The strengths of the Diocese of Qu’Appelle lie undoubtedly in the resilience of its people and leadership, both lay and ordained. In response this diocese is constantly changing and adapting to the many challenges it faces and anticipates.

Supported by responsible management from Diocesan Council and an able Synod Office staff, this resilience of spirit and willingness to change bodes well for the future. It can be seen in present initiatives such as the Bishop’s Council of Regions, local regional councils, and the Future Planning task force. It is also shown in our partnership with the national church in which we gave leadership in the homosexuality debate and, more recently, in the negotiations with the federal government over the residential schools.

As noted earlier, the prospects for Qu’Appelle Diocese appeared very grim from 1998 to 2003 as the residential school litigation crisis deepened. Many parishes now describe this as a wilderness time. The clouds lifted somewhat in 2003 when agreement was reached between the Anglican Church of Canada and the federal government with the establishment of the Settlement Fund.

The prairie church has seen hard times before and has endured. How to do effective ministry in scarcity is not a new question. The church is now challenged by the crucial issues of shrinking congregations and lack of young faces in them. In the midst of these challenges, the Spirit continues to stir in many a strong desire to grow in faith, hope, and prayer.

The crisis times have made it imperative to rethink our ministry. Shortage of resources gave impetus to work on new forms of ministry. Since 2000, the diocese has undertaken serious work in strategic planning and crisis management. In many senses this can be viewed as the kind of pruning referred to in John 15. Our intent has indeed been to remove unfruitful branches and prune all our other branches to make them more fruitful. Some committees have been retired.

New ways of thinking have been adopted. The measures include:

Communication networks are being developed and built.

Parishes are being encouraged to work together regionally and to share ministry resources.

New diocesan structures focusing on regional ministry are being built.

The diocese continues to invest heavily in lay education. More work is needed and lay people are encouraged to explore the faith and use their ministry gifts.

Study programs such as Living the Covenant have been adopted and implemented.

The Firm Foundations program referred to previously is a new program of stewardship quite unlike anything tried before in the diocese.

Today, the diocesan mood is clearly different from that of recent years. There is a sense of direction and purpose, of new beginnings and growth, and of not being alone. The Spirit is constantly reinvigorating God’s people and recreating the face of Qu’Appelle, and we are continuously discerning the leading of the same Spirit for the good of the church.

- extracted from Diocesan profile 2005