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Sean Frankling

  • Sean Frankling

    Sean Frankling’s experience includes newspaper reporting as well as writing for video and podcast media. He’s been chasing stories since his first co-op for Toronto’s Gleaner Community Press at age 18. He studied journalism at Carleton University and has written for the Toronto Star, WatchMojo and other outlets.

ARTICLES

While AI creators prophesy dramatic futures for their technology, the simpler generative AI tools already available are a source for enthusiasm for some in the church—and a source of suspicion for others. Image: agsandrew/Shutterstock

Anglicans wrestle with potential uses, pitfalls of artificial intelligence

Sean Frankling October 31, 2024

All across the bustling show floor at Collision 2024, startup companies display laptops, flyers and signs promising to apply artificial intelligence (AI) to security, data analytics, online shopping, code optimization—on and on it goes. Between quirky intro and outro music, panels of experts at the North American tech expo give prognostications ranging from the optimistic (AI will drastically increase productivity) to the very optimistic (AI will boost longevity to the point of making everyone immortal) to the catastrophic (AI will interfere with democracy or become a threat to human life)

Rupert’s Land asks for prayers after bishop diagnosed with terminal cancer

Sean Frankling October 25, 2024

Bishop of the diocese of Rupert’s Land Geoffrey Woodcroft has been admitted to hospital with a diagnosis of cancer shortly after announcing his intention to retire in June 2025. The diocese’s executive archdeacon Simon Blaikie told the Anglican Journal Woodcroft made the announcement on the final day of the diocesan synod, Oct. 19, then felt unwell and was in the hospital within 12 hours. He was diagnosed with cancer, said Blaikie, and has gone on sick leave, expecting to transition directly into long-term disability leave. Blaikie confirmed a Facebook post that the cancer had been diagnosed as terminal. The diocese is asking for prayers and held a mass for his healing and comfort Oct. 23. 

PWRDF to change name to Alongside Hope

Sean Frankling October 18, 2024

Members of the board of the Anglican Church of Canada’s global charity arm, until now known as the Primate’s World Relief and Development Fund (PWRDF), have voted to rename it Alongside Hope.  

‘The most mind-blowing “I don’t know” I’d ever heard’

Sean Frankling August 20, 2024

The Rev. Ben Tshin is a priest at St. Paul’s Bloor Street in Toronto. Tshin says many of those who engage with St. Paul’s for the first time do so through its ESL program, which invites members of the communities in to hone their English skills and—perhaps more importantly—find a sense of belonging among people who have similar experiences as newcomers to Canada. Often, he says, it attracts people whose English is already very strong, but who are just looking for somewhere to make friends. In the process, he says, the program exposes them to the church’s sanctuary space, developing a sense that they are safe and welcome there even as they form community ties.

Members of the Moosonee synod gather in a circle to give thanks for God’s providence and their renewed hopes for the future as a diocese. Photo: George Cribbs

Moosonee votes to have its own bishop again

Sean Frankling July 23, 2024

The synod of the diocese of Moosonee voted unanimously June 26 to elect a dedicated bishop for the first time in a decade—a milestone in the history of the regional church, according to Archbishop Anne Germond, metropolitan of the ecclesiastical province of Ontario and currently the bishop ministering to Moosonee. 

It will likely take more than nine months to create a profile of the diocese’s demographics and ministries, select candidates for bishop based on how well they fit the profile and hold an election, Germond says.  

Bishop of the Arctic to retire at year’s end

Sean Frankling June 27, 2024

Bishop of the diocese of the Arctic David Parsons has announced he will retire Dec. 31, 2024. In a career he describes as beginning with a small voice calling him to share the gospel despite his reluctance, Parsons today says his greatest highlight was meeting the people of the Arctic, whom he was called to share it with. 

This concept image shows a mixed-use affordable rental and community housing development proposal for St. Matthew's Regina in the diocese of Qu'Appelle by real estate company Arwel Living and the Trinity Centres Foundation. Image provided by Trinity Centres Foundation

Redeveloping the house of God

Sean Frankling June 6, 2024

Amid land use anxieties, churches seek to hold and transform rather than sell off property “If I could, I’d burn it all down and start

In this still from Season 3, Jesus of Nazareth (Jonathan Roumie) lays hands on Veronica (Zhaleh Vossough), healing her from a bleeding disorder that would have marked her as unclean in first-century Judea. Photo: Courtesy of The Chosen

The Chosen: Writers approach task with ‘fear and trembling, but also anticipation’

Sean Frankling May 31, 2024

Fleshing out the gospel accounts of Jesus’ disciples, the TV series The Chosen adapts the bedrock of Christianity as a high-production-value drama. To do so, it dives deep into the text, directly lifting key moments from Scripture, but also attempting to flesh out the characters, setting and political realities of the first century A.D. That work, the show’s creators say, involves a careful process of bringing sainted and beloved characters like Mary Magdalene and Simon Peter to life in ways audiences can relate to while ensuring their portrayals remain true to the historical accounts of their lives. 

For Richard Liu, finding a home in Christianity meant first finding somewhere he could safely question it. Photo: Sean Frankling

Beyond the pew: trying to reach Canadians at a time of waning familiarity with Christianity

Sean Frankling May 31, 2024

As the Anglican Church of Canada sets the church up for a renewed focus on evangelism with a discipleship and evangelism task force, it faces a changing society—one in which familiarity with Christianity is waning. More and more Canadians, like Liu, have never encountered church before. If the church wants to reach out to Canadians today, several specialists in evangelism tell the Anglican Journal, it will need to consider how to introduce the faith to these people.

Dancers perform at a Black Heritage Celebration Service February 2020 in Toronto. One of the conference’s goals is to examine how worship can represent more of the diverse backgrounds of Anglicans, including styles that involve more expression through movement, says Berringer. Photo: Michael Hudson

Conference to examine inclusivity in liturgy

Sean Frankling May 31, 2024

Meeting in Regina this summer for the first time since before the pandemic, the National Worship Conference will examine how church liturgy and worship practices can better reflect the diversity of modern congregations, says the co-chair of the event’s planning committee, Kate Berringer.

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