2026 – World Religion Confrence https://worldreligionsconference.ca Fri, 13 Feb 2026 19:32:57 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.0 https://worldreligionsconference.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/cropped-synotech-32x32.png 2026 – World Religion Confrence https://worldreligionsconference.ca 32 32 Fostering Hope in a Divided World https://worldreligionsconference.ca/fostering-hope-in-a-divided-world/ Fri, 13 Feb 2026 19:26:16 +0000 https://worldreligionsconference.ca/?p=3345 Tel: 1-877-767-1965 or 604-767-1965
Email: info.bc@ahmadiyya.ca]]>

19th World Religions Conference Abbotsford

  • Topic:  Fostering Hope in a Divided World

    • Date & Time: Monday, January 12th, 2026 | 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM
    • Venue: Trinity Memorial United Church
    • Address: 33737 George Ferguson Way, Abbotsford, BC
    • Admission: Free
    • Dinner: Complimentary East Indian Dinner will be served

Moderator

Mr. Art Turnbull

Arthur (Art) Turnbull was born in Summerland, BC.  He joined the Canadian Army (R) as an Apprentice Soldier at age 16.  After serving for seven years he left the army and entered the University of King’s College, Halifax, to study theology.Art was ordained a priest of the Diocese of Nova Scotia, the Anglican Church of Canada, in 1967.  He was the rector of  The Parish Arichat/Port Hawkesbury in Nova Scotia.  In 1969 Art was recruited to be a Chaplain in the Canadian Armed Forces where he served for sixteen years.  He was assigned to several military communities across Canada. 

Returning to civilian parish ministry, Art has been the priest in parishes in B.C., Alberta, and Ontario.  He has been trained in pastoral psychology in marriage and family counselling, addiction and health issues, and social justice issues.  For sixty years Art has  been an active person in ecumenical and interfaith participation.  After retiring to Abbottsford in 2010 Art has been a member of St. Matthew Anglican Parish. a member of the Abbotsford Interfaith Movement, and a volunteer to various activities of the city.  For three years Art has  been the host for the Fifteen Minutes for Peace every Tuesday at the Interfaith Garden on George Ferguson Way. Art’ married his wife Gordi Jones in 1959.  Gordi died in 2020.  They have six adult children, 18 grandchildren and 12 great grandchildren. In his spare time he does daily walks, sometime gardens, and reads and writes steadily.

Speakers

Baha`i Perspective
Mr. Alan Moore

Alan Moore became a Bahá’í in 1968 at the age of 18. Since then, he has been active in local, regional, and national Bahá’í community activities in Canada. In 1980, he and his wife moved to one of the homelands in South Africa as Bahá’í pioneers. Alan continued his service there, eventually being elected to a National Spiritual Assembly, on which he served for 13 years. During this period, he was also a delegate to the Bahá’í International Convention in Haifa, Israel, on three occasions for the election of the Universal House of Justice.

Alan’s professional training is in education. He has taught and served as a vice principal in public, independent, faith-based, and special-needs schools in Canada, South Africa, and Zambia. After 31 years in Africa, he and his wife returned to Canada in 2011, living for several years in the Yukon and New Westminster before retiring in Abbotsford.He is now focused on community-building efforts in Abbotsford through participation in Bahá’í activities and his work with Fraser Health as a spiritual health volunteer.

Christian Perspective
Pastor Brad Summer

Brad Sumner is the pastoral team lead at The Gathering Church in Abbotsford, BC. He is a Doctoral student at Portland Seminary and an avid distance runner.  He is married to Meg, who is a spiritual director and who manages a residential drug and rehabilitation centre for women. They have two adult children and an old dachshund named Poppy.  

Islam Perspective
Maulana Asif Kahn Mujahid

Maulana Asif Khan Mujahid has been serving and representing the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community in various capacities since 2011 such as Head Coordinator for the National Youth Education Camp and Researcher for various MTA (Muslim Televison Ahmadiyya) programs & documentaries. He has, in recent years, also served as an auxillary Imam in many countries across the globe such as Sierra Leone, Uruguay, Palestine and The U.K. Having graduated from the Ahmadiyya Institute of Islamic Studies, he has served as an Imam and Missionary in Toronto and Mississauga and is currently the Imam and Missionary in Vancouver as well as regularly being called upon for various interfaith events and discussions by the National Headquarters of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community located in Vaughan, Ontario.

Sikh Faith Perspective
Mrs. Sukhvinder Kaur Vinning

Sukhvinder Kaur Vinning is the CEO and founder of Ek Oh Ung Kaar Alliance (EOUK), a dynamic organization dedicated to building an intergenerational community that drives systemic change to combat poverty, food insecurity, racism, discrimination, and climate change. With 30 volunteer teams across the Lower Mainland and Fraser Valley, EOUK provides meals, hampers, and rescued food to food hubs, shelters, Indigenous communities and Indigenous agencies – while keeping perfectly good food out of landfills and reducing environmental waste.

