The Simeon Initiative, named after Simeon who bridged the Old and New Testaments, seeks to confront rising antisemitism in Canada. Christian leaders—clergy and lay—will work alongside Jewish counterparts to build a foundation of solidarity, mutual respect, and action against hatred. The Simeon Initiative originated in September 2024, when the Rev. Dr. Andrew Bennett, Director of Faith Community Engagement at Cardus, a Christian-led non-partisan think tank, launched the Canadian Christian Declaration on Antisemitism, which was signed by more than 700 Christian clergy from across Canada. This declaration serves as a foundational commitment to stand with the Jewish community in the face of rising antisemitism. The Simeon Initiative—a partnership between Cardus and the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA)—launched at a two-day summit in summer 2025. Participants engaged in keynote presentations, expert panels, and roundtable discussions exploring antisemitism, relations between Christians and Jews, and concrete ways to foster solidarity at the most local level. The principal outcome of the summit was the launch of “The Year of Encounter”—a commitment by participants to initiate joint projects between churches and synagogues in their local communities, a phase which is currently ongoing throughout 2026.

The Rev Dr. Andrew Bennett is a Senior Fellow at Cardus, leading our Simeon Initiative. A champion of religious freedom and public Christian faith domestically and internationally, Father Deacon Andrew served as Canada’s first Ambassador for Religious Freedom and led Global Affairs Canada’s Office of Religious Freedom from 2013 to 2016. He simultaneously served as Canada’s Head of Delegation to the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA). From 2016-2026, Father Deacon Andrew held various research and public-facing roles at Cardus, including founding Director of the Cardus Religious Freedom Institute, Programme Director of the Faith Communities research programme, and finally Director of Faith Community Engagement. In 2021, Cardus launched the Communio network for young Christian professionals under his leadership. In 2024, he founded the Simeon Initiative which brings together Jewish and Christian leaders in an authentic encounter to combat antisemitism in Canada.

In late April 2026, Fr. Dcn. Andrew assumed the role of Executive Director at Calgary’s Clear Water Academy, a leading Catholic independent school in western Canada. He holds the position of Senior Fellow at the Religious Freedom Institute in Washington, DC. He is an ordained deacon in the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church and serves at a Calgary parish.

Below are Program Guides for the Year of Encounter, each  with a facilitators’ guide and ready-to-photocopy handouts.

Purpose

The guides intend to support Christian and Jewish congregations in their encounters with one another, by providing ready-to-use programs you can run with your Year of Encounter congregational partner. The goals are to engage congregants relationally, intellectually, and experientially; to build cross-communal relationships; and to learn from each other’s experiences.

What is The Year of Encounter?

Each program guide has the following structure:

• Confirmation of shared commitments
• Spiritual inspiration from both faiths
• A shared activity
• Reflection together

How to Use

We suggest that you select one facilitator from each congregation—clergy or engaged lay leaders—and those facilitators prepare together beforehand. Facilitators and/or clergy should feel free to add your own spin on the program guides, making them work for you. Print the handouts to use during the program. Programs are designed so that a participant can attend only one or up to all five. We hope these guides support you in creating meaningful encounters among your congregants and between your congregations.