Historical Timeline

The following is a historic overview of the roots, presence and contribution of francophone Protestants associated with The United Church of Canada.

1604
1834
1900
1953
2000

1604	First French settlement on Ile de Sainte-Croix led by Pierre Dugua de Mons, a Huguenot.
1608	Quebec City is founded by Samuel de Champlain, a Protestant descendent, under a mandate from the Protestant Governor General, Pierre Dugua de Mons.
1685	Civil and religious liberties guaranteed by the Edict of Nantes are renounced. In addition to their civil rights, French Protestants in Quebec lose the right to worship.
1834	The arrival of Swiss and French missionaries re-establishes a francophone Protestant presence.
1838	First francophone Protestant congregation (Saint-Blaise).
1839	Creation of the French-Canadian Missionary Society (FCMS), an interdenominational society dedicated to the evangelization of French-speaking Quebec.
1841	First francophone Protestant congregation in Montreal, Mission Saint-Jean on the corner of Sainte-Catherine and De Bullion, now called Église Unie Saint-Jean and a pastoral charge of The United Church of Canada.
1846-1972	Institut français opens in Pointe-aux-Trembles. Offering instruction in French, this college welcomes students of any denomination and origin, including Catholics and the children of excommunicated Patriots. It would prove to be one of the first progressive schools in Quebec, offering instruction to boys and girls together as early as 1868.
1862	Publication of Laurent-E. Rivard’s Chants évangéliques. The first French hymn book with music, it would remain in use until 1970.
1866	First edition of L’Aurore, an interdenominational magazine that remained in circulation until 1988.
1875	Creation of the Presbyterian Church in Canada (an anglophone church with a francophone mission) through the merger of four Presbyterian branches.
1880	Dissolution of the French-Canadian Missionary Society, which had 86 leaders (ministers, evangelists, and door-to-door missionaries) and about 9,000 members who had converted to Protestantism.
1884	Creation of the Methodist Church of Canada (an anglophone Church with a francophone component).
1900	The francophone Protestant movement comprises 70 ministers, about 100 mission points, and 6,000 students educated at Institut français Évangélique in Pointe-aux-Trembles.
1906-1912	Dissolution of the evangelization committees dedicated to mission work in Quebec (Presbyterian, Methodist, Anglican, and others) in order to concentrate on evangelization in English, especially in Western Canada. This marks the beginning of the decline of the francophone Protestant movement.
1925	Creation of The United Church of Canada through union of the Congregationalist, Methodist, and Presbyterian denominations, later joined by the Evangelical United Brethren Church (1968). All French-speaking congregations of these churches decide to join the new union in order to support one another in moving forward.
1929	Institut méthodiste français (Westmount) merges with Institut français Évangélique in Pointe-aux-Trembles (formerly a Presbyterian college and now part of the United Church).
1930-1950	Period of decline for the francophone Protestant movement: financial support decreases, the theological training centre and several schools close, members live further and further apart, and the community is excluded from Catholic schools. French-speaking Protestants are integrated into the English Protestant school system, resulting in assimilation.
1931	The census counts 11,581 French-Canadian Protestants.
1936	The United Church ordains its first female minister (Lydia Gruchy) at a time when women in Quebec still do not have the vote.
1940	The French Protestant movement comprises 30 ministers, 4,600 members, and 11 francophone congregations.
1944	The Canadian Council of Churches is founded.
1953	Edmond Perret launches Credo, a United Church magazine in French with a Protestant, ecumenical, and social perspective. The name of the magazine is changed to Aujourd’hui Credo in 1962.
1955	The Protestant School Board of Greater Montreal offers instruction in French for the first time. Not until the 1980s would education in French become widely available.
1955-70	Over a 15-year period, the Protestant Forum nurtures ecumenically, socially, and politically open dialogue in the context of new ideas stirred up by the Quiet Revolution.
1960-1966	The Quiet Revolution creates a new mindset and leads to greater openness to non-Catholic religious groups. French-speaking Protestants are ecumenical pioneers. The United Church establishes the Montreal Dialogue Centre for discussion, debate and free thinking about major issues in the religious, social, and political arenas.
1961	The Protestant School Board offers high school classes for the first time.
1967	The 1967 International and Universal Exposition, Man and His World, includes an ecumenical Christian Pavilion. Francophone Protestants and the Dialogue Centre serve as a bridge between English-speaking Protestants and French-speaking Catholics in making this unique witness a reality.
1971-1979	Episcopalian, Lutheran, Presbyterian, and United Church ministries in French work closely together in efforts to create a Franco-Protestant Council of Churches, although unsuccessfully in the end. This movement for unity would continue within the United Church and lead to the creation of a Zone Pastorale Francophone (Francophone Pastoral Zone) and later the Laurentien Presbytery.
1973	École de Roberval, Montreal’s first French Protestant high school, opens its doors.
1975	French-speaking Quebec celebrates the 50th anniversary of the United Church and the 100th anniversary of the Presbyterian Church in Canada. Celebrations include common projects such as youth camps, lay training programs, and meetings for ministers.
1979	A Conference-wide union of francophones is formed within the Montreal and Ottawa Conference of the United Church: “United to serve together.”
1985	Creation of Laurentien Presbytery, a non-territorial association of francophone congregations of The United Church of Canada.
1986	The United Church makes an Apology to Native Congregations. Francophones within the church are deeply involved in the search for justice.
1988	After a 12-year process to democratically consider and debate the issue, The United Church of Canada approves ordination to homosexual ministry, with full rights.
1990	30% of Quebec’s Protestant school system is French (because of welcoming non-Catholics of every cultural and religious origin). 90% of the French Protestant network is concentrated in the Montreal region.
1991	One percent of the population whose mother tongue is French identify themselves as Protestant (evangelical for the most part).
1998	The United Church officially apologizes to First Nations and commits to working toward building respect and establishing just relations.
1998	General Council of The United Church of Canada strikes a committee composed of anglophones, Aboriginals and francophones from various regions of the country with a mandate to “listen to Quebec” in order to better understand the province’s aspirations and help guide the church.
1998	Agreement is reached (finalized in 2000) between the University of Montreal and the Presbyterian, Anglican, and United seminaries of McGill University to provide theological training in French.
2000-2003	The United Church speaks out against racism.
2001-2003	The United Church is restructured into 11 program and administrative units, including—after a hard struggle to convince church authorities—the Ministries in French Unit (UMiF).
2004	Ceremonies are held to commemorate the Acadian Deportation. UMiF leads a joint service involving Planters, Acadians, and Aboriginals. The Moderator and the Executive Minister of UMiF deliver messages of solidarity.
2006	The Ministries in French Unit participates in organizing interfaith meetings and celebrations as part of the United Nations Conference on Climate Change, and participates in an inter-religious delegation for Peace in Palestine and to the World Social Forum in Porto Alegre (Brazil).
2006-2007	A partnership is formed between francophone Protestants, Aboriginals and various cultural communities of the United Church for the purpose of transforming the church and society by encouraging just relations. General Council of the United Church approves the report “Pour une vision transformatrice de l'Église” (A Transformative Vision for The United Church of Canada) in an effort to work toward building an intercultural church based on just relations and mutual respect. Meetings are held to respectfully listen to francophones, Aboriginals and cultural communities within the United Church.
2007	The Ministries in French Unit of the United Church announces that a major report on the development of mission and ministry in French will be prepared for the 2009 General Council of the United Church.

Ministries in French