. The number of pastoral charges within each presbytery varies as the boundaries of the presbyteries change from time to time, but a recent count shows 91 presbyteries. Most of the presbyteries are geographically arranged, covering all parts of Canada and Bermuda. Presbyteries within the All Native Circle Conference, representing congregations that identify with Aboriginal groups, overlap the geographical bounds of other presbyteries in several Conferences.

Conferences and Presbyteries

Name of Conference Regions Covered Names of Presbyteries Regions Covered
All Native Circle Conference[1] First Nations congregations across much of Canada including:
British Columbia
Alberta
Saskatchewan
Manitoba
Ontario
Quebec
All Tribes Presbytery First Nations in Alberta
Great Lakes Waterways Presbytery First Nations in Ontario and Quebec
Keewatin Presbytery First Nations in Northern Manitoba and Northwestern Ontario
Plains Presbytery First Nations in the Prairies
British Columbia Conference[2] British Columbia Cariboo Presbytery Central and Interior British Columbia
Comox-Nanaimo Presbytery Northern Vancouver Island
Fraser Presbytery Southwestern BC mainland
Kamloops-Okanagan Presbytery South-Central BC and the Okanogan Valley
Kootenay Presbytery Southeastern BC mainland
Prince Rupert Presbytery Northwestern BC mainland
Vancouver-Burrard Presbytery City of North Vancouver, Northern area of Vancouver, Pemberton, Squamish, West Vancouver, Whistler
Vancouver South Presbytery Ladner, Richmond, Tsawwassen First Nation, Southern Vancouver
Victoria Presbytery Southern Vancouver Island, Gulf Islands, Victoria
Westminster Presbytery Burnaby, Coquitlam, New Westminster, Port Moody
Alberta Northwest Conference[3] Alberta
Yukon
Northwest Territories
Northeastern British Columbia
Calgary Presbytery Calgary
Coronation Presbytery East-Central Alberta including Drumheller, Camrose
Edmonton Presbytery Edmonton
Foothills Presbytery South-Central Alberta including Banff
Northern Lights Presbytery Northwestern Alberta, Northeastern BC, Yukon, Northwest Territories
Red Deer Presbytery Red Deer and Central Alberta
Saint Paul Presbytery North-Central Alberta
South Alberta Presbytery Southern Alberta
Yellowhead Presbytery Northeastern Alberta
Saskatchewan Conference[4] Saskatchewan Chinook Presbytery Southwestern Saskatchewan
Good Spirit Presbytery Eastern Saskatchewan
Prairie Pine Presbytery Western Saskatchewan
River Bend Presbytery Saskatoon and Central Saskatchewan
Tamarack Presbytery Northern Saskatchewan including Prince Albert
Twin Valleys Presbytery Southeastern Saskatchewan including Qu'Appelle
Wascana Presbytery The city of Regina and surrounding areas
Conference of Manitoba and Northwestern Ontario[5] Manitoba
Northwestern Ontario
Assiniboine Presbytery Southwestern Manitoba including Brandon
Agassiz Presbytery Southern Manitoba
Cambrian Presbytery Northwestern Ontario including Marathon, Red Lake, Thunder Bay
Northland Presbytery Northwestern and Western Manitoba
Selkirk Presbytery Southeastern Manitoba
Winnipeg Presbytery The city of Winnipeg
Manitou Conference[6] Northeastern Ontario
Manitoulin Island
Abitibi-Témiscamingue Region, Quebec
North Bay Presbytery The city of North Bay and surrounding area
Spirit Dancing Presbytery Abitibi-Témiscamingue, Cochrance, Kapuskasing, Timiskaming, Timmins and surrounding areas
Sudbury Presbytery Elliot Lake, Manitoulin Island, Sudbury and surrounding areas
London Conference[7] Southwestern Ontario
Algoma District
Algoma Presbytery The Algoma District and the Eastern coast of Lake Superior including Sault Sainte-Marie, Manitouwadge, Wawa
Elgin Presbytery Elgin County
Essex Presbytery Essex County including the city of Windsor
Huron-Perth Presbytery Huron County and Perth County
