Gathering footprints of faith at Mennonite World Conference assembly
I can hardly find words to describe the experience of worshipping, singing, eating and fellowshipping with about 7,500 others at Mennonite World Conference (MWC) assembly, held in Harrisburg, Pa., this summer. We came from so many different countries, speaking so many different languages, yet connected to each other by a common confession of faith. What…
The future of MCC
Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) has long been part of the DNA of the North American Anabaptist church, linking us to the world and providing a sense of relation to “the least of these.” It has served as an informal seminary, immersing thousands of us in realities that have enriched us and, in turn, enriched our…
Readers write: August 31, 2015 issue
Mennonites should denounce Canadian arms sales Peter McKenna, chair of political science at the University of Prince Edward Island, questions the Canadian arms deal with Saudi Arabia in an article in The Chronicle Herald published June 9. He quotes from Michael Harris’s polemical book, Party of One that Preston Manning said, “Words don’t mean much…
Engaging change, pursuing the Spirit
Life is never static. As I transition from eleven years of leadership with Mennonite Church Canada into a season of semi-retirement and new opportunities, I’m struck by the parallels between the endemic and essential aspects of change in personal life and in church life. In fond farewell, I offer a few reflections on change for…
Tribes
On a recent visit to extended family, I greeted my nephew’s wife Emily and their year-old son Kenneth. She immediately thrust her child out to me, introducing him to his “auntie from away.” Like a thirsty desert traveller, I drank in the sweetness of the youngest family member, who settled without protest into my eager…
Ripples of generosity
Hollywood loves a good surprise ending. My wife and I experienced that first-hand when we recently watched the Nicholas Sparks film, The Longest Ride. It is a romance with parallel storylines involving a modern-day young couple whose lives are interrupted by the discovery of each other, and an old man, who recounts his undying love…
Fast food church isn’t good for our health
There seems to be a growing interest in the “slow church” movement as an alternative to “fast food church.” What is fast food church? Sociologist George Ritzer in his book The McDonaldization of Society (1993) claims the fast-food industry has become the defining paradigm for more and more sectors of western society and increasingly the…
Readers write: August 17, 2015 issue
TRC not a road map forward Re: “What do we take away from the TRC?” editorial, June 22, page 2. What do we take from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission? Not much, I am afraid. The Canadian TRC has documented a sordid chapter in Canada’s history, a chapter that has left many scarred. That injustice…
A word from the MC Sask moderator
As the new moderator of Mennonite Church Saskatchewan, I am dealing with feelings of anticipation, apprehension, excitement and a little fear. As with the other area churches, we are an association of individual churches. These churches are located in different areas, understand some scripture slightly differently, and see their role of living out the Christian…
Mission drift
In the last couple decades, most churches caught the mission statement bug. To revisit, renew, or finally wrestle with a reason for being is crucial for any organism. As human beings we all eventually ask the big “why” of existence, so why should it be any different for groups of human beings? Sometimes, however, these…