As former Executive Director of World Sikh Organization of Canada (WSO), Sukhvinder led Sikh community engagement with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada and both Vancouver Walks for Reconciliation. She also co-produced the impactful short film It Matters: The Legacy of Residential Schools and launched WSO’s inaugural One Billion Rising event, raising awareness about the staggering reality that over one billion women worldwide face violence in their lifetimes. 

Previously, as Vice President of the Multifaith Action Society, Canada’s oldest interfaith organization, she played a key role in developing the Kirpan accommodation policy for the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, promoting cultural respect and inclusion. 

Born and raised in British Columbia, Sukhvinder brings a deep commitment and proven success in fostering trust, understanding, and collaboration among diverse communities and cultures.

Christian LDS Perspective
Mr. Daniel Bill

Daniel Bill and his wife Claudia live in Abbotsford and are the parents of
five children and have three grandchildren. Daniel is a lifelong member
of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and has served in

various church leadership and teaching positions through the years. As
a career he has worked in Information Technology, holding project
management and director roles, and organization management roles,
in Banking, Municipal government and private sector organizations. In
his spare time Daniel enjoys the outdoors, bikepacking, water skiing
and spending time with his family.

Jewish Faith Perspective
Rabbi Susan Sharmash

Rabbi Susan Shamash was ordained by the ALEPH: Alliance for Jewish Renewal in January 2017.  As a progressive, independent rabbi, she is passionate about “open tent” Judaism, offering interfaith lifecycle event officiation in metropolitan Vancouver, including weddings, baby namings and funerals.  The focus of her rabbinate is on enabling Jews and their loved ones to celebrate their love Jewishly.  She brings the beauty, meaning and spirituality, not to mention the fun, of Judaism to a unique ceremony co-created with the couple and the family to reflect who they truly are. In addition to lifecycle event officiation, Rabbi Susan teaches a course on Jewish spirituality at the Vancouver School of Theology, and is a regular contributor to a weekly Torah class at Or Shalom Synagogue where she is an active member.  She also loves to learn Talmud!  Rabbi Susan is a happily retired lawyer who lives with her husband Yom and their dog Dulce in Vancouver.

Please let me know if this is sufficient.

Myoshin Kate McCandless
Buddhist Perspective

Myoshin Kate McCandless and Shinmon Michael Newton began Zen practice in 1983 as university students in Japan, with a Rinzai priest at an ancient temple on Mount Tsukuba, later moving to Kyoto and practicing Soto Zen with Shohaku Okumura. Since returning to Vancouver in 1987 they have practiced with Zoketsu Norman Fischer. They received priest ordination from him in in 2003 and dharma transmission in 2011. They were installed as guiding teachers of Mountain Rain Zen Community in May, 2017.

Hindu Faith Perspective
Dr. Rajnish Dhawan PhD

Rajnish Dhawan [PhD] is an Associate Professor with the Department of English at the University of the Fraser Valley, Abbotsford, BC, Canada. He teaches Creative Writing, Classical Literature, and South Asian Literature. He has been involved with South Asian Studies Institute since the day he joined UFV in September 2009.  Rajnish is also a playwright who has written and produced two full length plays and two one act plays since joining UFV. Before moving to Canada, Rajnish used to teach at the DAV College, Amritsar. As a freelance writer in Amritsar, he wrote consistently for television, stage, and newspapers. 

Program

  • 6.25 PM Announcement
  • 6:30 PM Recitation of the Holy Qur’an  Mualana Shakoor Ahmad
  •  English Translation Naveed Mirza 
  • 6:35 PM Welcome remarks by Dignitaries
  • 6:45 PM Introductory Remarks 
  • 6:52 PM Introduction to moderator
    • Speakers Panel (Time Allocated  9 minutes)
  • 6:55 PM Buddhist Faith Myoshin Kate McCandless
  • 7:04 PM Christianity Pastor Brad Sumnar
  • 7:13 PM Islam Maulana Asif Khan Mujahid
  • 7:22 PM Sikh Faith Ms.Sukhvinder Kaur Vinning
  • 7:31 PM Christianity Mr. Daniel Bill
  • 7:40 PM Jewish Faith Rabbi Susan Sharmash 
  • 7:49 PM Baha’I Mr. Alan Moore
  • 7: 58 PM Hindu Faith Dr. Rajnish Dhawan
  • 8:08 PM Question & Answer Session
  • 8:30 PM Concluding Remarks by moderator
  • 8:35 PM Vote of Thanks by President AMJ Abbotsford Rizwan Peerzada
  • 8:40 PM Dinner

Map

Registration

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