For almost 100 years, the United Church of Canada has had a home on the corner of Gerrard Street East & Rhodes Avenue

In 2019, Glen Rhodes United Church amalgamated with Eastminster United Church and Cosburn United Church to form East End United Regional Ministry.

​We continue our ministry at both the
​Glen Rhodes Campus and the Eastminster Campus.
​
Our Glen Rhodes Campus is home to East End United Regional Ministry, Nourish East End, and our partners in the East End Food Hub, Applegrove Community Programs and the Leslieville Farmers' Market.

Faith. Food. Friends.
Thursdays are for church!

Christ followers have been gathering around tables, sharing in life and bread with one another, from the very beginning. 

​At The Spark, we follow this ancient tradition. We pray. We sing. We share in a simple meal of soup and bread. We talk about scripture. We share the story of our lives.

We'd love to hear your story too.

​We gather every Thursday night at 6:30pm at the Glen Rhodes Campus (1470 Gerrard Street East).

Who hosts The Spark?

East End United Regional Ministry. We are an Affirming (🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️ positive) congregation within the United Church of Canada.

We offer two weekly worship services: We currently gather Sunday mornings at 10:30am at our Eastminster Campus (310 Danforth Avenue) and online, and Thursday evenings at 6:30pm at our Glen Rhodes Campus (1470 Gerrard Street East).

What can I expect?

You can expect to be nourished—physically and spiritually.

The atmosphere is intimate and informal, from how we dress to the place settings. There is nothing fancy here!

Rev. Bri-anne leads us in prayer and accompanies the music on guitar. Songs are generally, short, simple, and repetitive. Don't worry if you don't know the tune— we're sure you'll pick it up. Or, if singing isn't your thing, simply sit back and let the words and voices of others wash over you.

​Children are very welcome at the table.

The focal point of the service is sharing in the Peace Meal with one another. The soup is always vegetarian and we have gluten free options for bread. We discuss a scriptural question and how it relates to our lives. We share the comings and goings of our week, just as a gathering of friends do!

WhO IS EAST END UNITED REGIONAL MINISTRY?

We are not all the same.

We come from different backgrounds. Different kinds of families. Different experiences of the world.

However, many of us share some things in common.

We are a community of seekers, with a sense there is something greater than ourselves. We root this spiritual seeking within the story of Jesus:

WE SING OF JESUS,
A JEW,
BORN TO A WOMAN IN POVERTY
IN A TIME OF SOCIAL UPHEAVAL
AND POLITICAL OPPRESSION.
HE KNEW HUMAN JOY AND SORROW.
SO FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT WAS HE
THAT IN HIM PEOPLE EXPERIENCED THE PRESENCE OF GOD AMONG THEM.
WE SING PRAISE TO GOD INCARNATE.
-A SONG OF FAITH (2006), UNITED CHURCH OF CANADA

​We are a community who believes that "love" and "faith" are action words.  We are deeply committed to the welfare of our neighbours, both locally and internationally. All of God's beloveds deserve to be fed, sheltered, honoured, and cared for.

East End United has many outreach programs. Out of the Cold runs Fridays through the winter months, serving hot meals and offering showers and a place to sleep for those experiencing homelessness.  Nourish East End offers a variety of food security programs including our Wednesday food bank and monthly community dinners. We've sponsored dozens of refugee families as they've come to call Canada home and raise money for the Canadian Foodgrains Bank through our Danforth Grow Hope initiative. 

Knowing charity models addressing the needs of underserved communities are often flawed, we also advocate for changing the systems that force people into poverty in the first place.

Last fall, East End United hosted 30 asylum seekers from African countries. They lived in our Eastminster Campus until they were able to find more stable housing. You can read more about our guests in this article from Broadview Magazine.

​We sing of God’s good news lived out,
a church with purpose:
faith nurtured and hearts comforted,
gifts shared for the good of all,
resistance to the forces that exploit and marginalize,
fierce love in the face of violence,
human dignity defended...
We sing of God’s mission.
-A Song of Faith (2006), United Church of Canada

East End United is proud to be recognized as an Affirming Congregation (2S & LGBTQIA+ positive) within the United Church of Canada.   To become recognized, the congregation must go through a rigorous process of studying its practices, policies, and attitudes toward inclusivity – not just about gender and sexuality, but also around racism, ableism, classism, sexism, and many of the other artificial labels that attempt to segregate us one from another and from God.  As a congregation, we’re committed to the P.I.E. Principle: being Public, Intentional, and Explicit about our theology of God’s love and inclusivity of all persons in our community of faith. 

Divine creation does not cease
until all things have found wholeness, union, and integration
with the common ground of all being.
As children of the Timeless One,
our time-bound lives will find completion
in the all-embracing Creator.
In the meantime, we embrace the present,
embodying hope, loving our enemies,
caring for the earth,
choosing life.
-A Song of Faith (2006), United Church of Canada

Grateful for God’s loving action,
we cannot keep from singing.
Creating and seeking relationship,
in awe and trust,
we witness to Holy Mystery who is Wholly Love.
-A SONG OF FAITH (2006), UNITED CHURCH OF CANADA
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If you are looking for an authentic and loving community where you are valued for who you are, we would love to meet you.

What are you waiting for?

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