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See all of us
Grace has increasingly become my lens for reading both scripture and other people. I have come to think grace—the wildly undeserved favour dispensed by God—is the most important feature of the gospel. Grace helps me ponder alternative understandings of biblical stories. It reminds me that I may not know someone else’s reasoning or the experiences…
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Four tributes, two announcements
With this issue, we bid farewell to columnists Ed Olfert, Joshua Penfold and Joon Park. While we are excited to welcome new columnists, the end of existing columns is a loss. Seasons change. Ed has written about ordinary people, marginal people, broken people and beautiful people, all reflecting the image of God. He has written…
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Readers write: February 9, 2024
History lesson Will Braun’s editorial about Di Brandt (“The institution of messiness,” September 22, 2023) is a valuable piece that I hope many people will read. In the past two centuries, the arts have gone through an unprecedented transition in Western societies, and our institutions—including churches—have often been resistant to that change. In previous centuries,…
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In due season
When I first started working out at a CrossFit gym, my muscles ached constantly. After a few months, I asked one of the trainers, “When does the pain go away?” After clarifying what kind of pain I was referring to, he said, “Oh, that never goes away. This is your new normal.” This seems like…
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Responding to God’s call
New Year’s Day is often a time we reflect on the events and experiences of the past year. It is also the time we look forward to what might lie ahead. At the beginning of 2023, I received an email from Terry Stefaniuk, who was then the moderator of Mennonite Church Saskatchewan. Terry asked if…
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A different kind of yes-man
Since Will Braun’s strong editorial in the December 1, 2023, issue (“What kind of peace church are we?”), the pages of Canadian Mennonite have included some passionate responses. This is a good thing. Perhaps I’ll add one more. I begin with a story. When I volunteered with Circles of Support and Accountability (CoSA), I belonged…
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The unend of this story
How many sermons do you remember from 25 years ago? Likely not many. Even the most meaningful and formative sermons from long ago tend to fade and become less a specific memory and more an unrecallable influential moment; a ripple whose impact remains but becomes indistinguishable the further life goes beyond that moment. I’m sure…
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Thoughts for our unfinished journey
Becoming an intercultural church does not happen by accident or by wishful thinking. It takes a lifetime to create space in which everyone can gather and be welcomed, celebrated, integrated and reconciled to God and one another. This new humanity is neither European nor African, Mennonite nor Pentecostal, tradition-bound nor law-observant, but a redeemed community…
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Speaking in tongues: 5 responses to 2 key stats
The following is adapted from a sermon that Kevin Barkowsky, pastor of Sherbrooke Mennonite Church in Vancouver, preached on January 28. Reprinted with permission. Key Stat #1: Across the world, English Mennonite churches are shrinking, and non-English Mennonite churches are growing. At Sherbrooke, our prayer is to really let it sink in what God is…
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Brave birds still fly through fog
The other Sunday, the chairs in our sanctuary were pulled up to round tables. You know you’re in for something different when that happens, and this extrovert with opinions to spare was pumped. I was going to share the heck out of whatever needed sharing. I couldn’t contain my glee when I discovered there were…
