Lent 2026 will see the tenth installment of the Metchosin Challenge, a Lenten challenge set up and run by St. Mary, Metchosin parishioner and long-time parish council member Sharleen Thompson.
Sharleen was inspired to start the challenge because she saw a need to reach out to the wider community and to show the community that the church is not just a place for spiritual connection, but that it is deeply connected and committed to the real world.
During Lent, Christians reflect on and examine how they live in the world, which is why Sharleen felt Lent was the perfect time to run a speaker series that prompts people to think about the big issues facing the world. Indeed, the theme for the first Metchosin Challenge, in 2017, was “Big Issues Facing the World.” Speakers that year spoke on topics including protecting species diversity, climate change, food security and homelessness.
In subsequent years themes included “Human Rights,” “Little Things That You Can Do That Make a Difference,” “Embracing Change” and “Spirituality in the (Post) Modern World.”
There are typically six speakers for each series, and Sharleen allows the speakers to decide on the format. Some prefer to interact with the audience throughout their talk, while others prefer to present then do a Q&A. Past speaker have included Herbert O’Driscoll, Green Party MP Elizabeth May, Orange Shirt Day founders Edie Charlie and Kirsten Spray, and former Green Party MP for Nanaimo-Ladysmith Paul Manly.
In 2020, the series was cut short midway by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the following year St. Mary’s was able to offer the series on Zoom and since then the challenge has been available both in-person and online. Sharleen says the Zoom link usually sees around 10 to 15 people attending, while in-person attendance can range from 10 to 80 people, depending on the speaker — Elizabeth May usually draws a large crowd.
St. Mary’s has grown from a congregation of 14 in 2008 to having around 100 people on the parish list today. “It’s not unusual to have two or three new people attending on Sunday,” says Sharleen. This growth has been particularly rapid in the last five years, and Sharleen puts it down to the energy the church has put into going outside the church community. She says two-thirds of attendees at the Metchosin Challenge talks are from outside the church. Messy Church and the church’s summer day camp have also been big draws for young families.
For this tenth speaker series, Sharleen decided to revisit the topic of “big issues” explored in the first series. “The issues have changed,” says Sharleen. “There are new threats and new knowledge.”
The first talk was held on Tuesday, Feb. 24 with Wally Eamer talking about “Rupture – Individual Rights, Identity and Collective Action.” On Tuesday, March 3, at 7 p.m. Elizabeth May will talk about climate change, and on Tuesday, March 10 Andy McKinnon will be talking about endangered species. For a full list of this year’s speakers and a link to the Zoom feed visit the St. Mary’s website.
As to whether there will be an eleventh Metchosin Challenge, Sharleen is unsure. She does most of the planning and organizing for the challenge and it’s a lot of work. But each year, she says, “God presents me with a theme.”
