CMBC choir
George Wiebe conducts the Canadian Mennonite Bible College (CMBC) choir in an impromptu song on a B.C. ferry while on tour in May 1966. The choir gave 24 performances in 17 days, and 39 of the 43 singers also spoke at these events. The tour was an important community-building event for the choir members, but…
Readers write: December 12, 2016 issue
Is the Doctrine of Discovery yesterday’s news? Re: “Discovering humility” column, Sept. 26, page 7. It seems Pope Paul III may have spoken to the Doctrine of Discovery already, in his 1537 papal encyclical: “We define and declare . . . that, notwithstanding whatever may have been or may be said to the contrary, the…
The new normal now
For the past two months I have been living with post-concussion syndrome after an incident that involved a bear, a rock and the rain. The prognosis for me is very good. Improvement has been steady and gradual—sometimes too gradual for my liking—but likely I will not sustain any long-term damage. While I am beginning to…
Are we living in the last millennium?
No one would doubt that Stephen Hawking, the Cambridge University theoretical physicist and cosmologist, is one of the more brilliant minds of recent times. The guy forgets more in a day then I’ll learn in a lifetime. The Theory of Everything, the movie of his marriages, his journey with early-onset Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS—more commonly…
Church wants to spread the ‘Living Word’
Church of the Living Word in Ottawa became an emerging church in Mennonite Church Eastern Canada in 2009, although it was founded four years earlier. Church of the Living Word has some members, including Pastor Getachew Woldeyes’s wife, who belonged to Meserete Kristos Church in Ethiopia, a Mennonite World Conference (MWC) member church. Most of…
Understanding opponents of LGBTQ inclusion
Officially, the resolution creating greater openness to LGBTQ people received 85 percent support at the Mennonite Church Canada assembly. That number is incomplete—more on that below—but it establishes a new narrative in which a majority within MC Canada expresses a degree of openness toward LGBTQ inclusion. So what about the people excluded from that narrative?…
Viewpoints: Calls for understanding and repentance
These are two responses to Will Braun’s ‘Understanding opponents of LGBTQ inclusion’ column. No. 1: Seeking ways to move forward By Lois Epp I agree with Will that circumstances surrounding the Being a Faithful Church (BFC) vote at this past summer’s Mennonite Church Canada assembly leave open questions. The majority at the assembly supported the…
Coaldale baptism
This classic baptism photo from Coaldale Mennonite Brethren Church has been incorrectly dated as from the 1940s. Dedicated volunteers, who have a long-standing passion for the history of the church and a long institutional memory, believed there was an error in the description. With some effort, they found two newspaper reports that gave the details…
Readers write: November 21, 2016 issue
Reader supports Mennonite call to ‘speak up’ Re: “Mennonites should speak up about Muslim head coverings” letter, Oct. 10, page 10. This letter is right on. We have had a business in a non-Mennonite area for many years. Our customers came from every origin. Our employees never distinguished between the ethnic dress of anyone. Growing…
On being Martha
Hospitality makes my heart sing. Preparing a comfortable space, serving up new dishes, conversing with guests and attending to their individual needs: these are among my greatest joys. Maybe that’s why the story of sisters Mary and Martha in Luke 10:38-42 has always troubled me. I confess that, as one who loves to host, it’s…
