ETHNIC MINISTRIES COMMITTEE

Chair: Young-Hee Yoon

Staff: Wenh-In Ng

Ethnic Ministries: http://www.united-church.ca/em/

MANDATE

1. DEFINITIONS

a. Ethnic This term has traditionally referred to persons or groups of people whose racial, cultural and/or linguistic heritage are other than English, French or First Nations. All persons have ethnicity, however, in that they belong to and share a particular racial, cultural, and/or linguistic heritage, and, other than First Nations peoples, have an original homeland or have ancestors which came from another (or other) homeland(s). (General Council Ethnic Ministries
1994)

b. Ethnic Ministries
Ministries within the United Church involving what has traditionally been referred to as “ethnic” persons and pastoral charges. (General Council Ethnic Ministries 1994)

c. Ethnic Minorities
Persons whose ancestry is not English or Anglo/Saxon, French or First Nations, and whose first language is not English, French or any of the First Nations languages. (General Council Ethnic Ministries
1994)

d. Ethno Specific
Pertaining to a single ethnic group. (General Council Ethnic Ministries
1994)

e. Mission means one (1) or more groups of people that are a part of the United Church and that meet for public worship, but not fully constituted as a Pastoral Charge or a Congregation by the Presbytery. (The Manual, 2000)

f. Multicultural Ministries
No official General Council definition.

2. RELATIONSHIPS

a. Relationship with committee membership
Due to the diversity of the committee and the sensitivity of some of the issues, it is crucial that the meetings be a safe place for members. The committee will intentionally seek out a variety of means to model living out the mandate of the committee.

b. Relationship with Ethnic Ministries Unit of the General Council
The Ethnic Ministries Unit will designate a program staff person to be a liaison to the Toronto Conference EMC. At committee meetings, the EM liaison will have a voice as advisor and support and will assist to connect the committee’s ministry with the ministry of the Ethnic Ministries Unit in the wider church.
The Ethnic Ministries Unit elects two representatives from Toronto Conference.

The mission of the Ethnic Ministries Unit is to nurture and support the ministries of Ethnic Ministries congregations of The United Church of Canada to participate fully and faithfully in the Church's life and mission as a developing, growing, and gifted presence.

The purpose of the Ethnic Ministries Unit is to nurture a growing diversity of ethnic minority congregations and ethnic minorities in the broader understanding of diversity in the ethnic majority church.

c. Relationship with Toronto Conference Executive
The committee will designate a representative to the Toronto Conference Executive as a voting member who will communicate decisions and emerging objectives to the two bodies.

d. Relationship with Toronto Conference nominations committee
The committee will receive a liaison from the Toronto Conference nominations committee as a corresponding member.

e. Relationship with Toronto Don Valley multicultural ministry
The goal of the Toronto Conference EMC is to provide specific support to and advocacy for ethnic congregations. A goal of the mission strategy ministry of Toronto Don Valley Presbytery is to enable the development and support of multicultural ministry within its bounds. Toronto Conference EMC and mission strategy of Toronto Don Valley Presbytery commit to share relevant information and resources; in addition they will be corresponding members of their respective committees.

3. MISSION
The mission of the Toronto Conference Ethnic Ministries committee is to nurture and support the ministries of ethnic ministries congregations and missions to participate fully and faithfully in the Church’s life and mission as a developing, growing, and gifted presence.

4. MANDATE
Toronto Conference recognizes that new populations are changing the United Church and also changing the region – demographically and socio-politically. EMC seeks to support the ethnic ministries congregations and missions that exist and that are forming.

We seek to:
a) assist ethnic ministries congregations and missions in the Presbyteries of Toronto Conference in their own empowerment as a ministry within The United Church of Canada and to offer support in their striving: to nurture faith, to foster vigorous mission and service, to share the Gospel, and to serve justice, in their own context;

b) assist ethnic ministries congregations and missions to faithfully respond to the ministry needs and gifts of their various generations;

c) be available to each other and Presbyteries, where appropriate and possible, to provide and/or recommend cultural interpretation to assist in addressing conflict in ethnic ministries congregations and missions;

d) assist Toronto Conference – committees (including the Ethnic Ministries committee), organizations, congregations, missions, mission units, and Presbyteries –in understanding and celebrating the cultural diversity within Toronto Conference;

e) work with the courts of the church and the Toronto United Church Council on ethnic ministries mission strategy and church development;

f) in consultation with Presbyteries, help joint search committees of ethnic congregations to recognize when they have become so diversified that they need intentionally to seek leadership which reflects the diversified congregation.

5. STRATEGY
The EMC will regularly review its mandate, evaluate its ministry, develop a workplan, and identify a volunteer network as a means of living out the mandate. EMC, through cross-cultural education, will seek to foster understanding, support, fellowship and leadership.

6. MEMBERSHIP
a. Voting members:
• a chairperson or co-chairs appointed by Conference through the nominations committee report at the Conference annual meeting,
• 4 additional Conference appointed members-at-large,
• two representatives (ministry personnel and lay person) from each service of each ethnic ministries United Church congregation and mission in Toronto Conference,
• ethnic rally coordinator,
• Toronto Conference representatives to the General Council Ethnic Ministries Unit,
• a representative from each Presbytery.

b. Corresponding members:
• General Council Ethnic Ministries staff liaison,
• Nominations committee liaison,
• mission strategist (responsible for multicultural ministry support) of Toronto Don Valley Presbytery,
• those linguistic specific congregations choosing to be corresponding members,
• those ethnic minority ministry personnel serving majority congregations choosing to be corresponding members.

c. Terms:
i. Terms for chairs or co-chairs: one year term renewable for a maximum of a four year term in office. After serving as chair or co-chair one may not be appointed by the Conference to the committee for one year.

ii. Terms for persons appointed to the committee by the Conference: three year term renewable once for a maximum of a six year term.

iii. Terms for persons appointed to the committee by an ethnic ministries congregation: as determined by the congregation.

iv. Terms for persons representing Toronto Conference at the General Council Ethnic Ministries: three year term as set by the General Council Ethnic Ministries Unit.

v. Terms for Presbytery representatives: one year renewable term as determined by the Presbytery.

d. Quorum:
Quorum will constitute one quarter of the voting membership.

e. The positions of chairperson, members-at-large, and Presbytery representatives will not be restricted to ethnic minority persons.

Approved by EMC September 10, 2003
Approved by Toronto Conference Executive November12, 2003