Today, the ‘Chapel Society' continues that same spirit of cooperation as the landlord of Millennium Place, where the Christian and Jewish communities can worship, the artisans can create, the youth can grow, and the residents can gather.
Ask a long time Whistlerite what s/he remembers about the Chapel that used to be “down at the Gondola” (now Creekside).
A New Era 2000
“SEEING OLD TRUTHS IN NEW WAYS”
We are individual faiths united in commitment to build and strengthen the community by maintaining spiritual and ethical integrity.
With the redevelopment of Whistler Creekside, and the worshippers outgrowing the skiers' Chapel, it was time for the Board of Trustees to begin again: the construction of a new facility. However, the “Chapel Society’s” reason-to-be remained constant, as you can see by the mission statement prepared by the Board of Directors in 2000, and printed above. This time the Whistler residents were consulted, the Resort Municipality of Whistler was engaged in the discussions, and the society struck the Steering committee responsible for the entire construction operation.
Since the new building would be a multi-purpose facility, it was important to set guidelines for the use of the building. Therefore the society’s bylaws were amended to include our vision of inclusivity with integrity. Pertaining to the religious stakeholders the bylaw states:
1. In order to qualify as a stakeholder a faith or religious organization must meet three of the four following criteria:
• Be at least 75 years old;
• Have adherents in at least five of the provinces and territories;
• Have the legal right to solemnize marriage;
• Have registered charitable status in Canada.
2. In addition, religious and faith groups and their members are accountable to abide by the following interfaith principles:
• Tolerance of and cooperation with other religious groups using the Chapel;
• No member of any religious group using the Chapel shall proselytize members of other religious groups using the Chapel;
• No member of any religious group using the Chapel shall publicly criticize the doctrines or teachings of any other religious group using the chapel; and
• No member of any religious group using the Chapel shall distribute literature or pamphlets, which violate any interfaith principles listed above.
The first religious stakeholders were, the Anglican Church in the Diocese of New Westminster, the British Columbia Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada, the Jewish Community in Whistler and the Whistler United Church of the United Church of Canada. Each is represented on the society’s Board of directors.
The new community and spiritual building was named the Maurice Young Millennium Place (MYMP).The Board of directors of the Maurice Young Millennium Place society is the tenant with a ten year lease renewable for two ten year terms. This society’s sense of purpose and direction is consistent with the Chapel society’s core values of respect, trust, cooperation, spiritual, and community.
Our congregation is primarily drawn from the small population of established residents; that is individuals or families who may be actively working in the community or are retired.
A seasonal employees, mostly young single people from around the world, attend worship services and participate in the activities of the church. Visitors to the resort are often present for Sunday worship and for special services at Christmas and Easter.
The church is structured with a 6 member Official Board. The Committees of the Board include the Worship, Music, Ministry and Personnel Committee, Church Life Committee (including fellowship, congregational development, and outreach), and the Finance and Fundraising Committee. Due to small numbers, these committees are grouped and chaired by members of the congregation.
The just opened multi-faith community centre, Maurice Young Millennium Place, became the home of Whistler Village Church starting in June 2001.
We envision a vibrant dynamic interdenominational Christian church with shared mission and ministry serving a diverse congregation of Whistler community members of all ages as well as resort visitors. This ministry is envisioned as one that has spiritual visibility in the community and is attractive and supportive for youth. Music is seen as being an important part of this ministry. Our church will make its home in the brand new Maurice Young Millennium Place in Whistler Village. We are called to proclaim and celebrate the gospel of Jesus Christ in worship and action. We embrace our differences and learn from each other seeking shared ecumenism in the development of a covenant and shared liturgy.
The vision of shared ministry also extends beyond our congregation to work with the Roman Catholic and Jewish faith communities in developing an interfaith Youth Ministry.
The Partners for this ministry are currently the Anglican Church (Diocese of New Westminster), the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada, (B. C. Synod) and the United Church of Canada (B.C. Conference) – more specifically the Whistler United Church congregation members supported by Vancouver Burrard Presbytery.
Collaboration and cooperation form the foundation for this Christian community partnership. The current church congregation has been and will continue to be actively involved at all stages of the partnership.
In 1997, as the Whistler skiers' Chapel Society and the Whistler community embarked on the development of the Maurice Young Millennium Place, three churches expressed interest in participation in a Shared Ministry in Millennium Place: the Anglican Church Diocese of New Westminster, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada, B.C. Synod and the local Whistler United Church, which is part of the United Church of Canada.
A “Shared Ecumenical Ministry Steering Committee", was struck in 1999 to explore ideas as a committee, with the respective church courts and with the Whistler community.
Steering group members were:
