Lord Alfred Tennyson’s poem Ulysses, takes it form and inspiration  from Greek Odysseus, who was restless after his return to Ithaca.  Odysseus was eager to renew the life, he has known, and to share the wealth of knowledge, he had attained, after the Trojan war and ten-year journey home. Ulysses is a soliloquy, expressing the struggle of a journey, delight of knowledge and recognition of the effects of various experiences.  Tennyson writes:
 

                                    I am a part of all that I have met;
                                    Yet all experience is an arch where through
                                    Gleams that untravelled world whose margin fades
                                    For ever and for ever when I move
                                    How dull it is to pause, to make an end
                                    To rust unburnished, not to shine is use
 

The genesis to explore Web dialogue emanates out of my own personal life experiences in Pakistan and Canada.  I have tried to examine the marks and prints of  experiences to determine if they should become a part of my existence, philosophy and theology. I am grateful to everyone who left an exciting print and mark through our encounters and interactions.
 

One constant interaction was and continues to be with the church.  Association with a Faith community has facilitated growth, confidence, courage, hope and dreams.  It also granted me a desire to formulate an intellectual justification for Contextual Liturgy and Relational Preaching.   Contextual Liturgy is a deliberate attempt to encourage congregations and pastors to integrate congregational and cultural dynamics into a worship service.  The integration of these elements will transform the liturgy from being far removed from the local context to be distinct and meaningful to the context.   Relational Preaching will encourage preachers to make a conscientious effort to relate the word of God to listeners.          
 

I was born and raised in Karachi, Pakistan.  Growing up in the city of fifteen million people was truly an exciting and enlightening privilege, one I would not change or replace.  The city of Karachi never slept, it was evident from the midnight  cricket tournaments to all night food vendors and rush and excitement at the local merchants and beaches.  Karachi, being the formal capital city, had the sense of universality, it appreciated and received migrant workers of different ethnic origins and was the envy of the  rest of Pakistan because of its excellence in commerce and trade, education and sports. 
 

I was born to a priest and a teacher in a lower middle class family.  The Christian community in the neighbourhood consisted of migrant workers employed in the Middle Eastern countries, teachers and blue collar professionals.  It was a great neighbourhood of lower middle class families living together with ease, comfort and respect for all.  The well to do families of the migrant workers or professionals hired servant girls and janitors to help them with cleaning, laundry and dishes.  I felt fortunate to be a part of a great neighbourhood and appreciated the respect and acceptance. 
 

Comfort and reassurance always came from the worshipping community.  My father intentionally developed a youth service on Fridays (weekend and holiday at that time in Pakistan) to nurture and foster growth, self confidence and reliance on  another to deal with the issues confronting and challenging us.  Parenthetically, Friday worship service evolved into the largest service of the parish.  The sermons reflected on issues through the gospel, singing exhibited our faith and hope and the celebration of the Eucharist manifested  equality as everyone in spite of their status, or lack thereof, knelt before the Lord to partake in the holy feast and banquet.  The communicants lived out this equality, hope, faith and justice by offering educational scholarships, free  tutorials, youth fun activities and organizing cricket teams for different age groups.  The church was the oasis for many in a dry desert, it nourished, fed and sustained the souls of many and conceived many responsible, mature and professional young persons.  I feel blessed to be a product of that vibrant, faithful and encouraging community of believers and am thankful for the vision of my father, The Reverend Emmanuel Laldin, and lay leaders to mystify the deadly agents around us, to assist our growth and instil immeasurable appreciation of worship as a key to transform human beings and the culture.
 

The most intriguing aspect of the community of All Saints in Karachi, Pakistan was their willingness to engage with the culture through liturgy and homiletics.  Through this engagement, they successfully critiqued, the cultural biases and prejudices and restored the dignity of every person.
 

