Quebec MB Conference Convention
Living one's faith in daily life

Ste. Rose, Quebec

Reaching Quebec for Christ is no small task. The Quebec MB Conference consists of eight small congregations, four of them without pastors, in a province of 7 million people which is considered the most secularized region in North America.

The convention, on Sept. 12, was ably hosted by the Ste-Rose Church. This congregation has been newly revitalized in the past two years, reaching out through Evangelism Explosion door-to-door witnessing campaigns and events such as blood donor clinics which introduce new people to the church.

The main item in the moderator's report was the recent struggles in the St-Jérôme Church, which is one of the stronger churches in the Conference. Tensions had arisen between the church elders and pastor André Bourque over Bourque's enthusiasm for charismatic deliverance ministries. In February, 1998, the elders asked the Quebec Conference executive for assistance; Bourque agreed to certain restriction on his ministry, and a commission to study the issue was formed, including Bourque. However, in June, in a congregational vote for a new leadership team, Bourque failed to receive the required 75% affirmation and left the church. The church is now being led by the newly elected elders and deacons, with assistance from the Conference executive. Bourque has since declared his intention to leave the MB Conference, and is in the process of starting a new charismatic congregation. Théorêt admitted that the situation was a difficult one that had left real wounds. Nevertheless, even though the issue of deliverance ministries had divided the St-Jérôme Church, there seemed to be no disagreement in the rest of the Conference over the issue.

The issue was another example of the need for more trained pastors in the Conference. During the past year, one new pastor, Stéphane Rhéaume, was installed as pastor in the St-Eustache church. However, other vacancies remain.

The Evangelism report published in advance in Le Lien, the French-language MB periodical, focused on the considerable outreach efforts of the various churches. However, at the convention, Patrice Nagant highlighted the Canadian MB Conference's Key Cities church planting initiative. Nagant will set up a task force in the next year to develop a common evangelism vision and to prepare for a possible Key City initiative in Montreal.

Emile Laflèche, management representative, had surveyed the churches regarding their needs for multi-risk insurance. In discussion, it was pointed out that there was a need for a document which church workers could sign indicating they would abide by Conference standards; it was thought that this would reduce the risk of lawsuits. Other delegates asked whether the issue had been studied by the Canadian Conference.

The Conference finished the 1997-98 year with income of $18,770 (including an $11,355 subsidy from the Canadian Conference), significantly less than the $23,565 budgeted. However, expenses were held to $19,148. The $378 deficit reduces the Conference's accumulated surplus to $2171.

For 1998-99, the Conference executive presented a budget which called for spending $20,050. However, the executive had left the revenue side of the budget blank. Moderator Théorêt explained, "For three years, we have proposed contribution amounts from the churches, and they have never been achieved. This year, the budget is incomplete. I await your reactions." His announcement resulted in a vigorous discussion, which carried on into the meal break. When delegates reassembled, they approved a per-member norm of $14.25, using the membership figures from the Canadian Conference yearbook--although it was pointed out that the latter figures are inaccurate because some churches have not kept their membership lists up to date.