“Being a Christian at work has both humbled me and made me bolder.”

Allen Macartney
Special to Spur Ottawa

The government sometimes garners a perception of being hostile toward religion, but the Public Service Christian Fellowship (PSCF) stands as a shining example of how faith and the public service can meet. In fact, members of the PSCF have gathered at work since 1979.

“We’ve got 19 registered groups, with 12 still active through COVID,” says Gord Walford, a retired member of the public service who is still involved in the PSCF. “Some groups stopped meeting when the pandemic hit, but most have adapted well, meeting online using Microsoft Teams.”

The groups meet at a wide range of departments and federal agencies, from Natural Resources Canada and Global Affairs, to Canadian Border Services Agency and the Bank of Canada. Few groups restrict their activities to just Bible study. Most include prayer and fellowship, but some also have creative aspects to build members or reach out.

One group at Canada Post does both book and topical Bible studies. Before COVID, they also organized programs, like Alpha, to draw in new believers and strengthen the faith of members. Another PSCF group (called “Need-a-Prayer?”) offers prayer to colleagues who have needs. A group at the Public Health Agency of Canada includes rousing “sing-spiration” in their meetings.

“Because PSCF groups now meet online, people can join us wherever they work, and whatever their schedule.”

“We have a handful of culturally homogeneous groups, including several Mandarin- and Cantonese-speaking prayer or Bible study groups,” says Edward Ng, a leader from Statistics Canada. In general, he says, “It’s great to have fellow Christians in the workplace from different cultural, ethnic, and denominational backgrounds. My own group has members from English and French Canada, as well as from Africa, Asia, and Central/South America. The diversity leads to interesting and colorful discussions of the Bible.”

The Bible studies all take place outside working hours, but with heavy workloads some members are not able to participate as often as they want. Yet, Ernestina Francois (a member from Health Canada) says God even uses roadblocks to move the Kingdom forward.

“Because PSCF groups now meet online, people can join us wherever they work, and whatever their schedule. Departments can collaborate (host joint meetings) and participants can join more than one group during the week if they want.”

Ng adds that going online has allowed them to include retired public servants and means members can continue participating even if they move to a new department.

“PSCF meetings are the highlights of my day.”

Advertising meetings can be politically sensitive, but Ng says, “our Stats Can Bible study groups are recognized as clubs within the department. Several years ago—when we had a departmental club fair—our groups were there talking to people and distributing outreach material. We’re also able to publicize meetings on our departmental Intranet. We’ve even seen colleagues come to faith because of our PSCF groups.”

One Way Ministries, and their Workplace Network, have been an incredible support, helping PSCF groups mobilize, meet more frequently, and brainstorm effective growth strategies, says Francois. They also helped raise up younger leaders in a number of groups.

“Being a Christian at work has both humbled me and made me bolder,” Francois states. “PSCF meetings are the highlights of my day. They’re spiritually enriching and engaging. My open reliance on Jesus sets me apart, and moderates my words and reactions to events around the office. And people notice.”

As the fellowship looks to the future, they hope to be able to host a PSCF conference once COVID ends. They are also discussing ways to build on existing foundations and expand collaborative efforts between departments.

“As Christians, we are meant to worship God 24/7,” says Ng. “It’s so encouraging to know there are others at work who worship the same God.”