Get access to all Canadian Mennonite subscriber content.

 

Canadian Mennonite is now published monthly. We want to stay in touch between issues with concise weekly emails that offer timely news from the Anabaptist world and behind-the-scenes reflections on articles we're working on. 
 

As a valued subscriber, you have three options.

 

A. The full package. Receive the print magazine AND the emailed PDF (this looks just like the PDF but in digital form) PLUS the new weekly emails.

B. Digital-only. Receive the magazine in PDF form via email as well as the new weekly emails.

C. Print-only. Receive only the print magazine.

 

If you already receive Canadian Mennonite as a PDF, the new service is already included in your subscription. 

 

If you are currently in category C, you can add digital service by:

• Completing this FORM.
• Emailing Lorna in our office.

 

At Canadian Mennonite, we love the print magazine and will continue to provide you with thoughtful and in-depth articles that inspire and inform.Email service is optional but it's a great way to get time-sensitive material between print issues. Comments and questions are welcome too.

 

If you currently only receive your magazine by mail, don’t miss out! Connect your email address to your subscription today. Choose theoption below that is best for you.

 

• Complete this FORM.
• Email Lorna in our office.

You will get one email per week from Canadian Mennonite, keeping you connected and informed. Once per month, you’ll receive the full issue by mail and email.

 

We are looking forward to connecting with you!

Tobi Thiessen, Publisher

 

Educating, inspiring, informing and fostering dialogue on issues facing Mennonites in Canada

 

Vision 2024 to 2026

Using multiple media and an independent journalistic lens, Canadian Mennonite amplifies the stories of the church. With regular, direct access to 8,500 MC Canada households and others online, we seek to nurture a nationwide sense of shared belonging. Through stories, news and ideas, we want people to feel connected to the beautiful broader faith community.

We’re eager to experiment and evolve while faithfully serving committed, long-time readers. We invite your continued support as we revamp the magazine and draw out the gifts of a new generation.

 

MennoCreative: empowering new voices

CM feels called to experiment with new ways to tell the church story. We want to engage new audiences and give voice to as broad a cross-section of the church as possible.

To achieve this, we are developing the MennoCreative initiative. We will offer creative next-generation church folk 6- to 18-month residencies to experiment with new media according to their own gifts and interests. They can tell Anabaptist stories and examine issues through investigative journalism, podcasting, photojournalism, documentary film, graphic design or some combination of these. Their work will invigorate CM, broaden the way we communicate, and generate new ways to connect people and churches across the country.   CM will begin accepting MennoCreative proposals by fall 2024, scaling up to support 2 to 3 projects per year by 2026.

CM will continue to hire student interns to encourage their skills in service of the church.

We will continue to host online CM Events, where we moderate a panel discussion on contentious issues connected to faith and discipleship. 

 

Monthly magazine: retaining news focus, honouring existing readers

Starting in Spring 2024, Canadian Mennonite will be published 12 times per year under the Every Home Plan with the churches of MC Canada. This allows church attendees to receive the magazine at home if they desire and ensures no one is required to have internet service to stay informed and connected.

CM will redesign the magazine in early 2024, and the monthly magazine would include four special issues per year, with articles solicited around specific topics. The current mix of features, news articles, columns, letters and Milestones announcements would continue. New content would be integrated from MennoCreative projects.

 

Website: sharing our story with the world

With content generated by MennoCreative and the magazine, the CM website will be a digital hub for anyone searching for information about Mennonites in Canada. A free email sign-up from the website will let church insiders and interested outsiders stay informed and engaged in conversations about faith.

 

 

Posted December 15, 2023:

Starting in April 2024, Canadian Mennonite magazine will be printed 12 times per year instead of 22. Many readers encouraged the change.

In the Canadian Mennonite(CM) survey, carried out from July to October 2023, we heard from nearly 350 people.

In addition, we spoke directly with pastors, church leaders and others across the country.

More than 50 percent of survey respondents suggested that CM reduce print frequency. “I ... don’t have time for all the issues even though I appreciate the content,” said one person. Another said, “fewer issues with more focused content on a theme would be helpful.”

One pastor told us people feel they are wasting paper and resources if they don’t read everything.

Although some respondents like the current frequency, in some cases they see benefits to a slower schedule. “Fewer issues would be good if those issues were better quality,” one person said.

This is exactly our plan. We believe we can do a better job of writing, editing, photography and design if we take more time between issues. We will delve more deeply and give more consideration to how we foster dialogue.

Plenty of people encouraged CM to use more, and larger, photographs, but fully 55 percent of respondents were opposed to changing from newsprint to a higher quality paper. “I would save the extra expense of glossy paper, however, larger photos would definitely be advantageous,” wrote one person.

Another said using newsprint is “good stewardship for a magazine that will be read and eventually disposed of.”

We recognize the online survey risked overlooking the views of readers who are not online. “Don’t forget the seniors without computers,” said one respondent. Another wrote by email: “My opinion will not get recorded or included because I’m of the older crowd.” This person did eventually complete the survey.

Other readers, similarly, overcame the tech barrier by asking for help getting online to submit their feedback. A few picked up the phone and called in response to my August 25 editorial.

In addition to asking your opinion on print frequency and paper quality, we asked how CM can best serve the church family across Canada in this era. We have been publishing church news since 1953. Seventy years later, it’s worth asking what methods work best to connect our church community and to invite others to join our conversations about faith and life from an Anabaptist perspective.

For those who are disappointed about the reduction in the number of issues per year, I want to say that we remain fully committed to a strong print magazine. We love print and we know many of you do too. We are even hopeful that prioritizing quality over quantity will draw new readers to join us in the thoughtful dialogue for which this magazine is known.

We also need to be tech-savvy and offer church news in digital forms to engage the church community in the online sphere.

While the survey was underway, CM was also in conversation with Mennonite Church Canada and the regional churches about our publishing agreement. In place since 1998, the agreement allows anyone who attends a Mennonite Church Canada congregation to subscribe to CM at a cost paid collectively through the church. In October, the CM board and the Joint Council of Mennonite Church Canada agreed to a new three-year agreement that extends this Every Home Plan, as we call it, and includes support for some new initiatives that CM will start in 2024.

 

Watch this space for more details about our plans.