Kent Presbytery Chatham-Kent
Lambton Presbytery Lambton County
Middlesex Presbytery Middlesex County
Oxford Presbytery Oxford County
Hamilton Conference[8] Bruce Peninsula
Hamilton
Niagara Region
Kitchener-Waterloo
Bruce Presbytery Bruce Peninsula
Erie Presbytery Brant County, Haldimand County, Norfolk County
Halton Presbytery Regional Municipality of Halton including Oakville
Hamilton Presbytery The city of Hamilton
Niagara Presbytery The Niagara Region
Waterloo Presbytery Cambridge, Guelph, Kitchener-Waterloo and surrounding areas
Toronto Conference[9] The Greater Toronto Area
Muskoka Region
Living Waters Presbytery Muskoka Region and communities north of Toronto including Barrie
Northern Waters Presbytery Angus, Borden, Durham, Owen Sound and surrounding areas
South West PresbyterySouthwestern region of the Greater Toronto Area
Toronto Southeast PresbyterySoutheastern region of the Greater Toronto Area
Bay of Quinte Conference[10] Southeastern Ontario Four Rivers Presbytery Brockville, Smiths Falls, Perth and surrounding areas
Four Winds Presbytery Bath, Harrowsmith, Kingston, Wolfe Island and surrounding areas
Hills and Shores Presbytery Brighton, Campbellford, Cobourg, Trenton and surrounding areas
Kawartha Highlands Presbytery Beaverton, Haliburton County, Kawartha Lakes
Kente Presbytery Belleville, Madoc, Prince Edward County
Lakeridge Presbytery Ajax, Oshawa, Whitby and surrounding areas
Shining Waters Presbytery Bancroft, Peterborough and surrounding areas
Upper Valley Presbytery Arnprior, Denbigh, Pembroke, Renfrew and surrounding areas
Synode Montréal et Ottawa Conference[11] Ottawa, Ontario
Most of Quebec
Nunavut
Le Consistoire Laurentien Laurentians, Numerous francophone congregations throughout Quebec
Montréal Presbytery Laval, The city of Montreal, Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu and surrounding areas
Ottawa Presbytery The city of Ottawa, the Eastern Ottawa Valley and Gatineau, Quebec
Quebec-Sherbrooke Presbytery Western, Central and Northern Quebec and the entirety of Nunavut, including the Côte-Nord region, the Eastern Townships, Nord-du-Quebec region and Quebec City
Seaway Valley PresbyterySoutheastern Ontario-Quebec border region including Prescott and Hawkesbury
Maritime Conference[12] Gaspé Peninsula
New Brunswick
Nova Scotia
Prince Edward Island
Bermuda
Bermuda Synod Bermuda
Chignecto PresbyterySoutheastern New Brunswick and Western Nova Scotia including Amherst, Moncton, Sackville, Springhill and surrounding areas
Halifax Presbytery Halifax Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia
Inverness-Guysborough Presbytery Northeastern mainland of Nova Scotia and western Cape Breton including Guysborough County and Inverness County
Miramichi Presbytery Northern and Northeastern New Brunswick, Gaspe Peninsula
Prince Edward Island Presbytery Prince Edward Island
Pictou Presbytery Northwestern mainland of Nova Scotia including Pictou County and Antigonish County
Saint John Presbytery South-Central New Brunswick and the city of Saint John
South Shore Presbytery Southern Nova Scotia including the South Shore
Saint Croix Southwestern New Brunswick
Sydney Eastern and Industrial Cape Breton including the Cape Breton Regional Municipality, Victoria County and Richmond County
Truro Central Nova Scotia and the Northumberland Shore
Valley The Annapolis Valley region of Nova Scotia and Digby County
Woolastook Central and Western New Brunswick including Fredericton, Edmundston
Newfoundland and Labrador Conference[13] Newfoundland and Labrador Western District Western Newfoundland and Labrador including Port-aux-Basques, Saint Anthony, Happy Valley-Goose Bay, Forteau, Labrador
Eastern District Eastern Newfoundland including the Avalon Peninsula and Fortune

