SCM is currently looking for communities interested in developing their own SCM Canada chapter. If you are a student and/or youth interested in helping co-ordinate a chapter in your community, email us at info@scmcanada.org

SCM Toronto – Esther

Esther is an alumna both of York and U of T, who first connected with SCM while helping to organize the Cahoots Festival. She has a background in counselling psychology, but is most passionate about justice-seeking Christian communities – intentional and unintentional.

She is a member of the Jeremiah Community and The Dale in Toronto’s Parkdale neighbourhood, where she has taken on roles from dishwashing to peacemaking to preaching. She enjoys singing, contemplative prayer, community kitchens, and creative actions for justice and peace.

You can reach her at esther@scmcanada.org. Don’t hesitate to get in touch if you’d like to meet or share ideas!

SCM Ryerson – Divy

Divy is a graduate of the Ryerson University’s Arts and Cotnemporary Studies Program. They are currently transitioning out of this position to make way for a new Coordinator as they move into the SCM National Coordinator position.

She enjoys watching her tree frogs Brioche and Pancake as well as running her online market Shop Divy.

If you would like to talk to her about joining a Ryerson SCM Bible study, you can reach her at divy@scmcanada.org.

For Matthew Morales, a U of T Mississauga student, finding the Student Christian Movement at U of T came at the perfect time: “I found out about the SCM in a time of uncertainty. I had been processing what it meant to hold together doubts about my faith, the misgivings of my, then, church congregation, and what it meant to live a life that sought out peace. I had been trying to do it alone.”

This winter Matthew started attending the weekly SCM contextual Bible study, “Scripture – Community – Meal”, facilitated by the ECUT chaplains. The questions and conversations around biblical text and its connection to our lives were deeply meaningful. For example, the discussion on Luke 8: 43-48, the story of the woman who was bleeding for 12 years and healed after touching Jesus’ cloak, focused on what healing and self-care means and the visibility/invisibility of pain and disability in our own lives and world. Even on the snowiest days, students travelled as far as Mississauga and Thornhill and as near as Kensington Market to attend – a testament to community and to spiritual growth! Supporting SCM is in ECUT’S mandate, and includes supporting rallies, pub nights, and Cahoots!, the SCM Festival.

As Matthew says, “The SCM has been and is a safe place for me in all the layers of my identity. It’s where I’ve met friends who listened to my grievings as I listened to theirs. And in the midst of it all, the SCM has helped me remember the heart of God rooted in love, peace and justice.”