On September 16, 1991, I arrived in Canada.  It was an arrival into a promised land.  Naively or perhaps ideally, I envisioned Canada to be a land of peace, justice, serenity, calmness . . .   In other  words, an Ideal World.  The adjustment and culture shock was amazing.  I was expected to use a knife and fork, for the first time in my life.  To this day, I remember, vividly, my first encounter with cutlery and Canadian Cuisine.  It was in Kingston, Ontario. Astutely, I sat across from my friend and ordered the same meal, he had ordered. All through the lunch, I carefully observed and copied his manners.  It was pretty fascinating and alarming.  I was fascinated and impressed with my determination to learn and adjust to a new lifestyle.  However, I was alarmed and afraid of the unknown territory ahead of me.  The next few months were extremely intense.  I ascertained that a first time drinker should settle for an ounce of alcohol, burping after a meal is not a complement to the chef, and ever changing politically correct language and nuances will haunt me for an extremely long time.
 

I was enrolled in Master’s of Divinity program at Queen’s Theological College in Kingston.  It was incredibly difficult to clear my accent, write papers and engage in discussion(s).  I also started to wrestle with the social justice issues and the definition and perceptions of oppressed persons.  The white man systematically and categorically oppressed everyone, i.e., the First Nations of Canada, women, ethnic populations, persons living in alternative life styles etc.  It was an issue-based environment where everyone had a Liberation Theology, suiting their own agenda, in their book bags.  In spite of the cultural, educational and theological challenges and adjustments, I enjoyed, the safe and clean environment, law and order and freedom.
 

Incidentally, I was living with my uncle and his family.  It was a traditional Pakistani family where the cultural values were upheld and followed.  My cousins grew up in Canada, they had the advantage to plea ignorance with regards to the values or appeal to Canadian customs.  I, on the other hand, was expected to follow and uphold every aspect of Pakistani culture.  This tension exacerbated the confusion, I was dealing with.  All of a sudden, I found myself being in the middle of a juggling act to keep all the balls in the air.  Educational demands, cultural shock and adjustment, adapting to the climate, learning liturgy and practices of the Anglican Church of Canada and a model Pakistani person had to be kept in perspective.
 

In the midst of all was Saint Thomas Anglican Church.  I was a student and the  expectation was that I would spend eight hours a week in the parish.  It was a delightful place.  My supervisor, Father Bob Hales, was an incredibly insightful and compassionate person.  He allowed me to be a part of the community  and invited me to participate in the parish life.  I was supported by the congregation, several parishioners and lay support team.  The time at the church was the highlight of my week.   Youth activities, discussion group, Pakistani fun night, ongoing dialogue and discussion with Father Bob were some of my initiatives and responsibilities.  It was fun while it lasted.  The support of the congregation left an indelible impression on me.
 

I moved from Kingston to Newfoundland the following  year to continue my studies at Queen’s College in St. John’s.  In 1995 after completing the Master of Divinity program, I was ordained in the Anglican Church of Canada.
 

Saint Clements East, on the lower North Shore of Quebec, was my first parish.  It was a multi point parish.  Although the three congregations were committed to one parish, they were unique units in their strengths and ability to grow.  Therefore, each congregation was engaged in the expansion of ministry.  The priorities in the parish were: First, to establish trust and respect in the priestly office.  Second, to engage and to delegate decision making to the laity.  Third,  to address the areas of concern and growth i.e. finances, lay involvement, youth participation in the worship services.  Fourth, to annunciate to the non church going members of the congregations, the importance of the Church in their lives and community.  The initiatives taken to address the above priorities brought forth results and the progress was observed in finances, lay involvement, youth participation and Church attendance.  The parish since my departure has continued to grow and expand.
 

