The Anglican bishops of British Columbia and Yukon issued a pastoral letter on Wednesday after the province declared a state of emergency after torrential rains caused flooding and mudslides that blocked major highways and rail lines. Vancouver, Canada’s third-largest city, was cut off from the rest of the country by land. The state of emergency permits the government to ban non-essential travel, hoarding of goods and price gouging.
On Sunday, November 21 at 5:30pm Eastern the Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, the Most Rev. Linda Nicholls and National Indigenous Archbishop, the Most Rev. Mark MacDonald will host A Vigil for British Columbia. A press statement from the national church office said: “The vigil will be an online national prayer service to lift up all those who have been impacted by the devastating floods experienced recently in the province.”
Archbishop Mark MacDonald has also written, “People are stranded and cut off from food, [medication] and emergency services. This is a catastrophe for communities, including the folks from Lytton [British Columbia], that have suffered so much in the past year. Our Indigenous Anglican churches are severely threatened. People are terrified. Please pray.”
