The Story of Indigenous Ministry in Alberta
or, The Evangelical Church and the First Peoples of Canada: Where we Have Been and Where we are Now.
A Digital Heritage Collection
Our mission is to connect people to the Story of Indigenous Ministry in Alberta (SIMA)
Christian ministry to, with, and by the Indigenous peoples of Canada has a long and storied history. In order to understand where we are and where we are going, we have to understand and address where we have been.
Our goal is to create a learning resource on Christian-Indigenous ministry in Alberta, specifically focusing on the evangelical tradition. To achieve this, we are building a collection of historical data, as well as a network of currently operating ministries, both of which are hosted on this site. If you are interested in getting involved with Indigenous ministry in Alberta, this is a great place to start!
To begin, try Networking or Collections to review some of the databases we maintain, or check out The Story to read about the Story of Indigenous Ministry in Alberta. To learn more about the project itself, see About.
If you are going to a library to do some research or read some books, take a look at the Research Guide for a list of keywords, subjects, and authors to look for.
Happy learning!
Check here to find out who's around in the world of indigenous ministry in Alberta.
Check here to read about the story of indigenous ministry in Alberta.
Check here to see what objects and resources related to indigenous ministry are available.
Check here to find out more about the project itself.
To browse or search the entire database, click here
To download the entire Story, click here
Statement on Potentially Harmful Language
The SIMA Project aims to tell the full story of what has been said and done within the relationship between the evangelical church and Indigenous people in Alberta, in the spirit of truth and reconciliation. This means that certain material on this site relating to historical events and different personal views may be distressing or triggering for some viewers. A National Residential School Crisis Line has been set up to provide support to former Residential School students and their families. This 24-Hour Crisis Line can be accessed at: 1-866-925-4419.
This is particularly true in two locations on this website: the research guide, and The Story. The research guide summarizes Library of Congress terms and subject headings, and we have no control over the usage of these terms in libraries. The conversation on reforming LOC subject headings is being undertaken by libraries across Canada as we speak. However, the research guide reflects terminology as the library system currently uses it. Read more information on this conversation here.
The Story is the written component of the SIMA Project, which summarizes and ties together all the information learned through research, networking, and digital heritage collection. The purpose of this part of the project is to tell the story exactly as it was, and not as we would have liked it to have been. In this, we follow the advice of Indigenous Corporate Training Inc., which is that offensive terms such as “Indian” should generally never be used, but may be permitted in certain situations such as “use in discussions of history where necessary for clarity and accuracy” (Indigenous Corporate Training Inc., 2021, p. 10). Such language is used out of necessity only where it cannot be avoided. Readers are asked to use their discretion as to whether it is good for them to be exposed to such language, as well as to other accounts of historical injustice detailed in this project, before reading The Story.
The project team strives to be honest and transparent in their treatment of such material, while still remaining sensitive and inclusive. This is a difficult balance to strike, and we welcome feedback from viewers as to how such material can be phrased better. To provide such feedback, please email info@thesimaproject.ca
Statement on Links to External Websites
This website may contain links to other websites that are external to the site. This site takes reasonable care in linking websites but has no direct control over the content of the linked sites, or the changes that may occur to the content on those sites. It is the responsibility of the user to make their own decisions about the accuracy, currency, reliability and correctness of information contained in linked external websites.
Links to external websites do not constitute an endorsement or a recommendation of any material on those sites or of any third party products or services offered by, from or through those sites. Users of links provided by this website are responsible for being aware of which organisation is hosting the website they visit.
Statement on Provision of Contact Information
This project contains directories of contact information for individuals and ministries involved in evangelical Indigenous ministry in Alberta/Canada. Contact information is only provided in one of two circumstances: a) the information was already publicly available, or b) the individual/ministry gave explicit permission and indicated what contact information they wanted to be listed. The list is meant to include all or close to all Indigenous ministries/individual leaders involved in Indigenous ministry in Alberta, so some are included without contact info. Entry in this directory does not constitute an endorsement or a recommendation of the ministry or viewpoints of the individuals included. If you are included in this database and would like to be removed from it, please email info@thesimaproject.ca
This information is provided so that users can gain an understanding of who's who in the world of Indigenous ministry. If desired, users can also use this directory to contact the individuals/ministries within. Directory members have given their permission to do so. It is the responsibility of the user to determine who to contact and how to contact them. Please be respectful in your interactions, and only contact an individual if it is appropriate to do so (for instance, do not email the director of an organization you are wishing to volunteer for. It would be better to find the appropriate contact information for this on the organization's website).
Are you looking for an indigenous ministry to get involved in? Click the link below to find out what's available near you!