Saint Clements East struggled with low morale. The vestry and I felt that having missions on the appropriate usage of one’s talent might encourage the adherents to offer their gifts.  The first mission was with a Gospel Folk Singing Group called, “Genesis Gospel Singers”.   The second mission was with the retired Bishop of Central Newfoundland, the Right Reverend Mark Genge and the third was with the Rev’d Alain Milot of North Hatley, Quebec.  Genesis Gospel Singers life is a witness of people with basic knowledge of music coming together to make and create music. Bishop Genge focussed on our human condition  and God’s Grace, while Rev’d Milot conducted a healing mission under the auspices of the order of Saint Luke.  The results were remarkable.  A choir was formed with guitar music after the first mission.  Several individuals offered their services and participated regularly after the second mission and parishioners had a better understanding of healing and the presence of God in the midst of crisis and personal tragedy after the third mission.
 

The parish of Saint Augustine in Stephenville, Newfoundland, during my job interview, expressed a desire to expand the existing ministries of the parish.  In the past, I was informed that the impetus was on finances, having achieved that goal, it was discerned that the parish should strategically grow and involve non worshipping members of the congregation in the parish life. 
 

In my first year, I presented a Congregation Growth proposal “Reaching Out”, to the vestry.  There were twelve new ministries identified in the proposal and the strategy articulated to initiate and incorporate those ministries in the parish.  The formative evaluation system of the diocese was also introduced and a committee of six members was mandated to develop “Enabling Ministry Through Evaluation” in the parish.  The Reaching Out initiative was for two years and since then, the parish has strategically engaged into ministry.
 

Through our collective efforts, we introduced a contemporary form of  worship in the church.  The worship is forty to forty five minutes in duration, the Eucharist is celebrated, sermons reflect on our social responsibility to one another and a Folk Choir, which was started after my arrival, provides the music.  Our hope was to offer this worship service as an alternative to the non church going members.  Since its inception, we have seen an increase from ten worshippers  to sixty five worshippers.  The parish has grown and has become a “Christian Presence” in the town through its outreach ministry and also expansion of ministry to involve and encourage others to be actively engaged in the ministry.
 

The Rev’d Canon Dr Robert Hales of Kingston, Ontario, conducted the first mission in Saint Augustine on “Reaching Out” to others in our midst.  Two years later, Bishop Fred Hiltz of Nova Scotia came to share his insights on the “Body of Christ”.   A year later, the Primate, The Most Rev’d Michael Peers, spent a week teaching and preaching on the importance to “Share the Faith”.  After the mission with the Primate, we provided leadership in organizing an Ecumenical Mission.  The Ministerial accepted our proposal to have an individual denomination to organize Mission on biennial basis (during the week of prayer of Christian unity) for all denominations and churches of the area.  In January 2003, Bishop Bill Hockin of Fredericton, New Brunswick conducted First Ecumenical Mission in Newfoundland and Labrador.  In January 2005, The Rev’d Christian Swayne, a brother and monk of the order of the Holy Cross, conducted the Second Ecumenical Mission.  This mission was jointly co-hosted by Saint Augustine Anglican Church and Saint Stephen Roman Catholic Church.  In 2007, Bishop David Torraville conducted a Mission on Being Fools for the Lord. 
 

In spite of struggles of being a Christian in Pakistan or a young immigrant adjusting in Canada,  the church has been a cornerstone in my life.  Worship services and community contributed energy, vigour and enthusiasm to pursue my dreams.  This was through the ministry of word and sacrament.  Sacraments bestowed God’s grace while word (preaching) related the good news of God presence  in our context, in our struggles, and in our joys and happiness.  The most important breakthrough for a preacher and minister was to connect the gospel with the issues and challenges facing the congregation and reflecting on them through the gospel.
 

Inadvertently, I think, the laity and I were able to make that discovery in Saint Clements East and Saint Augustine.  The recognition and acknowledgement of the needs of the parishes transpired the missions on specific topics.  Singing, teaching and preaching during missions facilitated one’s relationship with God and another person. 
 

Therefore, I  present this space as a place of open dialogue to learn and critique ideas, philosophies and ideologies. This interaction, hopefully, will engender growth and maturity and a better appreciation of the issues confronting all of us.