History

City Gate Leadership Forum is an associate ministry under the umbrella of City In Focus (CIF), a non-denominational Christian chaplaincy to the business and government sectors in British Columbia.

In 2004 Jonathan Bird was asked to join CIF as their Director for Social Sustainability. He assisted CIF’s president by investigating statistics, trends, and best practices in order to advise senior philanthropists and vett funding requests from social service providers, building bridges between the two sectors. Secondly, he assisted CIF in convening and facilitating trans-denominational events and initiatives among Christians in the Lower Mainland.

In 2005 Jonathan began working directly with congregations and Christian social service agencies to discern a shared vision and strategy for joining God’s work in progress toward a city region transformed by the justice and healing power of the gospel – centred on holistic responses to our most vulnerable neighbours.

Homelessness and affordable housing quickly emerged as a unifying concern that touches virtually every parish, requires a holistic response, and engages considerable expertise already present in the Christian community. With help from a representative steering committee, City Gate convened the first bi-annual Church & Affordable Housing Conference in 2006. This regional gathering attracts presenters, participants, and sponsors from the full spectrum of Christian denominations, the nonprofit and business sectors, as well as the three levels of government. These conferences in turn led to a series of housing-related reports and initiatives.

The 2006 and 2008 Housing Conferences confirmed a mandate to provide additional forums where pastors, nonprofit executives and community leaders can forge a common understanding of the city and how God is bringing us together to seek its spiritual and social renewal. A need for professional and organizational development resources also surfaced. Therefore, a call emerged for an “intermediary organization” that can inform, equip, and coordinate the Body of Christ in its diversity and its orthodoxy for urban mission.