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The Society of Jesus was founded in Paris in 1534 by Saint Ignatius Loyola, a Spanish soldier who underwent a profound religious experience while recovering from serious wounds.

​Founded in 1834, the St. George's Society of Toronto is one of Canada's oldest philanthropic organizations.

The first Buddhists to set foot in Canada were likely Japanese and Chinese labourers who came to work on the railroads and in the mines in the 19th century. However, it was Japanese Canadians who first established institutional Buddhism in this country. In 2006, the Parliament of Canada voted unanimously to make His Holiness the Dalai Lama an honorary Canadian citizen. In the 2011 National Household Survey (NHS), 366, 830 Canadians identified as Buddhist.

The World Sikh Organization (WSO) of Canada is a non-profit organization. As an advocate for human rights in Canada, Punjab and around the world, WSO Canada has been involved in several significant court cases. This has helped develop Canadian human rights laws and customs.

All Christian churches of the "Reformed" tradition derive from the 16th-century Protestant Reformation and from Calvinism. Early Scottish settlers brought Presbyterianism to the Maritimes and central Canada in the late 18th century. In the 2011 National Household Survey (NHS), 472,385 Canadians identified as Presbyterian.

The term "Baptist" is derived from the name given to Christians who were baptized after they made a profession of faith, rather than baptized as infants. Baptists are distinct from other Christians who practice "paedo" or "infant" baptism. In the 2011 National Household Survey (NHS), 635,840 Canadians identified as Baptist.

Anglicanism is that tradition in Christianity whose members are in full communion with the see of Canterbury, England. Originally confined to the British Isles, the Church of England has spread to many parts of the world. In the 2011 National Household Survey (NHS), 1,631,845 Canadians identified as Anglican.

The Greek word katholikos means "general" or "universal." It refers most commonly to the Christianity that is in communion with the pope and the Church of Rome, that is, the beliefs and practices of a Catholic Church. The modern ecumenical movement often refers to all Christians as sharing in the church's Catholicism, which is derived from the universal headship and reign of Christ. In the 2011 National Household Survey (NHS), 12,810,705 Canadians identified as Catholic.

Midewiwin, or Grand Medicine Society, is a spiritual society found historically among the Algonquian of the Upper Great Lakes (Anishinaabe), northern prairies and eastern subarctic. Once widespread, the Midewiwin became less prevalent after the arrival of Europeans in the 18th and 19th centuries. Today, the largest Midewiwin societies are found in parts of Ontario, Manitoba, Wisconsin and Minnesota.

The United Church of Canada was formed 10 June 1925 by union of the Presbyterian Church in Canada, the Methodist Church (Canada, Newfoundland and Bermuda), the Congregational Churches of Canada, and the General Council of Local Union Churches. In the 2011 National Household Survey (NHS), 2,007,610 Canadians identified as members of the United Church of Canada.

This text is from the free Toronto in Time app, which was created by The Canadian Encyclopedia and is available from the App Store and the Google Play store. Visit its companion website, which is linked below, to explore all the features of the app online.

The Mormon Church was founded in 1830 in upstate New York. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, by far the largest Mormon denomination, is the only one of significance in Canada. There are currently eight Mormon temples in Canada.

Roman Catholic Church, see Catholicism in Canada.

Ultramontanism was a school of thought of the Catholic Church which promoted supreme papal authority in matters of spirituality and governance. Ultramontanism rejected modern ideals in favour of the supremacy of Catholicism and the Catholic Church in public life. This school of thought was particularly influent in the French-Canadian society during the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century.

L’Arche is a not-for-profit social service agency that creates and runs supportive communities for people with intellectual disabilities. Founded in 1964, L’Arche builds communities where people with and without intellectual disabilities work, play, live and learn together. L’Arche Canada is part of the International Federation of L’Arche Communities. L’Arche International operates 153 communities worldwide in 38 countries. The organization has over 10,000 members with and without intellectual disabilities worldwide. In Canada, L’Arche operates 31 communities in nine provinces as of 2020.

Christmas is celebrated in various ways in contemporary Canada. In particular, it draws form the French, British and American traditions. Since the beginning of the 20th century, it had become the biggest annual celebration and had begun to take on the form that we recognize today.

​Two-Spirit, a translation of the Anishinaabemowin term niizh manidoowag, refers to a person who embodies both a masculine and feminine spirit. Activist Albert McLeod developed the term in 1990 to broadly reference Indigenous peoples in the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) community. Two-spirit is used by some Indigenous peoples to describe their gender, sexual and spiritual identity. (See also Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Rights in Canada.)