Volume 20, Number 12
Assembly: Pray for grace
Prospects for an intense conversation on several issues appear to be gaining traction for our upcoming assembly in Saskatoon in July.
An open letter on Future Directions
We are a group of pastors from each of the five area churches who have gathered around the current Future Directions Task Force conversations in an effort to understand and respond together. We write as younger pastoral leaders with hopes for many years yet in service to the Mennonite church in Canada, and so with a significant stake in this ongoing process.
Prayer of preparation for Assembly 2016
As delegates prepare to gather for Assembly 2016, a group of 10 pastors from across Mennonite Church Canada wrote an open letter on the Future Directions process.
Readers write: June 6, 2016 issue
Recommendation of same-sex inclusion will lead to exodus
Re: “It could soon be ‘time to run’ ” letter, April 25, 2016, page 10.
‘Who’ before ‘how’
Mennonites are blessed with traditions and aspirations that many admire: nonviolent peacemaking, mutual aid, voluntarism, relief efforts, generosity and so on. But these values alone do not inherently communicate the one whose name we bear as Christians.
Lessons from spilled milk
“Don’t cry over spilled milk.” This little English phrase must have been coined by a parent watching her child pour milk into a cup. When our emerging independence turns to “needing” to pour our own milk, a parent can only watch with horror. The cup is off-centre, the pitcher trembles, and the liquid is like a tsunami bursting onto a beach.
Dish washing
In 1963, the Canadian Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches held its annual convention in Herbert, Sask. Here, dishes were washed by hand and, of course, re-used as other delegates waited in line.
In a 21st-century storm of change
A seminar for pastors may have begun with marine imagery, but it was the cascade of effects that happened in Yellowstone National Park in the United States that caught the imagination of 30 pastors gathered at Conrad Grebel University College on May 11, 2016.
Saskatchewan pastors wrestle with Scripture
“People assume that reading the Bible should be easy,” said Derek Suderman, adding, though, “That’s not the way the Bible works.” If they are to truly understand Scripture, they must be prepared to wrestle with it.
‘Learning how to listen is a journey’
Mennonite Women Manitoba organized and hosted Winnipeg’s first-ever Sister Care seminar at Bethel Mennonite Chuch in mid-May, drawing women of all ages from multiple congregations.
Sister Care was developed and is now presented worldwide by Carolyn Heggen, a psychotherapist specializing in trauma recovery, and Rhoda Keener, Sister Care’s director.
Vancouver pastor ordained
Lydia Cruttwell
Lydia Cruttwell, pastor of First United Mennonite Church in Vancouver, was ordained to the ministry on Pentecost Sunday, May 15, 2016, in a joint worship service with First United Spanish Mennonite Church. Mennonite Church B.C. executive minister Garry Janzen conducted the ordination. Also present were former First United Mennonite pastors Helmut Isaak and Ingrid Schultz, and retired MC B.C.
Disparaging ‘the Donald’ plays into his hand
“America is again ablaze with partisan divisiveness.” That’s how I started an article during the presidential campaign of 2012. But the days of Barack Obama battling Mitt Romney seem pedestrian compared to the current convergence of reality TV and reality.
Friesen began first Canada-wide English paper for Mennonites
Theodore (Ted) Friesen of Altona, Man., who died at the age of 95, left behind a rich legacy of service to Mennonites in Canada. A partner with his two brothers in D.W. Friesen and Sons (Friesens Corporation since 1976), a printing and stationery business founded by his father, Ted was also deeply committed to the church and its institutions.
Pennsylvania Dutch a language with merit
Pennsylvania Dutch has often been ridiculed and viewed as a corrupted German dialect with a mishmash of English words, but author Mark Louden argues that it is actually a distinct language with a proud heritage. The fact that it continues to be spoken, living for hundreds of years within an English-language society, makes it quite remarkable.
Shenk adds to Christian-Muslim dialogue
David W. Shenk’s latest book, Christian. Muslim. Friend.: Twelve Paths to Real Relationship, comes at an opportune time for Canadian Christians, since the country has received more than 25,000 refugees from Syria since last fall. While Syria is a multi-faith society, the majority of these refugees are Muslim.
Raising awareness, raising funds
A young man from southern Ontario is cycling across Canada this summer to raise awareness of mental health issues, while also raising funds for the Defeat Depression campaign.
‘It’s fun being on this ride together ...’
Three recent graduates of the University of Waterloo (UW), Ont., who resided at Conrad Grebel University College, are pouring their energies full-time into their own startup company.
Perry Everett, Graham Thomas and Benjamin Rasera graduated in April and are the founders of Arylla Inc., which aims to bring an end to the counterfeiting industry.
