Bluegrass band enjoying ‘a real music summer’
After more than two years of putting a pause on performing, Manitoba bluegrass quintet the Stanley County Cut-ups is finally playing again. “I would say that the cogs are back in motion for musicians,” says Jess Reimer, the band’s bassist. For the Cut-ups, this is a busy summer. The group has already played at multiple…
Watch: Highlights from Indonesia
Last month, people from around the world gathered in Indonesia for the Mennonite World Conference’s 17th assembly. In an outdoor venue at a Mennonite seminary on a mountaintop in the city of Salatiga, on the island of Java, Anabaptists from 44 countries gathered for the global church reunion that’s held every six years—or seven, in…
Indonesia 2022 roundup
Mennonite World Conference held its 17th global assembly on July 5 to 10, in various locations in Indonesia. Before this conference, Mennonite-Anabaptist youth and young adults gathered for Global Youth Assembly. Following are reports and reflections about these two events. World assembly small but full of joy MWC assembly crosses barriers to gather in Indonesia Ukraine…
Watch: Rockway sparks community with new music video
What better way to bring a community together than 350 red umbrellas? Starting at the beginning of COVID-19, Rockway Mennonite Collegiate in Kitchener, Ont ., has been working on creating a music video for “Someone to You” by the Banners. The result was uploaded to the school’s YouTube channel last month. “I’m kinda the crazy one…
Ukraine war shakes peace convictions, MWC assembly told
Saying the war in Ukraine has shaken western European Mennonites’ commitment to nonviolence, a French pastor urged Mennonites from around the world to get off the sidelines and work for peace. Hundreds of worshippers heard her message on July 6, the second day of the Mennonite World Conference (MWC) assembly in Salatiga, Indonesia. “We affirmed…
MWC assembly crosses barriers to gather in Indonesia
A colourful display of Javanese music, dance and shadow puppetry kicked off the Mennonite World Conference (MWC) assembly in Salatiga, Indonesia, on July 5. Singing, prayer, a sermon about the mystery of the Incarnation and welcoming remarks from local Anabaptist church leaders were included in the opening ceremony and worship service, held at…
Watch: Ten helpful steps to decolonize our minds
How can Mennonites, with their long colonial history, work toward genuine reconciliation with Indigenous peoples? Mennonite Church British Columbia’s Indigenous Relations Task Group has some ideas. In a video released earlier this year, the group’s members provide a list of 10 actionable steps Mennonites can take to decolonize their minds, and they invite believers to…
Indigenous leader critical of MC Canada decision
One of the co-founders of the grassroots Indigenous-led movement Idle No More says her trust in the Mennonite church has been shaken by Mennonite Church Canada’s recent decision to reduce its Indigenous-Settler Relations (ISR) position from full-time to half-time. Sylvia McAdam (Saysewahum) is a law professor at the University of Windsor who is from the…
Watch: Doug Klassen invites you to Gathering 2022
Doug Klassen, Mennonite Church Canada’s executive minister, personally invites you to Gathering 2022, a nationwide church event happening July 29 to Aug. 1 in Edmonton, Alta. In a video posted on YouTube earlier this month, Klassen outlines the goals for Gathering 2022 and introduces the event’s theme, “We Declare: What we have seen and heard.”…
‘Evening for Ukraine’ raises $220,000
A fundraising dinner to help people affected by the current war in Ukraine began with a man who had vivid memories of leaving Ukraine as a five-year-old in the mid-1940s. The man phoned Gerd Bartel, a well-known member of Peace Mennonite Church in Richmond, with the simple question, “What can we do to help people…