General Council

The denominational structure of the United Church consists of two main parts. The General Council itself meets every three years and consists of approximately 360 ordained, commissioned and lay commissioners who have been elected by their respective Conferences to set denominational policy and doctrine; to debate and discuss proposals and other work which appropriately comes before the highest court of the church; to elect a Moderator, and to serve for three years. From within the General Council an Executive and Sub-Executive are chosen to govern between triennial meetings. The General Council Office consists of the Moderator, the General Secretary and other support staff to the General Council, as well as members of the four permanent committees of the General Council, seven major working units and various other committees and task groups. The General Council Office is under the complete direction of the larger General Council and has a mandate to carry out the work which is given to them by the General Council.[14]

General CouncilArchives Committee
Audit Committee
General SecretaryModerator
Judicial Committee
Manual Committee
Permanent Committee on Programs for Mission and MinistryPermanent Committee on Ministry & Employment Policies and Services
Aboriginal Ministries CircleExecutive of the General CouncilTheology and Inter-Church Inter-Faith Committee
Permanent Committee on Governance & AgendaPermanent Committee on Finance
Transfer Committee
Sub-Executive of the General Council
Committees and
Task Groups
General Council Office Staff Working Units[15]
Church in MissionAboriginal Ministries CircleFinance
PhilanthropyMinistry & EmploymentCommunications
Office of the Moderator
& General Secretary

References

  1. "Conference Directory: All Native Circle Conference". The United Church of Canada. United Church of Canada. Retrieved 2015-08-21.
  2. "BC Conference". BC Conference of The United Church of Canada. BC Conference of the United Church of Canada. Retrieved 2015-08-21.
  3. "Presbyteries in the Conference". Alberta and Northwest Conference of the United Church of Canada. Alberta and Northwest Conference of the United Church of Canada. Retrieved 2015-08-21.
  4. "Presbyteries". Saskatchewan Conference of the United Church of Canada. Saskatchewan Conference of the United Church of Canada. Retrieved 2015-08-21.
  5. "Presbyteries". The Conference of Manitoba and Northwestern Ontario. United Church of Canada. Retrieved 2015-08-21.
  6. "Who We Are". Manitou Conference. Manitou Conference of the United Church of Canada. Retrieved 2015-08-21.
  7. "About Us: Presbyteries". London Conference of the United Church of Canada. United Church of Canada. Retrieved 2015-08-21.
  8. "Who We Are". Hamilton Conference of the United Church of Canada. United Church of Canada. Retrieved 2015-08-21.
  9. "Toronto Conference". Toronto Conference of the United Church of Canada. Toronto Conference. Retrieved 2015-08-21.
  10. "Presbyteries". Bay of Quinte Conference of the United Church of Canada. Bay of Quinte Conference. Retrieved 2015-08-21.
  11. "About Us - Qui sommes-nous". Synode Montreal & Ottawa Conference. United Church of Canada. Retrieved 2015-08-21.
  12. "Directory: Presbyteries". Maritime Conference of the United Church of Canada. United Church of Canada. Retrieved 2015-08-21.
  13. "United Church of Canada: Newfoundland and Labrador Conference". Newfoundland and Labrador Conference of the United Church of Canada. United Church of Canada. Retrieved 2015-08-21.
  14. "Congregations and Courts of the United Church". The United Church of Canada. United Church of Canada. Retrieved April 15, 2016.
  15. "General Council Office Structure". The United Church of Canada. United Church of Canada. Retrieved April 16, 2016.
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