A New Creed, The United Church of Canada

We are not alone, we live in God’s world. We believe in God: who has created and is creating,

who has come in Jesus the Word made flesh, to reconcile and make new, who works in us and others by the Spirit.

We trust in God. We are called to be the Church: to celebrate God’s presence, to live with respect in Creation,

to love and serve others, to seek justice and resist evil, to proclaim Jesus, crucified and risen, our judge and our hope.

In life, in death, in life beyond death, God is with us. We are not alone. Thanks be to God

REV. JOHN YOUNG-JUNG LEE     

Telephone: (W) 416 694-2095     E-mail address: johnleeucc@sympatico.ca     

John's Vocation

John believes that individuals and the church are identified by the future they are heading for. John is a committed member of the Order of Ministry of The United Church of Canada, and he believes that people are called to celebrate God’s creation through God’s will for peace on earth. "Peace on earth” is the good news for all God's creation through which church finds its raison d'etre. Church should be the best and most efficient instrument that proclaims God’s will for the world. John finds Jesus’ work of mercy in his ministry with the Galilean people, and work of justice in his journey toward Jerusalem. John’s key ideas in ministry are: justice and mercy; mutual respect; discovering gifts in others.

John’s Involvement in Ministry

John was ordained in 1996 after his first career as an architect and has extensive experience in pastoral ministry, involvements in presbytery and conference leadership role and general council level of work. These experiences, for him, are opportunities of thinking about the future of Church in concrete terms; and experience of learning through sharing the visions of the Church and actualizing them. As a member of The United Church of Canada, he takes his pride in its identity as the disciples of Christ who lives out faith in Jesus' ministry, teachings and the life of cross and resurrection. However he realizes that the Church needs to work hard for its relevance to the world. To do so in this ever fast changing world, church needs to be changed to meet the needs of the world and to catch up the pace of development in the secular world. With the key word “change” and his unique perspective which has been developed through his life experience as laity and through theological training and practical work in ministry, John presents hopeful vision for the future.

Signs of Times

John's reading of the signs of times is that the world is now being pushed into fast changes in a new world order with globalization. Not only is globalization a contemporary phenomenon, but it brings with it many novel cultures with developments of technology in transportation and communication in an emerging digital era that spawns new needs and new problems. A new terminalogy "change in a hockey stick curve" well describes the contemporary change and the Church need to be more creative to sense the direction of future development of the church and the world. To be the church that serves the world, these changes necessitate fresh innovative ways of thinking and, at the same time, working with a deep understanding of old ways.

Communication and Resolution of Problems

To be faithful in God’s mission, developing healthy ministries is crucial. The Church needs to promote stewardship and membership in congregations; to build just relationships in our culturally diverse Church; to promote younger people’s participation; to resolve the isolation of ministers in our Church, and the like. All these current issues call the Church to develop better means and ways of communication that deal with both aspects of explicit and implicit dynamics.  This calls the church to pay serious attention to the postmodern lifestyle and to building the fast communication tool such as electronic nerve system.

John’s Gift for Ministry 

The gifts John would bring to the ministry of different levels of the Church are 1) capability for dynamic and multidimensional analysis of  new structures and the whole church, and synthesis of multi-perspectives, by which he means, ethno specific, rural and urban, lay and ordered, young and old, etc., 2) ability to think in an organic way that goes beyond superficial phenomena, which enables the units and the partners in a team to work practically with incorporation of ideals, and 3) skills of information processing, fast thinking (not spontaneous) and communication that enable a multifaceted approach to the task of the churches.

John’s Work Style 

John's work style is well suited to the work of the churches and its varied ministries on all different levels of the Church which necessitate high energy through sharing the gifts of respectful listening, patience, flexibility, a keen desire to learn, innovative and creative thinking, positive projection of the work process, and a proactive and multi-perspective approach. John endeavours to bring skills of communication with differences, accurate measurement of process and its consequences, along with theological reflection, critical writing and evaluation. He enjoys working as a team member and strives to work collegially and compassionately with team members, both staff and volunteers, in ministry. John also has experienced the invisible leadership which empowers all the participants and/or members of the team in ministry.

John’s Concern in Ministry 

John sees 'change' as way for life and growing and takes it as a creative and prophetic vision into various contexts of ministry and in shaping of the church. Diversity is a precious gift especially in our postmodern times and church should be the one that respects the differences and values the gifts of diversity in the journey towards justice, reconciliation and healing. John is willing to offer to the ministry wherever he participates, his dreams and visions, and whatever gifts he may have, and eventually his whole self, out of his passionate commitment for the Church that is in, with, and for the world.

John’s Involvement in Congregational Ministry

John has confidence in God’s being with us, and God’s will for the world to mend and to reconcile to be in peace and harmony. John has been with Dentonia Park United Church since 1996. While enjoying most aspects of pastoral ministries and pursuing the vocation of the Christ’s church, John has placed particular emphasis on lectionary based preaching that reflects the world we live in and witnesses to the good news of God, inclusive worship leadership that accepts others as they are, and Christian development of youth and adults with community based programs through working as a team. John believes that the church can sustain its vitality when it is faithful to God's mission.

Ministry to Build a Community of Trust

John's primary concern in ministry in all the levels of the church is to build a community of trust that will enhance the “energy level” of each member and the whole members together. One of John's strengths is to facilitate communication through utilizing multi-perspectives: experience of trans-culture; lay and clergy; young and old; modern and postmodern behaviour. John's self-critical evaluation is done as part of any program or event by checking where and how the team finds joy as it experiences encountering differences and exploring new ways and thinking.

A Welcoming Church

John is positive that all the United Churches with "unity in diversity" will become a welcoming community that celebrates God’s presence as they build comfortable nests for the people of global village. John diferentiates welcoming from hospitality and is eager to be part of a ministry team which develops mutual respect and values individual differences as God’s gifts and weaves them into a wonderful fabric. To shape a community of welcoming, actualizing God's justice by mutual respect is the primary factor that leads the church as a community of healing and reconciliation. This will enable the congregation  to experience shalom, God given harmony, that new comers and old members, people of different culture and traditions feel comfortable to be with each other.

John’s Ministry “To Be With”

John believes that ministry “to be with” is a fundamental way of Christ who brought genuine healing and reconciliation. This differentiates Christian service, work, education and outreach from the secular ones. Ministry at Dentonia Park United Church (DPUC) has been a time of discerning the call and search for the ways “to be with” others within the congregation and the people of neighbourhood; and what it means to be inclusive in the life of church. This is the way that the church sustains and keeps up with high level of energy during the last ten years.

Worship in Ministry with Inclusiveness and Forgiveness

DPUC experiences worship as a joyful, healing and reconciling event in the church’s life that reflects the identity and mission of Christ and his followers. In this celebration of God’s presence, DPUC emphasizes inclusiveness of people, the use of language as an important element and experiences God’s grace rather than simply talking about God. To do so, in worship as well as other parts of church’s life, John strives to enable the whole congregation to experience forgiving each other’s mistakes and thereby celebrate new learning through this process.

Empowered to Reach Out

This dynamic develops with building a trusting relationship as one body of Christ and enables the congregation to keep its energy level high. By trusting each other, the present ministry of DPUC involves actively striving to be with the neighbouring community: monthly worship service at Toronto East General Hospital that terminated at the end of the year 2005; occasional services for Ina Grafton Gage Homes; supporting a reading circle for children; Dentonia Park Community Children’s Choir; and biweekly Wednesday Healing Prayer Service, Women's Study Group, Friday Movie Night, etc.